Like Silk: Debut

It was quite spacious actually, not at all like my horrible memories of coach trips as a youth, on cramped and old smelly buses with no toilet and no seatbelts on the 1970s original seats. These were large leather seats, spaced right out, and I could smell coffee. Lucien was going around with coffees from a huge tray, offering them to everyone. Now this I could get used to. I sat next to Sophie, and we lulled into a conversation about books we wanted to read, TV shows we wished we hadn't missed and people we might know in common, but actually don't. It's amazing how much time you can spend talking about absolutely nothing.

After two complimentary coffees, however, it was time to make the inevitable trip to the bathroom, which I was surprised to find was rather large, and thankfully rather safe. I navigated my way down to the end of the coach, hanging onto polished leather railings as I went, and found the WC. I could hear the flush as I waited outside, and when the door opened, it was the subject of my perverted dreams.

"Oh. Hi!" I mumbled. "This is a really good coach!"

"Do you know a lot of coaches?" questioned Lucien, looking genuinely curious.

"What... what do you mean?" I was confused

Lucien concentrated, "Are you, you know, with the binoculars and the raincoat on, at the weekend watching them come and go from the station?"

"What! No!" I smarted, realizing what he meant.

Lucian broke his concerned expression and bellowed with laughter. "It's fine if you are obsessed with the coaches, little Andi! Come to Paris we have so many there!" and he clutched his side laughing at my indignation.

"I meant this is a better one than expected" I mumbled.

"Ok, ok, I am only teasing you." He sighed. "Maybe you are not a joker. It's fine though you are welcome, we have to do the trip in style if we're going to do it, you agree?

"Yeah, still though, thank you!"

"I am sorry also for assuming you have a husband at home, I am thinking I caused an offence to you with my joke this morning? My great apologies, I am always joking first, then thinking afterward."

I paused for a second, ready to correct him, but then my old self kicked in, the one who waited a few moments to reveal the ring to men who needed to know. I kept my right hand hidden, twitching in my dress pocket.

"It's ok, I wasn't offended!" I chirped and flashed him a reassuring smile.

"Ok well, you let me know if there is anything else you need that the best coach in England cannot provide you, ok? Come and find me or text me if I am at the other end of the coach, it's a long way down to the front!" He winked and climbed up the stairs past me.

Does he really think I'm that humorless? Maybe he did, and I wasn't surprised seeing as I'd been avoiding the office, thinking it was making me miserable. Maybe it was staying at home that was, in fact, making me miserable. When I got back to my seat, I checked my phone.

There was a message from an unknown number:

"Don't forget, coach spotter, anything you need ;)"

3)

Once we had unpacked into our rooms, we were required to meet downstairs for lunch, and we were shown to a gigantic round table laden with sandwiches, cakes, pies, and other delicious finger foods.

Sat around it, Lucien discussed many ways in which we could support each other with the twenty of us who were gathered round. I was a little surprised at the simplicity of it all, there were no handouts or power points, no corporate jargon, and no stupid games where we had to introduce ourselves to people we already knew. A lot of it was anecdotal, about businesses he'd worked with before, and how they came together to get more clients and keep them. At the end of the welcome talk, he worked his way around the table and asked if any of us had anything to add. Most shook their heads, shy as ever, but a few of the younger members of the company, a couple of whom I had never heard speak, had some interesting ideas, and voiced them willingly; something I'd never seen happen when Jasper ran the place. Lucien addressed us warmly at the end.

"Now friends, before we break off the meeting, get some drinks, and have fun, I need to make you do one thing for me. You are going to each take five slips of paper and write on them one thing that you think needs to change. You are going to take another five slips and write on them something you think would be good to add to Façade UK to make our customers happier, then another five and what you think will make you all happier as staff. On your way out, throw them in this big plastic box, then forget them."

It was around 4.30pm, and suddenly we were dismissed to enjoy ourselves until 7pm when a formal dinner would be held in the restaurant. Sophie and I, not being the sporty types, opted out of the tennis tournament that Lucien had started with some of the men, and decided to watch it from the comfort of the Jacuzzi, which overlooked the tennis courts from its place at the edge of the pool platform. We met in our bikinis with our towels and slid into the hot bubbling water with a glass of champagne each.

"The rooms are rather luxurious, aren't they Andi!" Sophie clucked.

