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Grabbing my coffee mug, I stood up and noticed Grayson’s back straighten in my peripheral vision. He was anticipating my visit, but instead of walking straight into his office, I turned and marched down the hallway to the lunchroom.
I was making sure to savour every last drop of my coffee, when Pete walked in.
“Oh, hey, Josie.”
“Hey, Pete. How’s your day going?”
He shrugged. “Feels like the calm before the storm, doesn’t it?”
I pressed my lips together and nodded. “How much do you know about Harlow Corp.?”
“Only that they’re the biggest publishing company on the east coast.”
What the actual fuck? I disguised my shock with a long sip.
“They’re renowned for buying little magazines like ours to either build them up, shut them down or merge them into their other publications. But not before getting rid of all the dead wood.”
I clenched my teeth. How could Grayson not tell me this?
Pete reached up and ran his thumb down my cheek. “You look tired,” he said, his eyes full of warmth. His longing gaze panned past my face and widened. Quickly dropping his arm, he stepped around me and held out his hand to the new arrival. “Mr. Harlow, I’m so glad to finally meet you. I’m Peter Wallis, head of accounting.”
I turned to find Grayson’s eyes burning into mine. After a few long seconds he diverted his cold stare to Pete and shook his hand. “Yes, I recognise the name.”
Pete motioned to me. “And this is Jo—”
“We met in the meeting,” he interrupted.
I tapered my gaze. There was no need to be rude.
Pete’s round eyes met mine as Grayson scanned the room’s facilities.
“I don’t mind you all having the occasional coffee, but don’t make a habit out of socialising outside of your lunchbreak,” Grayson said, not making eye contact.
My eyelids fluttered. “Riiight, well I better get going then,” I uttered, shaking my head as I marched back to my office. What an absolute jerk.
The day almost ended without any further interaction with Grayson. He’d been in a meeting with his brother and Marlene all afternoon, and when I overheard Linda ordering their dinner, I breathed a sigh of relief.
It wasn’t until I was shutting down my computer, when Linda appeared in my doorway. She was an older lady, mid-sixties and completely old school. She still used a paper-diary and email was a foreign concept. It was both refreshing and annoying at the same time.
“Josie, Mr. Harlow would like to see you in his office.”
I looked past her and frowned. “But he’s not in there.”
“Yes, he’s currently in a meeting, but he would like you to wait until he returns.”
With a growl, I pushed up from my desk. “Fine.” I may as well get it over with.
I crossed the hallway into his empty office. His desk was covered in paperwork and files. Files with our names on them. My heart rate picked up as I scanned his desk for my name. Perhaps he didn’t want to talk to me at all, perhaps he was going to fire me.
“You won’t find your file.”
I jumped. Grayson strode into the room like he owned the place. Oh, wait…
He motioned for me to sit, and I cautiously slid into the chair in front of him. Instead of returning to his, he leant back on his desk and crossed his legs.
“You asked to see me?”
His expression softened. “I need to explain.”
