"Look, hiring Claire served two purposes. We'd already planned to hire in-house developers down the road. Using third-party contractors to maintain these customizations isn't a long-term solution. And, yes, hiring her now came with the added benefit of soothing the leadership team over the security breach. We need her and it made them happy."
"So she's not a snitch."
"She's not a snitch." Jackie sat back in her chair.
Noah's shoulders loosened, and he relaxed in his. A knot unfurled in his belly. He hadn't realized how badly he wanted that rumor to be false.
"And the VIG guys? Are their jobs safe?"
Jackie raised an eyebrow. "As far as I know. Vickerman hasn't made any noises about any of them being in trouble. Wesley was new and Dan Vickerman took full responsibility for the failure of his screening process."
"Good. They've been worried." Another knot of tension unraveled.
She made a note on her notepad. "I'll let him know so he can reassure them. Anything else?" She put down her pen and rested her hands on her desk, fingers entwined.
"Yes, one more thing. And mostly because I'm curious. Where was this job posted? And did you get many applicants?" Although the question felt a little out of line for him—what business was it of his to ask about the job posting—it had just occurred to him to wonder how they found her. And, well, Jackie had opened the door. Now he waited to see if she'd tell him to mind his Ps and Qs or if she'd actually answer.
"We posted both internally and externally and received quite a few CVs—er, résumés." She rolled her eyes when he snickered. "Give me a break. I'm still working on Americanizing my words. Back to the point. Claire was better qualified than most external candidates and both internal applicants." She raised an eyebrow at him and waited, giving him her best resting bitch face. "Anything else you think you need to know?"
He smiled. "No. Thank you for sharing." He winked at her and she rolled her eyes.
"Okay. Now, what do you think of Claire?"
Noah rested his right ankle on his left knee and rubbed his thumb along the inside of the chair's armrest, before crossing his arms. Thoughts of Claire's soft drawl on his voicemail recordings flashed through his mind, and he shoved away the unwelcome memory to focus on Jackie's question.
"She's a pain in the arse. I've spent the past month explaining how everything works. Every week it's a new slew of questions. She knows very little about manufacturing or how we do things." Realizing how negative he sounded, he uncrossed his arms and held up his hands to ward off any objections. "To be fair, she's a quick study. And, now that I know she's not a corporate informer…" He rubbed his neck and sighed. "Look, she's fine. She asks smart questions and is eager to learn. Honestly, my biggest complaint is the drag on my time. I'm already split between the project and my regular job, and now I'm cutting into that time again to train someone new."
Jackie leaned forward. "Exactly what I want to talk to you about. You've done an excellent job of bringing Claire up-to-date. She's able to ask knowledgeable questions like she's worked here for months instead of weeks. You've always been good at communicating information to people who have no clue." She paused, doodling on her notepad, before looking him in the eye.
Noah cocked his head and waited. She'd spill it soon enough.
"How's work back in England? You still happy in your position?"
He blinked, caught off guard by the sudden shift in topic. His gaze dropped to his shoes, as he pondered how quickly he could beat feet out of there. Dread crept up his spine as the conversation entered shaky territory. Wondering where she was going with this, he asked, "Why do you ask?"
"No reason. We haven't talked in a while. You've been a production manager for a few years now, yeah?"
He tried not to fidget under her scrutiny. All his efforts to squash his growing dissatisfaction with the job and in two minutes, she'd pulled it straight to the forefront of his mind. But he wasn't ready to share those thoughts with anyone yet. He was too confused about what he was feeling to actually verbalize anything to anyone else.
"Almost four years now, and it's going great. We've gained some efficiencies on the line that have made everyone's job easier and increased productivity."
Jackie lifted her coffee for another drink. "And you still enjoy working for Mitch?"
Noah's impatience reared. Whatever she wanted, he wished she'd get to the point. "What are you after, Jackie? I mean, I know IT directors have to scheme and plan to get what they need because the top cats don't comprehend technology, but we're friends. Stop fishing and just spit it out. Please."
She put her cup down and smiled. "You're right, we're friends. I'm trying to catch up with a friend and doing a poor job of it. I'm glad things are going well for you. You've become quite the leader."
Noah squirmed at the praise. Before he could comment, Jackie's phone buzzed and she apologized for needing to take the call. Noah snagged the opportunity to excuse himself.
Noah shook off the weird conversation with Jackie and headed to the sales branch of the executive hallway. The CSO's admin, Cheryl Riser, was an interesting character. And, while she didn't have a fancy title or any official authority, the woman wielded a surprising amount of power in the organization. She was the right hand of the exec in charge of sales and distribution. Her twenty years with the company meant she knew more about its history than even he did. Noah liked to stay on her good side, which helped him get all the juicy gossip and inside information at Caprock. In the past, she'd known about people leaving, new product lines being considered, and even one acquisition well before it was public knowledge. If anyone knew about new job opportunities, it would be Cheryl.
Teresa from procurement sat in the guest chair at Cheryl's desk with a large cup of coffee steaming in her hands.
"Ah, two lovely ladies for the price of one," he said.
Both giggled, and Cheryl came around her desk to give him a hug.
"Welcome back. How long are you here this time?" Cheryl asked, while Teresa waved at him.