"Yeah, they're lovely!" I agreed. Cozy, decorated with warm colors, soft and sweet. It made me regret the minimalist ash colors of my choices at home in that huge echoing bedroom. "Mr Bisset has really decided to spoil us this week hasn't he"?

"Well, I'm not complaining" she sighed, looking down at the men who were shouting and heckling each other's serves in the tentative early summer sun. "Although do you remember Henrietta?"

"No, not really, why?"

"Of course, you do, she had that amazing ginger hair, really curly, all the way down to her waist. Pale girl, always wore black dresses and the chunky necklaces from that nice shop in Colham town."

"Yes, kind of, she left a while ago didn't, she?"

"Yeah, she's had a little baby now, gorgeous thing" Sophie dreamed.

"I didn't know you were a friend of hers" I guess I didn't pay much attention to my poor colleagues who were noticeably having a tough time trying to include me today.

"Yeah, we did keep in touch, she's really fun is Hennie. Anyway, she went to work for Reno Maxime Ltd. when she left us, didn't she?"

"Did she? Well, what's that got to do with us?" I asked.

"That's Lucien's old company, Andi. She worked for him before he came here."

"Oh right, and how did she find it?"

"Well, she said it was alright, but she wasn't very nice about Lucien himself. Said she left because it was time for her to have a baby with that disgustingly gorgeous husband of hers, Leo, he was an architect or something, but for some reason I think it was because of something Lucien said. Anyway, she said he was a bit too much if you know what I mean. There were all these new hipster ways of emoting and expressing your feelings in the workplace, very European. A bit too tough for us sun-starved and sex-starved British mole people to manage, probably."

"Is that your opinion or hers?" I laughed.

"Oh honey, definitely hers! Don't quote me on any of that" Sophie said, adjusting her pink strapless bikini and taking a generous gulp of champagne.

"What's your opinion?" I was curious.

"Well, I think the company needs a kick up the arse; whether he's the one to do it or not I don't know. Can't say I'm not looking for something else on the sly just in case. Personally though, I wouldn't kick him out of bed!"

"Sophie!" I gasped. At least I wasn't alone in thinking so, and we shared a girlish giggle and raised our glasses.

"A bit of sun and sex never harmed anyone though, did it?" I mused, sipping as I looked down at the increasingly frantic tournament.

"Damn right, lady" agreed Sophie. "Want another?" She waved her empty flute at me and clambered out of the Jacuzzi.

"No thanks Soph. I'll catch up with you later," I called as she threw her towel around her and squelched off towards the sauna. I could see exactly what Lucien was trying to do. He was trying to create the 'old boys club' atmosphere that hat catapulted Oscar to the top of his own firm. He would be great at making friends, even better at keeping them at arm's length, and not telling them too much. I'd hosted a lot of the parties at our old place designed to do just that. Lucien intended us all to get drunk, get us to loosen up and talk to each other and start slurring ideas about how to make the firm better, then pinch as many of them as he could once we got back. We were less likely to hang him out to dry for it if he kept treating us like his little family and taking us away to hotels. Couldn't fault the man for it though, he'd saved many a firm from obscurity and we were all hoping to hang onto our jobs. I looked down at the courts, and he caught my eye. He raised his glass with one hand and waved his tennis racket at me with the other. I smiled, and he laughed up at me, downed his drink and served the ball at our colleague Daniel, who hit it out of the court.

4)

Sophie and I had neighboring rooms, so we met, dressed for dinner, and travelled down to the restaurant side by side.

"Another lovely dress Andi, I wish I'd made more of an effort!" Lamented Sophie.

"Ah, it's just a work thing though, isn't it? It's not like Tom's here to see you, anyway, is it?" I referred to her fiancé, with just a tinge of jealousy, who worshipped her.

"Yeah, true." She shrugged. "How's Oscar these days? You must love that new house; I remember it from that party, really nice and spacious. When are you two going to throw another?" She quizzed, wide eyed. "Or could it potentially be a baby shower on the horizon? It's been so long now chick!"

I recoiled slightly at her innocent comment. Over ten years, yes it had been a long time.

Dinner, or, the entrée I should say, was served grandly under cloches. Scallops, usual silver service hotel faire impressive, and nicely done too. We were in departments, I could see that Lucien had made a seating plan, and we all managed to chatter through. After the starters had finished, Lucien stood, and a hush fell. He looked sharp, in a soft navy linen suit and relaxed white shirt. How could he dress so well but with such a casual flair?

