"You know, Elena," Craig began, letting the pointer finger of his hand drop to my shoulder. It began to draw small circles there. "This is really stressful for me."
I fought the urge to shrug his finger away, and tried to lean back slowly, as if to see his face better.
"I mean, I genuinely like all of my employees. You are all so good, so valuable."
His finger became the back of his fingers and he brushed them up toward my neck.
"I've had a headache for days straight. Can you believe that?"
"Yes," I said, thankful for the opportunity to pull away and look into his face. "I have, too. It's hard for all of us."
He smiled. "That's one thing I like about you, Elena. You're sympathetic."
"What's the question you had for me?" I asked.
To my dismay, he scooted closer, undoing the slow, few inches I'd managed to put between us.
"You know, Sandra, my wife?"
"I met her briefly at a party, yeah."
"We've been having problems."
"That can't be helpful at a time like this."
"See? There you are being understanding again."
He smiled and I tried to smile back. I didn't like where this was going.
"After the last holiday party I had a few too many drinks. I love the punch the HR ladies make."
He was famous for getting plastered at holiday parties. I'd learned to steer clear of him if I didn't want my backside grabbed.
"It's totally my fault, but Melanie from marketing smelled so good that night. Like a roasted chicken, and my mind just went. I couldn't help it. I mean, obviously, I prefer my wife's scent but it was just so different."
How do I get out of this? I thought.
He wasn't looking at me but was gazing at my neck, his fingers starting to move again, fiddling with a lock of my hair.
"I'm sorry, I don't see where this is going." I leaned away but he continued, not seeming to notice.
"And of course, that smell is pretty strong. Sandra smelled her right away."
"Oh."
My eyebrows raised. Why was he admitting this to me, confirming my suspicions that he was indeed the sleazeball I'd imagined?
"My question to you, Elena, is this." He leaned into me, his right arm around my shoulders closing in and pulling me close, his left circling my waist.
"Since you have no scent, can I be with you and not get caught?"
He pressed me back against the couch, his horrible smell overwhelming me, making me gag.
"Get off!" I pushed him with all my strength, throwing myself sideways and stumbling as I broke free and dropped from the couch.
I chanced a quick glance at him, sprawled on his face and half falling off the couch before I turned and ran toward the door.
I yanked it open and flew out, ignoring the alarmed stare of the man who sat waiting for the next interview.
It wasn't until I was in the furthest cubicle against the wall in the women's bathroom that I began to breathe. I sat on the toilet, my head in my hands, taking big, gasping breaths. I was angry and scared all at once, my chest contracting with emotion.
Little by little, my breathing slowed and my mind began to clear. I could hear my breathing echoing off the cold tiles around me.
I needed to go to HR. I should have reported it in the past. But now I needed to do it before I excused it away.
I stood, straightened my clothing, and took a deep breath.
I knew people underestimated me, but I also knew that if I could bypass their scent-bias then I could be powerful.
I held tight to that knowledge inside me and strode confidently out into the hall. I took the stairs so not to hinder my momentum and went down the stairwell to the HR offices.
I spent the rest of the day attempting to concentrate on my work, but it was impossible. I tried to interpret the expressions of the HR workers and remember the scents. Had I detected a slight increase in body heat? An uptick in the strength of the odors?
Finally, one of the HR workers, Cecilia, came to my cubicle and led me to the conference room for a meeting.
As soon as I walked in my heart began to pound. Craig was there, as was his boss and another HR representative. I could feel the tension in the atmosphere, sense the heat and heightened scents.
I looked at Cecilia, assuming she was my representative, but she took a seat on the manager's side of the table, leaving me alone and as if I were on trial.
The other HR representative began to read a statement, during which Craig never took his eyes off the table where his finger drew the same circle it had on my shoulder.
My mind buzzed as the words began to sink in.
"... total fabrication... a desperate move to keep her job... continued failure of basic duties."
When they finished, the HR manager put down his paper and looked at me with cool, grey eyes.
"That is all. We will be contacting you..."
"Hold on," I said, anger making my voice quaver.
"This is outrageous. It is a total lie, and what's more, it's slander."
