Next Time, Read the Fine Print. (Sync & Darkest_Fate)

[Sync]

This was how the ad had read:

WANTED: Person to accompany and assist senior executive of AshTech, Ltd. Role to look after day-to-day needs and requirements of executive while travelling. Would suit someone recently finished high school, about to enter college. Enjoyment of travel, shopping, dinner functions highly advisable. Experience not necessary. Administrative and personal skills an advantage. Open-mindedness and flexibility required. Current driver’s licence an advantage, current passport essential. Good remuneration salary package negotiable. Career options available. Immediate start. To apply, send your CV with cover letter and references to iwantthisassistrole@ashtechltd.com as soon as possible.

As she’d expected, Vivienne Ash – owner and CEO of AshTech Ltd, one of the leading designers and supplies of robotics equipment to manufacturing, and an innovator in the research of biomechanical devices for medical prosthetic purposes – received a large number of responses. She was not surprised that the majority of respondents were female; the references to shopping and formal functions probably drew their attention more. She’d placed the advertisement in a number of newspapers, both local and national, and had also put the ad on a few job-search websites. The ad attracted hundreds of views, and she’d received several dozen responses. Almost a third of the respondents were discarded on cover letter alone; social media and reference-checking helped narrow that list down to a half-dozen that were called in for interview.

Vivienne was certainly no slouch in the brains department. She’d attended Harvard right out of high school, done a double-degree in Robotics and Electronics Engineering and completed the six-year course at age twenty-five with a High Distinction in each degree. After working for a couple of year in the R&D department of a couple of engineering firms, she branched out and started her own company – AshTech was not a very original name, she readily conceded that, but it didn’t have to be. She managed to fill a niche in the robotics field by plying contacts and poaching staff, and quickly built her company up to become a major contender in the national economy. She diversified by bringing in medical staff, surgeons and specialists in neurological and nervous systems, and began looking into the state of prosthetics. By the time she was thirty – two years ago, now – AshTech was a recognised name in the medical industry, as well as the engineering and technology industries. For virtually the entire time Vivienne was almost solely focussed on her work and building her company; her personal life largely took a back seat. Vivienne was noted to have slept at her desk on more than a few occasions.

The downside – if there was one – was that all this extra notoriety and diversity of product brought additional business, and resulted in additional travel. At first it was just interstate travel as she flitted from state conference to state conference; as AshTech grew and its holdings expanded, though, that travel became international, as the demands of industry meant she had to travel to both medical and engineering conferences in other countries. China, Japan, Germany, Australia, Canada, England, Sweden…she’d been to all of those countries, and more. AshTech continued to grow.

She was neglecting herself, though. Oh, she was looking after herself by watching her fitness and diet, but there were other things that simply eating well and exercising couldn’t achieve; Vivienne knew within herself – maybe a secretary or two had suggested it – that she was at risk of burning out if she didn’t slow down, or at least find a way to take care of herself on a personal level. Thus the need for this new role. It was not an official position within AshTech; the role was, while reporting to the CEO of AshTech, a private appointment by and to the CEO, paid for out of the CEO’s own pocket. Of course, the CEO could choose to slot the successful person into AshTech if she wished…if the person was good enough. So this role, the one she had interviewed a half-dozen people – four girls, two boys – for, was to try and address that by having the person be available for dinners, conversation, social activities, massaging…things like that. Of course, the employment contract was rather vague about the duties this role would actually perform, although there was no doubt rom the employment agreement – if the successful applicant ever bothered to read that far, beyond the salary and benefits package information – that the CEO could decide what was and was not necessary of and for the role. And Vivienne had already decided that the role could certainly be used to take care of a few more personal things…gently and subtly, of course, although the privacy and non-disclosure clauses of the contract would ensure that what happened behind closed doors, stayed behind closed doors. In any case, this was a personal and private appointment, not paid for by the company.

Of the interviewees…it was a bit tricky, initially, to sort them out. Vivienne took her time to carefully go over each of the short-listed candidates – CVs, references, notes from discussions, social media profiles – before eventually knocking back one boy and one girl from the list of those she’d definitely interview, although she filed these ones away with AshTech’s HR department for future reference. The remaining four, though, she called in one each day over the course of a week with the intention of making a decision on the Friday:
Monday – Claire Taylor, a competent girl looking at going to college;
Tuesday – Blake Garrett, a young man with an interest in IT;
Wednesday – Paige Carter, a cute young thing not long out of High School;
Thursday – Amy Williamson, a young lady wanting a career in medicine.

On the Friday, she decided to appoint young Paige Carter to the role. Paige was an eager, cute young lady; not a lot of skills on her CV, but very good references and a strong desire and willingness to learn and to do what it took to succeed in the role. There was a fire and determination in Paige that Vivienne found desirable, and it didn’t hurt that Paige was very easy on the eye…during their interview, Vivienne had to bite her tongue to stop herself from making a comment to the extent of how cute Paige was.

On the Monday, Paige came into the AshTech offices again and paperwork was drawn up and signed, with a start of the Monday of the following week; Vivienne made sure Paige was in no doubt that they’d be travelling almost immediately – the Tuesday would see the pair of them heading interstate to a three-day conference; a week after that they’d be flying to Germany for a week-long conference. Paige was, in effect, to be Vivienne’s personal valet and assistant, and would be in part responsible for all of Vivienne’s affairs while they travelled, to leave Vivienne free to focus on the business at hand; Paige had a fortnight to make sure her travel documents were in order and that she was ready to travel internationally…her future at AshTech hung in the balance.

All Vivienne had to do was wait for the girl to officially start.

 

[darkest_fate]

Paige chewed her lip as she stared at the bank account information on her phone. It said she technically had some money left, a piddling amount that wouldn't have bought a meal to go with the coffees she had clutched in one nearly trembling hand. Her money after high school had just dried up, and it didn't help that her grades hadn't been quite stellar. Paige fell right into that horrible gap: not quite dumb enough for college to be an impossibility or even an improbability, but not nearly smart enough to get any particular scholarships. Her family had just enough money to fall short of a lot of financial aid packages, and she was pretty much as white as you could get. So, she'd seen the AshTech job offering as something of a godsend. Considering the amount of traction the company had been getting, and its admittedly impressive CEO, just working in some capacity for them would be absolutely stellar for the resume. Paige had sent almost as a pipe dream: she had a fair amount of high school type references, and she'd done some temp work, but nothing that should've got attention. She'd looked pretty good during her initial interview, though she usually opted for a more casual look. The tattoos would at least be covered up and all, though Paige had unfortunately forgotten to remove her nose ring today.

