Chapter 10: The Assignment
2054 Words
Eliana stared at the report in front of her without reading a single word.
The office was quiet.
Most of the employees had already gone home, leaving the twelfth floor unusually still. The hum of the air conditioner filled the space, along with the occasional sound of an elevator opening somewhere down the corridor.
She checked the time.
7:18 p.m.
She should have left thirty minutes ago.
Instead, she was sitting at her desk wondering whether she had made a mistake.
Not about taking the job.
About what the job actually required of her.
When Mr. Eliot had first explained the assignment, it had sounded simple.
Scott was irresponsible.
Scott needed discipline.
Scott needed someone around him who wouldn’t tolerate his behavior.
She had expected a difficult man.
What she hadn’t expected was a complicated one.
There was a difference.
A difficult person could be handled with patience.
A complicated person made you question what you thought you already knew.
Eliana closed the report.
She reached for her phone.
There was one person she needed to speak to.
⸻
Mr. Eliot answered on the second ring.
“Eliana?”
“Good evening, sir.”
“Is everything alright?”
“Yes.”
The pause on the other end told her he didn’t believe her.
“You don’t usually call this late.”
“I wanted to ask you something.”
“Go ahead.”
Eliana leaned back in her chair.
“Did you tell me everything about Scott?”
Silence.
She closed her eyes.
That silence was an answer by itself.
“What aren’t you telling me?”
Mr. Eliot sighed.
“I told you what I believed was relevant.”
“Relevant to changing him?”
“Yes.”
“But what if the information wasn’t complete?”
“Eliana—”
“He’s not exactly what I expected.”
Mr. Eliot was quiet again.
“In what way?”
She looked toward the glass wall of Scott’s office.
“He’s still arrogant.”
“I know.”
“Careless.”
“I know.”
“Annoying.”
A faint chuckle came through the phone.
“I know that too.”
Eliana smiled despite herself.
“But…”
She stopped.
“What?”
“He notices things.”
Mr. Eliot didn’t respond immediately.
“He pays attention to people more than I thought he did. He pretends he doesn’t care, but he does.”
“You’re beginning to understand him.”
“Or I’m beginning to realize I don’t understand him at all.”
Mr. Eliot sighed.
“Eliana, I didn’t ask you to become his friend.”
“I know.”
“Your assignment is to help him become responsible enough to take his position seriously.”
“I know.”
“And eventually, I expect him to take over more of the company.”
Eliana looked down at her hands.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Yes.”
“What happens if I can’t change him?”
Mr. Eliot’s voice softened.
“Then you walk away.”
She looked up.
“Just like that?”
“Just like that.”
Something about the answer relieved her.
At least she wasn’t trapped.
“I understand.”
“Eliana.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t become so focused on the assignment that you forget why you accepted it.”
She frowned.
“Why did I accept it?”
“You tell me.”
She thought about it.
Because she needed the money.
Because Mr. Eliot trusted her.
Because the opportunity was better than waiting tables forever.
Because she had believed she could handle it.
“I wanted to prove I could.”
“Then prove it to yourself.”
The call ended.
Eliana sat quietly.
For a moment, she wondered whether Mr. Eliot knew his son better than she did.
Then she remembered Scott’s face the previous night at the restaurant.
The way he had laughed.
The way he’d listened.
The way he seemed completely different when he didn’t know who she was.
Maybe there was more to him than the man everyone complained about.
Or maybe she was simply looking for something good because she’d been asked to find it.
She wasn’t sure anymore.
The next morning, Scott walked into the office carrying no coffee.
Eliana noticed immediately.
“You forgot something.”
Scott looked at her.
“My coffee?”
“Yes.”
“I’m testing you.”
“You’re failing.”
He smiled.
“Good morning to you too.”
She stood and walked toward the coffee machine.
“Black. No sugar?”
“Yes.”
She prepared it and placed the cup on his desk.
Scott looked at it.
“You remembered.”
“You’re predictable.”
He took a sip.
“That’s disappointing.”
“You’re welcome.”
She turned to leave.
“Wait.”
Eliana stopped.
Scott pointed toward the chair opposite his desk.
“Sit.”
She looked at him.
“Why?”
“I want to ask you something.”
She sat.
Scott remained standing.
“Do you enjoy this job?”
The question caught her off guard.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“It’s work.”
“That wasn’t the question.”
Eliana studied him.
“Do you enjoy yours?”
Scott smiled.
“Sometimes.”
“Then we’re both lucky.”
He laughed quietly.
“Do you always answer questions with questions?”
“Only when I’m uncomfortable.”
“Are you uncomfortable now?”
“A little.”
“Why?”
“Because this conversation doesn’t sound like work.”
Scott leaned against his desk.
“Maybe I don’t want to talk about work.”
Eliana didn’t know what to say.
This was not the Scott she had prepared herself for.
She had expected orders.
Arguments.
Last-minute changes.
Not questions about her.
“What do you want to know?”
“Where are you from?”
Eliana blinked.
“Why?”
“Curiosity.”
“You’re curious about me?”
“Is that so strange?”
“A little.”
Scott smiled.
“Answer.”
She told him.
He asked about her family.
She gave him the simplest answer possible.
