Polishing an Old Trophy

"All right dad! Don't worry. She's a friend of a friend who's down on her luck. I'm just helping her out," Derek explained. As his father and brother filed out, Derek grabbed Caleb by the upper arm and said under his breath, "And, yes, she's hot." Caleb chuckled as he walked to his office.

~ ~ ~

"GOOD MORNING!" DEREK greeted Amelia with a smile. "Glad that you decided to make it," he shook her hand. "Thanks for taking care of her, Mona," he directed at the receptionist as he led Amelia through the doors into the warehouse.

"Thanks very much, Mona!" Amelia called out to the receptionist with a smile as she was pulled into Derek's wake. Derek walked purposefully down a short, brightly lit hallway into an employee breakroom, with a coffee dispenser, vending machines, refrigerator, tables, and chairs.

"This is the lunchroom for the co-packing facility, where you'll be taking breaks and having lunch and such," he gestured around the empty room. "The shift won't be on break for another half hour, but it gets hoppin' here during break and lunch. C'mon, let's get out onto the co-packing floor." Derek led her through a set of heavier doors into a fenced area with bins and safety advisories.

"What's all this?" Amelia asked.

"This is where we make sure that we have all our PPE on, our personal protective equipment like our high-vis vests, safety glasses, and if you need them, ear plugs. This is also where everyone goes past a set of safety protocols, to remind them to stay safe," he explained. "This area isn't that dangerous, but our warehouse, with the forklifts, and our printing presses are, so we make sure that all our employees are well versed in the safety standards for all areas. Here, put these on," he instructed as he handed her all of the things he just listed.

"Thanks," she responded as she scrambled to put on the equipment. Derek turned and pushed open the door of the cage out onto the co-packing floor. Even though there really wasn't much actual noise, the vastness of the space allowed the small sounds to echo and create a buzz. Amber was thankful that she had the plugs in.

"So, here we have the co-packing floor. This is where we'll have you work," Derek indicated. "We put together displays here for a lot of consumer goods companies and retailers. It's manual labour, but it's not backbreaking, and it pays better than minimum wage," he reassured her. "Three months' probation, then you start pension contributions, and health coverage starts on day one."

"That's amazing!" Amelia enthused, having recently experienced firsthand some of the less generous workplaces. "You won't regret hiring me, I promise!" Derek chuckled.

"Don't worry about it, Amelia. I'm sure you'll do fine," he said with a warm smile. "Looks like break is starting soon, so let me introduce you to Ratish. He'll be your immediate supervisor." Derek then waved to a Sri Lankan gentleman with a clipboard who looked to be in his late forties. He waved back and walked over to the pair. "Amelia, I'd like you to meet Ratish Nathan, your shift supervisor. Ratish, this is Amelia. She'll be starting on Monday."

"Good to meet you Miss Amelia," he reached out his hand for a shake. "Welcome to Ringer." Turning to Derek, Ratish reminded him of some things he needed to take care of. "If Miss Amelia is going to start Monday, then you'll have to run over to HR to get the forms signed and the vouchers for her PPE. Nice to meet you again and looking forward to seeing you Monday," Ratish directed the latter part to Amelia.

"Right. Let's head back into the office and I'll have you sign all the release forms and get you vouchers for your boots, vest, glasses, and hearing protection. You can pick up a pack of gloves on Monday," Derek informed Amelia. For the first time in a long while, Amelia felt settled.

~ ~ ~

AMELIA UNLOCKED THE door of the apartment she had been sharing with her grandmother for the last seven months. "Babcia! I'm home!" she called out to her grandmother, dropping the items she picked up on the floor of the small entryway. She breathed in the sulphury, sour, meaty smell of bigos stew and her mouth watered at the anticipation of pork and sausage stewed with sauerkraut and cabbage, the perfect lunch to warm her up on this wintery day.

"So, Amelka, did you get job?" her grandmother, Magdalena Novak, asked her as she entered the kitchen. Amelia bussed her cheek while she began dishing the stew out into bowls.

"Yeah, Babcia, I did!" Amelia practically sang as she laid out silverware and rye bread out on the small table. Her grandmother let out a noncommittal grunt.

"Why are you so proud of yourself?" her grandmother asked her in her accented English. Amelia felt her joy deflating. "What kind of a job is this?" she pressed.

