“I need this money. Don’t you understand?”

“Mr. Campbell, under our current lending policies we are not able to offer you a loan at this time.” I slid a hand under my desk near the emergency button.

 He fumbled with my name plate, his dirty fingers smudging the gold finish. I could see beads of sweat forming on his forehead, intensifying his stale smell of alcohol. “Cynthia, you can find a way to get me a few thousand. I’ve got kids to feed. I’ve been a customer at this bank for years.”

A window on my computer screen popped up, announcing an e-mail from my ex-boyfriend Jon. This day was shaping up to be a lot more complicated than a typical busy Friday.

“Perhaps we could look at some ways to improve your credit rating?” I opened his file again to the credit report page, and forced myself to not look back at the screen. “Community Choice Bank would love to be able to help you with that. Then you could reapply for this loan in the future.”

“You don’t get it!” Mark Campbell shoved the file toward me. His fist connected with my frosted glass desk as I jumped out of my chair and stumbled back into the metal blinds covering the office window. The desk frame buckled and the top shattered, crashing to the ground.

“Back away from her, Mr. Campbell.” I let out a relieved sigh as I saw two bank security guards in the doorway. “We’ll take care of him, Cynthia. Are you okay?” Greg Barnes, head of bank security, held out a hand to me as the other guard led the screaming and wrenching customer out of my office and through the main lobby doors.

 “I’m fine, Greg, thanks.” I grabbed his hand and made my way around the mangled desk. But I didn’t feel fine. My pulse raced at warp speed and my head throbbed.

“I’ll see to it that he is escorted off the premises.”

 “What happened here? Cynthia, are you hurt?” Nate asked, as he approached us. I’d been avoiding him since my extended break from the morning meeting.

“Nope, not hurt.”

He glanced over my shoulder into the mess and shook his head with a smile. “Well maybe if you’d stop hassling our customers, this kind of thing wouldn’t happen.” 

 “Right. I’ll try to remember that.” I smoothed out my skirt and adjusted my jacket.

“He’s one of our most challenging customers. What made him lose it anyway? Let me guess, he wanted another loan and you denied him?” Nate asked.

“You got it.”

“All part of the job I guess, and he’s been out of line in the past, but not to this extent. We’ll get you a new desk by Monday. You’re sure you’re okay?”

“Yep, I’m good.”

“You’ve had quite a day already,” he said. “Take a few minutes if you need to and then let’s meet in my office.”

“Okay.” I managed to get my purse out of the bottom desk drawer and went to see if I could use Jill’s computer to check my e-mail. I’d met Jill Armstrong, the other full-time loan officer, a few months back when she’d taught a training course and we’d become fast friends.

 As she wrapped up a phone call, I looked over at Nate talking to the security guards. He’d want to discuss the promotion when we met in a few minutes, and I still didn’t have an answer.

 “Don’t stare at him. He’s our boss.” Jill giggled as she hung up the phone. “He is cute though. So I gather things didn’t go so well with Mr. Campbell today?”

“He pounded his fist into my desk.”

“Almost makes me feel bad for referring him to you.”

“You did? Now you owe me a coffee Monday morning. How about a little warning before you send the violent ones my way?”

“That’s what you get for being new around here.”

“I’m not new.” I felt like I’d been here for an eternity, and that was just today.

“Right, you’re practically senior management,” she joked. “Although, what’s this I hear about a promotion?”