“You can imagine my surprise to come in this morning and find the entire office in upheaval.” My
coworkers looked like they’d just sightedVoldemort.“I can’t say I was eager to meet you since I
don’t know who you are.”
A little twitch in the corner of his mouth. He’s not amused anymore. “Yes, well. Until the takeover
was finalized, Williams was forbidden from speaking of it.”
I lean back in the chair, waiting. His gaze turns more and more puzzled the longer I sit calmly. I
see it, that moment when his curiosity outweighs the power play he had planned.
“You’ve worked here a long time. I expected you to be more surprised or upset. Do you not care
that your mentor is gone?”
“Mentor? Mr. Williams? He was my employer.” At one point, he may have mentored me, but that
was years ago. I’ve been on my own creatively for a long time. The division of labor worked well.
He handled the business, and I handled the projects. It worked for both of us.
“Ah…yes, I see.” His brows lower into a semblance of a frown…as well as his Botoxed
forehead will allow. He brushes a speck of dust off the lapel of his dark blue suit. “Well, Mr.
Williams is gone, and you’ll be reporting to me from now on. We’ll be working closely for the next
while until I’m confident we have things running smoothly.”
I give myself a moment to feel that. The man I worked with for a decade is gone, and he didn’t
even say goodbye. The decent thing to do would have been to tell me. To speak to me personally.
I breathe deeply to push down the tendrils of anger. I have no right to feel that way. It’s his
company, and he can do whatever he wants with it. I can’t say I’m eager for a new boss, but we
should do fine as long as he stays out of my way. “Where’s Abigail? My assistant? Her desk is
empty.”
A slight flash of a smile with an edge of glee starts my toe tapping again. “We’ve had to…trim the
fat. We’ve let go of all the unnecessary staff. I’m sure you’ll do fine without her.”
He wants me to work without Abigail? She’s the barrier between me and the world. She’s the
reason I can focus and be creative. And now she’s gone? Just like that? I open my mouth to correct
him on his stupidity when his next question rocks my world.
“You’ve been out of the office for four days. Where have you been?”
Saliva pools in my mouth, and I force myself to swallow it down. “My dog died.” There. That
wasn’t so bad. A simple statement of fact. It came out clear, with none of the pain and bewildered
