Hate Love

by Katie Ford

  Slowly, the huge slab of white opened, revealing Penny and Brandon, my CTO. Brandon shot me a curious glance.

  “You okay, boss? You never tint the windows in here.”

  With a lazy grin, I nodded. “Yup. Everything is great.”

  Penny, on the other hand, looked like she had a bee in her bonnet. That red hair was practically on fire and her mouth was pressed into a line.

  “I see you’ve gotten to know Theo,” she said coldly. “Hope your meeting went well.”

  Brandon squinted at Mia and immediately recognition crossed his face. He dashed across my office and seized her hand with his. “Mia! It’s an honor to meet you. I’m Brandon. I work at this joint, have been here since the beginning,” he said enthusiastically, pumping her fist up and down.

  Mia shyly shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, Brandon.”

  My employee beamed.

  “Our security team is dying to talk to you.” Brandon looked over at me. “Unless, the two of you are in the middle of something?”

  Cool as a cucumber, I said, “Nope. She’s all yours.”

  Brandon beamed again.

  “Perfect. We’ve been awaiting your start date with great anticipation. There’s so much that the security team wants your opinion on, including the latest cryptography methods, the latest security firewalls, and a bunch of other stuff too. It’s going to be awesome to get your opinion.”

  Mia flushed beautifully, but at the same time, she perked up. I could tell this was her cup of tea.

  “Thanks,” she said with a laugh. “I’ll try.”

  And with one last glance over her shoulder at me, my gorgeous girl exited, ready to lend her enormous talents to the job. Feet propped on the desk, I yawned, stretching. Man, how’d I get so lucky? Some guys just hit it big, and I was definitely one of those lucky bastards.

  But unfortunately, my secretary was still in the room. Penny plunked a stack of papers on my desk, shooting me a stare that could kill.

  “The financial reports are here,” she said frostily.

  I looked at the papers. Man, there were a lot.

  “Thanks,” I said carelessly. “Just leave them there.”

  The redhead looked like she wanted to say a word or two, but something made her stop. Good girl. I’m the boss and she knew better than to get involved in my personal affairs.

  “Let me know if you need anything,” she huffed, spinning on her heel and stalking from the room. A yawn escaped me again because frankly, it didn’t matter. Whatever Penny was pissed about, I didn’t have time to deal with it. She could have her moods, but they didn’t concern me for the most part.

  Besides, it was time to face the music. Taking a deep breath, I sifted through the reams of paper. Pictogram’s stock price had taken a nosedive after the recent security breach. I’d lost billions of dollars as a result.

  Ten percent! Fuck. My heart sank. But it wasn’t the money, to be honest. I had dough rolling out of my ears. It was more the loss of users than the cash. What would it take to get them back?

  Mia was at the center of this, and I wanted to strangle and kiss the beautiful brunette at once. She’d caused havoc in my business, and yet we’d be better for it, I was sure. Once the breaches were patched, we’d build a fort so strong and invincible, that no hackers would ever get through again. Especially not with the best computer genius of all on my side – Mia Smith.

  The orgy pictures were an issue. The Board of Directors was on my back, and for good reason. Their aim was to attract more users by promoting a family friendly image. Obviously, that goal was in jeopardy due to the numerous leaked photos of me with dozens of different girls.

  Again, it all came back to Mia. She was the source of my pleasure and pain, the well from which everything originated.

  Fuck. What was I going to do? Frustrated, I ran a hand through my hair, mussing the black strands.

  After all, Mia had exposed the real me, or at least who I used to be – fucking multiple girls and never really committing. Some people drink. Some people abuse drugs. My vice? Using beautiful women.

  Somehow though, it felt different since I’d met Mia. She was the only woman on my mind now, and I couldn’t get enough of her curves and her tight little pussy. The way she purred and moaned when I was inside her was incredible. The woman was an amazing combination of brains and a strong work ethic all packaged in a gorgeous plump body.

  A dream come true amidst the brewing nightmare that was my current life.

