‘What do you do at Industries du Loup? Am I saying that right? Du Loup,’ I repeat, trying to inject my voice with a little YouTube taught French flair.
‘You don’t speak French?’
‘No.’ But by her expression, I’m beginning to think that maybe I should.
‘Oh. Okay.’
You know what kind of “okay” that sounds like? The kind of okay that isn’t okay at all.
‘Do you think so?’ I ask, swallowing a little bubble of panic. What if there was a mistake? Maybe they didn’t see my ridiculous video interview at all. ‘I mean, the agent seemed to think so.’ Though I’m pretty sure she’d have sold my soul to the devil to get her hands on the commission. ‘It’s not like I lied on my resumé or anything.’ At least, not about speaking French. ‘Do you speak French?’ I can’t help but hear the note of panic in that.
‘Well, yes.’ Fee shrugs as though worried the admission might make me uncomfortable. We both fall silent, and I begin to notice how the conversations going on around me all sound like they’re being conducted in French.
‘I’m sorry, I don’t mean to worry you. In fact, I’m sure whatever position you’ve been hired for doesn’t need you to know the language.’
‘Do you need to know the language for your job?’ Does everyone?
‘Well, I work in the health club at Hôtel du Loup, part of Industries de Loup.’ Her accent sounds flawless, as far as I can tell. And I can also tell I butchered my earlier pronunciation. Un-dust-tree de-loo, I recount to myself.
‘The exercise classes I hold are all conducted in French.’
‘You’re a fitness instructor?’ That explains the running pants I’d noticed she was wearing as she got on the bus, along with the kind of ass you could probably bounce coins off.
‘Try not to look so worried. You’ve been interviewed and hired, you’ve met the HR team and gotten your work permit. You don’t need to speak the language for whatever it is you’re doing. What is it you’ll be doing anyway, your job, I mean? If you don’t mind me asking, that is.’
You know what? I have no idea. The job title mentioned on the contract was so vague.
‘Customer relations associate,’ I recount. Despite my unease, I deliver my title confidently. ‘I’ve got to report to the guest relations department in l’agence centrale.’ I fight off the feelings of inadequacy trying not to compare Fee’s accent to my own. ‘That’s just the head office, right?’
On Friday, the head office was referred to as the head office, yet the email I received yesterday said l’agence centrale. Thank God for Google Translate because one of these things is not said like the other, even if they’re essentially the same department.
‘Yep. We get dropped off at the employee entrance to Hôtel de Loup, the group head office is housed in the nearby residence tower.’
‘I don’t know what that is.’
‘You’ve never heard of Wolf Tower?’
‘Can’t say that I have.’
‘Wolf Tower as in Wolf industries?
I shake my head, one shoulder rising and falling in a half-assed shrug.
‘Loup being wolf,’ she adds with an indulgent smile.
‘Oh, so we work for Wolf Industries—Industries de Loup?’
‘Exactly!’
‘And Wolf Hotel and Wolf Tower are owned by the same company?’ Fee nods again. ‘These wolfs, I mean wolves, aren’t very imaginative.’ What’s next? Wolf Beach? Wolf Mall? Wolf FroYo?
‘So I guess you don’t know that Wolf Tower is the tallest building in Monaco, as well as one of the most expensive places to live, given that it’s within minutes of the Place du Casino and the port?’
‘And the Place du Casino is . . . ?’
‘Just the most iconic place in Monaco.’ Her words waver with amusement.
‘And the port is where the rich keep their toy boats.’
‘Something like that.’ This time, she can’t hold her amusement back. ‘Million-dollar toys.’
‘Huh. Look at that, I’m learning already.’ I’m sure I’ll be learning more than just one thing new every day while I’m here.
‘Wolf Industries is the biggest player in property development out here. They say the business has doubled in the last couple of years alone. I mean, there’s the market for it. There is just so much wealth. Monaco is a little mad at first glance. Just take a look at the cars. Every second one that passes is a Bentley, Ferrari, or a Maserati.’
‘Well, they can throw a little of that wealth my way. I won’t complain.’
‘Oh, most of us aren’t going to get rich here, unless