The Rival I Fell for

Episode3

CHAPTER 3

POV: EVELYN

THE UNWANTED PARTNER

The next morning, I arrived at the office earlier than usual.

I had barely settled into my chair when Clara walked in with her tablet in her hand.

"Good morning, Evelyn."

I looked up from my laptop. "Morning. Please tell me you have good news."

She smiled slightly. "I do."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Roman's office has confirmed the meeting. He's coming here this morning."

My fingers stopped moving on the keyboard.

"This morning?"

"Yes."

I stared at her.

"Clara, what happened to giving me time to prepare?"

She laughed. "You've had the whole night to prepare."

"That doesn't count."

"Of course it does."

I rolled my eyes and returned my attention to my laptop.

I honestly wasn't ready to see Roman Bennett, especially not when I was about to ask him for help. I hated being in a position where I had to depend on someone else, and depending on Roman was the last thing I wanted.

A knock came from the door.

Clara turned towards it.

"That must be him."

I immediately sat up straight.

"Come in," I said.

The door opened, and Roman walked into my office.

He wore a dark suit with a white shirt underneath. His hair was neatly arranged, and he carried a folder in one hand. He looked calm and confident, as if he had never experienced a problem in his life.

His eyes met mine, and a small smile appeared on his face.

"Good morning, Evelyn."

I forced a smile.

"Roman."

He looked around my office before turning back to me.

"Nice place you've got here."

"Thank you. Can we get to the reason you're here?"

His smile widened slightly.

"Straight to business. I like that."

I ignored his comment and gestured towards the chair opposite me.

"Please sit."

He sat down while Clara remained beside my desk.

Roman placed his folder on the table and looked at me.

"Clara mentioned that your company has been experiencing some financial difficulties."

I nodded.

"Yes. Our expenses have been increasing, and our profits haven't been enough to cover them. We've also lost some clients, and we're trying to figure out how to get things back on track."

He opened his folder.

"I've looked at some of the information Clara sent over."

I turned towards Clara.

"You sent him the records already?"

She gave me an innocent smile.

"Only the necessary information."

I sighed.

I was going to deal with her later.

Roman looked through the documents before speaking again.

"From what I've seen, the company still has potential. The problem is that some of your expenses are too high, and there are a few areas where you could be spending less."

I folded my arms.

"Such as?"

He turned one of the documents towards me and pointed at a section.

"Your supplier costs. Some of these prices are higher than what other companies are paying for similar services."

I leaned forward to look at the figures.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I checked the current market rates before coming here."

I studied the document carefully.

He might have been annoying, but I couldn't deny that he had done his research.

"What else?" I asked.

"We need to review your contracts, negotiate better prices with your suppliers and focus on bringing back some of your lost clients. We should also look at the expenses that aren't bringing in enough profit."

I listened quietly as he explained his ideas.

For the first time since he walked into my office, I found myself paying attention to what he was saying instead of thinking about how much he irritated me.

He seemed to understand the problem better than I had expected.

When he finished, I looked at him.

"So, you think these changes will help?"

"They won't solve everything overnight, but they'll give us a better chance of getting the company back on track."

I nodded slowly.

That was a reasonable answer.

At least he wasn't promising me something he couldn't guarantee.

Clara looked between us.

"So, what do you think?"

I leaned back in my chair.

"I think we need to review everything properly before making any decisions."

Roman nodded.

"Agreed."

I glanced at him, slightly surprised that he hadn't argued with me.

He noticed my expression.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"You're looking at me like you expected me to disagree."

"Maybe because you usually do."

He chuckled.

"Well, I'm trying to behave today."

I shook my head.

"Please keep trying."

Clara covered her mouth, trying not to laugh.

Roman looked at me with an amused expression.

"You know, Evelyn, you could try being nice once in a while."

"And you could try being less annoying."

"That's going to be difficult."

"Then we're both going to have a problem."

He laughed, and I looked away before he could notice the small smile forming on my face.

I wasn't supposed to enjoy talking to him.

Not even a little.

After a few more minutes of discussion, Roman closed the folder and placed it on the table.

"So, are we doing this?"

I looked at him.

"Doing what exactly?"

"Working together."

I hesitated.

This was the part I had been dreading since Clara mentioned his name.

Working with Roman meant spending more time around someone I had never been able to get along with. It meant meetings, discussions and probably arguments over almost everything.

But I also knew I couldn't afford to let my personal feelings ruin a chance to save my company.

I took a deep breath.

"Fine. We can work together."

Roman held out his hand.

"Good decision."

I stared at his hand for a moment before shaking it.

"Don't make me regret it."

His eyes met mine.

"I'll do my best."

I released his hand and returned to my seat.

"But I have a few conditions."

He raised an eyebrow.

"Of course you do."

"First, this is my company. I make the final decisions."

He nodded.

"Fair enough."

"Second, I don't want unnecessary arguments. We're here to work, not to compete with each other."

He leaned back in his chair.

"I can agree to that."

"And third, don't think this means we're suddenly friends."

He smiled.

"Don't worry. I wasn't planning to invite you to dinner."

I stared at him.

"You're impossible."

"And yet, you agreed to work with me."

I opened my mouth to respond, but no words came out.

He had a point, and I hated that.

Clara finally spoke.

"Well, now that we've agreed, we should discuss when the work will begin."

Roman looked at me.

"I'm available tomorrow morning. We can start by reviewing the expenses and contacting the suppliers."

I nodded.

"Tomorrow morning is fine."

"Great. I'll bring the documents we need."

He stood up and picked up his folder.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Evelyn."

I gave him a small nod.

"See you."

He walked towards the door, but before leaving, he turned around.

"And Evelyn?"

I looked up.

"What?"

"Try not to miss me too much before tomorrow."

I stared at him in disbelief.

Clara burst out laughing.

Roman simply smiled and walked out.

I sat there for a few seconds, wondering how I had managed to agree to work with such an irritating man.

Then I turned towards Clara.

"Don't laugh."

She was still smiling.

"I'm sorry, but you two are something else."

"There is no you two. There's me and a very annoying man who happens to be helping my company."

"Whatever you say."

I picked up a pen and pointed it at her.

"Clara."

She raised both hands.

"Okay, okay. I'll leave you alone."

She walked towards the door, still smiling.

Once she was gone, I turned back to my laptop.

I had work to do, and I couldn't afford to waste the entire morning thinking about Roman.

Still, I couldn't deny that he had made a good impression during the meeting.

He had come prepared, understood the problems and offered practical solutions. He hadn't tried to take control of the company, and he had agreed to my conditions without making things difficult.

It was more than I had expected from him.

But one good meeting didn't change everything.

I still didn't trust him completely.

I opened the documents he had left behind and started reviewing the figures again.

There was a lot of work to do, and I knew the next few weeks wouldn't be easy.

I just hoped Roman Bennett wouldn't make things more difficult than they already were.

Because if he did, I wasn't sure how long I could keep my patience.

And something told me that working with him was only the beginning.