I realize how that sounds the moment it leaves my mouth. My eyes go wide.
He exhales a huff, somewhere between amusement and impatience.
I panic and shove the entire forkful into my mouth before I can say anything worse about putting things in mouths.
“Not terrible,” I manage after swallowing. “Kind of like stuffing.”
“Ringing endorsement for my Michelin-starred chef.”
“I just can’t switch my brain off. All I keep thinking isthis is spiced sheep organs in a stomach bag.”
“Stop overthinking and just eat the bloody thing.”
“Overthinking is literally my core personality trait.”
He takes a long drink of water and fixes me with that unnervingly direct stare. “Overthinking doesn’t get things done.”
I bristle, feeling my shoulders tighten. I know what he means, and it’s not about haggis. It’s about me being too much of a mouse to succeed in his corporate world.
“Do you have something specific you’d like to say?” I ask in the smallest voice imaginable.
He sighs. “Look, you obviously know more about the system than I thought. But in business, you have to speak up. Stop overthinking every move and just act. Aren’t you looking to advance? Get promoted?”
“Ravi was planning to promote me,” I say quietly, staring at my plate. “But I guess Craig didn’t agree with his assessment.”
“Craig’s tougher than Ravi. More realistic about what it takes to succeed.”
The words sit in my chest like stones. Craig’s not tough; he’s cruel. There’s a difference between pushing someone to grow and systematically destroying their confidence, but I can’t say that.
Patrick leans forward. “I know Craig comes off more brutish than Ravi. But sometimes you need that kind of tough love to push you forward. Craig’s delivering exceptional results for me at a rate that Ravi never managed.”
I stare at Patrick, emotion rising in my chest. I want to explain that Craig’s “exceptional results” come from us working until 3 a.m.
What Patrick can’t see from his CEO throne is that Ravi protected us from ridiculous demands while Craig just says yes to everything.
“Ravi was a great boss,” I say, needing to defend my old mentor. “He cared about his team.”
“I’m not denying that.”
“And I know I tanked the interview,” I admit, my face heating. “Ravi took a massive risk giving me that chance.”
Patrick’s jaw flexes. “So don’t waste it.”
“It’s just that I’m... quieter than some colleagues.”
“That’s not going to get you ahead in life. No one’s going to hand you opportunities if you sit in the corner hoping someone notices you.”
I drop my gaze to my plate, that tiny spark of confidence from earlier dissolving.
Here it is—the fundamental difference between us. Patrick conquered the business world by being the loudest, strongest person in every room. He can’t imagine that some of us do our best work in quieter spaces.
“I’m trying to help you here. You can’t just hope someone notices you’re doing adequate work and magically promotes you.”
Adequate.Months of sixteen-hour days refining IRIS, patching crises before they erupted—and in his mind, I’m merelyadequate.
“Right,” I whisper, pushing haggis around my plate.
“I’m not trying to upset you, Georgie.”
