5
May
The air was knocked from my lungs as I stared at the man sitting across from me, and I could feel my face freezing from the icy tendrils that spread from my chest.
“I-I’m sorry. Can you . . . did you say that David has been passing offmyintellectual innovation as his own?” The atmosphere in the room became uncomfortable, and I leaned forward to clasp my hands on the glass table to stop them shaking. “Can you repeat that?”
“I said I was surprised how knowledgeable you are about David’s concept, Ms. Hart. Are you implying that the proposal he submitted to us was committed to by you?” Covering my grimace with curled fingers, I could only nod, and the executive watching me through narrowed eyes frowned deeply. “Miss, these are serious accusations. Are you prepared to back up your claims if we launch an investigation? We take innovative theft very seriously.”
“Yes. Yes, I can back it up. I can prove they’re all my designs, all my suggestive add-ons. I can prove the notes on the schematics are my handwriting.” Casting Oran an exasperated scoff, I drummed my fingernails on the table when he stared back levelly. Anxiety bore deep in my gut, and I sat up a little straighter and inhaled sharply as I turned back to Malcom. “So, are you telling me the . . . the promotion David told meIwas being looked at for . . . is he the one? Is he the one it was offered to?”
“I’m unable to discuss another employee’s positional fluidity with you, Ms. Hart.” That was basically a ‘yes’! Licking my lips heavily, I sniffed as the enormity of the betrayal clogged my throat and nose. “Launching an investigation into these claims means your entire team will be investigated for theft and fraud. All six of your co-workers will be immediately removed from the office and won’t be allowed back until the investigation ends. If you lodge this complaint against your team leader, you all will endure the investigation onunpaidadministrative leave.”
“Yes, I understand. I want to lodge the complaint— officially. This ismywork and I wantmyname on it.” Leaning back to tap my fingers against the edge of the table, I didn’t hesitate to answer, and my mind worked furiously— almost too furiously. This was ridiculous! Of course, I was going to fight it. It wasn’t like I was popular on the team, anyway, so why not give them a ’real’ reason to dislike me. I was better at my job than they were, and I wasn’t ashamed of it.
“Let me get this straight, Don.” Speaking up for the first time the entire meeting, Oran leaned his forearms on the table to steeple his fingers. His brows set seriously, his mouth dragged down at the corners, and he pursed his lips thinly before parting them. “May spent the past half-hour explaining something that I, personally, didn’t understand all, but that’s beside the point. At what point did you suspect her team lead was passing her projects off as his own?”
The executive, Don, sat back in his chair to rub his chin thoughtfully, and I held my breath. I wasn’t sure what kind of weight Oran held, but he clearly had a lot of it judging by the uncertainty on Don’s face.
“We suspected he didn’t know the exact particulars of his projects since our first meeting, but there was no reason to suspect theft or fraud. It’s not uncommon for these teams to be on four or five projects at a time. I decided after our third meeting, this being our fifth, that unless we had causenotto trust his word . . . ” My eyelid twitched in agitation, and Don cast me a tilt of his head without looking away from Oran. “As for the promotion, I don’t know what David said, but I know that I explained it was a salary and resource bump for the team, not a personal promotion.”
Exhaling a shaky breath through my nose, I closed my eyes briefly as anger boiled my blood. That ass! That stealing, cheating, egotistical ass! Running my hands through my hair and down to circle my neck, I tensed when someone cleared their throat, and Oran shot me a questioning look.
“No. David said the promotion I was being spotted for was for a bonus, three extra yearly vacation days, and a two-dollar personal salary increase.” Oran actually seemed surprised at my confession, and I inhaled a calm, stabilizing breath as I struggled to keep my cool. I was in shoes I didn’t like, that hurt my feet, and I was already less than happy coming into this meeting feeling like a minnow in a fish tank.Damnit!
“Typically, we do not award more vacation days, dependent on a person’s position. Regardless, that’s nothing like what we were proposing, so I apologi—"
“Do it anyway.” Oran cut Don off, and my breath left my lungs as Oran slumped in his chair. The atmosphere suddenly became calm, like a blanket had fallen over us, and he still managed to be the biggest person in the room. “I’ve texted my assistant to send an audit team to the office of one Ms. May Hart to clear the equipment and place the team on administrative leave pending an investigation. In the meantime, you’re going to turn over all the information on all projects David presented before you. Seeing as Ms. Hart was falsely informed of a promotion that doesn’t exist, and no one else has been offered this promotion, there’s no one to contend it from her.”
“O-of course.” My mouth dried when Don turned to me, and goosebumps washed under my shirt and across my chest. “Assuming the investigation concludes that it is your innovative property, Ms. Hart.”
“Assuming it does, yes. For now, we’re going to adjourn this meeting until after the investigation concludes.” Oran stood up, and I hastily followed suit as he waltzed out of the conference room. His back was straight and tall, and I gazed at him through glassy eyes as the situation just . . . hit me. Punching the elevator button, Oran turned to me, took off his glasses, and tucked them into his shirt pocket. “May, would you mind taking a little trip with me up to the thirty-fifth floor?”
“Um, okay. Why?” Turning to me fully, Oran’s lips quirked up and amusement twinkled in his eyes as heat slithered up my neck. “I’m sorry. I can’t . . . I can’t believe that just happened. I’m still a little shocked.”
“You presented yourself very well in there. I was impressed.” The compliment struck me, and my heart fluttered as Oran squinted at me faintly. “I see how you do it now.”
“Do what?” Oran was definitely flirting with me, and his smirk widened before the elevator gave a shrillping. The doors slid open, and I rolled my lips between my teeth to hide my smile when he gestured me in first. Shouldering my purse, I huffed a small, stabilizing breath, and he punched the floor button before speaking up.
“How you manage all that on those delicate shoulders.” He put the sleek, thin-framed glasses back on, and my cheeks flamed even as he rocked back on his heels and stuck his hands in his pockets. “You’re much more than you first appear, aren’t you, May?”
“To be fair, you haven’t seen much of me so far.” The clap back earned me a suggestive hum, but the conversation halted when the elevator jostled to a stop, and the doors slid open. Shuffling out of the way as nameless faces flashed in front of me, I turned to Oran when he cleared his throat. “So, why are we going to the thirty-fifth floor?”
“Let’s just say getting an appointment with me is not something you forfeit, and I believe you’re going to want to sit in on this one.” Curiosity stained my tongue, and my brows furrowed when Oran’s eyes twinkled with mischief. “You’re lucky. Not only did you get one meeting with me, you got two, and you didn’t have to wait nine months in between.”
“So, are you a VP or something? Clearly, you like to boss people around, and they don’t push back. This is the big office, but I really don’t know much about it, considering I work for a subsidiary.” Oran barked a laugh, and my brows rose in surprise when he covered his mouth to hide his smile. His shallow dimples made an appearance, and my abdomen tightened as the elevator became a smidgen smaller.
