A design for love

Chapter four

The next day, I vowed to redeem myself. No hiccups, no awkward encounters, just a solid, stress-free day at work. I woke up early, got ready in record time, and even managed a quick stop at the coffee shop across from my apartment. By 8:45, I was confidently walking through the doors of Prescott & Co., fueled by caffeine and determination.

Yep, I was definitely ready for the day.

First order of business: a quick trip to the washroom. I’d made it a point to confirm the exact location yesterday, ensuring no chance of repeating past mishaps. After making sure that everything was okay *down there,* I headed to my desk and logged in to check my emails. Most were the usual junk, generic sales pitches, spam, and subscription updates. But I still diligently sifted through them. Who knows, maybe there was a lottery win or a free trip to the Bahamas buried somewhere in there.

“Anastasia!” Caroline’s voice, sharp and enthusiastic, made me jump in my seat. I glanced up to see her bright eyes peering at me, her glasses perched on her forehead.

“Good, you’re here already. Mr. Prescott wants a word with you.”

My heart immediately sank.

Oh no. Was this about yesterday? Was he going to fire me? Should I text Julia and tell her to prepare her eggs for the grand company egging?

“He’s waiting for you in his office. Top floor, down the corridor.”

I blinked at her retreating figure. *Top floor, down the corridor?* Could she be any more vague? Matt was so right, we seriously needed a tour of this place.

Taking a steadying breath, I closed my laptop and made my way towards the stairs, internally preparing my defense. If he thought he could fire me over yesterday’s tampon emergency, he had another thing coming. My dad *is* a lawyer, after all, I could sue him for wrongful dismissal.

I found a door with “J. Prescott” neatly printed on the sign. This had to be it. Probably. Unless Prescott was a popular surname here?

Realising overthinking wasn’t going to help, I took in another deep breath and knocked lightly on the door.

“Come in.”

Slowly, I pushed the door open, and sure enough, there he was, Jonathan Prescott himself, hunched over his desk, scribbling something on a piece of paper. He didn’t look up right away, so I cautiously stepped inside.

“Good morning, Mr. Prescott. How are you?”

Oh, wow, great opening line, Ana. How are you? Seriously?

If my awkward attempt at small talk annoyed him, he didn’t show it. He just kept writing, the faintest hint of a smile tugging at his lips.

“I’m good, Ms. Donovan. Thanks for asking.” His tone was neutral, but I noticed a glint of amusement in his eyes when he finally glanced up at me. “You seem better than you did yesterday.”

“I’m brilliant, actually! The aspirin really helped.” I was lying through my teeth, I hadn’t even cracked open the bottle.

He yawned lightly, setting his pen down. The faint bags under his eyes suggested he hadn’t gotten much sleep. Maybe none at all.

“Ms. Donovan, I have some work for you.”

Work? I tilted my head slightly in confusion. “What kind of work?” I hoped to God he wasn’t sending me on a coffee run. I’d done more than my fair share of those during my internship days, and I was not about to relive them now. But then again… he was my boss, and my paycheck did depend on him.

He gestured to the chair across from his desk, silently encouraging me to sit. Reaching into his drawer, he pulled out an iPad, turning the screen so I could see.

“Last night, the designs you sent to Caroline, she pitched them to a client this morning, and he liked one of them.”

I leaned forward, immediately recognizing the rough sketch on the screen. It was the last design I’d cobbled together before sending off the batch. To be honest, it still looked a little messy, but the core idea was there and thankfully, the client could see the vision.

“Of course, he’s only expressed a bit of interest so far,” Mr. Prescott continued. “If we’re going to secure this deal, we’ll need to convince him further.”

I blinked, both flattered and a little lost. “Okay… so where do I come into this?”

“You, Ms. Donovan, are going to pitch your design to our client and get us a deal.”