Nerves kept tying her up today. She felt like her hair was a mess, sticking up everywhere. Her makeup just had to be caked on, despite her having rinsed her face entirely at least twice trying to get it together. There had to be something wrong with the pencil-striped skirt clinging to her hips. Most likely that was because she'd borrowed it from a friend. The blouse she had on top, a sort of creme color, was also from a friend, a different friend, but a friend all the same. The tights were a gift from her mother. The shoes were an aunt's. Pretty much the only thing Paige had on right now that she actually owned happened to be the underwear, which were a lucky black pair that were usually considered lucky for other reasons. But given the skirt and blouse, she literally had no other options: the last thing she needed was a pantie line, or for something to show off a tat, or some other excuse.

Because Paige just knew that Vivienne -God, MISS ASH, call her Miss Ash, think, Miss Ash, do you want to get fired?-- was probably all but looking for a reason to fire her new assistance. Hire some bumbling teenager straight out of college? Who'd all but flubbed the interview, with repeated insistences that she worked hard and could totally do the job as requested gah, I actually used that word, totally. like I'm twelve. Dammit. Paige still didn't know how the hell or why the hell she had this job. She kept looking for some sort of weird reason and all, but figured that maybe the woman just saw herself in Paige. God knows why: Paige was this pale, skinny little thing who had to get piercings and tattoos to cover herself, while Viv--Miss Ash was this tanned, leggy blonde who looked like she should be posing in a magazine cover.

"I'm so totally screwed," Paige mumbled to herself, casting a look around. As she did, she realized that her new boss, Miss Vivienne Ash herself, was right in front of her. Paige nearly flailed, felt herself jerk, barely recover enough to stop the coffee from slopping everywhere. Paige fought the urge to overcorrect even then, swallowing hard, balancing herself as best she could.

"Miss Vivie--Ash," Paige said, nodding. "I just wanted to thank you so very much for this opportunity. I know that you had a lot of different candidates to choose from, and I'm super glad that you picked me. I Promise to do the best I can and all. I even went and got you some coffee to start us off. I made sure to do, ah, a little research and get exactly the sort that you prefer, or at least what you mentioned preferring and, well, yeah, here it is," Paige nodded and held it up again, resisting the urge to start using it as a shield. She should be confident, mature, like she was around her friends. But there was just something about Miss Ash that made her feel all giggly and nervous and very much out of her depth. No amount of preparing could've readied the poor girl for looking at that CEO. Still, she tried. Mostly. And hey, she'd gotten a to-go bag with what Miss Ash had insisted on her packing and everything was ready, so that should count for something, right?

 

[Sync]

As she took the offered coffee, Vivienne had to force herself to not smile at how hard the girl was trying to be what she thought she was expected to be. That was a lot of “I thinks” right there. Vivienne suspected that Paige would be wondering just how she landed the role, given her apparent lack of marketable skills. And the clothing…so very clear at least some of it was not her own. The nose-ring was cute, but not suitable for professional activities – a stud would be fine while the girl was at work. These things could be sorted out.

“Thank you, Paige,” she replied quietly but firmly, soothing but not losing any authority in doing so. The cup was hot, and she sat it down on the desk next to her – her secretary’s desk, as it was, which was where they’d bumped into each other. Vivienne had been unintentionally and unavoidably delayed in getting to the office this morning, which had allowed Paige the time to meet the secretary – Kitomi Tanaka, a porcelain-skinned Japanese woman who’d already been briefed about Paige’s appointment and arrival – find out what Vivienne liked and get the coffee. Vivienne had walked up almost right behind Paige, close enough that she’d heard the mumbled comment. Kitomi smiled faintly and nodded a greeting at the CEO, but otherwise remained silent; she wasn’t overly thrilled about this new role that Paige had filled, given it was outside the company’s HR structure, but it wasn’t a company appointment either, so making the company pay for it would be wrong – the secretary would just have to wait and see how it worked. It had, in part, been Kitomi’s off-hand comments about Vivienne burning herself out that had led to this role being created, after all. For now, Kitomi was, and would be, polite and professional in her dealings with Paige.

For a moment, Vivienne just looked over Paige and took in the girl’s appearance. She saw a young girl who looked to be somewhat uncertain in this environment, probably felt similarly, possibly a bit overwhelmed. After all, she was just out of High School – had a few part-time jobs to get her through school, no doubt; grades were good but not spectacular, as were her prospects. But there was something about the girl that had convinced the CEO to give her a try, so Vivienne had gone with her instinct. She picked up the cup and nodded towards her office.

“Walk with me, Paige,” she instructed in a clear, firm voice, then turned and headed towards her own office. She opened the door, waited for Paige to enter, then closed the door behind the pair. The office was not huge by stereotypical CEO standards – Vivienne’s office was probably no larger than the size of half a tennis court – but it was still big and well-furnished, with a large desk for Vivienne to sit behind, several bookshelves filled with manuals and periodicals and reference materials, a large leather couch, a small table with a few chairs places around it, a large flat-screen TV mounted to one wall…and the obligatory bar-fridge tucked into one corner with a small sink next to it and few glasses set on a shelf above it. “Take a seat,” she added, gesturing to the chairs opposite the CEO’s desk as she walked around it to take her own chair, the coffee cup placed on a precisely-located coaster near the keyboard. Vivienne waited for Paige to sit before speaking again.

“Firstly…welcome,” she began, allowing a little formality to fade and be replaced by some warmth. She was again struck by how cute and innocent Paige looked, but this time there was the added knowledge that there would be a lot of alone time for the pair of them. She reached into her desk drawer and pulled out a manila folder, then pushed the folder across the desk to Paige. “I’m looking forward to working with you as I hope you are with me. This has the potential to be very…interesting, for both of us.” She paused, then nodded at the folder. “In the folder is a copy of the paperwork we signed last week, including the employment agreement, your salary package and benefits, taxation information, and so on. The envelope contains your company credit card – it’s a secondary card to my own, so while I’ll encourage you to use it, if you go overboard I’ll know.” Vivienne leaned back in her chair and cast an appraising look over the young girl.

