Chapter 7 - The Playground Promise
Z
The silence in the HR office was absolute. Marcus looked as though he had been physically struck, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.
"You... you can't fire me," Marcus stammered. "You resigned!"
"My resignation takes effect at 5:00 PM," Adrian noted, glancing at his platinum watch. "It is currently 10:14 AM. Plenty of time to clean out your desk under security supervision. The cause, by the way, is documented corporate espionage and falsifying client reports, which my forensic accounting team uncovered last night. Brenda has the files."
He turned his back on Marcus entirely and looked at me. The terrifying corporate titan vanished, replaced by the man who had drawn stick figures with my daughter.
"Shall we?" he asked, offering his hand.
I looked at Brenda, who was frantically opening the envelope, then at Marcus, who looked ready to faint. A hysterical bubble of laughter rose in my throat. I stood up, ignoring Adrian's hand but walking proudly beside him out the door.
When we reached my office, I finally exhaled. Elena was standing by my desk, holding a box.
"I heard shouting," she said, eyes wide. "Are we packing?"
"We are," I said. I looked at Adrian. "Co-founder? You didn't think to consult me before dropping partnership papers on HR?"
"I signed them. You haven't yet," Adrian pointed out, leaning against the doorframe. "You have total freedom to reject the offer, stay here, and work for whoever replaces me. But I think Kane & Associates sounds better."
I crossed my arms, trying to suppress the smile fighting its way onto my face. "Kane & Associates? Shouldn't it be Kane & Alvarez?"
His gray-blue eyes lit up with a sudden, devastating warmth. "That is highly negotiable. We can discuss it on Sunday. At the park."
"Sunday," I repeated, the reality of the morning crashing over me. I had just quit my job. I was starting a company with the most intimidating man in New York. And he wanted to take me on a date.
I thought about Ethan. I thought about the photos of the old warehouse, and the way Ethan had always told me to leap before I looked. Make boring buildings look like they have secrets, he used to say.
I looked at Adrian Kane. He was a very tall, very complicated building, and I wanted to know all of his secrets.
"Sunday," I agreed. "But if you bring structural blueprints to the playground, Mia will fire you."
May you like
Adrian laughed—that real, deep laugh that had started this entire cascade of chaos days ago.
"I wouldn't dare," he said.
