Nate rolled the tip of his ball pen as he frowned, a habit which he had been doing all day.
How rude of her! I offered her a job and she was yet to reply, he thought.
No one ever kept Nate waiting, once he requested their presence, they showed up without any hesitation. He rubbed his chin, he now had a five days stubble.
The business plan was due, he still hadn’t come up with anything, to make matters worse, the one person he had counted on still hadn’t shown up.
He could understand what Ruby wanted, weeks ago, she was begging him to offer her a job, but now that he did offer her the job, she didn’t reply to the mail or show up.
“That little minx is clearly playing mind games,”he muttered, drumming his fingers on the table.
He sighed, his mother was on his neck all week, she had visited once and raged on how she thought he was losing all his business skills.
He rolled his eyes as he loosened up his tie, millions of dollars were at stake, he could already imagine some of his business rivals mocking him. Nate always won businessman of the year amongst other awards but with the way things were going, he wasn’t so sure about that.
“Mr Jacobin,” Martha smiled excitedly as he let herself into his office. “Miss Ruby Barlow is here”
Nate sat up in his chair quickly, straightening his back. He quickly wiped the crumbs of the baguette he ate earlier and smoothed out the creases in his shirt.
He felt relieved she had arrived in the nick of time but decided to mask it.
“Let her in” he said in his usual cold tone
Ruby sauntered into his office, she was a nervous wreck but she had to put on a false face to hide everything. The only reason she showed up was because her house rent was due. Before, she had assured herself that she was going to get another job but that was almost impossible. She had spent the previous week job hunting but there was no positive feedback. Of course, working at Wesley’s construction company was her dream job but working with Nate wasn’t part of it. She was well aware that being around Nate for a long time meant big trouble.
She had tried to forget all about him but he kept coming to her. Once, she had gone on a walk for fresh air but she ended up staring at his face on a billboard. It was almost as if he was mocking her and he could see through her.
“Mr Jacobin, I’m here for the job” she said in her professional voice, her voice void of emotion.
Prior to what happened the last time in his office and how embarrassed she had felt, she decided to be nonchalant and pretend as if he had no effect on her.
It took her two hours of pep talk and her wearing her best dress to gain a little confidence.
“Well, good day to you too,”Nate replied sarcastically as he motioned for her to take a seat.
“I don’t have much time to spare,” she lied.
Ruby had all the time in the world to spare, any day she wasn’t job hunting, she spent her day lazing about, watching romcoms.
“I received emails from other companies too so I’m quite busy and booked. You should be grateful I’m doing you this favor”
Ruby took a little moment to enjoy what she was doing, she knew Nate was going to have a better comeback. She bit her tongue in hopes that he couldn’t see through her lies.
Nate laughed sarcastically. Who the hell does she think she is? He thought.
“Miss Lucy…”
“It’s Ruby” she spat, cutting him short
It upset her when he forgot her name. She was torn in between yelling at him and walking out. He knew how to ruffle her feathers without putting too much effort.
“My bad, Miss Ruby” he started mockingly with a smirk.
Ruby wasn’t the best he could find but he decided to employ her because he didn’t have many options. She knew how to bruise his ego badly, starting from when she dumped the hot chocolate on him. The fact that reporters caught it on camera upset him even more.
“I was about to offer you the job but I can see you’re very much busy with other companies, so, I don’t think I should bother you any further” he said, finishing off with a sly smile.
Ruby tried to keep up with her act by wearing a fake smile. Her plan had backfired badly.
They were very much egoistic and neither was willing to admit that they needed each other. Ruby pinched her sweaty palm as she reminded herself to keep it cool.
Nate had seen her vulnerable too many times, she wasn’t going to let him win this one.
She adjusted her glasses as she thought of what to do next.
“Mr Jacobin,” Martha cried as she barged into Nate’s office the second time. “A representative from the board of companies is here. He has asked for the business plan and we have none!”
The board had called an emergency meeting in order to hear what Nate had come up with.
Ruby smiled to herself, the desperation in Martha’s voice and the look of alarm on Nate’s face was all she needed.
Nate was stuck in a corner, he was sensible and he would have to employ her.
Nate groaned as he watched the brunette smile triumphantly, he drew the battle line between them mentally. He racked his brain to remember where he had seen that oddly familiar smile. Something about Ruby felt strangely familiar but he still couldn’t figure it out.
With her around, he felt the need to show her how powerful he was and how he could easily dismiss her and still get the business plan done but that was almost impossible especially after sleeplessness and bouts of coffee drinking.