“I’m sure you’re wondering just what it is you’ll be doing in this role?” She gestured to the cup of coffee sitting on the table. “Little things like that. All the small, personal things that I very likely need but don’t have the time to do myself. Do some shopping for me, make sure my travel arrangements are set, make sure I eat and drink well, take care of my dry cleaning…all those little, personal things. Try to anticipate what I might need or want, and make sure I have it.” She gave the girl a warm smile.

“For now, though…talk with Kitomi, make sure we’re both set to fly out tomorrow, then go out and get yourself some business outfits. There’ll be at least one formal dinner that you’ll be accompanying me to this week, so make sure you’re dressed for that as well. Don’t forget that next week we’re flying out to Germany for a week-long conference – check all that out with Kitomi, too. Anything you’ll need to travel…get it now.” She stopped, reach for the coffee and sipped slowly at it.

“Good coffee…thank you,” she complimented sincerely, her pale blue eyes meeting Paige’s blue-grey ones. “Anything you want to ask me?”

 

[darkest_fate]

"Yes Miss Ash," Paige replied immediately to the order, nodding her head a few times and fighting the glow at getting the name right and responding almost instantly. Unfortunately, she fumbled slightly, literally, when her ankle turned slightly. She recovered, and was relieved to find that there wasn't any throbbing. No, the problem was less a physical one and more Paige resorting to the same mental flogging that had become a nearly depressing norm. She was better than this! Strong! Tough! Independent! The moment she'd turned 18 she'd made the nose ring thing more professionally done and permanent, and she'd gotten some tattoos. Plus she'd done this on her own. So what if she'd fucked up a few grades? She was here; she could do this.

Take a seat. oh shit, when had they gotten...? Paige nodded, spent a few seconds looking around, and took the offered seat. She nodded at the welcome. "Thanks again," she managed, before mentally kicking herself. She had to be more formal, less bubbly teenager, more personal assistant. A folder slid over, and Paige opened it almost immediately. She nodded, chewing her lip as she flipped through the items inside. Some of it made sense. Some made her pause: her eyes widened at the salary, stopping on that and almost missing the other bits. Except that, despite all that independence and maturity talk, she was still a teenager. Those teenage ears heard "credit card' and her nattily done nails quickly sliced open the envelope. Again, Paige had to pause: she recognized the card, and she could already guess the limit. Trying to hide her surprise, she lowered it, focusing on her boss.

Little jobs, shopping. Paige had lied about that part: she fucking hated shopping; worse, her tastes ran closer to trendy and almost punk as opposed to anything classy Miss Ash would want. Still, she thought she could finish it out. "That's pretty much what I figured," Paige said, nodding. "I mean, of course Miss Ash," another flush, a nod, and she was listening again. Germany omigod, she was actually going to Germany? She'd have to try and find a German phrasebook, maybe from the library. She had most of the stuff packed.

"Thank Kitomi; she told me what to get," Paige said, shrugging. "Oh, right, questions," she hesitated for a moment, then shifted, digging into her pockets and pulling a phone, which just happened to be in a bright blue case with a rainbow lightning bolt on it. Paige flicked, nodding. "Okay, um, right, so that covers benefits," she looked at her notes, then at the files, trying to remember what her parents had advised. "Oh, yes, uniform allowance," she said, glad to remember the terms. "like, you said formal dinner. I mean, uh, I haven't exactly---I mean, since it's required, is there an allowance set aside for clothing? And are there certain standards you'd like me to meet?" she paused, nodding as she went through her mental checklist before glancing at the phone. "And are there specific brands that you want me to stay away from?" Paige nodded again, shifting and locking eyes with her boss, trying not to glow with pride at managing to ask a few stupid questions about clothes.

 

[Sync]

The girl was nervous, it was rather obvious. Nerves and uncertainty, not a good combination. Add to that the girl’s obvious inexperience in a corporate environment, and Vivienne almost felt sorry for young Paige. But she was trying; Vivienne could see that the girl wanted to make a good impression, wanted to convince her boss that the older woman had made the right choice. It just made Vivienne reaffirm within herself that she’d made the right choice in appointing Paige to this new, officially-unofficial role. And yet there seemed to be some hesitation to the idea of shopping for clothes; Vivienne hadn’t gotten as far as she had, as quickly as she had, without the ability to read body language. Maybe she’d misread it, too; after all, she recalled the girl being happy about the idea of shopping – although it surely wouldn’t be the first time someone had lied during an interview, if that was the case. It was of no import at the moment.

“Standards for attire for you…?” Vivienne mused thoughtfully. “Well…at the very least, smart casual. I don’t expect you to wear suits like I do, but you will need to maintain a respectable corporate image. Slacks and blouses and dress shoes, loose skirts and camisole-style tops, smart jackets…that sort of thing. For dinner-wear…well, the dinners will be formal affairs, so something suitable to that environment. If you’re not comfortable in high-heels, then low heels will be fine for formal wear; flat heels will be quite acceptable for your day-to-day business wear. I’ll make sure Kitomi sends you to the places I prefer to shop at; while there’s no corporate uniform as such, the shop will know what I expect and can dress you accordingly. Otherwise…maybe a stud instead of the ring,” she added, tapping her nose to indicate what on Paige she was referring to. “I have no issue with the piercing, but, again, there are appearances and images to maintain.” She paused, then gave the girl an honest, genuine smile. “You’d probably surprise yourself – I think you’ll scrub up rather well once you dress up in a more business manner.” She sipped from the coffee again and sighed contentedly.

“What limit do you have on the card? Same as me, pretty much. Just remember that it is on my card, so I’ll know what you buy. Use your judgement as to what you can and cannot get on the card, and ask yourself if I’d approve of it when thinking about it. You’ll probably want to get at least three days’ worth of outfits, but I’d suggest a week’s worth; most hotels we’ll be staying at will be able to turn laundry around in a day, two at the most. Just remember that you not only have to impress me with your purchases and appearance and how you present yourself; you’ll likely also have to impress the heads of other companies when we travel. Something for you to think about, anyway.” Vivienne paused, then grinned.