"Slander?" Craig scoffed. "You're the one slandering me, Elena!"
"Not if it's true. And I can prove you're wrong with the statements about my performance. If that's fabricated then it absolutely calls into question the remainder of this statement."
"We didn't see any performance appraisal materials from you," the HR manager frowned.
"That's because I left it on his office floor as I literally ran away from assault. Thankfully I have copies and I will email one to each of you directly after this poor excuse for an HR intervention."
Dead silence filled the room.
"All of that is inflated. Fabricated," Craig said, looking a little desperately at his manager. "She has no proof I tried to touch her."
"Ask a dozen other women in the office if they've ever been touched."
More silence.
The HR representative cleared his throat. "We will get back to you in the next 24 hours. I suspect we will have to take this to a higher level."
"What?" Craig looked incredulous.
I rose, looking as confident as I could despite my legs trembling from a mix of fury and anxiety.
"Expect an email from me soon," I said to everyone, and strode out the door.
I don't know how I made it to my cubicle, but I wilted into my seat and put my head in my hands, trying not to cry.
After a few deep breaths I sat up, and with shaking hands began to forward my performance reports to everyone who was in the room and the general mailboxes of HR as well, just in case.
No other work was sent my direction that day.
It was as if Craig and other managers had assumed I was already gone.
After I left the office, I was surprised to see a late email from HR. It was simple, but ominous.
"The new leadership has been informed about the situation and finds it complicated enough that they will handle it themselves. Changes in position will be announced tomorrow."
"Complicated?" I said aloud to the streetlights around me. A passing commuter looked at me warily and continued.
I had no idea what that meant, but I was sure it couldn't be good.
I hardly slept and I looked it. Despite my efforts with the concealer, the bags under my eyes were evident and the stress was manifesting in overly frizzy hair. Still, I did my best. I wanted to look good for my execution, but had to settle for being on time and not looking like a puppy caught out in the rain. My hands shook on the lobby door handle. I needed to get some tension out and decided to take the stairs up the four flights to our division. It was a popular choice. My colleagues liked to stretch their bodies before and during a day sitting at desks, and I could hear a few people a few floors above me. Getting the blood flowing and my legs pumping helped my nerves. I began to breathe deeply and felt it relax my muscles. Then I heard my name echo down through the concrete stairwell. "I don't think Elena would do that," came the first voice. "She's kind of a sheep." "That's what she wants you to think. She plays all demure, but underneath all that mildness she's sharp. Sh
There was a simultaneous gasp around the room.I looked around at the stunned faces. Craig's was beginning to turn purple. Even Charles' assistants looked confused, giving each other quick glances, but then looking to their boss for instruction."Do you think you'll need help packing up your desk?" Charles asked."I ... I'll be fine."He nodded. "Great. Then I'll be by to get you in a few minutes."I went to my cubicle in a daze. People were giving me a wide berth, looking at me with open confusion as I passed.I looked around at my things.There was very little. A photo of me and Cathy. A small mint plant I used to clear my nose when things got overwhelming, (an old werewolf trick).I put an external drive into my computer and began to make sure I had back up files of any work I wanted to keep, then opened drawers and began to pull out office supplies and paperwork.There were a few awards for pieces I'd helped work on, and articles I'd written for other journalists with their names
I was uncomfortable. I could feel the eyes of Charles' assistants on my back as I gestured and talked about the departments.Equally awkward were the stares of colleagues that quickly dropped when we neared and then came back as soon as I'd looked the other direction. I tried to point out as many people as I could, forcing them to look up and smile. Some waved or dipped their heads deferentially to the new boss.I knew they were all wondering the same thing that I was.What the heck was I doing there?The penthouse was reserved for upper management and Charles had his own smaller conference room. The assistant's desks sat out in the open floor in front of his office, a barrier of gatekeepers.I'd never been up this high in the building before, and the view of the city below was vast and dizzying. I put my box down on my empty desk and followed them into the glass-walled conference room.Jessica and Amy stood on either side of Charles as he sat at the head of the dark, polished wood ta
