The One of Many

by M. Jane Early

  I lifted my head to say this very thing as she glanced past me. Her mouth slowly opened, and her eyes widened. I pulled my brows together as two other women on her side of the table developed the same look. Their expressions read either an enormous meteor was about to hit the conference room, or…

  “Good morning, everyone,” a voice said from behind me.

  I turned to look over my shoulder and saw the back of an expensive gray wool suit walking towards the front of the room. I wondered why the scent of his cologne smelled so familiar. Mint, rosemary, and seawater. Then it hit me…

  I closed my eyes. “Oh no,” I whispered.

  David Powers rounded the table, coming into my unobstructed view. He was a great deal taller than I thought he’d be, and his athletic frame was lean but muscular, causing his buttoned, white, collared shirt to cling to him perfectly. His hair was just dark enough to be considered brown, but as he moved into the sun’s rays, little bits of blond peeked through. He hadn’t shaven, letting his scruff show, and his kind, light hazel eyes had to be fake. There was no way God would do that to women. His full lips were tempting enough—if you liked that kind of thing.

  But while I took in and appreciated this handsome man, I also understood he was just another entitled, pretty boy, rich kid who got everything he wanted when he wanted it. He had heartbreak written all over his face, and the term womanizer hung above his head. He was trouble, and I didn’t want any part of him.

  I felt Trevor staring at me. I met his eyes, and he mouthed, “I told you,” then smiled. I rolled my eyes and refused to even glance towards David Powers. In my peripheral, he unbuttoned his jacket and leaned on the end table at the front of the room. I stared at my hands.

  “Sorry for interrupting everyone’s day,” he began. “I wanted to introduce myself and give you some insight into what’s going on here at Imperium. My name is David Powers, and yes, if the name sounds familiar, Samuel Powers is my father. After thirty years of running this company, he’s retiring.” I looked at him as he turned away from the crowd and brought his hand to his forehead, scratching it with his finger.

  That sounded rather convenient. I glanced at Yvette. She had her eyebrows raised.

  He faced us again, and I focused on the table in front of me. “I realize a shift in management can be a confusing time. I want to dispel any rumors or fears you may have. I promise I’m not the boogeyman, and I don’t intend on firing anyone… At this level. I’ve already dismissed other department heads and some groups I thought were nonessential.”

  I snapped my head to Yvette and widened my eyes, then watched him leisurely pace around the front of the room.

  “This company has been around for decades but constantly in the shadows of the other telecoms in the industry. We’ve never outshined the bigger guys, nor have we stepped out as a leader. I want to change that. My father has kept it running and minimally profitable, but that’s about it. I’m working internally with several managers and departments on how we can move into the future, because let’s be honest, Imperium is stuck in the past. If we don’t catch up with the times, we’re going to be left behind, wither, and die. I don’t want that. I don’t think anyone in this room wants that.”

  He walked near the floor to ceiling windows and in-between the standing crowd. He placed one hand in his pocket while his other hand connected with his mouth. His finger ran over his bottom lip as he thought. “We need to be bold and innovative. Imperium has name recognition and products that have been reliable to our customers for years. Now it’s time to bring that reliability to a newer, bigger audience. That’s where you guys come in.”

  He stopped moving and looked directly at me. The recognition in his face made my cheeks warm with humiliation from our earlier encounter. I broke our gaze, taking a breath.

  He continued, “The marketing department is the core communication between the company and the consumer. You guys are one of the most important groups, and bottom line, ladies and gentlemen, I need you.” He moved behind me and stopped a few feet to my right. I involuntarily straightened and chewed my lip as I felt his eyes fall on me again. I glanced at Yvette; she was locked on him.

  He moved away, taking his fragrance with him. It hovered in my nose. “I’m going to meet with Mr. Dumas to discuss how to go forward in accomplishing our vision for this company. However, I want everyone’s input. I’m sure Mr. Dumas is good at what he does, but you all are my backbone, and I need an unfiltered view.” He went back to leaning on the long end table in front of us. “I promise to keep all of you in the loop with everything. I believe in complete transparency with my associates, and I would ask the same of all of you.”

