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I felt a tiny smirk spread across my lips. Her fierceness dominated the room, and I felt every other person here stop breathing, waiting to see what was going to happen.
This was definitely going to be interesting.
“So,Ophelia, you haven’t answered my question.” I took two clipped steps forward, crossing my arms and staring her down. Her hazel eyes refused to be intimidated, and one perfectly arched eyebrow flicked upward. Oh, she was definitely challenging me.
She dropped her messenger bag on one of the desks nearby.Olivia—yes, I knew that was her real name—took a few long strides to cover the distance between us and extended her hand.
“It’sOlivia. Sir. I’m a new reporter. I’m very happy to be here.” Her words were decisive and her voice didn’t waver. From this close, I could see the gold flecks in her eyes. Her lips were a pale pink, and the blush had completely disappeared from her skin. I looked down at her outstretched hand.
A small hum escaped my lips as I formally accepted her handshake. Her hand was soft and warm, her grip was surprisingly strong.
“Could you repeat to me what Lucy said?” I asked, motioning my head to the senior employee standing from her a couple of feet away.
The flecks of fire in Olivia’s hazel eyes suddenly dimmed, and her glare broke away. Panic filled her face, her brows knitting together.
“I…Um..” she stammered again, obviously forgetting what I was just saying to the entire newsroom.
I rolled my eyes and scoffed in disapproval. I dropped her hand, and it hung for a couple of seconds before she lowered it.
“I’ll have to talk to human resources if they let you through. You can’t even remember what we were talking about two minutes ago?” I spun and strode to the exit. “Lucy, I think the new girl needs a refresher.”
“Absolutely,” Lucky immediately chimed in, easily becoming my favorite employee in this room. “We were talking about our promise to the people. Our promise to be the harbingers of unequivocal truth.”
Olivia’s face fell as the realization that she forgot the tagline of the company crashed into her. It was all very entertaining to watch, but completely unacceptable by my standards.
“And what do those words mean for you, Olivia?” I asked her directly, but didn’t wait for her to answer as I started pacing the room. “Because what that means to me is that we don’t hide when a crisis happens.”
Olivia’s face paled. I watched her as she nervously shifted from one foot to another. She crossed her arms and let them drop. Olivia looked everywhere in the room but at me.
Ducking her head down, she tucked a lock of red hair behind her ear.
“That wasn’t—I was just—” Her words were nearly a whisper.
“What you meant to be doing doesn’t matter. What I saw, as the President of this network, was a person hiding in the corner instead of trying to help.” I swept away invisible dust from my suit jacket. Was I being an asshole? Probably. But I had a point to make: Everyone needed to do their job. “You’re new to this newsroom, but I’m assuming you’re not new in the industry. Obviously, someone here,” I swept my arm around the room, “saw value in you and your skills. But you chose not to contribute. You chose not to jump in and offer your help.”
Olivia’s mouth opened and snapped shut tightly. She looked down at the ground again, but only for a split second. And then there it was: Once again she seemed to find the fire deep inside, and she straightened out and her hazel eyes burned when they met mine squarely. Her hair even seemed to brighten, the copper surrounding her making her look like she was simmering with rage.
“I promise I will do better moving forward. Sir.” Her voice was sure, and her words were clipped and efficient. She continued to hold my gaze, firmly and full of resolve.
Inwardly, I smirked at her determination. I was unconvinced.
“That, we’ll have to see.” I looked at every single person in the room. I may have been directing my words toward Olivia, but they were meant for everyone. And they all knew their jobs were on the line every day. I expected a high level of performance and success among my employees and accepted nothing else.
Without another word, I strode to the exit and pushed the door open and started back for my office. I felt Eric and the others behind me and as we walked through the lobby, the people milling around parted to make a path for us, throwing some bland greetings my way.
“Good morning, Mr. Oviatt,” the receptionist greeted. I just nodded at her. Honestly, I made it a habit not to prioritize meaningless conversations and pleasantries. I was sure she was just being nice to the boss, and she was great at her job, but if there wasn’t anything we could discuss that would move the business forward, there was really no reason for us to talk.
Flecks of silver in the granite floors sparkled as the mid-day sun streamed through the glass ceiling of the lobby atrium. The brief insurgence of sunshine in my system gave me a small sense of peace during what was otherwise a very chaotic morning. But my life was hardly a quiet one anyway. I didn’t have time to bask in the sunshine and I jabbed my thumb on the elevator button. There was more force than I intended, and I surreptitiously shook the sore joint.
Eric walked right up next to me. The only person in the building who was even remotely allowed to invade my personal space.
He rocked back and forth on his heels, hands twisted behind his back and whistled briefly. He was a study in fake calm. I shut my eyes against the annoyance, feeling my pulse behind my eyeballs.
“Kinda harsh with the new girl back there, Ben.” The elevator dinged, and we stood to the side as a few people shuffled off, leaving us alone. “No wonder why new hires don’t stick around here very long, if that’s their welcome wagon.”
I sighed and pinched my thumb and forefinger between my eyebrows. I’d have to find some painkillers for this headache.
“She’s a reporter, Eric. If she can’t handle the way I just talked to her, she’s probably not going to survive out there.” I gestured vaguely and moved my other hand to my temples, fruitlessly trying to rub the pain away. “Besides, I didn’t attack her personally. She should understand that. I don’t even know her. I merely commented on the work ethics she displayed this morning. Or, rather, didn’t display.”