“Looks like your head is spinning, still,” she suggested lightly. “If there’s nothing else you want to ask about, go and talk with Kitomi and confirm our travel arrangements and itineraries for the next two weeks, then go out and grab yourself a few new outfits. Be back here at the end of the day so we can go over what you’ve got, and make sure we’re set for tomorrow morning’s departure. Okay?”

 

[darkest_fate]

Smart casual; Paige could do smart casual. She nodded, fingers flying across the phone to punch in notes. Slacks? That was probably better than skirts, she guessed, but Paige knew she'd better go for both. At the mention of camisole tops, she very nearly fainted with relief. That was a good deal closer to what she'd prefer to wear, if still a little outside her general comfort zone. Easy enough to smile and nod. Her eyes went up at the mention of stud. She blinked, before raising a hand up to her nose. As soon as she felt the little bit of metal, the teenager flushed scarlet. "I am so sorry, I didn't... I'm just so used to it... right, studs," she had a few of those. God, she should've remembered. She should probably take it out, right? no, now Miss Ash would all but expect it. She had to keep it in now. so more nodding and more note taking.

"So no crazy parties," Paige said with a smile. "I'll get a week's worth," which was really fucking expensive. Paige's head already spun, knowing that her new wardrobe was probably going to come near to several months at the most. But she had to impress, wear formal, dress nice, and she had nothing to start with. Notes all around, notes and nodding. "I'm sure I can dress to impress," she promised, making a note in large letters in her phone to do precisely that. The bit about head spinning had Paige giggling slightly, but she shrugged. "I'm just still getting used to it. I learn fast, promise." she nodded. "Right, I'll hook up with Kitomi and be here later today, around closing," it would take that long to get everything together. "Paige rose, waited for the signal to depart, and then hurried off, trying to fight her own flushing as she did. A week's worth of outfits? Paige knew she'd have to pretty much get new clothing from the skin up, and the thought all but made her nervous. She was half tempted to take pictures and actually send them to Miss Ash, get confirmation about an outfit or two.

Thankfully, Kitomi had pretty well no faith in her. There was an exhaustive list of precisely what sort of outfits Miss Ash preferred as well as several stores to go through. Paige thanked the assistant for it, before flashing a tight, almost nasty smile. Girl had a little bit of bitch in her, and Paige's was just waiting to come out after all that stuttering. Plus, she had the confidence of Miss Ash behind her.

The store run felt like something out of a fairy tale montage. First, four new camisole tops in varying shades, mostly in expensive silk fabric. Two light jackets to put over the top. Two pairs of pencil skirts not too dissimilar from what Paige had started with. Two pairs of thinning slacks. One set of flats for when she needed to do running; two pairs of heels, one almost downright spiky and matching her evening wear. Yes, evening wear: Paige picked out this wonderfully clingy creme colored dress that she thought complimented her quite nicely. She often preferred greys and blacks (most of the slacks and everything else leaned that way), but she figured that creme would look good next to Miss Ash, and that was the point and all.

She also bought an entirely new set of undergarments for the trip. These varied wildly, mostly professional, but a few were almost daringly sexy. Paige figured that if she dressed hot underneath, it would imbue her with some much needed confidence, help bring out that inner bitch that she'd need if she had to face down any more Kitomis along the route. There was a quick trip to the salon for a touch up (they'd offered to crop Paige's hair into something of a bob, but the teenager figured that would probably be something she should run by first). Expert makeup, fresh nails, the works. Finally, her last stop was to swing by a piercing and tattoo parlor. Paige needed a few classy studs for her nose ring, after all. And while she was there, she hesitated looking over the piercings. It was so tempting to get something to celebrate: her first real job, her new outfits, everything. Her gaze lingered on nipple piercings for just a moment, before she finally plunged in, getting her left nipple pierced with a bar. The little piercing hid well enough underneath her outfit: current a charcoal colored camisole top (nice and loose around the newly sensitive area), a pair of darker colored slacks, the sensible heels, and a light jacket.

One last stop to return everything, then back and waiting, bags in hand, still carrying the carry-on with her essentials, feeling confident enough to flash Kitomi a downright bitchy smile while the assistant sent word up to Miss Ash that her new helper had finally arrived.

 

[Sync]

Once Paige had left, Vivienne busied herself in work. There wasn’t too much to do, in fact – most of it was just checking off reports and proposals and strategies for the board, and making sure that everything she needed for the conference over the next few days was prepped and checked and ready, and that all the supplementary material was ready to go and was presentable. Kitomi had taken care of any physical documentation; it was already at the hotel where the conference would be held, the hotel had confirmed receipt of it this morning. All presentation materials were ready, her tablet was updated, her laptop was updated, all relevant files were synced with the server, her credentials were valid, VPN access checked off…so many little things to think of.

She even remembered to get lunch in.

It was half-four when Vivienne began wondering how Paige was doing with her shopping. Vivienne could have left at any time, but she’d told Paige to come back here, first…so she waited. Fortunately, she didn’t have to wait long – just over five minutes later, Kitomi sent a message telling her Paige was back. Vivienne asked for the girl to be shown in; the door was closed behind her.

“Well…aren’t you adorable?” Vivienne murmured as she looked at the girl before her. It was almost a complete transformation – wearing business attire that fitted properly…Paige looked almost a different person; sassy, but in an innocent way. She got up from behind her desk, slowly moved towards the young girl. “Stand still; let me have a look at you.”

She circled the girl slowly, carefully, almost like a panther stalking its prey. When behind the girl, she reached out, touched the shoulders of the jacket, adjusted them slightly, ran her hands down the girl’s upper arms as if checking the fit; when she returned to the front, she took the lapels of the jacket in her fingers, ran her fingers down the edge of the clothing item, the backs of her fingers very-lightly grazing the girl’s breasts as she again checked to make sure everything fit in place. Then she took a step back.

