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nodded.
    “I’d like you come. Please. It would mean a lot.”
    “Well. I don’t know… you know, I’ve got this thing…” Alaina
looked like she was agonizing over something. “OK, no, I’m kidding! I’d love to
go!”
     
    ***
     
    The flight from Virginia to Chicago
was an easy one. The kids were old enough to fly now and carry their own bags
so that made everything easier. Alaina alternated between her iPod and coloring
with the kids. In the meantime, I worried about everything. I hadn’t
interviewed in years. Everything that I looked forward to, the new town, the
new job felt like it was working against me. I didn’t know anyone. I didn’t
know the company as well as I wanted to. I’d researched them but there wasn’t a
lot of information to be gained.
    We checked into the hotel rooms. Alaina had an adjoining
room to ours, which I thought was best. They had decided to hit the pool right
away. That would have made me nervous, except Alaina was a fully qualified
lifeguard and certified in CPR. Claire had required it when she had interviewed
for the nanny position.
    The kids changed quickly in that way that kids do. Clothes
flying off and being tossed, like an explosion of children’s apparel. I was
dressed for the interview in a conservative grey suit. I adjusted my tie in the
mirror and checked my watch. Almost time to go. I’d hit the restroom and be on
my way.
    I reached for the bathroom door, but it opened before I
could touch it. Alaina had changed into her swimsuit in my bathroom. It was a
yellow one-piece bathing suit and she was wrapping the towel around her waist.
I’d never seen her dress that way before. Claire had told me about Alaina
taking the kids swimming, but I’d never been home for it. Alaina flipped her
curly hair back and saw me standing there.
    “Oh!” she exclaimed.
    I was immediately embarrassed.
    “I-I-I’m sorry,” I stammered. “I was just going to—” I
cleared my throat. “OK, I’m going to go. You guys have fun. I’ll be back in a
couple of hours.”
    “We’ll be fine,” Alaina said. “Good luck!”
    “Bye, daddy!  Get the job so we can stay in the hotel!”
    Yeah, no pressure there.
     
    ***
     
    Max Donovan and I met for a cup of
coffee and a muffin. I wanted to concentrate on what he had to say rather than
consuming a huge meal. Max was there before me, even though I was twenty
minutes early.
    We relaxed in a couple of overstuffed chairs and took a
moment to get acquainted. Max was the opposite of Randall Kendrick in many
ways. Max was shorter, maybe just over five and a half feet tall. He was also
barrel-chested with thick forearms that implied weightlifting or at least some
heavy physical labor.
    We chatted about hobbies. Max was an avid outdoorsman,
camping, rock-climbing and the like. I was a runner. He liked classic rock. I
enjoyed jazz. He was married, but divorced with a son who attended University
of Illinois.
    Finally, Max came to the point.
    “Simon, do you know what I do?”
    “You recruit high-end, IT Auditors and systems security
consultants,” I recited. I’d read the website. It wasn’t difficult to see how
he and Kendrick would have crossed paths.
    “That’s the industry that I’m in, but do you know what I
do?”
    I didn’t know where he was going with this, so I played
along.
    “Tell me.”
    “I present people with opportunities. Opportunities that
could change their life forever. Hopefully for the best. I think everyone
deserves the chance to make a choice about their future, to improve on the hand
that life has dealt them. That’s what it means to be a headhunter. It’s not
just about the money. It’s about making a difference in someone’s life.”
    I’d never really thought of it in those terms before.
    “I’d like to make a difference in your life, Simon.”
    “I’d like that, too,” I replied.
    We continued to talk. There would be paperwork, a written
offer and we’d formally close the deal, but in the