Chapter 18

Scarlett Harris said, "Since we're going to be working together, let's connect on Slack so we can keep in touch. I'll join the project channels and make sure I'm up to speed."

She quickly pulled out her phone and shared her Slack account in the work group.

Everyone said they'd add her soon. Aiden Thompson just gave a small nod, not saying much.

The BBQ grill sizzled with steaks, the mouthwatering aroma filling the air. Grace had ordered everyone's favorites, and once the food was out, they all dug in, not caring at all about appearances, turning into total "foodies" as they ate.

Though everyone had been a bit "tight" when they first found out Scarlett's background, seeing how down-to-earth and approachable she was, they quickly relaxed.

Back at home, the team Slack group lit up.

Ryan: Didn't expect Scarlett to be so "down-to-earth."

Mike: Yeah, good thing she's chill—if she were a total ice queen, based on how you acted this morning, you wouldn't even make it through the door tomorrow. Just remember, she's Benjamin's daughter.

Ryan: Haha, I must be lucky to still be breathing after that!

Olivia: @Grace, is Scarlett officially part of our team now?

Grace: She's going to be shadowing me for now, getting familiar with the workflow.

Olivia: So, she's just here to "get her feet wet," right?

Grace: Yeah, pretty much.

Ryan: Glad she's easygoing, or else our group would be "dead in the water."

Ryan: Should we add her to our Slack group so she can get a feel for what we're working on?

Olivia: Nah, let's keep this group for our "inner circle." Talking shop and gossiping about company stuff might be awkward if she's in here.

Mike: Yeah, let's set up a new channel just for work with her.

Grace: Sounds good, I'll create a new group if we need to. We'll leave this one as is.

Ryan: Perfect, that works.

Grace Li was feeling a bit lost about how to guide Scarlett Harris.

Benjamin Harris hadn't given her many instructions, so she had to figure it out herself.

If it were any other new hire, Grace would have followed the usual approach: start them off with basic tasks, and once they had the hang of it, gradually involve them in project follow-ups.

But with Scarlett, other than knowing she had interned at Barclays for six months, Grace didn't know much about her actual work capabilities. So figuring out how to guide Scarlett was giving Grace a headache.

After thinking it over, Grace decided to let Scarlett choose an area of interest for herself. She sent Scarlett the details of the current projects the team was working on and asked, "Hey Scarlett, check these out and let me know which one you'd like to dive into."

A short while later, Scarlett replied, "Grace, I was out visiting clients with my dad today. I'll take a look at them later tonight."

Grace responded with a simple "OK."

She also knew that Scarlett was Benjamin's only daughter, and it was likely she'd eventually take over the family business. Though she was officially being guided by Grace, Benjamin would surely mentor her privately as well.

So Grace decided to keep an open mind. If Scarlett was interested in getting involved, she would do her best to guide her. If not, that was fine too.

Later that afternoon, after Scarlett had finished visiting clients with her father, she approached Grace.

After going through the project details, Scarlett seemed particularly interested in the "Grill & Glory" project. She smiled and said, "Grace, I'm a huge fan of BBQ, so this restaurant project sounds pretty cool. Where are we with it?"

Grace replied, "We're planning to start due diligence next week. It's no small task—we'll need to thoroughly review the restaurant's financials, business model, market competition, and compliance with U.S. restaurant industry regulations to make sure we're making a solid investment decision."

Scarlett then asked, "Who's involved in the investigation?"

Grace paused briefly before answering, "Ryan, Aiden, and me."

Hearing Aiden's name, Scarlett's eyes lit up, and she said excitedly, "Count me in! I'd love to experience the whole due diligence process here in the U.S."

"Great," Grace replied. "Just a heads-up, the project is based in San Antonio. It's about a 90-minute drive each way, so we'll be commuting back and forth for a few days. It could get a little exhausting."

Scarlett waved her hand dismissively, "No worries at all, I'm totally game!"

The team drove to Grill & Glory for the due diligence, with Grace Li behind the wheel. Aiden Thompson and Ryan, the two guys, were quick to volunteer to take turns driving—one for the outbound trip and the other for the return.

When they got to the Grill & Glory office building, they met with the founder, Jack Bennett. After a quick sit-down, they got a solid understanding of the company's setup and went over the operating numbers from the past year.

To check that everything was on the up-and-up, the team needed to hit a few of their physical locations and chat with the store managers and staff.

By the time they pulled up to the first store, it was already 1:30 PM, and everyone was starving. Jack had set them up to eat at the barbecue joint, and the manager joined them for lunch. While they chowed down, they managed to sneak in a bit of an interview with the manager to get a feel for how the store was doing.