  He paused and looked around the room. “I completely understand that this novel way of doing things can be a bit jarring. If anyone here is uncomfortable with my proposal and wants to leave, I get it—no hard feelings. But I ask you to stay with me for a while. Try it my way and help me build this company to where it needs to be.” The passion in his voice caused me to be slightly inspired—I couldn’t help it. He seemed to want this company to thrive.

  I peered around the room to read the consensus of his ideas with my co-workers. The women were still ogling him, but the overall demeanor seemed positive. Then I peered at Nick Dumas. He shifted uncomfortably, wearing a scowl on his face. I looked back at Powers.

  “I’ll be spending the next couple of months on this floor with you, not only because I want to work closely with this group but also because it’s the only floor with an open office.” The women chuckled, and he smiled. “But that’s good. It means people like working here, and I’m thrilled about that. I’m also hoping to purchase the rest of the building from the other occupants. There’s no reason to think we won’t grow and need the rest of the floors. It has to be confusing with the departments jumbled together. I’ll make that a priority after some of the more pressing matters are resolved.” He paused. “But until then, I’ll be making rounds to all of you between now and the weekend to introduce myself personally, and if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. My door is always open.” He looked around at everyone and nodded once. “Thanks, everyone.” He stood and stuck his hands in his pockets, giving us the nonverbal cue that the meeting was over.

  I immediately got up, glancing at the new boss surrounded by a few people trying to get face time right away. He looked in my direction for a split second, then focused back on a blonde demanding his attention. I made a B-line back to my desk and sat.

  Yvette moseyed over and hung over my cubicle wall with her arms. “So, yeah. He’s not human, he can’t be. Someone manufactured him with AI or something.”

  I laughed. “Keep your focus. He can’t be all that wonderful if he pushed his own father out of the way. I don’t believe Samuel Powers ‘retired’ for one minute.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Pick your poison, Farren. We hated how the old man was running things. Now we have someone who’s willing to change it and he’s eye candy.”

  I glanced up at her. “If he were a woman CEO and the men were talking about her like this, we’d be livid. You realize this, right?” I raised my eyebrow at her.

  “Whatever. Payback’s a bitch.” Yvette walked away, smirking.

  I laughed, but the heaviness returned in my chest as my thoughts drifted back to Crew. Whether or not the eye candy in charge was present, I’d just gotten dumped. No amount of fine men or positive company vibes would cure that. I pulled my chair to my desk and tried to push the tears away.

  Three

  I trudged into work the next day, exhausted and infuriated. I’d spent most of the night clearing out Crew’s things from my apartment and throwing them into a box. Between crying and rage texting him—none of which I sent—I was emotionally spent. I wasn’t in the mood to even step foot onto my floor, but calling in sick wouldn’t win me any points with the new CEO.

  Powers had come around to a few cubicles the day before. I overheard the conversations but tried not
to take too much stock in them. New bosses were always on their best behavior when they first began, trying to convince the employees they were on their team and everything was equal, blah, blah, blah. Eventually, in time, their true selves crept through. I would keep my head down and do as I was told.

  “Good morning,” I heard above me. I did a double take and found David Powers standing over my computer with only the partition separating us.

  “Uh, good morning,” I said.

  “David Powers.” He reached over my computer and shook my hand.

  “Farren Hallston.” The warm softness that eased into my palm didn’t surprise me at all. He didn’t look like he had done a hard day’s work in his life and probably got manicures regularly.

  A corner of his mouth turned up briefly. “I wanted to see if you were alright.”

  “I’m sorry?” I watched him quizzically.

  “Yesterday, when you ran into me. You seemed upset.”

  Oh shit. “I’m so sorry, Mr. Powers, I—”

  “David,” he interrupted.

  “I beg your pardon?”

