It was going to be a partnership but I've fallen out with my partner. Unfortunately, things have gone too far for me to pull out now and I wondered if your company might be able to help.'
'Would Mr Stanley be willing to...?'
She interrupted me.
'Uncle Ronald's already been far too kind to me. He helped me buy my property and has lent me some capital. I couldn't possibly ask him for anything more.'
'What would you need from us?' I asked. 'What kind of business are you going into?'
Miss Hill took various documents from her folder and spread them out on the desk in front of me. They were professionally produced and were of such detail that I could see the exact position of the business as at today's date. She intended to open a little shop in a quiet suburb of the city which would sell freshly made sandwiches and snacks. All that she needed from me was help so that she could finish equipping the shop and buy the first few weeks' stock.
The business plans and forecasts which Miss Hill showed me were impressive and showed that the venture had real promise. In addition, she held various relevant qualifications and I felt sure from talking to her that she would not enter into any commitment that she could not see her way to completely fulfilling. With the security of rich Uncle Ronald available to bail her out if it was ever required, it seemed that her proposition was a sound one.
After having examined all the details, I explained my position clearly to her.
'In principle,' I began, 'I can't see that the company would have any objection to us assisting you.'
Miss Hill flashed me a relieved smile and nodded.
'Of course, I'll need to complete the regulatory forms with you and we'll need to take up references.'
'That shouldn't be a problem,' she said as she sorted through the papers on the desk to find the names and addresses of her referees for me. She handed them over.
'Okay then, Miss Hill,' I said before being interrupted.
'Samantha, call me Samantha.'
'All right.' I said and smiled at her as I searched through the uncoordinated confusion of my untidy desk drawers for the required forms. I watched her as she collected up her papers and put them back into her folder. She was a good-looking and instantly likeable girl. Intelligent and easygoing, she would make the perfect wife for some incredibly lucky man somewhere, I thought. And those eyes...
I found the forms that I had been looking for.
'Right,' I said, 'this shouldn't take very long. We've just got these questions to complete.'
Samantha nodded and pulled her chair closer to the desk. As I opened up the form and took out my pen, she leant across and rested her elbows on the edge of the table. She sighed and looked up at me. Once more, I found myself unable to look away.
'What's the matter?' I asked.
'Nothing,' she replied. 'It just looks like there's a lot to get through.'
'Not really,' I said, shrugging my shoulders. 'It looks complicated but there's not that much to do. It'll only take us a few minutes.'
'You must be busy. Shall I take it away and do it at home?'
'There's no need,' I said quickly. I was suddenly aware that I did not want her to go. 'Honestly, it won't take that long.' I thought for a moment before asking, 'Why, do you need to go?'
Samantha shook her head. 'You must have much more important things to do than sit here and fill out forms with me.'
'Not really. Besides, doing it now will mean that everything can be agreed that little bit quicker.'
As she watched, I filled in her name at the top of the form and asked her address. I looked up from the paper to see that she watched me intently and I felt myself redden involuntarily. She chewed her bottom lip and looked thoughtful for a moment.
'This isn't fair, you know,' she said, smiling broadly.
I was puzzled.
'What isn't fair?' I asked.
'By the time we've finished this form, you're going to know a lot more about me than I'll know about you.'
'You don't want to know about me,' I said. 'There's nothing much to tell and it's not that interesting.'
'It still isn't fair,' she insisted as she took a pair of round-framed, wire-rimmed spectacles from her bag and put them on. She turned the form around on the desk to look at the questions.
'All right,' I