The last Ashford

CHAPTER THREE-The man behind the elevator

CHAPTER THREE— The man behind the elevator

Sayrah's pov

I had fifteen minutes to get to Moretti Global, one of the biggest and most well-known companies in the country. It has won numerous awards and is ranked amongst the top five companies in the world. I knew all this from the little research I did, and now I’m going there. I couldn’t help but feel nervous and excited at the same time.

My Google Maps told me I had approximately five minutes to get there, so I decided to stop at a café to get coffee. I got back into my car and continued towards the headquarters.

I was there in less than five minutes, parked my car in the parking lot, and said to myself, “You got this, Sayrah Hayes. You always have and always will.” I took a deep breath and clipped on my ID card they had given to me when I came for the interview.

I took a few steps forward, and there it was. “MORETTI GLOBAL HQ.” was emblazoned across in front of the building with capital letters.

“Woah,” I said, astonished. It was so big and beautiful, unlike anything I’d seen before. It was a sleek corporate building, its sharp geometric lines and reflective glass facade mirroring the surrounding towers. Warm golden lights glowed from the upper floors, contrasting beautifully with the cool daylight. Everything about the building looked expensive and meticulously designed.

“Ahem, ahem,” a slender man, probably in his 30s, said, clearing his throat intentionally to get my attention.

I immediately gained my composure back and looked at him.

He wore a black suit and an ash-colored tie, his bony face, sharp nose, tired eyes, and thinning hair, giving him an unusually stern appearance.

“Uhm, I’m Sayrah Hayes, one of the new interns, and it’s my plea—”

Cutting me off, he said, “Hey, I don’t care who or what you are. I need to get in, so move.”

He brushed past me.

“That was rude, and after all, this wasn’t the only entrance,” I said under my breath. I wasn't going to let one rude stranger ruin my day.

So, I arranged my dress and made my way inside, and I would say, if the exterior had impressed me, the lobby left me speechless. Towering dark pillars stretched towards the multi-level ceiling. While the highly polished marble floor reflected the light overhead.

I tapped my ID against the scanner and stepped through. The lobby was already buzzing with activity. Employees hurried through the entrance, while others disappeared into the elevators.

My phone beeped, and there was a message from Ava: “Good luck on your first day, love you loads,” with a lot of emojis.

I smiled and slipped my phone back into my purse just as the announcement echoed in the lobby instructing all interns to gather in the break room on the second floor.

I immediately rushed to the elevator and saw about three others who were also interns. The elevator finally opened up, and people stepped out of it.

One man who was distracted by whatever had amused him, walked straight into me. I tried to dodge him, but it was too late, and we collided. The coffee that I held in my hands spilled on both of us,

Unfortunately, mine was much worse. Of course, it did. I was wearing white. There were gasps all around me.

“s**t,” I said, pissed.

The man didn’t even bother to apologize and started cussing me out like it wasn’t his fault.

“Hi, uhm, you’d better go clean that off before it gets dry,” a young lady said.

She had a frail body, short blonde hair, blue eyes, and plump lips. She was dressed in a blue suit. Everyone dispersed, including the man, like nothing happened.

“Okay, but I don’t know where the bathroom is.”

“Ohh, just go straight and take a left. It’s the first door on your right,” she said, looking a little shy.

“Alright, thanks,” I said, grateful to her, and she nodded.

I immediately followed her directions to the bathroom, and luckily, the stain did come off, leaving behind a faint mark.

I came out of the bathroom in a rush to get to the second floor. As I was about to go back to the elevator, I saw another one and decided to take it since it was much closer. When I got to it, I noticed a small sign beside the door, “EO.”

What does that even stand for?

But before I could answer that, I heard the ding sound, and the elevator opened slowly. I looked up, and froze.

A tall man stood inside, his attention fixed directly on me. There was something intimidating about the way he carried himself, something that made the space around him feel smaller.

His features were sharp and striking, but it was his expression that caught me off guard. Cold. Controlled. Unreadable.

For a second, I forgot why I'd

come.

His gaze settled on me.

“What are you doing here?”