Chapter 5: The Twelfth Floor
1840 Words
Eliana said yes.
She had spent most of the night trying to convince herself that she hadn’t.
By morning, the decision was still sitting heavily in her chest.
She stood outside the company’s glass doors with her handbag hanging from her shoulder and stared at the building.
Twelve floors.
Twelve floors between the woman who served coffee and the woman she was about to pretend to be.
Her new identity wasn’t really an identity.
She was still Eliana.
Still the same woman who had spent the last two years carrying trays, remembering customers’ orders, studying between shifts and counting every naira before spending it.
Only now, she had a new job.
Scott Eliot’s secretary.
She took a breath and walked inside.
The receptionist looked up.
“Good morning.”
“Good morning.”
“You’re the new executive secretary, aren’t you?”
Eliana nodded.
“Yes.”
The woman smiled.
“Welcome.”
“Thank you.”
She was handed an identification card and directed toward the elevators.
Eliana clipped the card onto her blouse.
Her fingers felt strangely cold.
She stepped into the elevator.
The doors closed.
Twelve.
She pressed the button.
The numbers began climbing.
One.
Two.
Three.
She watched them change.
At five, she wondered if she had made a mistake.
At eight, she reminded herself that she could leave if she felt unsafe.
At ten, she remembered Mr. Eliot’s promise.
At eleven, she almost laughed.
You can still turn around.
The elevator stopped at twelve.
The doors opened.
Eliana stepped out.
The atmosphere changed immediately.
The lower floors had been busy and noisy.
The twelfth floor was different.
Quiet.
Controlled.
The carpet softened her footsteps. Glass offices lined one side of the corridor, while the opposite wall overlooked the city through enormous windows.
People spoke in lower voices here.
Everyone seemed to know where they were going.
Eliana didn’t.
Not yet.
A woman approached her.
“Eliana?”
“Yes.”
“I’m Margaret. Senior executive assistant.”
They shook hands.
“Mr. Eliot asked me to show you around.”
Eliana smiled.
“I’d appreciate that.”
Margaret led her through the floor.
“His office is at the end.”
Eliana looked ahead.
A large dark door stood alone at the far end of the corridor.
No name.
No unnecessary decoration.
Just a sense that whoever worked behind it didn’t appreciate interruptions.
“That’s Scott’s office?”
Margaret nodded.
“Yes.”
“What should I know?”
Margaret gave her a look.
“About Scott?”
Eliana nodded.
Margaret hesitated.
“He’s difficult.”
Eliana almost smiled.
“I’ve heard.”
“Then you’ve heard correctly.”
They continued walking.
“He doesn’t like people hovering around him.”
“Fine.”
“He doesn’t like being told no.”
“I’ll manage.”
“He changes his schedule without warning.”
“I’ll manage.”
“He cancels meetings.”
“I’ll manage.”
“He ignores calls.”
“I’ll manage.”
Margaret stopped walking.
“You’re very confident.”
Eliana smiled.
“I’m trying to be.”
Margaret laughed softly.
“I like you already.”
They reached a smaller office beside Scott’s.
“This is yours.”
Eliana looked inside.
Her desk faced a large window overlooking the city.
A computer sat in the middle.
There was a phone.
A notepad.
A calendar.
Everything was arranged neatly.
Too neatly.
She put her handbag down.
“This is beautiful.”
“Don’t get attached.”
Eliana looked at her.
“Why?”
Margaret lowered her voice.
“Most people don’t last long.”
Before Eliana could ask what she meant, the elevator doors at the end of the corridor opened.
Margaret’s expression changed.
“He’s here.”
Eliana turned.
Scott walked out.
He was speaking on his phone.
His jacket was folded over one arm, and his other hand was tucked into his pocket.
He looked completely at home.
Unhurried.
Unbothered.
The kind of man who didn’t need anyone to announce his arrival.
People moved aside without being asked.
Scott ended the call.
“Move the meeting to four.”
A man beside him nodded.
“And cancel lunch.”
“With the investors?”
Scott glanced at him.
“I said cancel it.”
“Yes, sir.”
Scott continued down the corridor.
Then he saw Eliana.
He stopped.
Not dramatically.
Just enough to make her notice.
His eyes moved over her once.
Briefly.
Assessing.
Then they settled on her face.
“Who are you?”
Eliana kept her expression calm.
“I’m Eliana.”
Scott looked at Margaret.
“Why is she here?”
Margaret opened her mouth.
Eliana answered first.
“I’m your new secretary.”
Scott looked back at her.
There was a pause.
“You?”
Eliana raised an eyebrow.
“That’s usually how introductions work.”
Margaret looked away quickly.
Scott stared at her.
Then something almost resembling amusement touched his mouth.
“You have a sense of humor.”
“Sometimes.”
“That wasn’t a compliment.”
“I didn’t take it as one.”
The amusement disappeared.
Scott walked toward her.
He stopped a few feet away.
“Who hired you?”
“The company.”
“Who specifically?”
