Page 12 of Enemy Boss

“I’ll put you through now,” I say, and I transfer the call and replace the receiver.

I turn my attention back to my computer and start going through everything Lisa taught me about my daily work in between taking calls and greeting any clients who visit. I soon get into the swing of my morning reports and message checking, and I smile to myself. This is, if anything, less intense than my last job. Back then, I would have fielded about twenty calls by now and that’s on top of everything else I was expected to do. Here it seems that I can amble along at my own pace and that I won’t be as bombarded with calls to disturb me either.

It’s been about half an hour since Cullen’s brother called when I hear Cullen’s office door open. My desk is situated in the large, open space outside of his office and it’s turned at an angle so that I can see people coming and going both from the corridor end and from Cullen’s office. I can’t see him until he actually steps out though.

I’m wondering if he has a new task for me or if he is going out somewhere when he steps into view. I swallow at the look of thunder on his face, his forehead creased, and his mouth set in a tight line of disapproval. I wouldn’t want to be on the end of whatever telling off he is about to dole out. I look away quickly and turn my attention back to my computer, but Cullen doesn’t stalk past. Instead, he comes over to my desk and when I look up at his glowering face, I realize I am in fact the one on the end of this telling off. Wonderful. So much for thinking I was nailing it. I am not even an hour in, and it seems that I’ve fucked up.

“What the hell was that?” Cullen demands.

I want to shrink back away from his temper, but I refuse to let him bully me and I force myself to hold his gaze.

“What was what?” I ask, genuinely baffled. I have no idea what I’ve done wrong.

“You put Liam through to me when …” he starts.

I thought he had finished speaking and so I start to explain to him, but then I realize, too late, that he hadn’t actually finished at all and I have just interrupted him when he is already pissed off with me, but I think it’ll be more awkward to stop now that he’s gone quiet and let me cut in mid-sentence and so I go on, pushing the awkwardness to one side. At least for now.

“I was told that you will always take the calls from your mom and your brother, unless you are in with someone,” I say.

“Or on a conference or video call,” Cullen says.

I nod my head. I knew that; I just didn’t feel the need to explain every tiny detail of what Lisa had told me.

“I was on a very important video call when you put Liam through to me,” he says.

My heart sinks at his words and I shake my head.

“I … I’m sorry. I didn’t know,” I say.

“It’s your goddamned job to know,” he says.

“I’m sorry,” I say again.

He ignores my apology and goes on.

“Just because you personally didn’t add something to my calendar, it doesn’t mean it isn’t happening. I suggest from now on that you make your first job of the day to refresh my calendar and see if there’s anything new been added on there,” he says.

“Ok,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady. “I will do that from now on.”

“See that you do,” he snaps and then he stalks back to his office and slams the door so loudly that I cringe.

“Asshole,” I mutter under my breath.

God how did I ever find him attractive?

Chapter 9

Max

Icheck the time. I have about half an hour before I have to go into a meeting with Cullen. Most of the rest of the office staff have left for the night and I am nervous. Not because I’m waiting alone, but because I am dreading the meeting. I shouldn’t be, because it’s to go over a report that I typed up for Cullen. I know everything on there is spot on and I have nothing to be afraid of, but Cullen has already snapped at me twice today already and I know that despite the report being perfect, he will probably find some reason to have a go at me. He probably won’t like the font I used or the lay out of the information or something equally petty.

I go along to the breakroom with my cellphone. I’m going to grab a cup of coffee and call my best friend, Harriet. She will hopefully calm me down. God, I am so grateful to have her in my life. She’s pretty much the only friend I have now. Since I moved away to get away from my ex-boyfriend, there’s only Harriet who has my new address and cellphone number. It’s not that I don’t trust my other friends, but I know what my ex-boyfriend is like, and I know that he would find a way to charm the information out of them. That’s partly my own fault because I didn’t tell my friends how bad things had gotten between us. I always pretended that things were good, and that Ross was the perfect boyfriend. Even when we split up, I said it was just because we wanted different things and left it at that. I was ashamed to admit I was scared of him, that he was violent and controlling. Only Harriet knows the truth so only Harriet can be fully trusted not to leak anything to him.

We’ve been broken up for a few months now and I’ve been gone from where he can find me for almost six weeks, but I know Ross. When he wants something, he doesn’t give up easily and he made it clear he didn’t want us to break up and that he would find me and make me his again.

I push aside all thoughts of Ross. I hate it when my guard slips down like that, and I let the thoughts of him into my head. Now is an especially bad time for it to happen, because I’m nervous enough with this meeting looming ahead of me without having to start going back over old ground, old fears. I get myself a coffee and sit down with it. I blow on the surface as I scroll through my cellphone and find Harriet in my contacts. I hit call and bring the phone up to my face at the same time as I take a sip of the coffee. I wince. It’s good, but it’s still too hot. I put the cup back down to leave it to cool for a bit longer.

“Hey, you,” Harriet says as she takes my call. “How’s things?”

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