"Well, it's kind of like an assembly line. You know the displays you see in the store? I'll be helping to fill them," she explained. Her grandmother sighed, and shook her head as she buttered a slice of bread. "What?" Amelia asked, "It's honest work."

"Yes, Amelka, it's honest work. Honest work like me and your mother did... for you to be better," her grandmother explained. "We were educated women in Poland, we had good job, but we had to leave, to come here for better future for you," she continued. "All of that wasted on university so you could what, marry rich man who throw you away? Now you do job that your mother and I had to to make living?" Her grandmother sighed again and went back to eating.

"Babcia, I don't want to fight, OK? Can't we just celebrate small victories?" Magdalena just harumphed.

Amelia sighed and thought back to her mother, Maria, who had died a few years before the divorce, and of her grandmother. Her mother was an industrial engineer in Poland, and her grandmother was a chemist. Both had come to Canada for better prospects, especially since her father wasn't in the picture and her grandfather had passed away.

Magdalena came first in the late '80's to escape the turmoil and because the Canadian government said they wanted skilled scientists. She ended up working as a cleaning lady in a chemical company, retiring as an inventory clerk. She sponsored her daughter and granddaughter when she got her citizenship. Maria fared a little better and ended up at the same company as an inventory planner before dying of a stroke. Both women, like most skilled immigrants, were lured to Canada by the government's assurances that their skills were needed but ended up in jobs where their experience was wasted.

Maria didn't want that life for her daughter so sought to raise her daughter up as a trophy wife and marry wealthy to ensure her security. Maria and her mother had fought bitterly since Magdalena saw how bright Amelia was and argued that she should make her own way in the world. Maria won out and since most children, like water, take the path of least resistance, took advantage of being pretty and capitalised on it while it was advantageous.

Amelia gave her own sigh and dug into the warm meal.

~ ~ ~

AMELIA WAS AT work by seven A.M. the following Monday, feeling a bit uncomfortable in her new steel-toed boots, eye, and hearing protection, but she was ready to start. Before shift started, Ratish tossed her a bag of rubber-studded knit gloves and assigned her a locker. Promptly at seven-thirty, the packing line started, with groups assembling merchandising units, while other groups began packing product, and another group packaged up the finished displays for shipping.

Ratish started Amelia out packing products from a merchandising sheet. It took a while for her to get the hang of things, but her coworkers helped her out. During break she was introduced to her linemates Christina, a young nurse from the Philippines, who was saving up for tuition to complete courses, allowing her to take the exam and qualify as a registered nurse. She was also introduced to Luz, who was a Finance MBA from Columbia who was working here until she could find a job in her field. Ratish, she found out, was a civil engineer in Sri Lanka.

The line was made up of mostly well-educated immigrants and Amelia realised that she was probably the one there with the least qualifications. Armed with that realization and remembering her mom and grandmother, Amelia determined to keep her head down, work hard, and be thankful for the job.

Derek surprised Amelia by joining the group at lunch. He chatted amiably with all the workers, inquiring about one's daughter, or another's ailing mother, and then discussing a younger one's course load at night school. As they were packing away lunch, she asked Christina if that was a regular thing.

"Yeah, the bossing, he has lunch with us and dinner with second shift if he is around the building," she explained. "Sometimes his father does too, but he usually has lunch with the printing press or warehouse guys. The family is really involved. It really is a family business."

The pattern continued the next day, and on the day after, Derek sat down beside her. "So, Amy, how's it going? Settling in OK?" he said with a smile. Mid-chew, Amelia nearly choked on her sandwich, eyes watering. Signalling an apology, she took a sip of her soda. Seeing that he had caught her unaware, Derek quickly apologised. "Sorry about that," he said as he handed her a napkin.

Amelia blushed as she stammered her reply. "It's... it's been good. Chris and Luz here have been helping me out, and Ratish has been great!" she told him.

"That's great! I'm glad you're getting along," he told her with a smile. Amelia smiled back shyly, glad for his kindness. Derek continued to chat amiably with the group, asking about their lives and speaking little about himself. He was content to listen, and only gave his advice or opinion when asked. He drew Amelia into the conversation, allowing her to get to know her coworkers better.