“HR.”
Scott studied her.
“Interesting.”
Eliana said nothing.
He looked toward Margaret.
“You can go.”
Margaret nodded and disappeared into her office.
Now it was just the two of them.
Scott glanced at the desk.
“That’s your office?”
“Yes.”
“You’ll be working there.”
“That’s generally where secretaries work.”
His eyes returned to hers.
“Do you always talk this much?”
“Only when someone asks me questions.”
Scott almost smiled again.
Almost.
Then he stepped closer.
“Let me make something clear.”
Eliana waited.
“I don’t need someone managing my life.”
“I’m not here to manage your life.”
“Good.”
“I’m here to manage your schedule.”
His expression tightened.
“Same thing.”
“No.”
She picked up the folder Margaret had left for her.
“Your life is your responsibility. Your appointments are mine.”
Scott stared at her.
For a moment, neither moved.
Then he laughed.
A short, disbelieving sound.
“You’re serious.”
“Very.”
He looked at the folder.
“What does that contain?”
“Your schedule.”
“I don’t need it.”
“You have a meeting with the legal team in twenty minutes.”
“I know.”
“Then you’ll be there.”
Scott raised an eyebrow.
“Will I?”
Eliana smiled politely.
“Yes.”
“You’re confident.”
“I’ve checked the schedule.”
“I might not go.”
“Then I’ll reschedule.”
“I might not want it rescheduled.”
“Then you’ll have to tell me before I rearrange everything.”
Scott studied her.
“You’ve been here less than ten minutes.”
“I’ve noticed.”
“And you’re already giving me instructions.”
“I’m doing my job.”
Scott leaned slightly toward her.
“Most people become nervous when I look at them like this.”
Eliana didn’t move.
“Maybe they’re not very good at their jobs.”
Something flickered in his eyes.
Interest.
Not attraction.
Not yet.
Just curiosity.
Scott straightened.
“What did they tell you about me?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“No.”
“That’s a lie.”
Eliana held his gaze.
“They told me you’re my employer.”
He watched her carefully.
She was good.
Too good.
Scott had dealt with enough people to know when someone was trying to impress him.
She wasn’t.
That bothered him.
Or perhaps it intrigued him.
He couldn’t decide.
His phone rang.
He looked at the screen.
Ignored it.
It rang again.
Eliana glanced at the clock.
“You have nine minutes.”
Scott looked at her.
“Nine minutes until what?”
“Your legal meeting.”
“I know.”
“Then you should probably answer that.”
He looked at the phone again.
Then back at her.
“You really intend to do this every day?”
“If necessary.”
Scott smiled.
“You might regret accepting this job.”
Eliana’s smile remained.
“That depends.”
“On what?”
“How difficult you intend to be.”
He laughed.
This time, genuinely.
“You’re going to be interesting.”
Eliana didn’t respond.
Scott turned and walked toward his office.
At the door, he stopped.
“Eliana.”
“Yes?”
“Coffee.”
She waited.
“Black.”
“Anything else?”
“No.”
He opened the door.
Then looked back.
“And don’t make it sweet.”
Eliana nodded.
“Of course.”
The door closed.
She stood there for a moment.
Then she let out a breath.
The man was worse in person.
Much worse.
She walked toward the pantry.
Halfway there, she stopped.
A thought crossed her mind.
She turned toward his closed office door.
Then smiled faintly.
“Black coffee,” she whispered.
She could handle coffee.
It was the man she wasn’t so sure about.
Inside his office, Scott dropped his jacket onto a chair and loosened his collar.
His new secretary was strange.
Not strange in the irritating way most people were.
She hadn’t flirted with him.
Hadn’t tried to impress him.
Hadn’t stared at his watch.
Hadn’t asked about his car.
She hadn’t even seemed particularly impressed by him.
Scott sat behind his desk.
His gaze drifted toward the glass wall separating his office from the corridor.
Eliana was already at her desk, reading through his schedule.
Organizing it.
Moving things around.
Doing exactly what he had told her not to do.
Scott shook his head.
Then his phone rang again.
This time, he answered.
“Hello?”
His father’s voice came through.
“How is your new secretary?”
Scott looked through the glass.
Eliana was writing something down.
“Annoying.”
There was a brief silence.
Then his father asked,
“Only annoying?”
Scott narrowed his eyes.
“Why?”
“Nothing.”
Scott leaned back.
“Do you know her?”
Another pause.
“No.”
Scott studied the woman outside his office.
He couldn’t explain why, but something about her already felt familiar.
Not her face.
Something else.
The way she spoke.
The way she looked at him without looking away.
The confidence.
He pushed the thought aside.
“She’s just a secretary.”
His father hummed.
“I see.”
Scott frowned.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
The call ended.
Scott stared at his phone.
Then at Eliana.
For the first time in a very long time, something about a woman had caught his attention without her trying to catch it.
And Scott didn’t like mysteries.
Especially ones sitting ten feet away from his office.
On the twelfth floor.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD