Chapter 7

Mona

Holy crap, how in the hell was I going to avert this crisis? My mind was racing as I hurried downstairs to intercept Kyra and Tracy, hoping to God all the while that they wouldn’t see each other.

Then again, if they were both dating him, which it seemed like they were, and if they weren’t connected to any of his business ventures, then maybe he did his best to keep them apart. It’s possible they had never even met.

I arrived at reception and laid eyes on both women. I could tell who they both were from a mile away, even though I’d never seen them before in my life.

One stood tall in smart business wear, looking like she’d just strolled out of an office of her own. She must have been Kyra because she looked completely calm, as though she belonged there.

The other was dressed expensively but casually, in sharp statement heels and a slouchy t-shirt that was obviously made to look less costly than it was.

I looked back and forth between them, pausing for a moment as I came up with a plan. Then I straightened my back, took a deep breath, and walked straight up to Kyra.

“Ms. Tan?” I greeted her, making sure my voice didn’t carry enough to alert the other woman.

She looked up at me and smiled politely, obviously pissed she’d been kept waiting.

“Yes, hello,” she nodded, reaching out to shake my hand and looking me up and down. “And you are…?”

“Mr. Paulson’s new assistant,” I replied with a respectful nod. “I called you earlier, but you must not have received my message. Unfortunately, he’s been pulled away last-minute and won’t be able to meet with you today.”

I saw the other woman looking over at the two of us, craning her neck as she tried to make out what I was saying. I deftly steered Kyra away from her and back toward the door. She reluctantly followed my lead, and I could tell she was put out.

“Typical Oliver,” she said and rolled her eyes. “You tell him to call my office and reschedule, okay? I’m not trying to fix this up again.”

“I’ll do that.” I bowed my head and peeked up as I watched her march angrily through the revolving door.

With a relieved sigh, I turned to the other woman. This one could prove to be more difficult, considering she’d turned up out of nowhere. Who knew what her business was with Oliver?

I beamed widely as I made my way across to her, but I could see her jaw was tense and tight as I got closer.

“Who was that woman?” she asked, nodding toward the doors as I extended my hand to her.

“A business partner of the company,” I replied smoothly. “She had to cancel an important meeting due to personal issues. What can I help you with?”

“I want to see Oliver,” she demanded, planting her hands on her hips and looking down at me. She was at least a full foot taller and and that coupled with her bitter attitude was a little intimidating.

“I’m afraid Mr. Paulson is out of the office today,” I responded with a polite smile, dropping my hand once I realized the chances of her actually taking it were slim. “Can I pass on a message for you?”

“Give him this.”

She fished around in her almost comically enormous purse and pressed a magazine firmly into my hand. I unfolded it, and it fell open to a page with a huge photo of her and Oliver engaged a tight embrace.

I glanced at the page and back up to her, realizing I’d seen her before. Tracy was a socialite, a regular in the back pages of magazines just like this one.

“I know he has contacts,” she said, tossing her hair over one shoulder. “I know he can take care of this. I don’t want to see any more pictures of the two of us anywhere, do you understand?”

“I’ll pass on the message,” I promised, nodding and managing a tight smile, more for show than in kindness.

“Thank you,” she sighed dramatically. Then, she turned on her heels and exited the lobby, her heels stabbing into the parquet tiling with every step.

I waited for her to vanish onto the street, and then turned to head back to the elevator. My heartbeat slowed. That was easier than I thought it would be. The receptionist shot me a look, and the two of us shared a knowing smile as I pushed the button to call the elevator.

It was over, thank goodness, and I was confident that I had dealt with it with grace and professionalism. They had both left the building, at least, and I managed to prevent any confrontation between the two of them. I felt like punching the air and cheering as the doors slid shut.

I looked at the magazine in my hand as I was whisked upstairs and shook my head at the photograph. It must have been taken a few months earlier. His hair was definitely longer and looked as it had when I’d been researching him before starting at Artemis.

They were holding hands, and he was holding his hand up to shield the glare of the cameras – in vain evidently.

Why was she so mad about this? What kind of relationship did they have? Did his exes and girlfriends make a habit of showing up at his work? I wasn’t sure I could take another encounter like that one.

When I got back to the office Oliver was pacing back and forth on the carpet, agitated. He turned as soon as I walked in.

“So, how did it go?” he asked, and I grinned at him, shaking my head in amusement at how desperate and nervous he was.

“It went fine,” I assured him. “I sent them each on their way before they could have a turn in with each other, so you’re good.”

“Thank God,” he said, shaking his head.

I could see the color slowly returning to his cheeks. I observed him for a moment and felt something flutter in my chest.

“When did you become such a playboy?” I teased lightly, knowing I was straying toward dangerous territory.

“Hardly.”

He rolled his eyes.

“Do you know what Tracy was here for?”

“Yeah.”

I held out the magazine.

“She wanted you to call the magazine and make sure they don’t publish any more pictures of the two of you together.”

He opened the magazine, looked at the photo, brow furrowed, and then rolled his eyes.

“How old are these photos, anyway?” he muttered, mostly to himself, and tossed it down on the table.

“I’ll get it sorted.”

“Good.”

I nodded and felt a little punch of excitement in my stomach as I realized the victory I’d pulled off.

“Is this something I’ll have to deal with often?” I asked as I made my way toward my own office. “Chasing off your girlfriends?”

“They’re not my girlfriends,” he replied firmly. The look he gave me unleashed butterflies in my stomach. He wanted to be very clear in that regard, it seemed.

“Whatever they are, shall I just set up barricades around the office?” I teased as I leaned in the doorway.

He grinned.

“It might be our safest bet,” he agreed, and suddenly, the sound of an incoming video call sprang to life on his laptop, drawing his attention away. “Sorry, I’ve got to take this…”

“Of course, go ahead.”

I ducked into my office and pulled the door shut behind me, an odd mix of emotions lingering in my chest.

I was feeling a lot of things. The first was triumph – I’d pulled off a delicate operation, and hopefully, Oliver would remember that when it came to keeping me on or giving me some kind of promotion.

But at the same time… those women. They’d been about as different from me as it was possible to be. Each of them was well-known in her admittedly very different field. They were impeccably groomed and incredibly gorgeous.

Their images were seared into my brain. These were the kind of women I’d seen in magazines, who people followed in social media. I was just a college graduate in her first real job. I was hardly a success. I had only a fraction of the looks, the charm, or the money to compete with either one of them. If that was his type, then I didn’t stand a chance.

I looked down at my nails, chipped and short, and clenched my fists to hide them. I was nothing more than a bit of fun to him, a harmless, office flirtation to pass the time until he could get out on the town with his fancy women again. How could I have thought for a second someone like him would go for someone as ordinary as me?

I forced myself to get back to work and tried like hell to ignore the sound of his voice drifting through from the other room. He sounded excited, almost childlike, as he chatted away, and I wondered who he was charming, and to what end.

I typed up a couple of emails, going as slowly as I could to avoid going and waited for the day to be over. I was disheartened by the encounter with his exes.

If indeed they were exes and not current girlfriends. I couldn’t help but wonder if they were actually current lovers and he was just determined to keep them a secret.

All I wanted was to go home, crack open a bottle of wine, and forget this whole day had ever happened.