Every summer, Lakeshore had a tradition. On one day in late July, the interns were allowed to sit at the back of a board meeting and watch.

It was supposed to inspire us.

That year, Intern Day was the same Thursday Trevor presented the rural stores report.

The boardroom was on the forty-second floor. A table so long it looked like a runway. Floor-to-ceiling windows over Lake Michigan. Twelve board members in dark suits. Linda Prescott, the CEO, at one end.

At the other end sat the chairman of the board, Henry Lambert. He was seventy-eight, with white hair and big rough hands. He'd opened the very first Lakeshore store in 1962, in a small town in Illinois, with his father.

The twelve interns sat on a row of chairs against the back wall. Kayla squeezed my hand. Trevor stood at the front in a new suit. He clicked a button.

My report appeared on the giant screen.

Prepared by Trevor Banks, Senior Analyst.

He was good at presenting. I'll give him that. He used my answers word for word. He made jokes. The board laughed. They nodded. Some of them took notes.

When he finished, there was a round of applause.

Linda Prescott smiled. “Excellent work, Trevor. Any questions from the board?”

Henry Lambert raised his big rough hand.