“You’ll never get another job if you call a lawyer,” Julia said practically.
“I’m not going to put up with it,” Jane said, and ate her salad in silence after that. She wondered how many women in the office he’d done that to, who kept their mouths shut to keep their jobs. She couldn’t imagine him doing something like that to Francine Rivers. She was tougher than that, and looked like she wouldn’t tolerate it for a minute. There was an undercurrent of anger in Francine, which Jane suspected would cause her to erupt with very little provocation. Jane couldn’t guess if Francine’s anger came from her job or her personal life, but she didn’t seem like a happy woman. She had a fabulous career and was highly respected, but Jane could sense that something was amiss somewhere in her life.
Jane had no way of knowing that Francine’s husband had walked out on her with the nanny, divorced Francine, and married the nanny as soon as their divorce was final. Fortunately, she had never given up her job as an editor at a major publisher. But she could no longer afford to keep it after the divorce. She had taken the job at the agency and was promoted with astounding speed. She was a very talented editor and had a real ability to discover promising young writers who blossomed with her direction and guidance. Several of them were writing bestsellers now. The pay as an agent was better, but the child support her ex-husband gave her was meager. He’d had two more children, so she got nothing from him anymore. She made a very healthy salary, but supporting two children on her own ate up what she made very quickly. At forty-five now, she had dealt with ten years of financial struggles, trying to provide the best she could for her kids and save for college, without taking loans. It took a heavy toll on her. She hadn’t cared about her looks for years. Her daughter, Thalia, was seventeen, and next year Francine would have college to pay for. She wanted her to go to an Ivy League college if she could get in, which cost a fortune. Her son, Tommy, was thirteen, and would be entering high school the same year that his sister started college, and they were applying to the best private prep schools. Francine lay awake every night, trying to figure out how to pay for everything. She always found a way, but she had nightmares about what would happen if she ever lost her job. And even with it, and a highly respected position, she spent everything on her kids. There was never anything left for her.
She had moved out of the city to a respectable area of Queens after the divorce, to save money. She missed living in the city, but sent both her kids to private schools, and wished she could do more for them and put aside money for their future. She made too much to qualify for a scholarship for Thalia in college. Bitterness over not having anyone to help her and having a deadbeat ex-husband had been a way of life for Francine for so long that she no longer remembered what it was like to live without it. Constant struggles and financial problems after the divorce had toughened her, and she set the bar high for anyone who worked for her. She tried to be gentle with her authors at the agency, but she found it hard to be sympathetic at times.
Her children complained that she was never home, stayed at the office too late, and never got back early enough to make a decent dinner. She rushed home as soon as she could, put a frozen pizza in the oven, and helped with homework, but most of the time she was too tired to spend much quality time with them. She wanted to be outstanding at her job so she would never lose it. It was her greatest fear, that she’d get fired and wouldn’t be able to support her kids in their fancy schools. She made a healthy salary, but her ex-husband had proven to her how uncertain the future could be. Her work was draining, and her life a constant vicious circle of too much work, a lot of stress and pressure, and supporting her kids. It tainted the way she saw the world around her. She knew only too well how competitive the agency was. If you slipped for a minute, someone else would have your job. And she was willing to fight anyone to the death to make sure that didn’t happen to her. Worrying about it didn’t make her pleasant to be around, and she hadn’t had a man in her life in years.
Later that afternoon, Jane met Merriwether Jones, the CFO at the agency. Her life, as Julia described it, was a perfect example of total success. She was beautiful, a Harvard MBA, nice to everyone, friendly and charming. She was married to a writer, who stayed home to take care of their five-year-old daughter, Annabelle, while Merriwether made a huge salary at the agency. According to Julia, her husband Jeff was a handsome hunk, and they were crazy about each other. She was warm and encouraging to Jane when Bob Benson introduced them. She was one of those women who proved that you could have it all: a family, a happy marriage, and a great career. She reminded Jane of her sister, who was a high achiever who had it all too. Merriwether lived in a townhouse she had bought in the East Eighties. She had grown up in Boston, and her family expected her to get a great education and use it to become successful and make a lot of money, and she had.
Jane’s father’s old friend, Bob Benson, seemed to have it all too. He was married to a famous entertainment lawyer, had three sons, two in college and one still in high school. They lived in Greenwich, Connecticut, in a beautiful house, and he and his wife both had successful careers. He seemed like an all-around nice person, and everyone said he was a pleasure to work for.
By the time Jane got home that night, after a long Uber ride back to the West Village, her head was swimming with all the people she had met and the information Julia and Hailey had shared with her. Every one of the women who had important jobs, including Julia, was fully focused on her career. And Jane had the feeling that all of them would have been willing to kill to protect their jobs, if anyone tried to interfere with them. Their work ethic appeared to be excellent, and they set the bar high for themselves and everyone around them. The one who appeared to be having the most fun was Alabama, with all the actors she represented. Francine was the toughest and hardest. Hailey seemed to be on an even keel, and Merriwether appeared to be the happiest, with the most well-rounded life. Meeting their expectations was going to be a lot to live up to, and Jane just hoped she didn’t disappoint them.
“So how was it?” Benjie asked when he showed up with dinner for them that night. She was grateful to see him. She was too tired to cook and would have gone to bed without dinner.
“Interesting. Action-packed. And my head is exploding with all the information,” she told him over couscous and fragrant Moroccan chicken ordered from a favorite restaurant of theirs. He was thoughtful that way, and he had brought a half bottle of champagne so they could celebrate. He was on a tight budget, but always generous with her. “I’ve never met so many smart, interesting, successful women all in one place. They’re all focused on their careers, and are a lot to live up to.”
“You don’t know them that well yet, who they really are. All you saw today is what they wanted to show you.”
“They’re divorced, widowed, single, and one is happily married. They’re juggling kids, their jobs, and their clients. I don’t know how anyone can do all that and get it right, but they seem to. All I want to focus on is my job. The head of the literary department is very tough and seems angry. I guess they’re all tough in one way or another, or they wouldn’t have their jobs.”
“Just make sure you don’t end up like that. There’s more to life than work,” he reminded her, then kissed her and cleared the remains of dinner away, while she went to take a shower.