  “You can call me David.” He gave me a full-blown smile, making me stare longer than I should have.

  I looked down. “I don’t think that would be appropriate.”

  “Why not?” Confusion colored his tone.

  I moved my mouse to wake my computer. “It’s unprofessional?” I didn’t know what he wanted me to say.

  “Good morning, David.” Powers and I looked at Gwen, the blonde who had monopolized his time after the meeting, as she walked by and smiled.

  He nodded at her. “Gwen.” Then he turned back to me with a smug look.

  I watched him for a moment. “I’m still not calling you that,” I said dryly.

  He chuckled.

  I cleared my throat. “Look, I’m sorry I ran into you. It was just…a bad morning.”

  He furrowed his brow. “Is there anything I can do?”

  “No. Thank you. It will not happen again,” I said assuredly and signed into my computer.

  He lingered until I caught his eye again. He then nodded once and walked back towards his office without another word. I relaxed my body, not realizing it had tensed until he left. My phone vibrated.

  Yvette: What did he want?

  Farren: He said good morning. Go back to work.

  Yvette: You’re not my boss.

  I snickered through my nose. Gaudy laughter came from the other side of the room and carried through the floor. I slightly lifted myself out of my chair. Gwen had, once again, cornered Powers and was giggling at something he said. She touched his chest with her hand, then flipped her hair.

  Farren: Seems Gwen has a new mission. Stand up.

  I looked over my shoulder. Yvette had popped her head up, pretending to stretch. She then looked at me and rolled her eyes.

  Yvette: Figures.

  Farren: More “Power” to her.

  Yvette: LOL

  I set my phone down and started working. Eventually, the sounds of Gwen trying to land Powers ceased, and we were all able to concentrate again.

  David Powers made his rounds to more of us after lunch. It was only a matter of time before he made his presence known to me.

  “Ms. Hallston,” he said as he entered my cubicle.

  I turned in my chair to face him and crossed my legs. “Mr. Powers.” I met his gorgeous eyes. His scent differed from the day before—muskier, but still distracting.

  He gave me a half smile. “I’m going around to everyone to get a little more information about your day-to-day. See where we can improve and be more efficient.” He wasn’t wearing his jacket and had rolled up the sleeves of his crisp blue-and-white-striped collared shirt to his elbows. He leaned his entire body against the opening of my space and crossed his arms with a legal pad in his hand.

  I sat back in my chair. “I’m a senior graphic design artist. I also help with creating content for the website.”

  “So, you work with social media and website development?” he probed.

  I flickered my eyes away from him. “Website development mostly.”

  He looked down at his notes and made an odd sound. “I’ve talked to almost everyone on the floor and haven’t run into anyone who handles social media. Am I missing someone?”

  I looked away. “We don’t really have a social media group.”

  He paused. “What?”

  “Imperium has accounts, but no one mans them. Someone deemed them…unnecessary.”

  “Who?” he asked, bothered.

  I stopped short. Nick would only let one person handle the social media accounts, but they were never told it was a priority. I didn’t know how far down that rabbit hole I wanted to go with Powers. I took a breath, making a hard line with my mouth, and looked at him cautiously. Past him, my co-workers had stuck their heads out to see what I would do.

  I had vented to them many times about the lack of presence we had online, and they mostly agreed, but none of us were brave enough to make waves with management. It was career suicide to bitch about the company and how it ran.

  “I think you should speak with Nick Dumas,” I said tentatively.

  He watched me, then turned his head to see what I was looking at. The group retracted as soon as he caught them.

  He turned back to me, the corner of his mouth raised. “Why don’t you come into my office.” He straightened and waited for me.

  I exhaled and rose. Powers motioned for me to go ahead of him with his hand.

  “Ladies first,” he said, watching me. When I passed by him, his outstretched fingers grazed my arm, leaving a trail of prickled skin behind. I cleared my throat and walked around the cubicles towards Powers’s makeshift office nervously. The rest of the floor had gone silent as my heels made a suppressed noise against the carpet. I slowed so I could walk beside him instead of in front of him.

