CHAPTER 7
1506 Words
BRIANA MORRIS
Thank God it's Friday.
I've been working at the Thompson Group for three days, but it feels like three years.
Denner's been giving me a hard time at work; he seems to do everything to annoy me or make me look bad in front of the board.
But I'm not giving him that satisfaction.
I've worked more in the past few days than I do in a whole month.
“Excuse me, Miss Morris, Mr. Thompson wants to know if the proposal for streamlining and adjusting the Oil Company’s support services is ready.”
I can't help but smile because he must be joking.
I’m great with numbers, but I’m not a machine that works around the clock.
“Tell him no, but I’ll send them over as soon as they’re ready.”
She widens her eyes, staring at me.
“Are you sure you want me to say that?” She looks scared of Denner.
“Why are you asking that? Are you afraid of him?”
She takes a deep breath.
“He said not to come back without those documents, and it’s already the end of the workday, so…”
“I get it. I’ll talk to him myself. You can head home.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Yes, I am. You can go.”
She nods in agreement and leaves the room. Just as I’m about to get up to face the i***t, my phone rings. Seeing who’s calling makes me feel guilty; I’ve been in town for days and haven’t even called my only friend.
“Duda!” I answer with enthusiasm to hide my embarrassment.
“I’m shocked you still remember my name, you ungrateful thing.”
“Duda, I’m sorry.”
“No!”
“Then forgive me.”
“I already said no. If you don’t have consideration for me, why should I have any for you? You came back to town and didn’t even have the decency to call me. I found out by chance when I ran into your mother. I will never forgive you.”
She must want something because she always puts on this act when she wants to drag me somewhere.
“Go ahead, you know I’ll do anything for you to forgive me.”
She giggles on the other end of the line.
“Anything? Really anything?”
“Just say it before I regret asking for forgiveness.”
“Today is Justin’s birthday. We’re celebrating at a fancy, trendy club, and you’re coming with us, or I won’t forgive you.”
I knew she would come up with something like this. After all, when the offer is too good, you have to be suspicious, and that’s typical of Duda.
“Duda! You know I don’t feel comfortable in those places.”
“You never feel comfortable anywhere, Briana. You need to stop that and start living a little. I’m your only friend. My fiancé and I want to celebrate his birthday with you and some friends. Is that too much to ask?”
“I’ve got a lot of work to do.”
“Bri, you’re always buried in work. If you’re not working, you’re studying. You really need to start having some fun, you know? You’ve made it to the top, you’re where you always wanted to be. Now it’s time to enjoy and reap the rewards. Either you come with us, or I, your one and only loyal friend, won’t forgive you. The choice is yours.”
Like I said, she’s in full drama mode, classic Duda.
“Fine, I’ll go.” She doesn’t really give me a choice.
“Excellent, I’ll text you the address, and we’ll meet up there later. Bye-bye.” She hangs up the call as quickly as she can, so I don’t have time to change my mind.
I put my phone away and head to the CEO’s office, but his secretary is already gone. So, I just go in. I knock twice, but there’s no answer. So, I open the door since he was in such a rush to get the document I can’t deliver today.
“Mr. Thompson, it’s impossible... Oh my God,” I say, covering my eyes with my hands and turning my back to him.
The jerk has a woman on his lap, shirtless, making out.
“Don’t you have the decency to knock before barging in?” he says angrily.
“This office isn’t the place for your antics, Mr. Thompson. If you want to do that, get a hotel or go home.” This is the last thing I wanted to deal with.
“Marina, we’ll talk about what happened here later. Wait for my call,” he says to the woman, in a commanding tone.
“Alright.” That’s all she calmly replies.
But I’m not staying here either.
When I take a step to leave, he stops me.
“You stay.”
I can’t believe it.
I turn around again and see the woman already dressed, grabbing a purse that was on the sofa. She walks past me without even looking to the side.
It’s as if I don’t exist, but I don’t care about that either.
“The proposal…”
“I want the proposal right now.”
He cuts me off.
I can’t help but smile at his nerve.
“The proposal for the Oil Company’s support services will be ready on Monday. Tomorrow’s Saturday, and I don’t work weekends. Hope you have a terrible night.”
He sneers, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
“Do you think being my dad’s mistress gives you the right to barge in and lecture me on morals you don’t even have? And you have the nerve to say you couldn’t handle a job because you don’t work weekends? Do you really think you’re in control here?”
I take a deep breath to keep my cool. We’re at work, and he’s the CEO, son of the man I admire most.
I’m putting up with this for his sake.
So, I stay professional and keep my cool.
“First of all, having s*x in your office isn’t something a respectable CEO would do. Secondly, you must be out of your mind if you thought I could whip up a proposal like this in just one day. I do my work with precision and no mistakes; no one in this world could put together a proposal of this scale in a single day. It takes days of work and research, but I’ll do it all in just two. Want the proposal? You’ll have it, but only on Monday.”
He smirks, a mocking smile tugging at his lips.
“Then take the opportunity to bring me, along with the proposal, the analysis of the operational results of the Oil Company. Let’s see if you’re really that good.”
At this point, all my professionalism goes out the window, and I lose my temper.
I’m not like this. I don’t enjoy direct confrontations, but Denner has a way of destabilizing me in such a manner that I still don’t understand how he manages it.
He pushes me to my limit in a matter of seconds.
“Do you find it amusing to do this to me, Denner? This is an abuse of power, and you’re not my damn boss—Oliver is.”
“I’m an employee of the Thompson Group, and if I’m here, it’s by direct order of Oliver. I’m doing my job very well, so stop acting like a spoiled brat and be the man your father raised you to be. Be the CEO your father expects. Get off my back because this damn war you’re trying to start with me—you won’t win, I guarantee it, you idiot.”
I say it all at once, without even thinking about the weight of my words.
If he already thought I was his father’s lover, now he’s even more convinced.
“It’s Mr. Thompson to you. I’ve made that clear more than once. I’ve never given you the privilege to call me by my first name, and here you are, just an employee like any other.”
“If you don’t do your job, you’ll be fired, and not even my father will be able to stop me from doing that.”
“You want to measure forces with me, Miss Morris?”
“Great. Let’s go ahead then.”
“Your days here have been numbered since the moment you dared to set foot in this building.”
“Now, leave my office and bring me everything I requested on Monday, or we’ll have a very big problem to solve.”
I swallow all the insults I want to throw in his face as I leave the room.
This day has already given me all it can. I’m going to meet my friend and try to relax a bit, which is the best thing I can do right now.
- Writer