He asked if she’d worked at a restaurant.
She hesitated.
“Before this?”
“Yes.”
“A while.”
“You like it there?”
“Yes.”
Scott nodded.
Then his eyes narrowed.
“Have I seen you there before?”
Eliana’s stomach tightened.
She kept her expression calm.
“Maybe.”
“Maybe?”
“It’s a restaurant. You could have.”
He watched her for a moment.
Then smiled.
“You’re difficult.”
“I learned from the best.”
Scott laughed.
This time, the sound stayed in the room longer.
Eliana found herself smiling.
She caught herself.
Her smile disappeared.
Scott noticed.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“You were smiling.”
“I wasn’t.”
“You were.”
“Then you imagined it.”
He shook his head.
“You’re strange.”
“That’s not in my job description.”
“Neither is arguing with your boss.”
“You started it.”
Scott stared at her.
Then, unexpectedly, he laughed again.
The rest of the day was less chaotic than usual.
Scott attended his meetings.
He approved the finance proposal without arguing over unnecessary details.
He even arrived early for the afternoon presentation.
Eliana noticed.
She didn’t comment.
At four, he sent her a message.
Scott: Cancel dinner.
She called his office.
“Which dinner?”
“The one with the investors.”
“Why?”
“I don’t feel like going.”
Eliana sighed.
“Scott.”
He looked up when she walked into his office.
“You’re using my first name now.”
“I am when you’re making unreasonable decisions.”
His eyebrow lifted.
“Explain.”
“The investors flew in this morning. You’ve already postponed once. Cancelling because you don’t feel like going isn’t responsible.”
Scott stared at her.
“I said I don’t feel like it.”
“I heard you.”
“And?”
“You’re going.”
He smiled slowly.
“Are you ordering me around?”
“No.”
“Sounds like it.”
“I’m reminding you of the consequences.”
“You sound like my father.”
“That should concern you.”
He laughed.
Eliana placed the folder on his desk.
“Seven-thirty. Don’t be late.”
She turned.
“Eliana.”
“Yes?”
“Come with me.”
She frowned.
“To the dinner?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re my secretary.”
She considered refusing.
Then nodded.
“Fine.”
Scott smiled.
“Good.”
The dinner went better than either of them expected.
Scott was still Scott.
Confident.
Sharp.
Blunt when negotiations required it.
But Eliana saw something she’d never noticed before.
He knew his business.
Really knew it.
He understood the numbers without checking the documents twice. He noticed when one of the investors avoided answering a question. He negotiated without raising his voice.
There was no arrogance in those moments.
Only confidence.
For the first time, Eliana understood why Mr. Eliot had been so determined to prepare him.
Scott wasn’t incapable.
He was simply careless with the things that mattered.
On the drive back, neither spoke for several minutes.
Then Scott said, “You were quiet tonight.”
“I was listening.”
“To what?”
“You.”
He glanced at her.
“You’ve never seen me in a meeting before?”
“No.”
“What did you think?”
Eliana looked out the window.
“You’re good.”
Scott smiled.
“That’s all?”
“You want a speech?”
“No.”
“Then that’s all.”
He laughed.
“Fair.”
The car stopped outside her apartment.
Eliana reached for the door.
“Thank you.”
Scott looked at her.
“For what?”
“Dinner.”
“You’re welcome.”
She stepped out.
“Eliana.”
She turned.
Scott’s hand rested on the steering wheel.
“Don’t tell my father.”
“Tell him what?”
“That you admitted I’m good at something.”
She smiled.
“I’ll think about it.”
The door closed.
Scott watched her disappear inside.
Then he drove away.
Eliana stood behind her apartment door for several seconds after he left.
She should have been thinking about the assignment.
About whether Scott was improving.
About what she would tell Mr. Eliot.
Instead, she was thinking about the man behind the reputation.
That was dangerous.
She knew it.
The assignment had one purpose.
Help Scott change.
Not understand him.
Not become attached to him.
And definitely not fall for him.
Eliana walked to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of water.
She had accepted this job because she believed she could handle it.
She still believed that.
But tonight had taught her something uncomfortable.
Scott Eliot wasn’t simply a man who needed to be changed.
He was a man she hadn’t figured out yet.
And somehow, she wanted to.
Across town, Scott sat alone in his apartment.
His phone rested on the table.
He picked it up.
Opened his messages.
Scrolled past several names.
Then stopped.
His thumb hovered over Eliana’s contact.
He didn’t know why he wanted to message her.
He had never felt the need to talk to his secretary after work.
Yet tonight felt different.
He typed.
Scott: You got home safely?
He stared at the message.
Deleted it.
Typed again.
Scott: Goodnight.
Deleted that too.
He tossed the phone onto the table.
“What the hell?”
He leaned back.
His father’s secretary had been working for him for less than two weeks.
And somehow, she had become the person whose opinion he’d started caring about.
That irritated him.
What irritated him more was that he didn’t completely hate it.
For the first time in a long while, Scott wondered what it would feel like if someone didn’t want anything from him.
Not his money.
Not his name.
Not his attention.
Just him.
He shook his head.
That was a thought for another day.
For now, there was work in the morning.
And Eliana would be there.
As always.
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