“Much better,” she offered approvingly, after another appraising look. “You’ll fit right in if you keep up that appearance. Very appropriate for the personal assistant of a company CEO.” She stepped back again, leaned against the desk, folded her arms across her chest and pushed her firm, round breasts together as a consequence. “Did you enjoy yourself? Shopping, I mean?”

 

[darkest_fate]

Adorable? "Well, that's not quite what I was aiming for, Miss Ash," the teenager confessed, smiling a little. It took all she had not to roll her eyes at the next comment: it made Vivienne sound so much like a mom. Paige tried to remember just how much older her new employer was than her: she knew it was a bit. Was it enough for her to actually be her mother? The thought puzzled the young woman while Vivienne checked out the fit of the outfit. It didn't quite fit "perfectly"; it wasn't as if Paige could have gotten everything tailored, but it did the job significantly better than the borrowed clothing she'd had on earlier.

The fingers fluttered close to a very sensitive area, and it took all Paige had not to let out a gasp. She'd been warned that the newly pierced nipple would be a glowing target for a while (along with a wink from the woman who did it, suggesting that it would be great for some alone time), but she'd all but dismissed it before now. With those fingers fluttering close, the sudden burst of sensation sent that thought straight out of the teenager's head. Fortunately it didn't last long: Vivienne was just checking everything out, after all, not feeling up her new assistant.

Paige lowered her arms and nodded. "Thank you, Miss Ash," she said, readjusting the jacket. She noticed Vivienne's motion, probably because she was all too aware of her own breasts right now. Paige knew better than to try and copy it: dragging that much fabric and pulling it tight across the nipple was asking for trouble right now. "I mostly did, Miss Ash," she admitted, shrugging. "It's not exactly my sort of clothing? But there's always some fun in getting something that makes you look professional. I did some styling and..." she hesitated, then remembered the credit card statement, then decided that if Vivienne wanted to know everything, she could ask, "and I drew short of bobbing my hair. But I think they did pretty good," she nodded, shifting again. "I'm all set for the week!" She gestured toward the bags and tried (and failed) not to look like a student who'd just aced a particularly difficult question on an exam.

 

[Sync]

How old was Paige, exactly? She knew Paige’s date of birth had been on her CV, but Vivienne couldn’t recall it. Barely past eighteen, was she? Young enough that she could have been the girl’s mother, Vivienne knew…if she’d been very irresponsible and started way too early. There was just something in the girl’s mannerisms that seemed to nudge itself into that area, although there was nothing further from the truth. Again, it didn’t matter. Vivienne had to remind herself that the girl was young and inexperienced in a corporate environment – deliberately so; Vivienne’s intention (originally, at least) was to take Paige and mould her into someone who could slot into the company. In effect, this role was an internship as well as a personal assistant role. It would remain to be seen whether Paige would do well with the internship aspect, but that was in the future; right now, Paige would need to be attentive to the whims and desires of her employer.

“Excellent,” Vivienne declared positively to Paige’s comment that she had enjoyed shopping, at least somewhat. “I can appreciate that business wear and formal wear may not be what you’re used to wearing, but when you’re at work or attending a function with me, that’s what I expect. I don’t care what you wear when you’re not at work; when we’re travelling and you’re not attending work with me, you can also dress down. Just bear in mind that I have expectations and standards…as do our clients. You’re also representing both myself and AshTech when we travel.” She smiled warmly, as if trying to take any possible sting out of her words. “As long as you bear in mind my needs and wants, I think you’ll do fine.”

She pushed herself away from her desk and stood right in front of it, her arms still crossed over her chest. “Looks like you’re good to go,” she observed, resisting the impulse to allow her gaze to wander over Paige’s form. “We’ve a relatively early flight tomorrow morning. Make your way here to be ready to go at seven. We’ll get a car to the airport for our eight-am flight. We’ll be a couple of hours in the air, and we’ll be at the hotel by eleven if everything goes smoothly. After check-in I’ll get you to unpack while I go to the conference area and register us. The conference notes say that today will be an informal series of speeches, so I’ll get you to sit with me and learn about what goes on. The formal dinner will be the Wednesday night, and the conference ends at lunch on the Thursday. The rest of it we can make up as we go, other than check-out and the return flight.”

Vivienne paused, then held out her right hand to the girl. “Welcome aboard, Paige,” she offered with a friendly smile.

 

[darkest_fate]

Paige nodded as Vivienne again reiterated the dress code. She did pretty well expect all that, and she fought the urge to wince at the mention of making sure to look nice even when traveling. From what Paige could tell, that meant she'd be dressing for quite a while during these travels. Well, she had wanted a responsible job and to be independent and all that; no need to get too worked up about it. "I'll make sure to keep your needs in mind," Paige promised. "And I'll be a good representative on the road: I learn quick," and she could handle being professional, or at least faking it. True, Paige was way out of her element here, but she really did learn fast.

Good to go: Paige almost sighed with relief there. She'd succeeded in one of her first major tasks, plus she'd technically gotten approval for the nipple piercing too, at least in a semi-sneaky roundabout sort of way. "Right, seven," Paige said, fighting the wince at the early time. She pulled out her phone to start punching more information in, setting alarms and check-ins, following along with each of Vivienne's responses in time. The bit about sitting during the informal bit almost had Paige balking: she hadn't thought that she'd be responsible for all that. Just what did Vivienne expect of her?

"Flight at eight, be here and ready at--" Paige started, before realizing the hand was out. She flushed, taking it, nodding as she shook. "Thanks," she said. She hesitated for a moment, before just nodding confidently. "I got everything," she smiled, then tucked her phone away. She waited only a moment longer to make sure she had everything, before heading back to technically her parents' home: she'd need a paycheck or two before moving out, after all.

once there, Paige could relax and, more importantly, tend to her new piercing. That took a fair chunk of time, and Paige had to walk through all the various steps: she'd have to make sure to bring some saline solutions and cleansing clothes to make sure that everything was working out there. Even the gentle touches felt almost too good, however, and she couldn't help but admire it, while still noting that it made her already noticeable nipples all the more appealing. She loved the look of it, and nearly giggled in response, feeling quite sexy.

