by Kaylee Quinn
When they weren’t openly sneering, they were whispering about my stupidity and calling me a whore. They didn’t much care if I heard them, but the cube farm had almost perfect acoustics. So no matter how quiet a person tried to be, everyone around them could hear what they had to say.
When I had left the meeting with Mr. Chase, I had felt humiliated. Now, I felt ashamed and demoralized. I could hardly wait for the clock to strike five so I could go home and have myself a good, hard cry.
The worst part about this entire ordeal was that my colleagues were right. Having sex with Cameron was a huge mistake, one that had almost cost me my job. I felt as if the sexy billionaire had duped me. He had taken advantage of my innocence and had used me for his own, warped, pleasure. When I no longer amused him, he tossed me aside like a used toy.
The entire situation made me angry. I was angry at Cameron for hurting me, but I was also angry at myself for being so blind. My infatuation with Cameron had consumed me to the point where I didn’t realize the risk I was taking, or the consequences I would face if things didn’t work out. The moment a handsome, successful and powerful man showed me a bit of attention, I threw my career and ambitions in the garbage over a silly fantasy.
I was smarter than this, and the fact that I had been so easily played hurt more than all of the insults my coworkers had hurled at me over the past several hours.
“Stop daydreaming, Sadie. We have a meeting to get to.”
“What?” I looked up from my box to see Janet looming over me.
“Good Lord, girl. Are you really that daft? Mr. Wolff is waiting for us in the conference room downstairs.”
I furrowed my brow. “You want me to attend?”
“Of course!” she shook he head. “We aren’t sure how upset Mr. Wolff would be if he discovered that you were reassigned to another account because of him. Rest assured, your presence will be for appearances only. No one is expecting you to speak. Besides, if you aren’t there, who else is going to get us coffee when we need it?” She nodded toward the stairs. “Come on now. Let’s not keep our client waiting.”
I grabbed a notebook and pen as Janet strutted away from my desk.
“Now,” Janet said as I caught up to her. “There is one important rule you must follow while attending this meeting. Are you ready for it?” She continued without waiting for a response. “You are allowed to sit in and listen, but you are not to speak unless you are directly spoken to. Understand?”
“Yes.”
I ground my teeth as we exited the elevator and made our way to the conference room.
With each step, the cold anger I had been feeling over the past several hours intensified. I didn’t want to get anyone coffee, and I sure as hell didn’t want to go to this stupid meeting. How I was ever going to survive this afternoon was beyond me. Unfortunately, I needed this job and the healthcare it provided. Until I knew exactly what was going on and whether I was truly sick, I was stuck playing the good girl.
Without warning, Janet threw open the door to the conference room and walked confidently inside.
“Mr. Wolff, so sorry to keep you waiting.”
Cameron and the other executives rose. “Ms. Kingsley.”
“It is so hard to find good help these days.” Janet frowned over her shoulder at me. “Sadie, be a dear and go get Mr. Wolff some coffee. I’m sure you know how he likes it.”
The other executives snickered under their breath. Cameron didn’t seem to notice. Cameron retook his seat and pulled out his cell.
“I’m afraid I don’t know how Mr. Wolff like his coffee,” I said. “We were always far too busy for such things.”
“I bet,” Greg muttered. Bill and Eric chuckled.
I had meant my comment to be cutting, but instead I only fueled their cruelty. Heat rose to my cheeks as Janet flashed me a furious frown.
“How would you like your coffee?” Janet asked Mr. Wolff.
“Excuse me?” Cameron glanced up from his phone.
Janet waved her hand at me. “Sadie is going to get us all coffee. How do you take yours?”
“Oh, none for me, thanks. I don’t drink coffee.”
Janet sputtered. The look on her face seemed to imply that anyone who didn’t like coffee had questionable sanity.
“Tea then,” she finally said. “Would you like some tea?”
“I suppose that would be fine, thanks.” Cameron turned back to his phone.
“Go on,” Janet whispered. “Bring the man his tea.”
“I’ll take tea, as well. Honey, no sugar,” Bill said.
“I think I’ll have some as well,” Eric added.
By the time I left the conference room, my notebook had been filled with everyone’s drink orders. I wasn’t sure which was more humiliating: playing errand girl to all of the smug executives, or realizing that Cameron didn’t even acknowledge my presence.
I thought about spitting in their drinks, but knew that the executives probably wouldn’t drink their tea anyways. They all were addicted to the French Press coffee from the break room. Just the other day, Greg had confessed that he had thought tea was a wimpy drink.
The only reason why they all wanted tea was because Cameron said he liked it. Those executives were as fake as the knock-off designer suits they wore. Anger turned into fury as I balanced the tray of cups outside the conference room door. More than anything, I wanted to dump the steaming cups over all of their heads. They deserved it for the horrible way they were treating me.
Janet’s voice was the first sound I heard as I stepped inside the conference room.
“Now, our next idea involves a two-pronged approach,” she said. “First, we hit the airwaves on all the local radio stations.”
“During the morning commute,” Eric added. “Because that is when men typically are driving to work.”