  On my computer, I idly scrolled through the latest new articles about me. Business Insider said my days were numbered as CEO of Pictogram. Forbes echoed the same forecast. BuzzFeed’s “Twenty Ways Theo Wainwright is Having a Worse Day Than You” was, by far, my favorite article. Morbidly humorous, despite the subject matter.

  Plus, all the news outlets were taking bets on how long I would last as CEO. My image as a philandering playboy wasn’t great, and the orgy photos only confirmed what everyone suspected. Still, who I slept with had nothing to do with my ability to lead. Right?

  Besides, none of the women I’d slept with ever complained of sexual harassment or any wrongdoing whatsoever. Instead, the opposite was true. Many approached me, begging for a chance with the powerful Mr. Wainwright. So why did it matter who I slept with? It wasn’t like I was running for political office or looking to curry any favors. My personal life shouldn’t have any bearing on my role as CEO.

  Dammit. This was a fucking witch hunt. A growl escaped my throat.

  If I or any of my employees wanted to have orgies on our time off, we should be entitled to do it. It was our right.

  Still, my anxiety reached a boiling point. Pictogram was all I had in the world. It grew from a simple idea of sharing photos to an entire community filled with users. And yes, I could get sappy about my baby because this company was my pride and joy, my family when there was none. Gazing out my window, I watched my employees at their desks. They needed to know that their CEO wasn’t going to let their company, and what we’d created, go down without a fight.

  On intercom, I buzzed Penny.

  “Call a mandatory company meeting in the atrium hall,” I growled.

  Penny’s voice sounded surprised. “When? Now?”

  “Now,” I affirmed. There was no use in delaying. I couldn’t let my employees work under the fog of anxiety of whether or not they’d have jobs next week. I needed to step up as a leader in charge right now.

  When I walked out on stage, people were waiting. The Pictogram engineers and marketing people thronged the space, faces turned my way expectantly. You’d think it’d be noisy, but instead the hall grew eerily quiet as I approached.

  Yeah, we needed an uplifting message from the CEO. Looking out at my workforce, I gripped the microphone. “I’d be a coward to not address all of you head on about what’s going on within the company.”

  How to say this? My brain searched for words, but in the end, all I could do was speak from my heart.

  “I don’t want any of you to worry about the future of our community. I love what we’ve built here together and we’re not going to let it go without a fight. There have been problems, but it’s a part of running this place.”

  “We support you, Theo!” someone cried from the back.

  A chuckle arose from the crowd, relieving the tension. I laughed as well.

  “Thanks so much, whoever you are.” Pausing, I took a deep breath. “The security breaches are being handled delicately and with the utmost care. We are making changes. And we are going to recover from this, I assure you.”

  My employees began to clap politely, but I could feel they weren’t wholeheartedly convinced, so I continued.

  “Our security weaknesses have been exposed. Pictogram was caught...” I paused, looking frankly at my community and pointing to my chest. “I was caught with my pants down.”

  The crowd roared with laughter and I laughed with them before going on.

  “Although it doesn’t seem like
it, what happened was a good thing. We have to look for the silver lining, and this is an opportunity for us to make changes. Together, we have a chance to strengthen Pictogram in the process.”

  Someone from the crowd yelled, “How?”

  I smiled, trying to see who it was, but it was impossible.

  “Good question,” I said, but then I spotted Mia in the audience, listening raptly. The beautiful brunette gave me a big encouraging smile, and suddenly, I knew exactly what to do next.

  “Mia, will you come up on the stage please?” Her face blushed as she shook her head frantically. I waved her up. “Come on, this is our newest employee.”

  Finally, the brunette relented. She smiled awkwardly under the crowd’s stare, slowly walking towards me. I put an arm on her elbow, drawing her close. Already, people were squinting, a puzzled frown on their faces.

  “Folks, this is Mia Smith. As some of you may know already, she was behind the security breach.”

