her personality could be a challenge and that not everyone liked a hard
worker. At her last firm, she’d got along well with everyone, but when it
came to friends, she couldn’t exactly claim that she’d had many.
“Um. Sure. I just thought I’d check.”
“Thanks.”
“No problem.” April turned to leave, but then spun back around. “A few
of us are going to Gino’s and Gee’s for lunch. It’s nothing fancy. Just a few
blocks over. They have really great pizza. Do you want to come?”
Christina pulled the first file off the stack and set it in front of her. She
knew she should make more of an effort to be nice, but as usual, it was hard
for her to choose between being friendly and actually getting to the mound
of work that was pressing down on her shoulders. Or more literally, on her
desk. “I have quite a few things to read over this morning. I’ll probably
work through lunch. But thank you.”
April nodded. Her smile was too big and cheerful, and she basically ran
out the door. Christina sighed. She knew she really should make an effort.
She didn’t know a single person in Austin. It would be easiest to get to
know people at work than it would be anywhere else.
Honestly, Christina found it hard to keep down the rising tide of
disappointment when it came to her move. She just couldn’t tamp down her
annoyance at the fact that the whole thing was a letdown after New York.
Sure, everyone had their own small office in the neat, tidy brick building.
The board rooms were spacious and filled with tasteful furniture and
decently expensive artwork. It was just the overall feel of the place.
The branch was a new one. The staff was basically a bunch of
individuals from all over the country, all just thrown together. Obviously,
someone hoped that they would make a cohesive unit, but it was chaotic.
Communication between departments or even on an individual level was
basically crap. Everyone seemed nice, but not everyone seemed proficient
at their jobs. It was extremely frustrating for Christina, who was used to