THE COLD BOSS
1498 Words
Chapter 8
The next morning, Tara arrived at the office ten minutes early and Jaden was already at his office.
The memory of yesterday flashed through her mind instantly.
Have we met before?
Her stomach tightened. No matter how many times she replayed that conversation, it still felt strange.
Tara quickly looked away and headed toward her desk.
“Morning,” Clara said as she passed.
“Morning.”
Clara studied her briefly. “You look tired.”
“I couldn’t sleep.”
“That’s normal,” Clara replied dryly. “You’ll adapt.”
That wasn’t comforting, Tara sat down and immediately froze.
Three thick folders waited neatly on her desk.
Her brows furrowed.
“What’s this?”
Clara glanced over casually.
“Your assignments.”
Tara blinked. “All of them?”
“Yes.”
“…For today?”
“Yes.”
Tara stared at the mountain of paperwork in disbelief, investors report, schedule restructuring, financial summaries and meetings preparation.
Her pulse jumped slightly.
“This is impossible.”
Clara gave her a look filled with sympathy she tried to hide. “The CEO requested it personally.”
Tara slowly looked toward the glass office Jaden wasn’t standing there anymore. Still in thought when his voice suddenly came through the intercom.
“Miss Tara.”
Every employee on the floor immediately went silent.
Tara straightened automatically. “Yes, sir?”
“My coffee.”
Her brows furrowed.
Coffee?
She glanced at Clara, confused.
Clara whispered quietly, “Go.”
Tara stood immediately and headed toward the executive office. The moment she stepped inside, the air changed.
Jaden didn’t look up from the document in front of him.
“Close the door.”
She obeyed quietly.
“You wanted coffee?”
“Yes.”
“…Okay.”
Tara stood there awkwardly for a second.
Jaden finally lifted his eyes slowly.
“Are you waiting for the coffee machine to appear by itself?”
Heat rushed to her face instantly.
“No, sir.”
She turned quickly toward the private kitchen area attached to his office. Her heartbeat was annoyingly uneven.
Why does he make every conversation feel like a test? She prepared the coffee carefully, aware of his presence the entire time, aware that he was watching her even when she couldn’t see him.
When she placed the cup down in front of him, Jaden finally spoke again.
“You’re late.”
Tara blinked. “It took three minutes.”
“That’s late.”
Her fingers tightened slightly.
“Understood.”
Jaden took a slow sip before setting the cup down.
“The reports on your desk are due before six.”
Her eyes widened slightly. “All of them?”
“Yes.”
“That workload usually takes two people.”
“Then work faster.”
Tara swallowed her frustration. “Yes, sir.”
She turned quickly and left before her expression betrayed anything.
Behind her, Jaden watched the door close slowly.
His face remained emotionless.
But his grip tightened around the coffee cup.
By noon, Tara was drowning as calls kept coming, Schedules kept changing, Files kept appearing on her desk faster than she could finish them.
“Miss Tara.”
She looked up quickly.
One of the senior staff approached carefully.
“The CEO rejected these projections.”
Tara stared. “Why?”
“He said the formatting lacked clarity.”
Her eyes twitched.
Formatting again.
She took the file back silently, her patience was disappearing rapidly.
Two hours later, she was called into Jaden’s office again.
This time, he didn’t even offer her a chance to speak.
“These numbers are misaligned.”
Tara walked closer quickly. “No, they aren’t.” Jaden slid the paper toward her.
“I’ll correct it immediately,” she said quietly.
“You’ll redo the entire report.”
Her head snapped up. “The entire thing?”
“Yes.”
“That’s over eighty pages.”
“And?”
The coldness in that single word made her chest tighten.
Tara stared at him, this wasn’t normal pressure anymore he was pushing her deliberately and testing her but breaking her down piece by piece.
“Did I do something wrong?” she asked suddenly.
Jaden’s expression didn’t change.
“Yes.”
Her pulse stumbled slightly. “What?”
“You’re distracted.”
“That’s because I haven’t stopped working since morning.”
