License to Shop (9 page)

The house was clean enough
for the cleaning party now, at least. There were still lots of
things that needed to be tossed, put away, or given away. There
were marks on the walls and light switches, stains on the kitchen
counters that needed some bleach and elbow grease. And the rug, now
that we had a dog, would need to be vacuumed at least three times a
day. But the worst layers of crud were gone, so my reputation, such
as it was, among the PTA moms, would not be totally
ruined.

CHAPTER SEVEN

The One Who
Makes You Want a Real Job

“
You’re kidding. He actually took the puppy to work with him?”
Celeste had her phone out on the table, texting notes to herself
about the job as we talked. She was an enviable
multi-tasker.

“
Other professors do it,”
I explained. “The campus is pretty dog-friendly.”

“
But…a puppy?”

Belatedly, I remembered
that Celeste had two dogs, a cat, and six chickens at home. She
definitely qualified as an experienced pet owner. “Should I be
worried?” I took out my phone and checked it. No frantic messages
from Seth.

“
I guess not. He’s a big
boy. If anything goes wrong, I’m sure he can handle it.”

“
I hadn’t realized how
much he missed having a dog.”

“
What do you have against
critters, Molly?”

I looked down at my
sweater. “They shed, for one.”

“
Never mind. Forget I
asked. We’re here to celebrate your graduation to real
work.”

“
I haven’t even finished
the interview yet, please don’t jinx it.” I filled her in on the
interview interruptus, much to her amusement. “That puppy needs to
be called False Alarm.”

“
I think we’re going to go
with Jasmine. Anna has her heart set on it. And she is a sweet
puppy, even if she sheds.”

“
Okay. We’ll make a pet
person out of you yet. Now, what are you going to have for
dessert?”

I didn’t hesitate.
“Chocolate mousse, of course. Do you want to share?”

She shook her head. “I
want one of my own.”

When the mousses came, she
stuck a candle in mine and lit it with a cute trick lighter that
looked like a Pez dispenser. “Make a wish.”

“
It isn’t my birthday,” I
protested.

“
It’s the start of a new
chapter in your life. That’s like a birthday in my book. Now, make
your wish.”

I made my wish, blew out
my candle, and enjoyed every bite of the mousse.

“
What did you wish?” she
asked, signaling for the bill.

“
To—” I started, thinking
about the likelihood that my mother would actually approve of the
results of the housecleaning party, never mind the idea of a
housecleaning party to begin with.

“
Stop! You’re not supposed
to tell me.”

“
Then why did you
ask?”

She checked the bill and
tucked her credit card into the sleeve of the folder. “Because I
wondered if you would tell me.” She grinned cheekily as the server
grabbed the check folder from the table. Her eyes followed the
woman to the register terminal that was visible to us
both.

I noticed her close survey
of the waitperson. “Do you think she’s going to add items to the
bill while you’re not watching?”

“
Better to be safe than
sorry.”

“
Aren’t you suspicious
today.”

“
It happens.”

“
I know.” The lists talked
about it. But it hadn’t happened to me yet, and I really liked to
think that people were more honest than dishonest.

“
In fact, I think it must
be getting worse.” Celeste gave her traditional
the-world-is-going-to-hell-in-a-handbasket head shake. “The lists
are buzzing with news of credit card skimming, and unauthorized
credit accounts being opened in our area.”

“
It probably just seems
worse because everyone is talking about it.”

“
Maybe. But that’s why I
watch. You should too, especially since you are trusting enough to
tell people what you wished when you blew out your wish-candle just
because they ask.” She laughed.

“
Good luck today,” Seth said as he kissed me
goodbye and left the house with the puppy, now firmly named
Jasmine, over Ryan’s objections.

“
Thanks. I need
it.”

He held out the puppy. “Do
you want to take Jasmine with you. Maybe it will give you extra
points with Henriette?”

“
No thanks.” I thought of
how heartlessly eager Dr. Stubbs had been for Kecia to get rid of
the puppies. “I think Jasmine will be safer with you.”

I dropped the kids off at
school and did a quick coffee shop job in the time between car pool
duty and the interview. Watching the barista activity at the coffee
shop reminded me that all it took to do a job well was to pay
attention to the details. Maybe that was all it would take to get
the job, too.

Kecia had called to inform
me that, despite my interrupted interview, I’d been moved to Round
2. That meant I wouldn’t be facing just Henriette Stubbs, but two
other senior staff members in the Admissions department. This was
the interview that really mattered. The one that would get me the
job. Or not.

The two other people, a
man in his late twenties, and an older woman with gray hair pulled
back in a severe bun, smiled at me in friendly greeting. Dr. Stubbs
did not. She led off with, “Good morning, Ms. Harbison. I hope we
do not have a repeat of that annoying fire alarm today.” While the
words were perfectly fine, her tone seemed to imply that I had been
the cause of said fire alarm.

“
I hope so, too,” I
agreed. “I can’t afford to adopt another puppy.” I brushed at
Jasmine’s hair, firmly embedded in my pants. “My budget for lint
brushes is already maxed out.”

No one laughed. I guess
adopting the puppy did not get me even one point. That seemed
unfair.

The young man was Robert
Quartermaine, the star Admissions Counselor du jour. He was almost
as movie-star handsome as James Connery, the green-eyed FBI agent
I’d had to deal with last month, when I was dragooned into looking
for a serial killer.

Robert’s eyes were not
green, they were a warm hazel, but the rest of him was on par with
Agent Connery. He dressed well, in a tweed blazer that matched the
color of his eyes, and when he shook my hand, I noticed he wore a
gold signet ring, with a square-cut aquamarine in it. I couldn’t
make out the engraving on the ring, but I assumed it was a
fraternity ring. The perfect accessory for an Admissions
counselor.

