‘I’m sorry about that. I got lost and caught in the rain, but I’m here now.’
‘You’d better come through, then.’ He turned towards the doorway of another room.
Meekly she followed him into a dining room, which contained a huge white polished table with ten tall chairs surrounding it. The carpet was pure white and so thick her feet sank into it with every step. She should have offered to removeher wet shoes and could only hope she wasn’t leaving muddy footsteps as she followed him.
‘Sit down.’ He pointed to a chair halfway down, while he sat himself at the head of the table. The woman who had let her in positioned herself to his right. Anna clasped her hands on her lap, hoping to quell the shaking. Her shirt felt damp against her skin and she prayed it hadn’t gone see-through.
‘This is Charlotte.’ Daniel Redfern gesticulated towards the woman. ‘She’s helping me with the interviews today.’
‘Pleased to meet you,’ Anna said.
Charlotte smiled back. ‘And you, Anna.’
Anna was glad there was at least one friendly face in the room.
Daniel Redfern glanced down at the papers in front of him and then looked up. Anna tried to settle her features into something resembling a calm expression, but as he scrutinised her face she couldn’t help noticing how startlingly blue his eyes were. If only they’d held a hint of kindness, he would be absolutely devastating.
‘I see you’re currently working at The Whigmore Gallery?’ he asked, forcing her to pull her thoughts away from how she would feel if he looked upon her with warmth. She needed to focus on getting this job, not whether she found her potential employer attractive.
‘Yes, that’s right.’
‘Why do you want to leave?’
‘Well, I’ve been there for the last four years and, while it’s a great job, I feel the need to move on to fresh challenges.’
‘Fresh challenges?’ he asked, and she bristled at the sarcasm in his voice.
‘I feel that I’ve learned all that I can in my current position and I want to do something that stretches me.’
‘Right.’ He sounded bored by her answer. ‘I need someone who is reliable. Is that you?’
‘I’m very reliable.’ She stared him straight in the eyes. She wasn’t going to be cowed by his abrupt manner. ‘And whatever job I do, I give it my all.’
‘Why does this particular job interest you?’ he asked, giving nothing back.
She’d rehearsed the answer to this question and had settled on what an honour it would be to work with such a celebrated photographer. But now that answer didn’t sound right. It wouldn’t be an honour working with him, it would be a complete nightmare. She decided to be honest. She was beyond caring now.
‘I’ve enjoyed working with the artists at the gallery, but my real interest is in photography. I feel I could learn a lot from working with you.’
His eyes widened in surprise and she congratulated herself that, for the first time today, she’d managed to elicit some kind of positive response.
‘So you fancy yourself as a photographer, then?’ he asked. ‘Done a media course at university and think you know everything?’
She clenched her teeth before replying, furious — it was obvious he hadn’t even bothered to read her application. How rude was that?
‘No, as my CV quite plainly states, I left school at sixteen and have worked ever since.’ She paused. ‘My mother died when I was fifteen which interrupted my studies. I’ve done a few evening classes but most of what I do is self-taught.’
‘Oh, I see.’ At least he managed to look contrite. ‘I’m sorry for your loss.’
‘Thank you,’ Anna said. ‘You weren’t to know.’
‘All the same, that must have had a pretty big impact on your life.’
‘Yes,’ she said simply. ‘Which is why I want to learn as much as I can to follow my dream and make my mother proud.’
‘Of course.’ He nodded. Silence hung in the air, until he seemed to pull himself together. ‘There will be quite a lot of boring, dogsbody jobs to do, like making sure all my equipment is packed and ready for shoots, uploading photos onto the website and keeping my diary. How would you cope with that?’
‘I’d be quite happy to do whatever the job takes. Mundane or not.’