A gleam of victory appeared in Ruby’s eyes. She felt nothing short of a heroine, Nate needed her, not only was he going to lose a huge amount of money, his company was going to make it to the bad press. It was every reporter's dream to get dirt on Nate Jacobin.Nate was now having a word with the representative. Ruby took a minute to admire his office. The grey drapes complemented the upholstery which she could tell cost a fortune. His office was immaculate, not a single speck of dust in sight. The ornate figurines looked like they were polished with oil. She drew in a breath as she walked round the office, there were no pictures of his family or even him. “Same old cold hearted Nate”she mumbled to herself as she took her seat “Miss Ruby, are you still down for the job?” Nate asked as he walked in She couldn’t miss the hint of desperation mixed with irritation in his voice. It was the first time she’d seen him under pressure, Nate was always cool and collected. Somethin
Ruby was very much comfortable in her new work space, the office overlooked the busy streets of Oregon, giving her a view of the city life. She had pretty much settled in and hung up some pictures and other decorations.She groaned as she turned to her side, the only downside to her spacious office was that it was adjacent to Nate’s own so she could see whatever was going on in his office. He had pretty much avoided her for a week straight after their fight.It was almost as if they were in high school again, back then, she was quite sure he didn’t know she existed but now she was sure he knew she existed and he was just ignoring her. “Hey” a voice called, stirring her from her reverie of thoughts “Hi”she smiled back “I’m Ethan and this is Cassie”he said, gesturing to the blonde beside him Ruby nodded and gave them warming smiles. She had been busy throughout the week and had barely had time to socialize with her coworkers. “Oh hi!”Cassie squealed as she placed a tray of c
Something about the tweeting of the birds and the rise of the sun above the horizon set Ruby in high spirits. She had spent the weekend tanning on the beach with Esme. During her little getaway, she skillfully avoided all Esme’s questions concerning how her date went and who her new boss was. It felt wrong hiding it from her but she wasn’t ready to tell anyone yet, Nate was a pain in the butt for her; at the same time, she wanted to be around him.Having to see him all week was annoying enough. She smiled as the elevator door opened, she was humming a song about the day going to be a good day. “Why are you late?” A harried looking Maggie asked as she walked into the office.Ruby frowned, work started by nine and she arrived half past eight so technically, she was very much early and had a good thirty minutes to herself. “Nice morning to you too” Ruby replied sardonically “Mr Jacobin has been in a bad mood all morning, he specifically asked that you make him a cup of coffee”
The angry growl of lightning pierced the air, what had promised to be a sunny day had now become a gloomy rainy day. Nate shifted his eyes from his screen to Ruby’s office. Her mass of mousey brown hair was now put in a ponytail as she typed away on her computer.Serves her right, he thought.With her around, he was always edgy. He had expected her to throw a fit and stomp into his office when he asked her to make him coffee or when he handed her the pile of files. She was suspiciously calm, too calm which irritated him. He frowned, he needed his daily dose of coffee but couldn’t get it because Ruby had ruined it for him. “Who the hell added so much sugar and whipped cream to their coffee ?” He asked himself Of course the answer was sitting right there in his company, the annoying brunette whose office was opposite his.He quickly cleared out his table and got rid of the paper he wasn’t using. His table was a mess as he had buried himself in work all week. “Why the hell have you
Ruby’s eyes lit up in recognition of the platinum blonde hair. She had seen a woman walk into Nate’s office, she couldn’t see the woman’s face but she was quite sure she was one of the prettiest women alive. She looked like she just walked out of the cover of a vogue magazine, the hair bore a striking resemblance with that of Taylor’s. Taylor had bullied her constantly that Ruby couldn’t forget the distinct color of her hair. She could feel the throbbing of her heart. Could it be that Taylor was still Nate’s girlfriend? She had heard Taylor moved to Beverly Hills and was pursuing a successful career as a model. She felt a sickening taste form at the back of her throat. It had been thirteen years since she was last bullied but the memories were still very fresh. She could remember how violently Taylor always yanked her hair even when she yelped in pain. One particular incident between them had scarred her for life. She couldn’t think of it without almost crying. Taylor was m
It was her first board meeting in attendance with other workers. Seeing Taylor after all these years had disoriented her so much that it felt like she had to withdraw to her shell again. She was well acquainted with some of the workers, most especially Ethan with Cassie by the side running her mouth as usual. The workers were seated in the boardroom as they waited for Nate. Ruby would have rather sat far from Cassie but she needed information on why Taylor was in the office so she took the seat between Ethan and Cassie The steaming mug of coffee in front of her warmed her up, lately, she had been feeling some type of way especially with the whole Taylor thing. “You look so pale”Cassie commented Cassie had now earned the name ‘hawk eye’ because she never failed to miss anything.Ruby ignored her comment as she sipped her coffee, just like Ethan, she had learnt to ignore and accommodate Cassie. “Did you hear about Mr. Jacobin's girlfriend?” Cassie said to Stacy who worked in th
The dinner table looked like it had been carefully put together by an artist. Grilled turkey sat right in the middle of the table. Mrs Wyatt had put together so much effort into the dinner. She ensured the expensive chinaware plates were placed carefully. The room was well decorated with candles lit in strategic corners of the room. A harper played at another corner, releasing soft melodious tunes. Nate overheard one of the servants say Mrs Wyatt flew the harper all the way from Ireland. That was how much extra she was.One Christmas when she was hosting a party, she invited ballerinas to grace the occasion and had real swans in the hall. One of the swans got flustered, causing a tray of food to topple over. Nate resisted the urge to laugh at Mrs Wyatt’s efforts. She was so extra when hosting dinners and made it look like she was hosting a royal event. Ever since he was in high school, it was always the same routine with Mrs Wyatt inviting his family over for fancy dinners. She
Ruby decided to spend her lunch with Ethan and Cassie at the cafeteria. She now enjoyed spending time with her colleagues and getting to know them. Some of them were impressed by how she won the contract and how she got the biggest office. For the first time, she didn’t feel left out or awkward, almost everyone got along with her or at least were formal with her.They were seated at a table at the corner of the cafeteria. They ordered a couple of burgers and soda “I heard Reynolds company and co is going bankrupt” Stacy said, bringing up a topic of discussion She was now used to the gossip girls of the office, she rather found them interesting and listened to them when they talked. “I heard so too” Cassie remarked“I heard Reynolds was jilted and duped by his soon to be wife which led to the bankruptcy”Ruby had heard about it from Esme, it was a sad story. Reynolds' company was doing just fine until the whole thing happened. It saddened her that people were heartless and were ou