Amelia spent the rest of the day thinking about Derek in the back of her mind, intrigued by his warmth and caring. Her fixation on Derek continued as she rode the bus home and through dinner, where she had a conversation with her grandmother that she completely forgot. Her distraction followed her into the shower where she was mildly unsettled when her fingers brushed at the junction between her legs, sending a pleasurable tingling sensation throughout her body, and she realised she was thinking about Derek. Coming out of the washroom, she was in such a haze that she almost ran over her grandmother.

"Careless girl! Where is your head today?" her grandmother scolded.

"Sorry, Babcia," she apologised. "I'm just really tired from work," she murmured as she hurried to her room. Embarrassed, she shut her door and leaned on it to catch her breath. Her heart was beating hard as she came to the realization that she was attracted to Derek, very attracted to Derek, and it filled her with shame.

All her life, Amelia defined herself by her ability to attract men. Her self-worth was tied to her looks, and the kinds of men she could draw in, powerful, rich, handsome men. Men who saw her as an object to be paraded around and shown off, but just that, an object to be ignored unless for sex or gain. Amelia was used to being treated deferentially, for her beauty, her social position, or her desirability. Derek was the first man she recognised who actually treated her with respect and concern.

Amelia didn't want to group Derek in with the other men she knew, but couldn't help her physical attraction to him. She knew he was different, but knew her reputation as a gold-digger would put her out of the running for his affections. She threw herself onto her bed and curled up in a fetal position, pulling her terrycloth robe tightly around her.

It had been over a year since Amelia and Trey had sex, since the last time she had caught him cheating. The divorce and the year that followed, chasing job after job, exhausted her to the point that she had little energy for any physical attraction. That is until the thought of her attraction to Derek insinuated itself in her mind.

Thinking of him now started her heart beating faster and harder. Inhaling deeply, her breath quivered. She closed her eyes as she exhaled, the escape of breath equally shaky. Her left hand stole to her breast, lightly caressing its fullness, reveling in the bolts of pleasure the light dusting of hair sent to her core as her palm passed over them. As she tweaked her nipple, capping her puffy, pink areola, it stiffened and crinkled, causing a flood of moisture in her pussy.

Amelia's right hand reached down between her tightly closed legs, to the moisture building in their junction. She curled her finger between her lower lips, sliding along the puffiness of her vulva to draw out her thin, inner lips, slick with her arousal. Her heart continued its heavy, steadily increasing beat, and her breath became shallow.

Her finger now sought her clit, rhythmically circling it with her lubrication, drawing it out from under its hood. As she continued to stimulate it, a ball of pressure began to build at the base of her belly, her other hand now pulling steadily at her nipples. It had been a long time since she had felt arousal and even before she could penetrate herself, the dam broke as the ball of pressure released with a flash behind her closed eyelids and an image of Derek's smiling face in her mind's eye. Amelia's body shuddered through waves of pleasure before slowing down to a few involuntary jerks.

Breathing deeply and coming down from her orgasm, tears began to form in Amelia's eyes. A sense of shame and hopelessness washed over her. She silently wept, lamenting what she thought could never be. All cried out, and tired from her climax, she drifted off to sleep, only to dream of Derek and a life she wished she could have had, instead of the one she'd chosen.

~ ~ ~

THE MONDAY OF Christmas week, Al Too and Willa came out to Ringer to do a walk through for the production of their Spring signage, review their second quarter plans, and have lunch, on Ringer's dime. Before heading out for lunch, Al Too and Willa asked for a walkthrough of the co-packing facility. After putting on their PPE, Derek walked them out to the floor where they were packing teeth-whitening displays.

As Derek was taking the group through and explaining the process, more for Willa's sake, he heard her gasp and then snicker. She walked over to Amelia's station and tapped her on the shoulder. "So I guess Miss High and Mighty has to work a minimum wage job to get by, huh?" she chuckled evilly. "I guess your plan to suck us dry didn't work, so you're gonna latch on to Derek here? I better warn him then."

Amelia's initial reaction was shock at the sudden mean girling she received from Willa. Derek looked over and saw her eyes filling with tears, threatening to spill, her chin quivering, but he was glad that she stood firm. He walked over and placed a hand firmly behind Willa's shoulder, looking to guide her away. "Ms. Nestor, maybe we better get going if we're to make our reservation," he said to Willa, in a tone that was deferential, yet brooked no disagreement. He shot Amelia an apologetic look as he guided Willa away.

