Good question. While Larry had systems admin experience, he wasn't a developer. And Noah certainly wasn't. He was more of an expert user, although his systems knowledge had grown considerably this past year. So what was her role going to be? Where would she fit on the team?
Everyone looked at Rick, who focused on arranging his cards. "Not really. We'll be able to get a feel for her when we talk to her?—"
"And look at her code," Del interrupted.
"And look at her code," Rick finished. He glanced at Noah and Larry. "You can tell someone's skill level pretty quickly from a code review. Also, Jackie sent her résumé to us, which helps." Rick pushed his glasses back into place from where they'd slid down his nose. "Whose turn is it?"
"Jenny, pay attention. Are you in or out?"
"Fold."
Larry gave her a stupefied look and lifted one hand in question. "Why didn't you draw new cards? Do you even know how to play this game?"
Jenny flipped him off and pushed her remaining chips in Noah's direction. "Here. I'm bored. I come here to relax, and all you guys want to do is talk work. Larry, I'm turning on your TV and watching a movie."
"Don't order any on-demand ones. You guys got me in trouble when we were in Singapore."
The group snickered at the memory. Their unspoken rule was if you drank too much and fell asleep, mischief would occur.
Noah wondered if the team was still concerned about their jobs or if they were worried how a new person would disrupt their team dynamics. He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to work out a stubborn knot.
Del picked the conversation back up. "If she doesn't have coding chops, then I'm with Jenny. She's a spy for the management team and VIG is on the hook. I already updated my résumé over the weekend."
Well, shoot, Noah thought. I guess that answers that.
Rick sighed. Noah studied him, trying to decipher if his frustration was from the topic or the game. Rick, much like himself, wasn't much of a talker. He usually listened to everything before offering his input.
"She starts next week. We'll know soon enough. Until we see otherwise, we'll assume she's our newest coder. Whose bid?"
Larry scoffed. "I don't care if she can code. I want to know if she's hot."
Noah groaned. "Of course you would think that way." One of these days, Larry's mouth was going to get him in trouble.
Larry eyeballed him. "Like you wouldn't chase a pretty little thing."
Noah shook his head. Larry had been with the company longer than Noah, and remembered every transgression from Noah's early years, including the one that almost broke him. He wished Larry would mind his own business instead of watching everyone else's. Noah learned his lesson from his one and only office romance years before and would not be chasing anything. He was more concerned with how the new girl was going to affect the project's success and if it would impede his quest for advancement.
"Call," Noah said. His three aces won the hand, and he pulled in the pot.
Chapter 2
Claire
"Wheeeee!"
Claire laughed and gripped Lucinda's hand as they rounded the corner of the kidney-shaped bowl again. When her friend had insisted they get out and do something active, she'd never expected Luce to take her to a skatepark. And one so close to her new apartment in downtown Houston!
"I need a break," Claire wheezed, dragging Lucinda toward the grassy seating area where their water bottles awaited them.
"This was such a good idea. I didn't know how much I needed this." Claire swiped at an errant ringlet that slipped free of her hair band before taking a long swig of her water. Normally, she would have braided her unruly red locks for this kind of adventure, but Lucinda had rushed her out the door before she could do anything but grab a hair tie.
Lucinda smirked. "I know, right? But, dude… you are so in love with your new place, I was afraid you'd never leave."
"Not fair! I'm still unpacking. Also, I don't know if you've noticed, but it's scorching out here." Claire grabbed the sunblock lotion from her backpack to reapply. While Luce didn't have to worry about burning with her lovely golden-brown complexion, redheads like her had to pay attention.
"Oh my god, right? I looked it up before getting on the plane. Houston is actually subtropical. It's sooo hot. And the humidity is gross. Girl, you know I love you, but I can hardly wait to get back to my NorCal weather. September should feel like autumn, not the middle of summer still." She scrunched her nose and slapped at a mosquito. "Ew."
Claire grinned at her friend, then checked her watch. "This has been the best distraction ever, but we should get back if we want to shower and rest before dinner."
