Chapter 19

Everyone at Marshall of Liverpool was now hard at work. Nick managed to find six more possible projects, two of them maintenance but one held the promise of new work as well. He asked Melanie to start looking for two new Project Managers.

"Including Sally?"

"I reckon unless she blots her copy book in the next two or three months."

She did not. She had plenty of work in the office and was thrilled that the Project Managers were prepared to seek her views on things. She found her new friendly relationship with Jerry particularly rewarding after all the stand-up rows they had had. When she visited the work with Nick her keen eye still missed nothing but she would always mention it to him first and as often as not he would let her have a word with the site manager. She was pleased and proud that he trusted her.

The visit of the CEO was a major event. Nick decided that he had to invite all his managers and their wives to a buffet supper to meet him informally. As usual he asked Sally as well. The Damsels coped with it immaculately and Gemma Norton told him subsequently how much they had enjoyed it being able to talk to the guests.

Trevor Kirkwood was liked by everybody. He did not give himself any airs or graces but was natural and friendly with everyone. The managers all realised that he might be rather tougher in the morning. Naturally it did not take long for he and Cliff to start talking about Rugby football but he talked sailing to Melanie and her husband, painting with Helen and even potting with Harry. It was clear that he was very taken with little Sally.

"It seems to me that you're rather more than a technical assistant if you're helping Nick to host this party," he teased her.

"Well it does mean that he doesn't have to keep an eye on the caterers," she said shyly.

He grinned. "Well done you," he said. "That remark was cheeky of me. What do you do with your spare time?"

"Play the violin mostly and keep myself fit."

"Are you with the LPO?"

"Yes."

"Good for you. I shall have to make sure I introduce you to my wife when she comes up with me in May. She's an organist."

Sally smiled. "Way beyond me," she replied. "Four fingers, a bow and only one stave of music are enough for me. Ten fingers, two feet, three lines of music and all those stops. Phew!"

Trevor Kirkwood laughed. "There's a lot less delicacy of touch though."

"True but I still give any organist full marks if they can do more than just bash out hymns."

"That's really all she does these days. Actually, I'm being unfair. She's still got voluntaries and a few anthems. Anyway, what are your professional aims?"

"My immediate aim is to become a Project Manager. Nick made me his technical assistant because while he reckoned I had all the engineering expertise I needed more experience at dealing with people."

"I see. Are you gaining it?"

She nodded.

"Good for you."

"Thanks."

Nick brought a couple up to meet him and Sally moved away.

At the end of the evening Sally gave her usual help with the final tidying up as did Trevor Kirkwood. Nick did not take her hands but thanked her warmly with genuinely smiling eyes.

"I didn't lift a finger," she smiled back, "so it's my turn to thank you."

"She seems a nice girl," said the CEO when she had left and he and Nick were sipping a goodnight brandy.

Nick smiled. "She wasn't. She'd pick a fight with anyone and everyone." He went on to tell her story. "Now she's got the PMs eating out of her hand, the site engineers listen to her with respect and, as I said earlier, she's a first rate engineer. I'm going to consider her for the new lot of PMs in two or three months' time. The trouble is I shall miss her. She takes a lot of the detailed work off my hands, gives ideas to the PMs and is actually fun to have about. That girl's going to go places."

The following morning the CEO made a point of visiting her alone in her office before he left.

"You said yesterday evening that you were gaining experience in dealing with people," he said to her. "Your boss thinks you've done a lot more than that. He clearly thinks very highly of you both as an engineer and as a person."

Sally blushed with pleasure and embarrassment. "Thank you, Mr Kirkwood," she murmured.

He smiled warmly. "And I shall be watching you from a distance. I look forward to seeing a meteoric rise to high places."

She shook her head deprecatingly.

"I look forward to seeing you again in May, my dear, and so I'm sure will my wife."

She nodded enthusiastically. "So do I."

He left her and she sat at her desk in blissful shock. She knew Nick admired her as an engineer but he must have praised her to the rooftops for the CEO to come and see her personally and say what he did.

"Bless you, Nick," she thought. "I'd like to thank you but you'd go all funny on me and think I'm after you. You're less stand-offish than you used to be but I can't risk putting you back even though you do deserve a hug and a kiss."

"Well! Well!" said a smiling Megan. "A private audience with His Majesty!"

Sally giggled self-consciously. "Shut the door and come and sit down," she said.

She told Megan of the conversation and her private thoughts.

"Wonderful! You deserve everything that's been said, Sally love. It's been a joy to watch you change from a feral cat into a sweet, smiling, self-assured girl."

"I'm not self-assured enough to go and thank Nick though. I couldn't bear to lose the friendliness he's showing me."

Megan chuckled. "You don't have to do a Helen on him. All you have to do is pick a moment and then, almost as an aside, thank him for saying all those nice things to Mr Kirkwood."

Sally bit her lip and looked doubtful. She did not have time for further introspection. Nick had returned from seeing the CEO off the premises. He knocked on Sally's door and walked straight in.

"Whoops!" he said. "Am I interrupting something?"

"No," said Sally smiling. "We were just doing a post-mortem."

"And?"

"We think it was a success judging by the smile on Mr Kirkwood's face all the way round but you'll have to wait for Managers' on Monday to hear what everyone else says."