After lunch, they hustled to the next spot. Grace was used to the grind that is due diligence, but for Scarlett, this was her first time out in the field. After they wrapped up at the second store, Scarlett spoke up, "Hey, do you guys wanna hit up a dessert spot? I could use a little something sweet and a drink."

Grace had planned to knock out two stores during lunch and then head back for some number crunching, but now it was 3:30 PM, and they were way off track. She was a little annoyed but kept it professional, "I hear you, Scarlett, but we're on a tight timeline today. How about we keep it under 30 minutes? That way we can still get that financial analysis in."

Scarlett grinned, "Don't worry, I'm treating today!"

Grace agreed after a brief pause, "Alright, but let's keep it quick."

The crew walked into a fancy dessert joint. The guys grabbed a spot on one side, while the women took the other, and Scarlett ended up facing Aiden.

As soon as they sat, Scarlett started rubbing her calves, groaning dramatically, "Ugh, Grace, I should've known better than to wear these boots. My legs are toast!" In reality, they hadn't walked much, and the interviews had mostly been sitting down.

Grace, understanding that Scarlett wasn't used to this kind of grind, smiled softly and said, "Take it easy, Scarlett. You'll be fine."

Scarlett sighed, "I'm gonna have to buy some comfy shoes after this. This is torture."

Grace chuckled, "Go for it."

Since they hadn't started ordering yet, Scarlett urged, "What's everyone getting? Order up—I'm buying!"

Grace quickly replied, "You've done enough today, let me get this."

"Don't sweat it, I've got it," Scarlett insisted.

Ryan, always the joker, chimed in, "Either way, we're all just here for the food, right?"

Scarlett pulled out her phone, scanned the menu, and then turned to Aiden, who had been quiet, asking, "Aiden, what's your poison?"

Aiden put his phone down and answered with a shrug, "Just a sea salt soda, I'm good."

She asked Ryan and Grace what they wanted, and while the three of them stuck to just drinks, Scarlett went all in—grabbing a bunch of snacks to go with her drink. It was clear she was planning to enjoy herself.

Grace checked the time again, feeling the pressure, but decided to roll with it, trying to stay present with everyone.

Scarlett grinned, "I gotta say, this BBQ project looks solid. The lunch we had was insane, and even though we came in late, the place was packed. This place is buzzing."

Ryan nodded, "Yeah, it's looking good. I did some street-level research before, parked outside the store all day, and the line was out the door."

Scarlett turned to Aiden, raising an eyebrow, "What do you think, Aiden?"

"Yeah, it's decent," Aiden replied with a flat tone.

Scarlett kept trying to get him to open up, "You into BBQ?"

Aiden shrugged again, "It's okay."

"When you were at Oxford, you must've had your fair share of good food, right?"

"Nothing to write home about."

"When I was interning in the UK, we got to try all kinds of international dishes, but there was always something off about the flavor. This BBQ place—man, it's got that perfect smoky flavor and seasoning. You just can't get that kind of authenticity in the UK. New York's where it's at, you can get all the best global flavors here. Like, I went to an Italian joint in Queens once, and their pizza was as close to what I had in Rome as it gets."

Ryan laughed, "No kidding, New York's a food heaven. You can try food from all over, but honestly, after a while, you get tired of it. Nothing beats the classics."

Scarlett asked, "Ryan, where'd you go to school?"

Ryan scratched his head, "I didn't study abroad. Graduated from NYU."

Scarlett raised an eyebrow, "Oh, really? I thought you'd be one of those Ivy League guys."

Ryan laughed, "Nope, just a regular guy from the city."

Scarlett turned to Grace, "What about you?"

"I went to school in the U.S. too. Arizona State University."

Scarlett blinked, "Whoa, Grace, I thought for sure you were from one of those top-tier schools, like Harvard or Yale! Arizona State's a surprise!"

As soon as the words left her mouth, Grace felt a bit awkward. She wasn't sure if Scarlett meant it as a compliment or if there was some judgment behind it, and wasn't sure how to respond.

Aiden, who had been zoning out on his phone, looked up and said, "Your degree doesn't define your skills. It's what you can do in the real world that matters."

Scarlett nodded quickly, "Exactly! I think Grace is pretty amazing."

Grace gave a small, awkward smile, "I'm just doing my best."

Scarlett grinned, "Don't sell yourself short."

Then Scarlett glanced at Aiden, thinking to herself, Why was he sticking up for Grace earlier? What's going on there?