  He looked at me, grinning. “You don’t want to look like you’re being escorted to the principal’s office?”

  “Not especially.” I kept my eyes forward. “We don’t want the rumor mill working overtime.”

  He glanced at me. “And what would the rumor mill say?”

  “Either I’m getting fired or we’re having an affair.” I regretted the words as soon as they came out.

  He chuckled. “Well…we wouldn’t want that, would we?”

  I eyed him as he walked ahead of me to reach his office. As Powers opened the door for me, I locked eyes with Nick, standing at the mouth of his own office. He observed me closely until I disappeared through the door.

  “Have a seat, Ms. Hallston.” The latch caught and Powers walked to his chair and sat.

  His office was bare and small, with a desk and a large, black set of stacked drawers in the corner. The window blinds were wide open to an unobstructed view of the Santa Monica beach. I shifted in the bumpy, minimally padded chair, trying to adjust for more comfort. It didn’t work. The mint green walls were as nauseating as the dying tree in the corner. The man standing in front of me definitely didn’t match the decor.

  The cheap leather chair groaned beneath Powers as he sat. He looked down and shook his head. “I know I have you in an awkward position here, but let me assure you, this is off-the-record. I just want to know what’s going on.”

  I quietly laughed once. “So, you’re making me the snitch.”

  He smiled. “I don’t want you to be the snitch, but I have a feeling you won’t lie to me either.”

  I leaned forward. “You have no idea if that’s true or not. You just met me.”

  He glanced away from me. “Call it a hunch.”

  I vacillated. “Mr. Powers, you’re the CEO—the boss. The guy who makes all the decisions. The one who fires people,” I said, hoping he understood where I was going.

  He nodded but looked like he was working through something. “Okay, let’s pretend I’m not. I’m just your fellow employee.”

  “With the bigger office.”

  He til
ted his head, his eyes darting around the room. “It’s not that big.”

  “Your father started this company.”

  He subtly shook his head. “Ignore that.”

  I gave him a doubtful look.

  He shrugged. “Or I could take you out for a drink, and we could remove the office setting altogether. Would that make it better?”

  I met his eyes as my mouth opened. Was he serious?

  He looked away quickly. “Forgive me.”

  I probably should have been offended. Even if he was kidding, it was inappropriate for him to say. But a little light inside me grew, and it wasn’t anger. It was whatever feeling that made my cheeks flush and my belly flutter.

  I smiled. “I suppose you could get me drunk enough that I’d just tell you anything you wanted to know,” I said, teasing.

  His shoulders relaxed as he laughed. “How many drinks would that take?”

  “Not many,” I admitted and smiled at him.

  “Come on, Ms. Hallston. I know you’re secretly dying to tell me why Imperium’s social media accounts aren’t being used,” he urged.

  “Nice try, Mr. Powers, but that’s not gonna work either.”

  He laughed again, then looked me in the eye. “Farren.”

  I tried to suppress that flutter again. I exhaled and chewed my lip.

  He leaned forward, the playfulness there a moment ago had vanished. “You can trust me, you know.”

  I didn’t have much choice. Powers was the CEO, but Nick had sabotaged my growth for years. Maybe Powers would be an ally. “Let’s just say some of those in power didn’t think social media was a priority.”

  “I see.” He leaned back in his chair. “What do you think?”

  My eyes darted around his desk. “About what?”

  “We’ll start with social media, then move on from there.” He ran his finger over his bottom lip lightly.

  I quietly exhaled a laugh before looking away. I flickered my eyes back to him. “I think social media is a vital part of marketing. Television is no longer what gets people’s attention. We’re now inundated with advertising through Instagram and YouTube. If you don’t have a social media presence, you’re not relevant. I realize a telecommunications company having social media seems ridiculous. But the bigger, more established companies have them. Why not follow their lead?”