"Good evening my friends, I hope you all enjoyed the first course. I am so sorry now because I am going to annoy you all!"

"Not a speech, we haven't even had our steaks yet mate!" yelled Daniel, who had definitely taken advantage of the free beers.

Lucian laughed and waved his hand nonchalantly.

"No no, its not a wedding tonight, no speeches of course! It is time for eating and drinking. I am going to annoy you by making you move places now to somebody else! So, the man are going to stand up and take their name places and move to a different random seat somewhere, then you can go and make the ladies at the other department bored as well! Go on, move, get going!"

And Lucien began the motherly reseating of all the male members of the company. We chattered excitedly, this was unconventional, and we'd all had several drinks. Sure enough, the steaks came, and we all celebrated the innovative seat swapping, and when it was time for dessert some of the ladies were already on their feet ready with their handbags, which made Lucien laugh that gorgeous chattering laugh of his. I edged around the back of the tables and managed to seat myself on his right, and he took my hand and made a grand gesture of kissing it. He seemed a little flushed too; maybe he had indulged in a few wines. I kicked my pinching black stilettoes off under the table to stretch my toes and I felt totally relaxed.

"So, Andi, tell me, have you enjoyed the Jacuzzi?" he laughed

"Very much, you should try it in the morning" I chimed.

"I will if you will accompany me and make sure I am safe Mademoiselle! I do not wish to drown at a mid range leisure resort in the Northeast of England!" he joked, dramatically.

We around the table could not help but laugh at his charm and joie de vivre. Dinner wound up in a haze of stretched waistbands, half eaten cheeseboards and liquor coffees, and we all stood to bid each other good night. As I stood, I realized I needed to retrieve my shoes, and ducked down under the table. I could see Lucien's loafers shuffling, as he planted twin kisses on everybody on their way past.

"The bar is still open 'til one o clock in the morning, go, drink, pass out! Bon nuit!" I could hear him hiccupping at people. He was tipsy! It was adorable. As I tried to get out from under the table, I gathered up my shoes and handbag and tried to stand as elegantly as possible. I shouldn't have bothered, because I'd managed to get my tights caught on the ornate foot of the dining table and subsequently snagged them loudly and gasped, drawing attention to myself and drawing titters from some of the unkinder colleagues still leaving. I blushed beetroot red and went to tug at them to attempt to hide the ladder, but only dropped my bag, and shoes, back to the floor where the contents rolled everywhere. Lucien peered over his shoulder to see me scrambling to get my belongings back in my handbag and took pity.

A flash of deep plum silk peeked out from underneath my coin purse. Those panties! I'd forgotten in my rush to take them out of my handbag. My stomach froze, and I tried to scoop everything together all at once, but Lucien's hand on my shoulder burned into my skin.

"Please, let me help you" he crooned. He started to place things back into the main compartment of my bag as I panicked. Where were they? The must be in my bag, as I'd swept the coin purse into my bag as soon as I'd seen the color and recognized them. He smiled, and gently patted my arm.

"Allow me?" he offered and tightened his grasp on my arm to help me to my feet.

"I will carry this sexy pair of Christian Louboutins to your room for you, Mademoiselle, seeing as you have had several too many glasses of champagne to be expected to carry your own belongings!" he laughed. "Let me just go and kiss the face of Monsieur Gary Brent over there who has truly superseded my expectations tonight of how much lager an English man can drink!" and he sauntered over to Gary, my line manager, who was trying to speak French and failing quite spectacularly.

I threw my bag on the table and rummaged furiously. Where the fuck had they gone? They were pretty obscene, and now they'd fallen out of my bag in front of my boss. I'd been touching myself in them to a video of his face 24 hours ago! I checked again under the table, but there was nothing. They must be in there somewhere, I had to believe it. My heart still pounded.

"Come on, sleepy head! Let's get you to your chamber!" Called Lucian and I forced a smile.

We paced the short distance to my room, and he remarked to me what a wonderful time he had had getting to know us all better, and how it will make it easier to support us as not only workers but as people. How cute, I thought. Jasper would have rather chopped his knob off than gotten to know us as people.

"I'm really glad, Mr Bisset. Hopefully, the company can move forward with success," I said, trying to remain professional despite my paranoia.

