Was it possible I was overreacting about the entire thing? Was I looking for an excuse to give up on Elijah?
Our relationship seemed perfectly fine right now. I’d even been able to push Damien completely from my mind.
At least until I envisioned a pair of icy blue eyes and red hair above me as I climaxed.
But that was beside the point, and something I wanted to forget happened in the first place.
The earthquake that had been shaking my world had finally quieted.
As I made my way to work the next morning, I felt renewed. Energized and eager to check things off my to-do list and be the overall badass I was.
As I set my stuff down at my desk, someone came up behind me.
“Morning, Ms. Copeland.”
I turned. “Good morning, Mr. Trevino.”
“Can I see you in my office?”
“Sure, just let me get everything booted up, and I’ll be right in.”
“No. Now.”
His tone sounded firm and unyielding. A sense of dread climbed up my spine and settled on my shoulders as they tensed.
“Oh, okay.”
I followed him like a puppy who had just gotten into trouble. This didn’t suggest a normal chat. The air, thick with anxiety, hovered around us.
“Please have a seat, Ms. Copeland.”
I sat as he shut the door, cutting off all the sounds from outside.
I expected Mr. Trevino to sit behind his desk for our discussion, but he surprised me by sitting on the front, our knees mere inches from each other.
My ears grew hot.I swallowed before asking, “What did you need to talk to me about?”
“I’ve got some bad news.”
I waited for him to continue. And when he didn’t, I huffed. “What is it?”
“It’s been brought to my attention that you made some grave errors during our compliance inspection.”
Grave errors, my ass. They were simple and easily fixed before the inspector had left.“Yes, but they were all rectified.”
“Maybe so. But mediocrity is not tolerated here. You and I both know that. The Powells expect every employee to be on their A-game at all times. Even if you are sleeping with their son.”
I scowled, my internal temperature warming a few more degrees. Sweat gathered at the small of my back, making my silk shirt cling to me uncomfortably.
“My relationship with Elijah has nothing to do with my position or why I was hired. I earned this job on my own merit.”
“Which makes this even sadder because, I’m letting you go.”
My mouth fell open. “I… I’m sorry. You’re firing me?!”
“I’m sure you understand that this isn’t personal, but about your work ethic. Not only did you get the company written up during the inspection, but then you took a week off. That doesn’t look very good for us.”
“But… the inspector said she wouldn’t write us up for the mistakes on my paperwork. Did you discuss this with Amelia and Robert?”