Still, it was early to bed for the flight. Everything had been arranged and packed ahead of time. So in the morning, it was get out of bed, fumble through as much makeup and polish as she could, before opting for a pair of slacks and one of the camisole tops. The latter worked brilliantly with the sensitive area, to which Paige felt quite thankful. She thought she looked pretty professional and all, and she felt like herself underneath the layer, which granted her that much more confidence. So from there, it was to the coffee shop to pick up a double for her and another for Vivienne.

And the teenager was standing in the office again, sipping a hot espresso, at seven sharp, feeling quite proud of herself with the other coffee in hand, Vivienne's name already written in Paige's almost spidery hand.

 

[Sync]

Vivienne was almost sure she could feel Paige's internal cringe at the early start. The girl hid it well, but the older woman just knew it was there. She didn't know what time that would mean the girl would have to wake up at, but Vivienne was used to the early starts. There was the near-expected comment about her ability to learn and pick things up quickly; it had been used during the interview, Vivienne recalled, but it was repeated here. The older woman would certainly judge for herself whether that was actually true, but so far there was nothing to indicate it was not. The handshake was accepted, and Vivienne found herself liking the feel of Paige's skin against hers, at least as far as the handshake went. Paige repeated the instructions and times...and that was that.

Vivienne didn't leave the office for another couple of hours. She finished off speech notes, made sure that everything she needed was where it was supposed to be, checked her equipment to make sure she didn't leave anything behind...then went home to a quiet evening that was punctuated by the packing of a suitcase and the organising of a carry-on bag.

* * * * *

Vivienne awoke with plenty of time to get ready. A quick shower, light make-up, light breakfast, grab the case and bag, double-check she hadn't forgotten anything...and she was out the door. She drove to the office and left her car parked in the building's secure car-park...fifteen minutes to go. She was wearing a dark-blue suit - knee-length loose skirt, matching jacket, white blouse, flesh-coloured stockings, low heels. Up through the elevator to her floor, suitcase dragged behind her, carry-on slung over her shoulder, doors opened...and there was Paige, waiting patiently, coffee in hand with another right next to her, clearly for her boss. The cup even had Vivienne's name scrawled on it. Vivienne couldn't help but give a warm smile of greeting to the girl.

"Well aren't you delightful?" she greeted the girl pleasantly. "And looking very sharp and presentable in that attire." She took her cup, sipped from it slowly, then sighed with content. "Coffee just as I like, too. I might just have to keep you around, Paige." She left her case and bag next to Kitomi's currently-empty desk and looked at her new assistant. "I've just got a couple of small things to do, then we'll head off. Are you ready to go?"

She sat at Kitomi's desk and logged into the secretary's workstation, dug up emails, clicked on links and was soon printing off boarding passes. "Just in case," she explained, a hint of a sheepish look on her face. "If I'm going to forget anything, these will be it. But then...that's what I've got you for, isn't it? Sorry, I'm doing your job...old habits die hard, and all that."

She grabbed the pages off the printer and shut down Kitomi's workstation. "That's it, then," she announced. "If Kitomi's done her job right, there'll be a taxi waiting for us downstairs in five minutes." She folded the pages and stuffed them into a side pocket on her carry-on bag, slung the bag over her shoulder, grabbed the handle of her case, then looked expectantly at Paige. "After you," she offered politely.

 

[darkest_fate]

Yet again, there was Vivienne, looking as put together and professional as always. Paige nodded and gave a slight wave, having to manage around a cup of coffee and all. The compliment nearly had her flushing: Paige was almost tempted to ask that her boss stop using almost flirtatious comments regarding her appearance and behavior or are you looking at them to be flirty and all? But why would you? Vivienne's an attractive, professional, older woman, and you're straight... right?. the thought almost caught Paige by surprise, but thankfully she had a conversation to continue working through. That required smiling and nodding, at the least. "My bags are packed and I'm all set!"

Paige watched as Vivienne went to the desk, sipping her coffee and approaching, trying to subtly see what it was her boss was doing. Ah, boarding passes. "Can't you get those on your phone now?" she asked, pointing. "I couldn't really do that yet," because she'd actually tried some last night, albeit extremely briefly. Paige made a mental note that Vivienne clearly expected it to be part of her job and all, and she had to fight the urge to pull out her own phone and take note.

Instead she went to grab her luggage, pausing for a moment to see if she was supposed to somehow try and get Vivienne's as well. When her boss just looked at her, Paige got the idea. "Right, thanks," she said, nodding and moving ahead. She gave the door a gentle push and, fortunately, there was a taxi ahead. Paige had almost wished that Kitomi hadn't quite done her job right: it would make her look better by response. But there was the taxi and an eager cabbie ready and all too willing to help Paige load up their things. The girl did take some charge then: moving to try and get Vivienne's and help load them, figuring that she should at least do that. Of course, that was assuming her boss even let the teenage assistant help.Either way, they'd get everything into the car, including them.

Paige felt a little odd sliding into the backseat, but she kept her coffee balanced and adjusted. The slight shift of fabric felt a little sensitive across her nipple, but the cleaning she'd done had left it considerably more bearable. The girl sighed and got into place, focusing on her own mental checklist, momentarily forgetting that perhaps she should be holding conversation or giving directions or anything else that required getting them to the airport in a timely fashion. If it were up solely to Paige, then she'd all but get there in silence, assuming it wasn't that long of a cab ride...

 

[Sync]

Vivienne was impressed by the way Paige took charge when the taxi arrived - she hadn't expected the girl to take over the loading of luggage into the back of the car, but she had done just that, and had squared the driver away as well. It was good to note that Paige wasn't hesitant in exerting herself when necessary. The older woman kept her carry-on bag with her, though, and sat it at her feet as she reminded the driver where they were going - only a fifteen minute drive at worst to the airport. She pulled her iPad out of the bag and sat it on her lap, then turned her head to look at Paige.

"You're right...I suppose I could get the app on my phone to allow me to have my boarding pass there, instead of relying on a printed copy," she conceded. "It's just one of those things I never think of attempting to try and figure out until just after I've printed off the paper pass. Besides," she added with a faint smile, "I'm not a teenager who's up-to-date with all the latest fancy technology, and having a paper copy makes it easier to submit with my expense claims."

