Now the finishing touch to convince myself I’m unstoppable: dark red lipstick.
I’ll take all the extra hype I can get because I’m kind of dreading this. Something has felt off with Royce this entire trip.
When there’s nothing else to prepare or makeup to fix, it’s time to go to the meeting. I wish we were meeting in the conference room back at Sparks. But unfortunately, we’re in the inappropriately cozy room off the restaurant again. I cross my fingers, hoping we can get into contract details and talk less about Royce’s personal life.
My heels click on the lobby floor and Bea—wearing another festive headband—waves. I haven’t seen her in a few days since I was avoiding Holland. And really, everyone else.
Royce is at the same table. I let out a slow breath, holding on to as much composure as possible. He’s clearly in work mode: earbuds in, taking a call, with papers spread out all around the table. My mood is on its way up. I instantly feel better.
He gives me a one-minute gesture when I approach the table. Quietly, I sit and pull up the notes on my laptop, careful not to disturb.
A few minutes later, when he ends the call, he sighs and leans back, cracking his fingers.
“Ivy, thanks for accommodating the schedule change.” His demeanor feels genuine and like he’s in a good mood, much different than the other night.
“Not a problem. I appreciate you fitting the meeting in.” I’m being honest.
Things are already much better compared to our previous meeting. We start with my notes, some basic clarifications, and red lines. Royce laughs and reminds me of the guy I thought he was before this trip. Our focus is one hundred percent on the pages and contracts in front of us. To say I’mrelieved would be an understatement.
Gone is the anxiety about coming to this meeting and now I’m getting excited. When Jack pulled the dickbag move of the year for this meeting, I thought it would be some bullshit check-in that could’ve been done via Zoom. But I can’t wait to bring this back to the team. In my mind, I’m already crafting the overview email to Stella, hitting all the highlights. This extension will be awesome for Sparks.
“And that’s the end of my notes. Do you have anything else we need to cover?” I ask, my eyes meeting his. I close my laptop.
One side of his mouth goes up in a smirk. “I just have a few things I’d like to propose.”
This is expected. Royce has always been one for the dramatics. I never thought this would be completely straightforward; it’d need a Royce twist, which I think is coming.
We go through some changes, minor to my team but important to Royce, and there isn’t anything I’m not comfortable sayingyesto. So far, so good.
“Lastly, I’d like to request at least six, but no more than twelve visits to our headquarters each year.” He stares down at a page, not looking at me.
Bliss4ul is located about three hours from this lodge. It’s by no means a quick trip from the east coast.
“That’s quite a bit more than currently. Is—”
Before I can get the rest out, he interrupts.
“I wasn’t finished.” His voice isn’t what I’d call playful. “Back to it… six to twelve visits a year, for you specifically. Other team members can join you, but you must be present for each, unless you have other client responsibilities.”
This must be a joke. So I laugh.
“What’s funny?” He finally looks at me. His eyes are cold and has my laugh dead in my throat.
“Umm… why is it specific to me? That doesn’t make sense.” When he doesn’t seem like he grasps what I’m saying, I continue. “I may not be at this company in five years. And you’re asking me to travel once a month?” Maybe I misheard him.
“Are you looking for a new job?”
I’m caught off guard and answer him, even if it’s not appropriate. “No, I’m not looking for a new job.” I’m barely treading water at this point.
“Well, if you were…” His voice trails off and he stares at me. “I could create a position for you.”
He isn’t joking. I heard him correctly. My brain struggles to make sense of what’s going on and my stomach flips. My blazer shrinks and my shoulders could rip it. It’s tight around my wrists.
“Thank you for the offer but I’m happy where I am.” I try to sound confident and level.
“Why do you look so confused?” He raises his voice and my heartbeat matches.
“Umm… I’m not sure what to do with your off-the-cuff job offer. I don’t know how we got so focused on me in this conversation.”