“Don’t get me wrong, I immediately said no,” Amy quickly claimed after seeing my stunned face. “The police won’t spill your private information.”“Sure,” I replied with a smile. “I guess…I just didn’t expect him…”"Don't you two have work to do?" Jessica entered the room, another binder in hand. "I don't think she needs anymore praise, Amy. She's already paid just to have a nice lunch and hang out in the copy room.""I'd love to do more," I said. "Please, let me take some responsibilities off your hands.""You wouldn't have the first idea of what to do.""You're right. It's my first day. I'm willing to learn. And just so you understand, I didn't ask for this job. I only wanted to keep my old position.""Please. We all know what position that was."I felt my anger flare. "I have no idea what you're implying, but it sounds ugly."Jessica learned forward and pointed at me. "Sleeping with your boss is a bad idea in general, but keep it at home for crying out loud.""What?""That is totall
I'd made sure to bring an insulated bag with me, so when the doors opened to the penthouse offices, I was sure the coffee was still piping hot.I'd hoped to beat Charles there, but he was already standing in front of the window, answering a phone call. The city skyline was visible out the windows to his right."The fact that you're short-staffed is not my problem..."I was taken aback. I'd never heard him talk like that before.He was intense and dominating, the voice of the Alpha I always knew he was but hadn't seen flexed like this."You will do it this way and move Saturday's staff to Thursday... What?... I don't care. You need to figure that out."He paced back and forth, gesturing as his spoke. His posture radiated power, and I felt my heart begin to race. This side of him was totally new to me."You will call me in ninety minutes to report," he finished. He hung up his cell and stopped, his arms folded. I could feel the energy rolling off from him as he stood still, starting into
"I assume that's something you might add to the official report copy, am I right?" Jessica said to the owner. "You probably don't need to go over that now unless––Charles, do you need that information now?" I felt my neck start to flush. I didn't know there were differences between official reports and the presentations. Jessica had once again highlighted my ignorance. "I'm okay with waiting for the official report, but I think Elena is onto something in that we will need to look at those numbers carefully seeing how we will have multiple events happening at once," Charles said. "In fact," he said, turning to the presenters, his Alpha power beginning to radiate again, "I'd like a few more numbers with that report regarding what Elena brought up. This needs to be profitable or there's no point." Jessica frowned at the mention of my name. "Of course," the manager said. "If we aren't at twenty percent then there's no chance of consideration." Charles' voice was cool. Once again, do
My breathing seemed to stick in my chest. What was he doing here?I put a hand to my messy bun and looked down at my sweats. I cracked the door and put on the most croaking voice I could. I was, after all, supposed to be sick."Hi," I said, giving him a weak smile."Hey. I was just in the neighborhood. Walking. You know how I love to take solitary walks."I nodded, thinking I'd only seen him stride around in the office building, but knew it was best not to argue."Can you just give me a minute?" I asked. "I'm not terribly presentable."This made him smile and he leaned casually against my doorframe. "Take your time."I gently shut the door and rushed to my bedroom, throwing open my closet and digging furiously until I found a cute, casual cotton dress and threw it on. I yanked down the messy bun and retwisted it so the mass of hair that had fallen was now tucked back up.I ran on tiptoes to the medicine cabinet, took out some cold medicine, and placed it strategically on the kitchen co
The chat group was exploding with messages. Some people were trying to confirm it was actually Charles. Others were directly messaging him. Still more were posting photos of Charles from different interviews or articles."I think I'd better sign out," Charles said, grimacing at his screen. Comments were popping up at a rate that made his phone sound like a bubbling fish tank. Is this Charles who played first base on the varsity baseball team? No way, bro! So good to hear from you! Charles, you probably don't remember me, but I sat behind you in algebra. How are you? So excited you're coming, Charles! Save me a dance, please! Xoxoxo I watched the scrolling comments flicker past my screen with disbelief. "Wow," I said, smiling as he signed out. "I think I got a single emoji greeting me and you get a tidal wave of comments." He shrugged. "That world feels like a hundred years ago." He put his phone in his pocket. "Back to more important things." He turned to face me, his blue ey