“So cute!” Paula handed it back. “Enjoy the rest of your day, ladies.” Marie was still smiling as she put the photo back in her pocket, while Michelle just turned and went back into the room she’d been cleaning.

David was quiet as they walked back to their offices. When they reached them, he turned to Paula. “I suppose this is as good a time as any for our touch base meeting. Do you have a few minutes?”

“Sure.” Paula wasn’t sure what he wanted to touch base about, but she followed him into his office and took a seat across from his desk.

“So, I’ve been working with you for a few weeks now and your grandfather wanted me to give him an assessment when I finish as to how suitable I think you are for the job. I thought it might be good for us to check in and discuss how that’s going and where I see some areas for improvement.”

“Okay.” Paula suddenly felt a bit nervous and on the defensive.

“Overall, considering you haven’t been in this role before, I think you’re doing a decent job. People like you and that’s the piece that was missing with Andrea. But I’ve noticed that some of them seem to be taking advantage a little. They’ve sensed that you’re nicer than Andrea and they can get away with more. That Michelle is a perfect example.”

Paula felt like she’d just failed a test. And she never failed tests. It wasn’t a good feeling. She also knew he was right. “So, how do I fix that?”

“You just need to take a firmer hand. Let them know what you expect and that you won’t put up with anything less.”

Paula felt sick to her stomach. She hated conflict. Maybe taking this job was a bad idea. Maybe it wasn’t too late to go back to hiding in her office and just focusing on the numbers. Grandfather could call the headhunter and get someone in that had experience and wasn’t a pushover, like her.

“Are you okay? You look miles away.” David looked at her with concern.

“I’m fine. Was there anything else?”

“I think that’s it for now. Just think about what I said.”

“I will.”

Paula went into her office and closed the door. She felt her eyes well up with tears which she immediately wiped away. She was not going to cry over this. She’d actually thought she was doing a pretty good job. So, to have David say she wasn’t was disheartening. Especially when she saw the truth in what he said.