black jeans, her new boots, and a soft gray sweater. She had asked Hunter for his opinion, worried about looking too casual even though she had been given permission for the jeans.
“ Nice choice,” he said. “I'm glad we got you the boots. Polishes up the jeans.”
He stared for a moment at her arms and she stared back perplexed. Oh! She finally realized that he was searching for the bracelet.
“Still here,” she said wryly, pulling it down closer to her wrist. “I told you I never take it off.
Hunter had the grace to blush. Then he bent to kiss her as though to apologize.
Amber thought that Hunter was simply going to drop her off at the office building entrance. However, he insisted on following her upstairs and introducing her to the receptionist.
Amber thought that the young woman stared a little too long at Hunter so she leaned against him protectively. She didn't want anyone mistaking their relationship.
“Jealous much?” Hunter murmured as he led her through the corridors to his mother's office.
Amber ignored him.
“Sweetie! I didn't know you were escorting Amber here!” Mrs. Webb gave her son a warm hug.
“ I can't stay,” Hunter said and then quickly switched to French.
Amber had a suspicion he was talking about her. Of course she had no way to tell for sure which meant she couldn't even accuse him of it without looking paranoid.
“Of course, Hunter, don't worry about it,” Mrs. Webb said. Then she shooed him from the room.
Hunter sent her an air kiss and quickly left.
“Now, Amber, let me show you where you'll be working and then let's get the tiresome paperwork out of the way. I have so many thoughts to share with you and can't wait to hear your opinions.”
Mrs. Webb showed Amber to a large room set up with several small cubicles.
“I'm afraid it isn't fancy, but we've gotten you a new laptop at least. Oh, and all all of our staff are supplied with cell phones. She reached into a drawer and pulled it out. Just try to keep it with you at all times. I have my number entered in the contacts for you already.”
Oh, wow! Well, that solved her cell phone problem since her own cheap phone wouldn't work internationally.
“It's great!” Amber said, admiring the office space. “I love the natural light coming in from the windows. And the view of the city is fabulous.”
Mrs. Webb smiled. “Thanks for being so understanding. Hunter told me that you were a simple girl after my own heart.”
Amber glowed, pleased that Hunter had talked her up to his mom. An hour later, all the employment paperwork completed, she was jotting down notes as she spoke with Mrs. Webb.
The Foundation, she quickly learned, was in its infant stage. Mrs. Webb had not been exaggerating when she said that she needed concrete ideas. The two spent a few hours together brainstorming how best to develop and run art programs for disadvantaged girls. How old would the students be? Would they apply via a lottery system or was it more fair to look for developing talent in less affluent schools? Should they concentrate on the younger pupils or try to attract high school students who might be able to work towards scholarships for college?
A large part of Amber's independent work would be to contact various school districts and universities in the United States. Mrs. Webb was very thorough in her work. She wanted to know what was already being done in this particular field and if she was duplicating existing efforts.
Amber suggested aiming the resources at girls in poorer school districts who were taking at least one art course in junior high school. She explained that many of these girls couldn't afford art supplies and often had to rely on the classes at school for any materials beyond pencil and paper. However, she suggested that even middle school girls could benefit from after school programs. By the time the meeting was over, Amber was excited to be on board and felt that she was truly contributing.
Once the regular
Rebecca Hamilton, Conner Kressley