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“Yes, Alana, tell me too. Did you and Jake…?” he asks, mimicking Peyton’s tone. If I wasn’t so horrified, I’d be laughing because he does a pretty good impression of her. “Can I please see you in my office, Alana. That is, if you can spare the time,” he adds pointedly.
I flush and get to my feet and follow him over to his office. Remember: Confidence. Eye contact. Own it. Pfft. Easy. I breathe out as he motions for me to enter first. I do, and he follows, closing the door behind him.He smirks as I sit down. My heart races. He promised that he wouldn't make me relive the humiliation that I was already putting myself through every day, anyway. But why else would I be in here, if not for him to rub it in? Is this what it’s going to be like? Him finding excuses to get me alone and tease me? He grins at me, and behind that smirk I know exactly what he's thinking.
“I trust your day is going better than Saturday?” he asks me.
I glower at him, my anger starting to boil. He's enjoying this way too much.
“I thought we had an agreement to forget about that, if I told you what happened,” I say, keeping my voice cool.
“We did,” he nods, “but I decided to change that agreement.”
“I guess that doesn’t surprise me,” I mutter. He raises his eyebrows, daring me to say more. If I’m going down, I’m going down, saying what I like. “I mean, you’re not exactly known for keeping your word.”
“Is that so?” he finally says. His eyes twinkle, but my confidence has caught him off guard. “Enlighten me, Alana. When have I ever gone back on my word as far as you’re concerned?”
“I didn’t mean me,” I say, forcing myself to keep eye contact. “I meant, I’ve heard things about you.” Oh God, someone please stop me talking. “But the point is, you’re proving those rumors to be right. It doesn’t matter if I can’t back it up if you’re going back on what you promised me on Saturday, does it?”
He sighs and shakes his head. He frowns, but his eyes are amused. It’s like he’s getting off on the fact that I’m standing up for myself. Maybe he’s just in shock. Hell, I’m in shock. I never thought I had it in me.
“Fine. I won’t mention it again,” he says. “I’m sure it won’t be long before you give me something else to tease you about,” he murmurs. I glare at him, but of course, he’s probably right.
“If we can get to the reason I called you in,” he says, sounding official.
I swallow, my throat dry as my face heats up. He called me in here for a legitimate reason? I wish I’d known that five minutes ago.
“I was thinking about what I walked in on the other day. It sounded like you weren’t happy with the duties you’ve been given as a junior assistant.”
“I just think I’m more capable,” I reply.
He grins “You’ve definitely proven yourself to be very capable.”
I glare at him, not liking what he's insinuating.
“Is there a point to this?” I asked him.
“Yes.” He coughs, clearing his throat. “My point is this. Jade has informed me that she has left, so I’ll be looking for a new executive assistant. I’d like to give you a trial run. Two weeks to prove that you can handle the role. If you’re successful with that, the job is yours, complete with a healthy raise.” He pauses and smirks at me. “In salary, that is.”
I stare at him, in shock. His attempt at embarrassing me goes completely over my head because I haven’t gotten over the first part of what he said.
“You called me in here to promote me?”
He shrugs and leans back in his chair. “I called you in here to give you the chance at a promotion,” he corrects. “So, are you going to take it, or will I be advertising this position publicly?”
I know this is probably a battle that I don't want to be fighting, but the idea of moving up and being recognized for what I can do is too tempting to ignore.
“Can I think about it?” I ask.
He looks surprised. “Sure. You have until the end of the week to let me know your decision. Does your hesitation have anything to do with your little sidekick out there?”
Shit. I hadn’t even thought about Peyton.
“Not at all. If I decide to accept, I'm sure she'll be happy for me,” I say, hoping that's the truth.I walk out of Chase’s office in a state of shock. That didn’t go down anything like I’d been expecting. I glance over at Jade’s desk and frown. Something doesn’t sit right. I don’t buy his story for a second. She hadn't given any indication at all to suggest that she was thinking about leaving.