  A collective gasp swooped through the hall. Someone yelled, “Girl Power!” Mia smiled bashfully. Another screamed, “Fuck Brogrammers!” A spattering of laughter rippled through the crowd.

  Nodding, I continued.

  “Mia has just been added to the company roster. Because what better way to strengthen Pictogram’s security than to hire the very person who broke in? She’s on our side now.”

  My employees roared in appreciation and began to applause.

  I turned to the brunette, shoving her forward a little.

  “Say something,” I commanded. “They want to know about you.”

  But Mia shot me a stricken glance, whispering, “I don’t know what to say!”

  “You’ll be fine. Here,” I said, pushing the microphone into her hand.

  The brunette looked at the device like it was a nuclear bomb before taking it between trembling fingers and shooting a watery smile over at the crowd.

  “I’m excited to be here,” she murmured, jumping back when the mic howled alarmingly, but I shot her an approving look, encouragement in my eyes.

  “I’m excited to be here,” she began again, a little braver this time. “Again, my name’s Mia Smith. I’m the person who broke in as Anonimo a while back,” she said blushing, “and although it wasn’t the ethical thing to do, I hope you understand why I did it.”

  There was a pause as a couple people applauded. Taking a deep breath, Mia continued.

  “Even though I’ve only been here a short time, it’s obvious that what you all have is more than just a company. It’s community, and even family from Picto-Town’s lovely town square to the open working space where we are all equals. Tech Leads work right alongside Junior Engineers and interns, and that’s really inspiring.”

  Mia’s voice grew stronger as she spoke. “I’ve only been here one day, but I felt so welcomed right when I stepped in, and that’s a great way to start.”

  One of the front desk receptionists, Amanda, called out, “Welcome, Mia!”

  Mia giggled, blushing fetchingly. “Thank you, I appreciate it.”

  A member of the audience whistled and then yelled, “Nice pic!”

  My beautiful brunette laughed.

  “Thank you, I think. You know, I never wanted to be Picto-famous, so that was kind of out of the blue.”

  Someone heckled spiritedly, “They all say that!” The crowd laughed.

  Mia giggled, but shook her head again.

  “No, I really mean it.” She took a deep breath, shooting me a sideways glance. “I never wanted to be famous, and the shot you saw was a random pic taken by a friend. I didn’t even have a Pictogram account at that time, to be honest,” she said wryly, but she continued, expression serious now. “However, I’m glad that it happened because it’s brought me here today with all of you. I’m proud to be the newest member of Pictogram, and I’m really committed to improving our product.”

  The hall erupted into applause, but Mia wasn’t done.

  “While I’m on a roll,” she said, taking a deep breath. “Could all the female engineers please raise a hand?”

  To Mia’s delight, half of the hands went up, and she smiled, beaming.

  “That’s wonderful. There are a lot of us. Girl Power!” was her rallying cry.

  The women in the crowd echoed, “Girl Power!” with quite a few fists pumping up and down.

  Whoa, this was getting out of control. On the one hand, I completely believe in feminism and women in tech, but on the other hand, I didn’t want a crazy rally during Mia’s first day either, filled with rabble-rousing and violence. So I stepped in then, grabbing the mic.

  “Hey all, thanks for welcoming our newest employee. She’s going to be fantastic, and our security is going to be out of this world with Mia working on our team. But time is money,” I quipped, “so let’s head back to work.”

  A couple playful moans rose from the crowd, but I shot a smile towards my employees, adding a pick me up.

  “Today there’s steak in the cafeteria,” I threw in. “On the house, as usual, the best prime Angus. And for those who are vegan, there’s some amazing Tofurkey dressed up just like steak. So let’s get cracking, Pictogram doesn’t run itself.”

  And with that, people started talking, turning away to go back to their desks.

  I looked at Mia appreciatively. “Hey, that went well, don’t you think?”

  She threw me a wry glance.

  “I guess you didn’t want me to scream ‘Fuck Brogrammers’ at your employees, hmmm?”

  I laughed because the brunette had read me right.