Janet flashed him a stern look. Eric cringed and shrunk back into his seat.
“Yes,” she said, facing Cameron once more. “Eric is right. Research shows that the morning hours are when we will catch most of your target demographic driving to work.”
Cameron nodded, his gaze firmly fixed on his phone.
“The ad will highlight two best friends,” Janet said. “One friend will be telling the other what her boyfriend gave her—a new sexy piece of lingerie—and the friend will be jealous because her boyfriend didn’t give her such a nice gift.”
I frowned as I passed around the warm cups of tea. A morning radio spot was a terrible idea. Who thought about lingerie on their way into work? Besides, you couldn’t see anything in a radio ad, and Cameron’s line was at its best when people could see how luxurious it looked when worn.
“Women are always in competition for everything,” Janet continued. “And we can play into that with this ad.”
Maybe in Janet’s world women were always in competition with each other, but that certainly wasn’t the case in mine. In college, I had several women mentors. There was also this women’s group where we helped each other study for exams.
“Sounds good,” Cameron murmured.
Janet nodded and glanced at the other executives. “So, we can put you down as a yes for the morning radio spot?”
“Yes.”
As I made my way around the conference room table, an awareness slid over my skin. Cameron wasn’t even paying attention to me, and yet it felt as if he was aware of every move I was making.
Meanwhile, Janet kept droning on about her incredibly boring two-pronged ad campaign. In addition to radio spots, she wanted to do print ads in magazines. Big, expensive and glossy prints in places like Vogue and Vanity Fair.
“Anyone who is into fashion reads those magazines. Your lingerie line will be seen by some of the top trendsetters the industry.”
I was standing close to him now, so close that I could feel his body heat radiating off of him in waves. Despite my feelings about what he did to me, I still found him incredibly sexy. Standing here so close to him made me think of how easily
he had made me orgasm. It made me want him to do it again.
Carefully, I placed his cup of tea on the table in front of him.
“What do you think, Mr. Wolff?” Janet asked.
Cameron glanced up, and when his gaze met mine, his expression took my breath away. I had thought that he had been ignoring me, but nothing could be further than the truth. There was this fire in his gaze, this passion and intensity that made the inside of my belly tighten with need.
I also saw a flash of boredom and self-loathing. It was in that moment that I realized that Cameron hated Janet’s campaign idea with every fiber of his being.
“Mr. Wolff?” Janet asked.
Cameron dragged his gaze away from mine. “Yes?”
“What do you think of my idea?” When Cameron flashed her a confused look, she continued. “Of the print ads in Vogue and Vanity Fair.”
“Sounds perfect,” he said as he pocketed his phone. “It all sounds perfect. This is exactly what I was looking for.”
I frowned and stepped back as he stood up from his chair. This wasn’t what he was wanted in an advertising campaign, not at all. Cameron wanted something edgy and fierce. He wanted something that reflected his hip, modern brand. Radio ads would speak to an older audience and print ads in fashion magazines would be directed at designers, retail stores and women. None of these were part of the target demographic of his exclusive, masculine brand.
Cameron needed to target men. He needed to make men want to give his lingerie to their girlfriends and wives. He wanted to convince his target demographic that rich men liked to spoil their significant others, and there was no better way to spoil their partners than with a piece of lingerie from his CAM line.
Anger burned inside of me once more as Cameron strode toward the door.
“Write up a more formal outline with delivery dates and send it to my secretary,” he said.
“You don’t want any changes?” Janet asked.
“No. You did a fine job, Ms. Kingsley. Now, I really must go. I have a meeting on the other side of town.”
This was too much. As the executives grinned and patted each other on the back for a job well done, my anger rose high enough for me to see red.
“Thank you, sir,” Janet said as she intercepted Cameron at the door and shook his hand. “Thank you so much. You won’t regret this. I promise.”
“I’m sure I won’t,” he replied. “Now, if you will excuse me.”
Not only did he hate the ad campaign as much as I did, but he loathed the pompous executives as well. I could see his contempt in the stiffness of his shoulders and the fakeness of his smile. He despised this place and these people, and yet he was willing to go along with whatever these assholes had to say.
I ground my teeth as each of the executives took a turn at shaking Mr. Wolff’s hand and telling him how profitable this ad campaign would make him. As the last executive stepped back, Cameron turned toward the door without even glancing in my direction.
I couldn’t believe what was happening. Cameron must have gone mad. There was no other explanation. As he said goodbye to the last executive and opened the conference room door, the dam holding back my anger burst.
“This is such a fucking joke.”
Chapter 4
I didn’t realize I had said anything until the entire room turned toward me.
“Excuse me?” Cameron asked.
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Wolff,” Janet said, directing his attention away from me. “The girl is clearly distressed. I’ll have her dealt with right way.”
“There’s no need,” Cameron reassured her, then looked back to me with an intense look in his dark gaze.
“You fucking hate this,” I accused him. I walked around the table until I stood directly in front of his surprised face. “You don’t like any of these shitty ideas.”