She sighed softly, took a sip from her near-empty coffee cup, then rolled her head back against the chair and pushed her chest forwards, stretching her neck and back and tummy - her full, firm breasts were pushed forwards in an almost-inviting manner before she relaxed, apparently happy with the stretch, although she kept her head rolled back, her eyes closed, her hands nursing the cup on her knee.

"I hate these early starts," she admitted softly, her eyes still closed, her face directed at the roof of the car. "An evil necessity of travel and conferences, I know, but I still hate them." Her eyes then flicked open and she rolled her head over to look at Paige again.

"So...what are your aspirations for the future? Any plans, any study goals, any career objectives...? And I don't mean the bits and pieces you told me during the interview, either."

 

[darkest_fate]

The woman had an iPad and she'd still wanted to print out the passes? Paige almost wanted to express incredulity at that, but fought the urge. It probably helped that Vivienne was already commenting on it herself, along with what felt like a weird combination compliment and jab at Paige. "No worries: as soon as you get me some more info and whatnot I can definitely streamline that sorta thing into the phone and all. I'm not always on it like some girls i know, but I totally can handle the convenient bits."

Paige nodded and flicked through her phone again, mostly to leave more notes. They were already starting to pile up, and she had to dismiss a few reminders that she was supposed to be on a taxi right about now. A shuffle and sigh drew her attention, and the teenager looked at her boss as the older woman rolled. There was something almost sinuous in that, wasn't there? Maybe Vivienne was just naturally appealing: some women had that. Paige liked to think that she had a bit of the whole classy/edgy beauty thing going on herself, what with the classic beauty looks and the slight alt additions.

It took some work not to jump on the early start thing: Paige wouldn't have woken up this early for anything less than a job (she'd been known to occasionally miss her first class). Instead Paige just tapped her phone, making a few other notes; she was actually getting a few on Vivienne, like her coffee preferences, stuff like that. Paige knew she couldn't naturally remember all this, which is why she'd mastered her own version of notetaking quite a while ago.

Again the girl had almost been caught up in her own world (and dismissing a few messages from others, like her parents wishing her luck), when she heard the question. "Oh ,uh," she looked up. "I... I do want to go to college? I'm not completely sold on what I want to study yet," she shrugged, "probably something completely worthless like sociology or modern art or something. Like," she paused, "I know I want to be independent and successful," she glanced at Vivienne, "sort of like you in that, but, like, I'm not completely sure what I want to do with that? Maybe I could do some analysis or something? I'm good at keeping track of stuff," she shrugged. "I've done some assistant work before and all, so I know I kinda dig it, but I'm not, like, looking to be your professional gopher or anything." Paige realized what she said, her eyes widening. "Not that I'm--okay, I do totally want this job, and want to keep it. My mouth sometimes takes off ahead of my brain, and the brain totally doesn't always work like it's supposed to, which is why I didn't have enough for college."

Paige paused, drumming her fingers nervously on the coffee cup. "Gah, I sound like such a spaz. I'm so sorry: it's the coffee and nerves. I can totally shut up."

 

[Sync]

A soft, knowing laugh followed Paige's kind-of speech. Vivienne wasn't at all surprised to hear what Paige had to say, nor was the older woman put out or offended. The laugh was accompanied by a warm, good-natured smile that lit the woman's eyes and brightened her face, and she slowly rolled her had back to centre so she was again looking at the roof of the cab.

"No, you don't sound like a spaz," she countered honestly. "You sound exactly like what you are: a young girl who's just out of school and hasn't yet fully worked out what she wants in life. I could be offended or upset, but I'm not, because it's what I expected when I advertised this role, and I'm glad that you're determined to do well in it. I'm also flattered that you feel you want to be like me. I'll say this, though: you'd be surprised how much you can learn about a business by being a gopher. I know a lot of people don't like the idea, and if you were my age I'd agree with you; but at your age, a gopher is almost a perfect role, because you learn a lot about both business and yourself."

She pushed herself up slightly in her seat so she was sitting properly upright, and she shuffled around a little so she was more facing in Paige's direction. The driver appeared to be paying no attention to his two passengers; through the windscreen they could see road signs telling of the nearness of the airport - their trip would end in maybe five minutes.

"When I finished school, when I was about your age, I didn't know what I wanted to be other than successful, too," she related calmly. "I'd always had a knack for technology, but didn't know what I wanted to do with it. It took me the entire first year of my degree course to figure out where I wanted to head. When I received my doctorates I worked for a couple of different engineering firms; I was in R&D, but started at the bottom of the pile. Even then, I don't think I really learned much until I branched out and started AshTech. That all said, I think you're doing the smarter thing by getting a job first; the experience you get with me will help you shape the person you want to become, because you'll be less inclined to then waste time at college when you get there."

She leaned over, reached out and lightly touched her fingertips to Paige's knee for a brief moment. "So don't worry about being unsure about what you want to do at this time," she added, pulling her hand back to her own lap. "You'll be just fine...as long as you don't forget how I like my coffee," she finished with a playful, cheeky grin.

 

[darkest_fate]

Somehow, Paige wasn't entirely convinced she hadn't just spazzed all over her new boss. Vivienne took it all pretty well and all, even rolling with it, and apparently the compliment (which had been fairly well-meant when Paige had delivered it) had done fairly well as well. "I'm planning on picking up some stuff," Paige said, nodding. True, she couldn't be completely convinced that being a gopher was going to be all that helpful, but she also wasn't about to start telling Vivienne just that right now. Who knows: maybe the CEO would be more or less right.

When Vivienne shifted, Paige made certain to adjust herself as well: after all, she wanted to look attentive, and, well, she actually wanted to be attentive. The girl was acutely aware that she'd been extraordinarily lucky to get this job, and she planned on doing as good a job as she could. If she failed, it wouldn't be from a lack of effort on her part. To that end, she started taking notes as Vivienne kept going. Some of this, Paige actually already knew from her preliminary research. Amazing what you could find with a little Google-fu. "It's more like I didn't have much choice, but thanks all the same," Paige finally said, adding a slight shrug.