"Fine, I'm done here anyway," Willa sulked as she turned to walk back to the entrance.

Derek turned back to the group quickly. "Why don't you guys break early for lunch. I'll clear it with HR." Turning to Christine and Luz, he quickly added, "Chris, Luz, could you please keep an eye on Amy. Amy, if you need to cut out early today, no problem. We can get someone to cover." He walked off after Willa.

"Derek, I'll catch up with you in a moment," Al Too told Derek. He turned to Amelia, whose tears were now coursing down her face. He pulled a handkerchief out and handed it to her, cupping her shoulder in his other hand. "I'm sorry about that Amber. Willa can be... well, she can be a bitch, like her mother," he admitted.

"That's OK, Mr. Nestor," brushing off Willa's bad behaviour.

"Come now, Mr. Nestor's a stranger. I know you're not married to Trey anymore, but instead of 'Dad', at least you could call me Al," he offers. "You know, you could come work for me anytime, right? Just ask and I can get you on our PR team."

"Thanks very much, Mr.... I mean, Al, but the Ringers have been good to me, and Derek offered me this job last week when I was at my lowest. It just wouldn't be right that I just up and quit." she explained. Al Too sighed, shook his head slightly, and smiled.

"You know, you were probably too good for Trey. If you decide that you'd like to do something different, let me know, OK?" he offered, giving her shoulder a squeeze before heading back to the office area. As he entered the conference room, he walked over to the group gathered to head out to lunch, which included his daughter.

"My apologies gentlemen," Al Too addressed the Ringer men, "but it seems something has come up at the office that my daughter and I need to attend to." Al Too shot his daughter a withering look, which did not go unnoticed by Derek and his father. Caleb glanced askance at Derek, who shook his head imperceptibly. "Davis, Derek," Al Too continued, "let's get together in the new year instead. Lunch will be on me." Shaking hands with the men, Al Too pulled his coat on and strode towards the entrance, glaring once more at Willa before stalking off. Willa gave a weak smile and a small wave to the group and followed her father quickly to his truck.

"Dude, what the fuck was that?" Caleb asked as the Nestors drove away. Davis shot his younger son a look for his profanity, which Caleb reciprocated with a sheepish shrug.

"Slipped my mind that Amy was working on the floor when I took them out," Derek explained. "Willa really took it to Amy when she ran into her, like straight out of 'Mean Girls' or something!"

"'Mean Girls'?" Davis asked.

"'Heathers' Dad," Derek explained, using a more age-appropriate reference. Davis nodded in understanding. "Shit, I should go and check on Amy. Catch up with you guys after lunch?" Derek left before getting a response.

~ ~ ~

DEREK FOUND AMELIA in the breakroom with Christina and Luz comforting her. He approached warily, always unsure about dealing with female emotions, having grown up with only his brother. Crouching down, he softly placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Listen Amy, how about we get you home, OK?" he asked. Christina and Luz both nodded and encouraged her to take the rest of the day. Amelia shook her head.

"I'm OK. Just give me a minute and I can get back to work," she asked. "It'll be better than sitting at home, moping with my grandmother," she explained.

"Alright then," Derek acquiesced. "Listen, if any of you have any issues, you let me know, OK?" Derek encouraged. The women all nodded and Derek rose to get back to the offices. As he walked away, Amelia raised her head and gave Derek a yearning look.

"Mira, not gonna happen," Luz warned, catching Amelia's look. "That one is a forever bachelor."

"You don't have to worry, Luz," Amelia assured her friend. "I'm never doing that again," she told her friends, to their confused looks. "Let's just finish lunch and get back."

~ ~ ~

WELL INTO THE morning of the next day, Derek's work phone rang, which shocked him a bit. Over the last few years, less and less people actually called him, much less on the landline. Most of the time he'd get a text or an email. Picking up the handset with a puzzled look, Derek answered the phone.

"Good morning, Derek Ringer," he answered.

"Morning Derek, Al Too calling."

"Morning Al. Sorry we couldn't connect for lunch yesterday," Derek apologised, diplomatically avoiding the why of why they missed lunch. "Hope you were able to take care of things back at the office."