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Wolff.” Janet turned to face him. “She’s just bitter because she failed to provide you with a campaign that meets your high standards. Rest assured that she has been demoted for her lack of vision and inability to satisfy your needs.”
Cameron tore his gaze away from me and focused on Janet. “She has been what?”
“You’re a coward,” I said.
“She’s just trying to sabotage the meeting for personal reasons,” Janet said. “The girl is jealous and vindictive.”
“I’m not that petty, Janet,” I said. “I’m not like you.”
“Well, I never.” Janet motioned toward the other executives. “Get her out of here before she embarrasses us further.”
I held up my hand as Greg stepped toward me. “There’s no need.” I glanced around the room in disgust. “You all don’t care about his product or his campaign. You only care about the money and status he’ll give you. As a result, you dredge up the same old boring images and scenarios and try to present them as something new. You’re nothing but a bunch of frauds.”
I turned to Cameron, my voice choked and shaking. “And you. You’re the biggest fraud of them all.”
“That’s quite enough.” Janet grabbed my arm, her entire face turned bright red. “You’re fired, now get out of here.”
Turning on my heel, I walked away from a stunned Cameron with my head held high.
Chapter 5
I sank lower into the warm, bubbly water with tears streaming down my face. Upon arriving home, I had headed straight to the bathroom, thinking that a long soak in the tub with my favorite anti-stress bath bomb would help after the long, horrible day.
Unfortunately, the fragrant bath did its job. With my muscles relaxed and the rich, minty scent invading my senses, all of the defenses I had put in place over the last several hours melted away. What was left was not relaxation and contentment, but a full realization of what happened, and how unbearable my life had become.
“I’m such a fucking idiot.” I sank below the surface of the water, trying to drown my depressive thoughts. It was no use. When I came up for air, I was no closer to finding peace, but inching ever nearer to a full-blown panic attack.
I’d lost everything.
Everything.
Grabbing several tissues from a box on the floor, I blew my nose and dotted my eyes. Never before had I done anything so stupid. I must be losing my mind.
What if the spot on my lung was serious? Thanks to my emotional outburst, I had no job and no health insurance. There was no way I could pay for any type of therapy I might need. Sure, I could apply for some type of government assistance, but how long would that process take? I wasn’t sure where to even begin. I might be dead before I figured out which forms needed to be sent in.
Sure, making coffee or tea or whatever beverage those executives wanted was a soul-sucking experience, as was listening to the constant gossip and attacks on my character. But I’d still be getting paid, and I could have looked for other positions while receiving the health care I so desperately needed.
Now I had nothing, and only had myself to blame for it.
To make matters worse, I still had feelings for Cameron. When he had tossed me to the curb the other night, I thought I could shut off my heart as efficiently as he had shut me out of his life. Seeing him there, in that conference room, I realized that I was fooling myself. The chemistry was still there between us. I knew it. He knew it. Despite his horrible behavior, I still had feelings for him. The man was always there in my thoughts. The memory of his lips on my skin was a constant presence, and made it difficult to think of anything else.
After a good, long cry, I pulled myself out of the bath and got ready for bed. Sleep wouldn’t come, however, and as I lay in bed I kept replaying my impulsive outburst over and over in my head, trying to think of how things could have gone differently.
After several hours of ruminating, I decided that I needed to stop regretting the past and try to figure out my future. Both my physical and mental health depended on it.
Giving up on sleep, I slipped on my long, fuzzy bathrobe and went to the kitchen to m
ake myself some coffee. If I was so awake, the least I could do was check the job posting websites. Perhaps there was a position at a much smaller company I could take to help pay my ever-growing bills.
Several minutes later, I sat at the kitchen counter, warming my hands with my mug of steaming caffeine and waiting for my laptop to boot up. Just as a blue screen popped up to inform me of software updates, the doorbell rang.
Frowning, I glanced at the clock. It was three in the morning.
Sliding away from the counter, I made my way over to the front door and looked through the keyhole.
It was him. My heartbeat started to race instantly.
He still wore the same suit I had seen him in earlier, but his hair was disheveled. He had this sexy just-got-out-of-bed look that suited him. He looked both hot and haunted, and I couldn’t help but feel concern as I opened the apartment door.
“Cameron, what are you doing?”
“Sadie,” he said. “Thank God you’re okay.”
“Of course, I’m okay.” I put my hand against his chest as he moved to enter my apartment. “Why are you here?”
He pushed his fingers through his hair in frustration. “I just had to see you. I had to make sure you were all right.”
I folded my arms and lifted my chin. “I’m doing fine, thank you very much.”
A lie, but I still had some pride left.
“Sadie, I’ve ben thinking about what you said earlier…” He glanced around the empty hall. “Can I come in?”
“I don’t think so.” If I let him into my apartment, it would be all too easy to let him back into my life. He was as persuasive as he was handsome, and I knew that it wouldn’t take much for him to break my heart all over again.
“Just let me into your apartment for a moment,” he said, inching closer. “I want to make sure you are all right.”
I frowned and held my ground. “You don’t need to go into my apartment to do that. As you can see, I’m perfectly fine.”