The notes now needed organization, but a hand caused Paige to stop. "Uh, I won't, really," she said, offering up a quick smile. She was certain that her boss was just being reassuring and all. Still, there was something a little more intimate in that gesture than Paige had really been expecting. "I definitely will, but that's what all the notes are for," Paige said, holding them up. "The memory sucks, but the notetaking ability is strong," another slight shrug, and Paige looked just past her boss. "oh, I think we're getting close to the airport," she said, pointing. "That reminds me," she double-checked notes to make sure, before nodding. "Right, are we going to be sitting together and all? Or, like, are you in first class and I'm in the back or something? I really don't mind, but I'd like to know before we get there. Eventually I figure I'm gonna need to keep track of all this stuff, and I'm already starting to get some of it down. Oh, right, schedule," Paige nodded. "I'll, like, want itenaries and stuff for the week, besides what you already told me..." Paige paused, looking through notes and chewing her lip. There was so much to keep track of, and she'd thought school had been a balancing act.

 

[Sync]

The older woman watched her new assistant for a moment - it was interesting to observe how she used her phone extensively to take and keep notes. Would she be able to maintain that style? Vivienne didn't know; only time would tell, really. If that was how Paige wanted to begin her working life, Vivienne wasn't about to tell her not to; if it proved to be inefficient, it would be experience that was the teacher. Still, Paige was comfortable enough for the moment putting everything in her phone...but Vivienne would not be opposed to providing something more useful if it turned out to be needed.

"Together in Business Class," she replied simply, as the cab drove through the nominal airport boundary. "I was always going to have someone accompany me on this trip; your name got put on the seat last week when you accepted the role. Same for Germany next week, and whatever travel occurs in the future - Business Class in both directions. I refuse to travel economy unless I'm flying a short distance on personal matters; if it's anything work-related, I go Business Class."

She paused for a moment, then frowned slightly. "As for itineraries...Kitomi was supposed to give you those for this trip; I was sure I told her to. You'll definitely need them for Germany next week. After Germany I'll be getting you to organise the travel and accommodation requirements, as well as making sure I have everything I need to meet them. I don't expect you to pack my suitcase for me, of course," she added with a playful smile, "but so long as all of the travel arrangements are taken care of and I know where I need to be and when, I'll be happy. I'll also be getting you to liaise with the people who are hosting the various conferences and meetings we'll be attending to let me know what I'll need to bring, and what I'll be presenting."

A few moments later the cab pulled up outside the domestic terminal, and the driver was out quickly to help with luggage removal. Vivienne sighed softly as she put her unused iPad back in her carry-on bag, then got out of the cab and stretched her back slightly. "Would you be a dear and fix up the fare, Paige?" she asked politely. "Use the company card, and don't forget the receipt." As she was waiting, she moved to drag the cases onto the pavement and away from the cab. "We've got about half-an hour before we have to present for boarding; do you want breakfast after we've checked in?"

 

[darkest_fate]

This would be Paige's first time in Business Class, and she fought back the urge to outright say that. Vivienne could probably have guessed from just the short exchanges they'd had thus far, and Paige did want to at least provide some semblance of professionalism, considering how much she felt like she was flubbing on that so far. Plus, it just made sense to get the assistant close by to keep notes and do anything, and naturally Vivienne would be going as well as she could.

The bit about itineraries actually had Paige pausing for a moment. Had Kitomi sent something and she'd missed it? Or had the other worker tried to set her up? Or was there just some sort of miscommunciation? Paige glanced over at the iPad, realizing that she'd probably need something like that to keep tabs, though the phone would work until the idea came up naturally. "Hey, with the amount you're paying me, if you asked, I probably wouldn't say no," Paige offered, shrugging. What she neglected to add was that her own packing skills often left something to be desired. She'd come just short of asking her mom to help her get everything together for this trip. She'd be handling that sort of thing for now, and even doing some liasing.

Paige's fingers twitched as she resisted the urge to Google that.

"Right, got it," she said instead, nodding. As soon as they stopped, Paige was popping out, very nearly beating the driver to the luggage. They had a slightly embarrassed, almost confrontational moment, before Paige stepped back to let him do his thing. She'd actually thought about the paying bit, exchanging phone in hand for the card soon enough, handing it over to the driver and waiting while he processed. The girl used the wait-time to calculate appropriate tips using an app on her phone, nodding and taking the paper receipt, figuring that Vivienne probably wanted that (not that this prevented Paige from getting it texted to her, but still).

"Uh, I guess?" Paige offered. "I'm a little nervous about getting something in my stomach before the flight and all, but I can definitely get you something if you wanted?" She glanced around. "Should we be heading to some kinda executive lounge or...?" Paige trailed off, not sure what else she should really be adding. She did make sure to get their bags together, tucking the receipt away and trying to get them at least started on the way into the airport. Had to get things moving and all.

 

[Sync]

Vivienne only smiled faintly at the off-hand comment that Paige might agree to pack her cases for her as well. The thought of the cute young thing going through her drawers wasn’t a bad one, and had a fleeting accompanying thought of where Paige might sleep if that came to pass…but that wasn’t right, was it? The older woman dismissed the thought quickly. She’d been without any kind of companion for some time – many, many months in fact – and Paige was delicious enough that Vivienne suspected she’d go off quickly if the two of them…NO. Instead she grabbed her case and began dragging it as she fell into step beside Paige.

“Not a good flyer, hmmm…?” she asked lightly as they made their way into the terminal building and headed towards check-in. “That’s okay. Something light, then – coffee and a muffin, perhaps, or something else. They’ll probably serve breakfast on this flight, anyway, but I’ve never been one for the offerings of airline meals…although they are getting better, I’ll admit.”

As the pair approached the check-in counters, Vivienne headed towards the Business lane and tilted her head quizzically in Paige’s direction. “We’ll head to the business lounge once our cases are checked in,” she agreed. “We’ll be able to sit in comfort and peace, food and drink available if you want it, and we’ll be alerted a few minute before our flight is ready to board.”

Then they were at the counter. Vivienne checked in first, presenting her boarding pass and case for loading, the case taken and tagged and placed on the conveyor with practised efficiency. Next Paige was checked in, with the same degree of politeness and efficiency…and the pair were free to go.

“I must say, though, that I like your attire today,” she noted with a playful grin, as the pair walked away from the counter in the direction of the lounge. “Very professional. You certainly look the part.”