  “Yeah,” I replied. “You’ll see what it’s like to work in a corporate environment. Sure, we’re relaxed,” I said gesturing to the open desk plan and casual clothes, “but this is still a company with lawyers ready to jump on your back at the least little infraction. As you can tell, I’m in hot water big time.”

  Mia nodded, looking down for a moment before taking a deep breath.

  “I’m really sorry, Theo,” she said, brown eyes meeting mine. “I know that these problems are because of me, and when I hacked in as Anonimo, I had no idea that this would happen.”

  “You mean no idea that the board would get on my back for a bunch of orgy pictures?” I replied wryly.

  She took another deep breath before nodding.

  “I guess I always figured that this was your company, and you were the boss. Nothing happens unless you want it to, so I didn’t realize,” she said a little miserably. “The board and all these corporate ramifications never entered my calculations.”

  I nodded, understanding.

  “Yeah, being a CEO is a lot more complicated than it looks. From the outside, it seems like I call all the shots as a dictator, but with a company as big as Pictogram, it’s not true. We have a board that acts as a counterweight so that no one gets away with murder. Plus, we have an army of lawyers and compliance people, making sure that this and that regulation are followed. It’s just the way business works, sweetheart. You’re a student and frankly, most hackers have no idea the consequences of their actions.”

  Mia nodded solemnly.

  “I’m sorry Theo,” she repeated in a low voice, cheeks flushed. “I had no idea.”

  And her apology touched me. Because brogrammer culture is real, an intense, high-energy environment, no one ever apologizes. Instead, people gloss over errors, trying to blame it on other factors. So Mia’s heartfelt apology really made a difference. This was a girl who was genuine and real, bringing a sense of responsibility and ownership to the process.

  “It’s fine,” I said roughly. “I can handle it. I’ve been in the hot seat for a long time now, so trust me, this too will pass.”

  She looked at me then, her caramel eyes shining. “Thank you, Mr. Wainwright,” she said, her voice clear and true. “I think this is going to work out just fine.”

  And with that, we gazed at one another, our environment collapsing until it was just us once again, everyone else disappearing into the mist. Because this gi
rl was a dream come true – a natural beauty, casually clad in sneakers and jeans, with a plump form like Venus rising from the waves. But also smart, with the brains to challenge any brogrammer here.

  And best of all, Mia was humble. She knew when she was out of her comfort zone, and wasn’t afraid to admit it. That took guts in this culture, where everyone’s always trying to one up each other.

  I took her small hand, uncaring that other people could see.

  “We’re going to make this work,” I said, my words rough and genuine. “You and me, sweetheart.”

  And the smile that crossed her lips made my heart thump.

  “Absolutely, Mr. Wainwright. We can make it happen,” she murmured with a smile.

  And shit, but my world stopped then. Because within a few weeks, this brunette had transformed my outlook on life. After a couple false starts, it was clear that she was the real thing with a generous heart, and spirit. Because Mia Smith, aka Anonimo, aka the latest Picto-famous It Girl, had somehow hacked her way into my heart.

  Chapter 7

  Mia

  I’d started my first day at Pictogram wary of seeing Theo again. After all, what if he pretended that nothing had happened? What if I was just another notch on his bedpost?

  But that wasn’t the case at all because the moment our eyes met, the sparks were there. It hadn’t been a dream. It hadn’t been the fantasy of a Cinderella who’d lost her glass slipper. The electricity between me and the CEO was real, and we ended up going at it on his desk. During my first day. With people outside the office.

  Oh god. How did I become this wanton? Just weeks ago, I was a shy virgin spending days and nights in the computer lab, pasty and pale from never getting outside. And yet now, Theo and I were locked in some type of feedback loop that made me shiver both emotionally and physically. I wanted more, more, more of him, so much that even now, my brain and body throbbed.

  Theo Wainwright. How did he do it? The billionaire was magnetic, charming, and impossible to deny. I guessed that was how he got to where he was, by being all those things and more.