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| The Gem - London's Summer |
Sophie Grant had been
planning the send forth dinner for about three weeks now; she even contacted
Josephine Olsen, David's mum in Aylesbury to confirm some of his favourites.
Sophie had been David Olsen's personal assistant in the last two and half years
so she had a good knowledge about his schedule, his likes and dislikes. David
was a principled easy going man; everything was fine as long as one kept the
communication line opened. He was a dedicated and diligent worker; the Guardian
would definitely miss his input and presence within the organisation. He was a
sucker for excellence and within the five years he brought a lot of improvements
to the organisation.
The send forth dinner was
a surprise and the whole department had been looking forward to it for weeks. The
venue of the send forth was The Giraffe, Victoria and Sophie had called to make
a reservation for half past six for 20 people. Everyone was to arrive by 20
minutes past six so that David would have no idea that he was to be surprised.
The plan was to have Sophie meet David at Victoria Station for half past six
and they would both walk down to the venue which was less than five minutes
from the Station.
Special requests were
made for 'Sundaes' and 'Apple and Red Cherry Crumble' since
those were David's favourite desserts according to his mum Josephine. The
dinner menu would include 'Orange BBQ Duck
Tostada' and 'Nachos Nirvana' as
starters, 'Grilled Chicken
"Club" Sandwich' and
'Grilled Steak Sandwich' as Mains and 'Apple
and Red Cherry Crumble' and 'Rocky Road Sundae' as Desserts. Sophie asked
the room to be beautifully decorated in shades of green. She was already so
excited about the evening. The best surprise of all was his mum; she was going
to be present at the dinner party. 'All
that is left is to re-confirm my list of people', Sophie thought to herself
with a smile on her face as David called her into his office to help him with
his final editorial assignment in the Guardian.
...............
David Olsen had been
watching Sophie Grant in the last two weeks; it seemed like she had something
really exciting on her mind. He was not one to pry; she usually shared what was
on her mind if she felt the need to. She generated an aura of excitement around
her which he could see was already contagious. His whole department seemed to
be excited about something he was not aware of. 'Oh well. I have one more assignment left to do as the editor-in-chief
of this department and I'm giving it my best!' David thought to himself as
he went back to the feature on his computer. As David was reading through the
feature, he remembered that he was expecting a package from his agent concerning
the contract the new landlord wanted him to look at before he moved in and he
needed someone to go check if it had arrived. David picked up the intercom and
dialled, 'Sophie, could you please come
here for a few minutes?', he said. While he was waiting for her arrival,
David remembered he also needed to know what he had left to do since he had only
two official working days left. Sophie walked in at the instant he was trying
to itemise what he could remember. She was looking really lovely; she had on a
baby pink blazer with a fuchsia pink camisole, a black midi pencil skirt and a
pair of black lacy stiletto peep-toes. Her jewellery was simple; a string of
pearls, pearl earrings and a bracelet wrist watch. 'Wow! You outdid yourself today Sophie. Got a hot date tonight?',
David complimented with a big smile on his face. The compliment brought an
instant blush to Sophie's face. 'David!
You are such a tease!', Sophie said laughing. 'I'm just happy and decided to reflect my happiness in my clothing',
Sophie said with her tongue sticking out. David burst into a ripple of laughter
and had to wait for some seconds before he could recollect why he actually
asked Sophie to come over to his office. 'Oh
yes! I would like to know what is left on my work schedule. I would also like
you to go to the front desk to find out if I have any parcel from the agent.
Thanks Sophie. You have been amazing!' Sophie smiled again and went ahead
to check if the parcel had arrived at the front desk.
The parcel arrived at
the front desk just about twenty
minutes before Sophie called to find out if it had arrived. Sophie also had a
message at the front desk informing her that the Giraffe needed her to come
make final arrangements for the dinner party. The dinner party was set for
tomorrow evening and David's mum was to arrive in London tomorrow at noon.
Sophie had sent Josephine's train tickets to London in the mail last week. She
just had to re-confirm her hotel reservation and taxi reservation. Josephine was
going to be staying at the Chester Hotel in Westminster. Sophie thought this
was a good idea since the hotel was about five minutes from the Victoria Palace
Shopping Centre; a good place to window shop in the heart of London without the
overwhelming crowd of Oxford Street, London. She hurried to the front desk to
get the parcel and headed back to David's office. On getting to David's office,
she met him standing by the window and staring out; it was obvious he was
already missing his office and the Guardian. She quietly walked over to his
side and remained silent until he turned to face her. 'You know Sophie, when I arrived in London about eight years ago I did
not realise I would work in the Guardian not to talk of rising so fast to be
the editor-in-chief of this department. It has been a really wonderful experience
and I would definitely miss everyone here. So have you made a decision about
what we discussed?' David turned to
her with his eyes shining so bright with a grin. 'Here is the parcel, David. We all miss you already. I will let you
know what my decision is by the middle of next week before you move'. She
went ahead to remind him that they had a meeting with a potential private
client the next day and she would be waiting for him at the Victoria Station. Sophie
asked if he wanted his lunch at his desk and headed back to her office.
..................
To be continued...