“That sounds like an excuse.”
Anger flashed through her instantly.
“I’m human,” she snapped before she could stop herself.
Jaden leaned back slowly in his chair, his gray eyes fixed entirely on her now.
“And yet,” he said calmly, “I expect excellence.”
Tara laughed once.
“Of course you do.”
Something flickered behind his eyes at her tone but disappeared immediately.
“Redo the report.”
Tara grabbed the file sharply.
“Fine.”
She turned and walked out before she exploded completely.
The second the office doors shut behind her, she exhaled shakily.
Clara looked up immediately.
“That bad?”
Tara let out a frustrated laugh. “I think your boss actually hates me.”
Clara didn’t answer right away which somehow felt worse.
By evening, most employees had gone home but Tara remained at her desk under the dim office lights, trying desperately to finish everything before midnight, her shoulders ached, her eyes burned and still emails keep coming, more corrections.
A soft voice interrupted her spiraling thoughts.
“You should eat something.”
Tara looked up.
Ethan stood beside her desk holding a sandwich and bottled water.
Relief softened her expression slightly. “You’re my favorite person right now.”
“That’s tragic,” he replied.
She laughed weakly before accepting the food.
Ethan studied her face carefully. “You look exhausted.”
“I am exhausted.”
“You need to slow down.”
“I can’t.”
He glanced toward Jaden’s dark office.
“He’s being harder on you than everyone else.”
Tara took a bite quietly before muttering, “I noticed.”
Ethan hesitated.
Then lowered his voice.
“There’s gossip.”
Her stomach tightened slightly. “About what?”
“You.”
“What now?”
He leaned closer.
“People think the CEO’s obsessed with you.”
Tara nearly choked on the water.
“What?!”
“I’m serious.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Is it?”
“Yes!”
Ethan raised an eyebrow. “Tara, he notices everything you do.”
“That’s because he enjoys torturing me.”
“Maybe.”
The uncertainty in his voice made her uncomfortable.
“No,” she said firmly. “Trust me. Jaden barely tolerates my existence.”
Across the office, inside the dark glass office Jaden stood silently listening to everything they were saying and his expression became unreadable.
An hour later, Tara finally finished the report. Her entire body felt heavy as she carried the file toward Jaden’s office, the lights inside were still on.
She knocked softly.
“Come in.”
She stepped inside carefully.
Jaden sat behind his desk, sleeves rolled slightly, attention fixed on his laptop.
Tara placed the report down carefully.
“It’s finished.” Jaden looked up slowly their eyes locked and once again that strange tension returned sharp, heavy and unexplainable.1
He opened the file and reviewed the first few pages.
“This is acceptable.” Tara almost laughed from exhaustion.
“Anything else?” she asked carefully.
Jaden looked at her for a long moment his gaze moved across her tired face, the exhaustion in her eyes, the tension in her posture. Something dark flickered briefly in his expression then vanished.
“You can leave.”
Relief hit instantly.
“Thank you.”
She turned quickly and walked out before he changed his mind. The second the elevator doors closed behind her, Tara leaned back against the wall and shut her eyes she was exhausted completely. She still didn’t understand why he watched her the way he did, why he acted cold one second and intense the next, why being near him made her feel like she was standing too close to something dangerous.
Upstairs, Jaden remained alone in his office, the building was nearly empty now.
Clara stepped inside quietly.
“You asked for me, sir?”
Jaden’s gaze remained on the city outside.
“Yes.” She waited silently.
Then finally Jaden spoke low, calm and controlled.
“HR received Tara’s employment profile?”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“She has no disciplinary issues. Excellent work history and Stable evaluations.”
A pause.
Then Clara added carefully “But she may not stay long under this pressure.”
Silence filled the office.
Jaden’s expression darkened. Finally he turned.
And the coldness in his eyes made Clara straighten immediately.
“Then make sure she stays.”
Clara blinked slightly. “Sir?”
Jaden’s voice Sharper enough to cut glass.
“Don’t let her leave this company.”
- Writer
