Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 124005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 620(@200wpm)___ 496(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 620(@200wpm)___ 496(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
“Probably an eight.”
“That seems like a significant upgrade from slight,” Shilpa mutters.
“I was trying to downplay it.” Hammer exhales a steadying breath. “The shipment is still sitting in the warehouse fridge.”
“It’s supposed to be there when the foodbank opens in”—I check the time—“three hours. I had it all organized. It was being picked up on Friday, before everyone left for the weekend.”
“I guess the driver was running behind because there was an accident blocking the loading dock, so he was half an hour late,” Hammer explains.
“And the office was closed,” I finish for her.
“I would’ve come back if I’d known, but the driver called the head office and was transferred to Topher, so I didn’t know about it until twenty minutes ago.”
“Shit.” And that explains why I didn’t get a call or any information. This is blatant sabotage. Topher has gone too far. But before I confront him, I need a plan to manage this fuckup. “Okay. We should still have time to get everything to the foodbank before it opens and the women’s team arrives.” Is it ideal? Not in the slightest. But the foodbank is a half-hour drive away, and we can load everything into the back of my truck.
“Technically, yes, but we might need to make more than one trip, even if we drive there separately.”
“Why? How much food is there?” Before I left on Thursday, there was enough to fill a cargo van.
“Fresh Foods delivered the fruit and veg on Friday morning. It’s still in cold storage. But there’s more than we expected.”
“How much more?”
“Enough to fill my truck twice.”
“Well, that’s great and also a problem.”
“I can call Hollis and my dad to help?” Hammer offers.
“And I’ll call Ash.” Shilpa already has her phone in her hand.
“I’ll call Tristan and Dallas.”
Once the calls have been made, Shilpa and Hammer head down to the loading dock, and I pay Topher a visit. “Do you have a personal problem with the women’s team, or is it just me that’s your issue?”
Topher purses his lips and looks like a perturbed Kermit the Frog. “Is this about the delivery?”
“Yes, Topher. It’s about the delivery. You and every single other person in this office who deals directly with the teams who use this arena were aware of the foodbank promo I set up for the women’s team. We talked about it in a meeting, and you were briefed in the weekly emails.”
“I get a lot of emails.”
“We all get a lot of emails. When you got that call on Friday, did it not occur to you at the very least to send an email to me and my team to let us know what happened so we could adequately prepare for what we were facing this morning?”
“It was after hours on a Friday,” he says defensively.
“And yet I received an email from you on Friday night at seven o’clock about rink time. So that excuse doesn’t hold a lot of water. I am trying to bring positive press to the Terror organization and demonstrate that we are wholly committed to inclusivity in the sport and support of our community, and this bullshit you pulled makes us look like a bunch of amateur assholes.”
He tugs at his tie.
I’d like to strangle him with it.
“This event starts in less than three hours. And instead of things going smoothly, we’re scrambling to get everything to the foodbank in time. Think about the headline on that one, Topher, and how it would reflect poorly on the Terror as a whole.”
“I can call down to maintenance and see if they have a couple of trucks.” He looks back at his computer and moves his mouse like he has better things to do than clean up his mess.
“I’ve already handled it. What you can do is call Denise and personally apologize for the miscommunication.”
Half an hour later, Dallas, Ash, Hollis, Roman, Flip, and Tristan arrive at the warehouse loading dock with a huge moving van. Even Kai, the team photographer, has come to help, along with the two staff from media relations who the PR division sometimes collaborates with. We load everything and deliver the food with just enough time to unload and set up. I’m so grateful for the support, but I remain frustrated that Topher is set on making my life difficult, ruining good things for the community in the process.
Once everything is ready, everyone but me and Hammer takes off. Apart from the late delivery, no one would guess that we had any glitches, and the foodbank is incredibly grateful for the donation and the help of the women’s team on what turns out to be one of the busiest days they’ve ever had.
Afterward, Hammer and I meet the rest of the girls at the Watering Hole.
“You look like you could use this.” Shilpa slides a pint glass of club soda across the table.