He was obviously
Henriette’s pet, and he knew how to curry favor with her. But he
also seemed to like me. He was warm, friendly, asked lots of
questions, and even volunteered that he’d had Seth for freshman
Physics when he was an undergrad.

The interview went well
enough. They asked questions. I answered them without sounding like
an idiot. I asked questions, they answered them as if they were
good questions.

I could swear Robert
Quartermaine was in my corner. But then, I could also swear that he
thought Henriette Stubbs walked on water, which seemed like dubious
judgment to me.

By the time I stood up to
leave, I was sure of one thing. I could manage to get through an
interview without looking like a total loser. But did that mean I
looked like the right candidate for the job?

“
We’ll be in touch,” Dr.
Stubbs said. The words, again, were fine. But the sentiment
underlying them seemed to be regret that she’d have to be in
touch.

As I started to walk out,
she said, “By the way, tell your husband that I’ll be delighted to
attend his get-together.”

Robert Quartermaine joked,
“Molly! You’re having a party and you didn’t invite me? Tell me it
isn’t so.”

I managed to turn and
smile at Dr. Stubbs as I processed what she said. “Great. I look
forward to seeing you.” I smiled at Robert and Dina. “You two are
welcome to drop by, too, if you like.” Seth had invited my
potential new boss to our dinner party Friday night? Was that good?
Or bad? I needed advice. Fast.

Dina said she had other
plans, fortunately. Robert, on the other hand, seemed embarrassed
that his joke had gotten him an invitation. “I was kidding,
Molly.”

“
No, really,” I assured
him. “Seth would love to catch up with a former student who knows
all about the incoming freshman.”

His smile was warm and
mesmerizing. “Then I look forward to it.”

And I looked forward to
getting the job and working with him. It was Dr. Stubbs I wasn’t
sure about.

As soon as I waved goodbye
to Kecia, who was surrounded by a cloud of eager young high school
students, I called Dierde. “Can you talk?”

“
Absolutely. I have
surgery all day tomorrow, so today’s prep work will be light. Want
to meet for coffee?”

“
Thank you!”

“
Molly, this is a good thing,” Deirdre reassured
me, with some amusement. “She’ll get to see you in a more informal
context. And I’m so proud of you for reaching out to your new
colleagues. That’s the way to network, just like we talked about.
Everyone will love you.”

Love me? Not likely. Think
I was up for the job? Possibly. That was my fear. Informal suburban
chaos didn’t seem like the kind of thing to impress Henriette
Stubbs. And no matter how much cleaning got done, my house was not
going to rise above chaos status for very long. Four people and a
new puppy can do a lot of damage to order in a very short
time.

“
I’m not sure. It’s one
thing to be the kind of wife who can throw a party for my husband’s
colleagues. But when one of them may — or may not — be my future
boss, things really get sticky.”

“
Yes, they do,” she said,
suddenly getting serious. “Which is why you need to make yourself a
non-stick surface.”

“
What? Cover myself in
Teflon?”

She laughed, but nodded.
“Nothing should stick to you.”

I tried to imagine that
scenario. Nothing sticking to me. Nope. Everything stuck to me.
Worries, dog hair, and random puppies.

I called Deb, sure she’d
have an entirely different perspective. “What’s the big deal? Just
have the party and tell Seth to run interference for you and this
potential boss lady.”

Hmmm. This was not at all
what I thought she would say, but it wasn’t bad advice. If Seth
wanted things to go well for him at work, he could at least make
sure that I didn’t do anything to sink my chances at this job just
because he decided to have a party. I’d bring it up to him after
dinner. After the kids went to bed.

“
Molly, I need you,” Sue, my favorite mystery shopping
scheduler begged.

I resisted. “Sue, I told
you, I’m quitting. You have to find someone else.”

“
I’ve tried. This place is
only two blocks from your house.”

I sighed. “What kind of
shop is it?”

“
Hair. Shampoo and
cut.”

“
Not sure on that one.” I
did need a hair cut. And it was only two blocks from my house. But
I was quitting. I hadn’t realized how hard it would be to actually
quit a job like mystery shopping. How easy it was to say yes to a
ten-minute job here, or a hair cut there. Maybe once I actually had
a real job I would be able to say no with more conviction, and then
stick to it.

“
Twenty minutes, and
you’ll get paid to get your hair cut. That’s a pretty good
bargain.”

I thought about the party.
About my mother coming to visit. I really could use a good
haircut.

“
Okay. When do you need it
done?”

“
Today.”

“
Sue.”

“
I’ll send you the
details.” She hung up before I could change my mind. Smart
woman.

Fortunately, the details
were indeed simple. I was supposed to schedule an appointment for
next week, and then try to walk in to the hair shop for a quickie
haircut. The script was fairly simple. What did they say when they
answered the phone? How quickly did they schedule an appointment?
Did they give me all the information I needed, like cost and
expected amount of time the haircut would take? Easy
peasy.

I had about an hour before
I needed to pick up the kids at school. I decided it would just be
easier to go get the haircut then, rather than explain to Seth why
I needed to go out after dinner to get a haircut. He might
understand, but I’d just rather not see him frown because I’d taken
yet another mystery shop after promising to quit.

The shop directions were
simple, walk in and time how long it took someone to greet me, how
soon they could fit me in, whether they were dressed in proper
uniform, used the proper scripts, whether the various areas of the
shop were clean and tidy, etc.

I suppose, in hindsight, I
should have noticed that there was nothing on the score sheet about
whether the haircut was good or not.