Page 89 of Broken Boss

There’s not quite a frenzy in the air, but aides and associates, as well as interns, are shooting nervous looks around as they stride through the hallways.

Marty walks by with a smirk, hips swaying. She’s a little too confident, even for her.

Stepping into the elevator, I hit a button on a hunch. Not my floor—Autumn’s.

It’s borderline chaos, and right away, I can see it’s centered around Autumn’s team. Intentionally setting my features in stone, I move through the room and walk right up to their desks.

“Good morning. Can someone please tell me where Miss Cavendish is?”

Nervous glances all around again. A young male intern I haven’t met yet pipes up, probably trying to get in good with the CEO despite delivering what can only be bad news.

“She quit.”

Saskia stands up quickly, glaring at the guy. “Mr. Sharpe, sir, Miss Cavendish resigned early this morning. I’m sorry, we weren’t aware, or we…”

She flounders, and I can almost read her mind. Or what? Or they would have told me?

Why would the CEO care so much about a senior associate, one of a dozen?

Fists clenched, I take a deep breath and try to keep my vision from going red.

“Okay. Thank you for letting me know. Is she still in the building, or…?”

The small group seems caught off guard at my continued questioning. I can see their curiosity and confusion.

“Um, no. She was here before we arrived, sir. She left about an hour ago with her things.”

With a tight nod, I turn and head stiffly back toward the elevator—before I make an even bigger ass of myself.

I head straight to the HR office, specifically to Monique, who sighs when I enter.

“I thought you might come knocking, I just didn’t think it’d be so soon.” Luckily, she looks less suspicious than Autumn’s team.

“I just heard we lost one of our senior associates.” Trying to keep it casual, I crack my neck to ease some of the tension burrowed there.

“We did. It was rather…abrupt. Autumn Cavendish just put in her immediate resignation.”

“I see. Did she happen to provide a letter of resignation?”

Monique does a quick double take. It’s odd that I’m asking, odd that I care. In most cases, I’d cut my losses and forget about whichever associate didn’t take the job seriously enough to stick it out. Especially when they were so openly pursuing partner.

“Hmm. She did. Let me pull it up.”

It takes a few moments, but eventually, her printer hums to life. She hands me a single sheet of paper with Autumn’s recognizable signature at the bottom.

My eyes scan the short paragraph quickly.

Due to unforeseen circumstances regarding my health….

Effective immediately…

Thank you for the opportunity.

It’s short, to the point, and detached. I can’t sense any part of the vivacious woman I knew in this letter.

What did I expect, though? A breakup explanation?

Somehow, completely on autopilot, I make an excuse and get back to my office. Cool waves of disbelief wash over me again and again.

---