“Terry!” she nearly screamed, jumping back.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you.”

She shook her head, laughing slightly, feeling embarrassed for having nearly screamed.  That would have brought Mark out of his office, and confirmed the underlying worry he clearly held concerning her well-being.  The last thing she wanted would be for him to reconsider putting her in charge of the green tech fund that she’d just convinced him about.

“Oh, I’m really sorry, Diane!” Terry said softly, sincerely contrite, rubbing her arms up and down lightly.

She gave him a nervous smile, “that’s alright, Terry.  Just nerves and exhaustion, I guess.”

She went on to tell him that Mark had supported her proposal, after he’d asked how her meeting went, but she asked him to keep it quiet until they’d all hear the official word from George.

He grinned at her, “Gotta hand it to you, princess.  You did it.  There were some whispers around the hall here over the past few weeks that pushing this would be a huge blunder for you.”

“Well … I got Mark on board, so they can second-guess him now, if they’d like!”

He smiled, glad that her spunky spirit was returning.  “They’re just playa-haters, girlfriend.  Just jealous – but don’t worry, they’re really only a few anyway…”

“Well … thanks for helping me out with some of the analysis, Ter,” she responded, taking his attention back to the present.  She and Terry had grown close following the first few days after she’d joined.  He was somewhat of an elitist, didn’t mix as much with others, and was a sharp dresser.  He’d immediately approved of her style, though, which eased her entry into his favorites list.

He shook his head, murmuring he’d enjoyed doing some of the analytical work for her side project, “instead of this PA work I do for Mark.”

Diane gave him a supportive smile, “Mark relies on you for a lot, Terry.  He couldn’t do his job without you.  But once I get things moving with this fund, cross-fingers, I’ll ask him if I can get some of your time to help me with it.”

Terry uttered a muffled “whoop” and enveloped her in a hug.  “I know I’m not like the rest of you Ivy league-MIT  brainiacs, and only got my MBA from a state school, even if I do have these family connections in the Midwest, and managed to bring Mark a couple of clients.”