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44 - Spontaneous
Jia was learning far more about Atlas than she had ever wanted to. And how was it that Dolly even knew about any of this when she had allegedly never slept with the man himself? Something was suspect here; it couldn't really be that the woman had found out everything in a secondhand fashion, could it?
"The last time he was in a committed relationship was - years ago. I remember her, gorgeous woman. He was so fresh-faced, you wouldn't believe it, but even then he was always cold. It looked like it suited her, though."
"Oh," said Jia. "I can believe that."
Dolly seemed completely immune to the forced politeness in her tone and continued to forge ahead. "She's actually Daniel's sister. Super big deal, that, apparently. Don't know why considering that people date in the workplace all the time, and it wasn't like anyone could accuse Atlas of playing favorites. Not the way he drove her hard on her jobs. God, he was so frigid that at some point, the rumor actuall
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In the Shadow of the CEO 45 - Sobriety
"...Dolly, what did you...""Shhh, it's okay," the woman said as she rubbed soothing circles on Jia's back. "You're fine.""I...no...something's wrong...""No, you're just a lightweight. Come here, we'll go outside where it's nice and cool."Jia rubbed at her eyes but had to abort the movement halfway; she nearly stumbled and only just managed to catch herself with a hasty grasp on the corner of the bar counter."What do you mean," she slurred. "I'm...All I had was soda."Dolly rubbed her nose and sniffed. "Yeah, you're right," she said after a few seconds, and then proceeded to lift Jia up by the arm and hobble her over to the entrance past milling customers."Dolly...""Okay, fine, I may or may not have mixed something in there while you were in the bathroom.""You...!"The redhead had dragged her out the doors by now, and a crisp evening breeze swooped down to buffet them with a stinging vengeance. "Relax
In the Shadow of the CEO 46 - Stains
"I, um, think repeating what she said would only frustrate you, sir."Oh, no. That was a bad answer. Why had she thought that saying it would soothe his anger in any way? As soon as the words left her mouth, Jia realized with the utmost horror that it might seem as if she were patronizing Atlas."I expect you to be honest with me, Jia. We've had this discussion before."When had he begun calling her Jia instead of Ms. Moon?But she supposed now wasn't the time to think idle thoughts. She wracked her mind to figure out what it was that the man was talking about. What discussion?Oh, right - yesterday in the hallway when he had asked a very similar question then, too. Jia stared up at the man, still shocked that he had appeared out of absolutely nowhere to stand right in front of her like this. But more than that, he didn't sound like himself: his voice was angry, but strangely not so much intimidating as it was frustrated and...worried?
In the Shadow of the CEO 47 - Games
What was she supposed to say?Atlas had already declined her every apology, and at this point, she feared that offering another one would only make him angrier. He was stone-silent as they stood side by side in the elevator that took them to the top of the building, and just as silent when they entered his penthouse. Not a word, not a sound.Jia shivered and wondered if perhaps he was planning a way to dispose of her body after this. She glanced over her shoulder and cast a final, longing look at the closing elevator doors before turning to look forward again.This was her fault. She and Atlas had never gotten along, and she was still of the firm belief that he was a terrible person for what he had done to her. But their questionable relationship and history didn't matter right now: Jini had destroyed his expensive suit jacket, and the consequences were Jia's responsibility to handle. It was as simple as that."Have a seat."Jia gave th
In the Shadow of the CEO 48 - Agreement
"You struck me as arrogant."Jia's lips parted in a soundless protest. Arrogant? Her? Maybe she had overstepped a few times here and there, but in their short time together, she had never been outright -"I mean before, Jia. When we first met."Oh. She shifted in her seat and cursed the uncomfortable twisting of her stomach at the memory that flashed through her mind. He was talking about their very first encounter, not the night at La Dolce Vita, but rather the day she had applied to work at Pandora Lights. And now that she thought back, she could remember his stinging, contemptuous words. Not all of them, but he had been angry. Very angry."In fact, when I saw you serving at the dinner event, I even thought that you had ulterior motives for working there. Maybe to meet and greet with as many wealthy businessmen as you could."Jia shook her head. "Oh, my God," she said in a rush. "No, I never -""I'm aware of that now. But at the t
In the Shadow of the CEO 49 - Hospitality
Sunday had been awful. Jisu and Jini had gone to spend the day with their classmates to work on some group project, and it was now half past eight at night. Mr. and Mrs. Lee handled their own Sunday overnights at their store, which was a relief, but on the other hand, that had given Jia plenty of time to pace up and down the apartment. Until the neighbor on the floor under them banged on their ceiling and told her to take her Xanax.She had given in and texted Jisu, asking if they wanted anything for dinner. She had gotten a call back fifteen minutes later with a quick assurance that they were well taken care of at their friend's house, and that the project was taking a lot longer than they had thought it would....which meant that they would be staying over.Jisu had told her not to worry, and then hung up.Sick to her stomach with guilt, anxiety, and fatigue, she had promptly gone to bed and ignored the fifteen text messages from an international number on her
In the Shadow of the CEO 50 - Intervention
It was sushi.It had been a long time since Jia had last enjoyed it - certainly well before her parents had passed. Salmon was just too pricey to afford, and even raw tuna wasn't cheap in the city. And gourmet sushi - my God, she thought as she admired the neat arrangement in the little box. This had to be ridiculously expensive -"I should have asked to make sure," said Daniel as he took the chair over on the opposite side of the glass coffee table. "But when you said you didn't mind anything...""This is wonderful," she assured him. "Thank you so much.""My pleasure. Please, enjoy."They talked a little about the work she had gotten done over the morning as well as the stack of papers she had brought back with her to Daniel's office. Surface conversation, low-risk. But Jia was all too aware of the impending topic that would no doubt surface soon. Daniel wouldn't have asked to speak with her earlier with such a serious expression if it weren
In the Shadow of the CEO 51 - Termination
"Lydia, wait, I can't understand you -"Jia had had to yank the earpiece out so that the woman's high-pitched shrills didn't outright shatter her eardrum. While the woman wasn't quite shouting anymore, it was clear that she was losing the ability to control her volume, and at times she would run out of breath and only squeak out certain words before taking another deep breath to continue babbling."Lydia!" she tried again, trying to cut in right as the woman paused to inhale. "Lydia, please. I didn't catch any of that. I need you to speak more slowly so that I can understand you."Jia's voice was calm and composed, each syllable enunciated with slow clarity. Not that she actually felt that way, though. Her heart was hammering away in her chest so hard that she thought she could hear its dull thumping all the way up to her ears. A disaster, a catastrophe - something was Jia's fault. She had done something wrong -"It's Ms. Munson," wheezed Lydia,
In the Shadow of the CEO 52 - Uninvited
"Mr. Burhock.""Please, just George. We've been through hell and high water together, that's enough to start going on a first name basis, I'd say."More camera flashes went off outside the car window, bathing the limousine's interior with rapid-fire illuminations like a chain of lightning strikes. The car began rolling again now that Mr. Burhock and Anthony had managed to squeeze through the paparazzi and get settled in, sitting opposite Atlas and Dolores. And then silence, finally.It lasted no longer than a minute."...Dolly, are you absolutely sure that you -""George, I swear to God." Dolores crossed one leg over the other and leaned against the window in a slouch. "Ask me that one more goddamn time..."Burhock gave her a wan smile. His normally ruddy face looked paler today, and more drawn. He was almost unrecognizable without his signature jolly smile, but then again, he didn't have much to be happy about right now. His company s
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