"Oh please, my father is called Mister Bisset! Lucien is fine, Andrea"

"Nobody calls me Andrea," I spluttered.

"Precisely" he drawled, smirking. He pushed his specs up his nose and grinned. "Now, goodnight, here are your shoes, please drink some water before you go to sleep, or you will wake up with the dreaded hang over."

I smiled, and carded my door, which bleeped, and I pushed it open with my shoulder.

"Goodnight, Lucien" I mumbled and turned away. His hand on my shoulder stopped me from going any further, and I slowly turned back to face him.

"I am really sorry, but I think you dropped something" he whispered, almost inaudibly He took purple silk from his inside blazer pocket delicately, between his thumb and forefinger. I shook.

"I'm so sorry, I mumbled back. "I... I don't know how they got in my..."

His face softened. "Why are you sorry? Everybody wears knickers do they not? I just happen to think these particular ones are rather magnifique. I won't ask why you keep them at hand, but I thought I'd return them to you in case you thought you might need them... tonight."

He placed them gently in my palm, and left his hand there momentarily, without breaking my gaze. He smirked and pushed his glasses up his nose once more. With a final, smoldering gaze into my eyes, he turned and prowled up the hallway into the gloom of the late-night corridor lighting. My mouth was dry, and I fell back into my suite, clutching the silk lingerie. I threw the panties into my open suitcase and shuffled to the bathroom to find some water. The bathroom lights burned my eyes momentarily, and I looked slightly worse for wear in the huge mirror. I threw my hair up into a band and decided to take a cool shower. It calmed me, and I poured some cheap fragranced gel from the little free pot into the palm of my hand. As I lathered myself, I hummed gently, trying to forget that my boss had just drunkenly handed me my crotchless panties. I rocked myself back and forth and hummed louder to drown out the hissing of the water off of the tiles. I thought I heard a knock, but I froze and heard nothing more, so I rinsed myself down and grabbed a soft white towel from the rack.

I felt a little more sober after that. I crept onto the soft bed and pulled my towel over me. I hoped hard that Lucien was too drunk to remember this, or, if not, would be too embarrassed to ever say anything. I started writing my CV in my head, ready to send to every PR Company in the county the next day. I drifted off, mentally writing my personal statement.

5)

I opened my eyes slowly, my eyelids felt stiff. Had I really had that much to drink? I suppose I had not eaten that much at lunch or dinner, and I'd skipped breakfast entirely, the alcohol had dried me out me quite badly. I glanced at my phone, which was running out of battery badly where I hadn't bothered to plug it in. 3.47am. Oh god, that was bad; I risked not being able to fall back asleep, and we had another conference with Lucien at 9.30am. Fuck! Lucien. I felt the embarrassment flood back, and I staggered to the bathroom and threw my face under the cold tap, drinking fast and slurping noisily.

When I drew myself upright, I felt a little dizzy, and my head was thumping. I wanted for it to stop, but I realized it was not my head, and that I could hear footsteps outside. It must be a security guard. I climbed back over to my bed and drew the covers over my chilly naked skin. I heard the creak of a heavy door, and a cough. Surely nobody would be pacing around at this time of night. I heard another scratchy little noise several times. It sounded like a cigarette lighter. I hadn't brought any cigarettes with me but good lord, could I have used one after the handbag ordeal. I heard the scratching noise once more, then a rumbling voice said "fils de pute!" and I heard the lighter hit the floor and smash. I vaguely recalled learning at school that that meant "son of a bitch" and I smirked.

Wait. Lucien! Outside my room, trying to light a 4am cigarette. I pleaded with myself.

Do not go and help him, Andrea. There is NOT, I repeat, there is NOT a lighter in your handbag. I sat on the bed, shivering and naked, but quickly gave in and stalked across to the dresser and rummaged in my suitcase and pulled out a nightshirt to throw on.

I could almost smell the tobacco in my mind and my heart pounded. One cigarette with Lucien. I could talk through my misdemeanor and apologise for my unprofessionalism. He's a reasonable guy. Maybe he's also accidentally dropped some underwear at a conference before. Damn it. I went.

I rummaged in that same handbag that had already gotten me into so much trouble already tonight and found the small yellow plastic lighter that had been lodged down there for some time. I grabbed my key card, and slipped it in my pocket, and softly padded down the hotel hallway. I spied the door up ahead; I could feel the air wafting through at a distance. It was cold out there.