Page 33 of Ruthless Serenade

"Don't worry, Mindy," Tania replies with her trademark mischievous tone. "Everything is fine."

"Mommy, Mommy!" Sharon’s lively voice can be heard in the background. "I’m five points ahead of Tania! I’m going to win!"

"Keep it up, sweetie," I respond. "We’ll celebrate when I get home."

As I head back to my desk, I feel the previous tension easing. Sharon is feeling better. I pause for a moment, realizing how much I rely on Tania. It’s strange, but the thought of her not being in our lives suddenly hits me. Maybe it’s because she’s so good with Sharon, or maybe it’s just the stress talking.

Tania is more than just our babysitter. She’s become a part of our little family. Sharon’s face lights up when she walks through the door, and honestly, mine does too. She is one of the few people Sharon talks to without any problems. Her selective mutism just disappears around Tania.

I know Tania is young, with her whole life ahead of her. Sometimes, I worry she’ll decide to go off traveling or head to university. She’d have every right to. But where would that leave us? Especially Sharon? I mean, I could always look for another babysitter, but it wouldn’t be the same. The thought of finding someone new, someone Sharon might struggle to open up to, honestly frightens me. Tania just gets us, gets Sharon. She’s special.

Then again, I’m just getting all sappy over our babysitter when I should be focusing on my job. I don’t even know why I’mhaving these thoughts right now. Tania is taking care of Sharon, and that’s what matters. And me? I have work.

As I make my way back to my desk, I notice Albert Solomon chatting with a group of colleagues near the water cooler. His eyes meet mine, and I feel a knot form in my stomach. He excuses himself from the group and makes his way over to me, with that smile on his face that never quite reaches his eyes.

"Miss Williams," he says. His voice is friendly but it has an undercurrent that I’m starting to dread. "I heard you had some trouble with the Asian market expansion numbers."

I force a polite smile, acutely aware of the other employees milling about. "Nothing I can’t handle, Mr. Solomon. Just waiting for some data to come in."

He steps closer, invading my personal space just enough to make me uncomfortable. "You know, I have some connections in Asia that could be… beneficial. Perhaps we could discuss strategies over lunch sometime? Purely professional, of course."

Yuck.

The invitation seems innocent on the surface, but I know he’s onto something. The way his eyes linger, the slight emphasis on ‘beneficial’. It all sets off alarm bells. A woman’s instincts are rarely wrong.

"Maybe another time, Mr. Solomon," I say, taking a small step back. "I’m afraid I’m at capacity with the upcoming presentation."

Albert’s smile tightens almost imperceptibly. "Of course. Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find me." He leans in, his voice dropping to a near whisper. "I’m sorry aboutChristine being harsh on you. Sometimes she can be… well, she is under a lot of pressure, you know."

Before I can respond, he straightens up, his public persona back in place. "Good luck with that report, Miss Williams," he says loudly, for the benefit of anyone listening.

As he walks away, I can’t shake the feeling that I’m walking on a minefield. I glance toward Christine’s office, wondering if she has any idea what her husband is up to.

I return to my desk, trying to push the encounter out of my mind and focus on getting through my daily to-do list. But as I pull up the spreadsheets, I wonder how many more of these subtle, uncomfortable moments I’ll have to endure to keep this job. And, at what point will the cost become too high?

Slightly annoyed, I sit back in my chair and start pulling up an Excel table, when an email pops up on my screen.

Subject: Important Presentation on Extended Workday and Fiscal Year Review

Dear Team,

I am reaching out to inform you of a significant event happening on October 23rd from 2:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Our esteemed company owners, James and Emily Thompson, will be visiting us from London to receive a thorough update on our fiscal year’s performance.

The planned agenda is as follows:

2:00-2:30 PM: Presenter 1 - John Upton, Head of Human Resources

3:00-4:00 PM: Presenter 2 - Christine Solomon, General Performance of the Company

4:30-5:30 PM: Discussion with James and Emily about planned changes and future plans

6:00-7:00 PM: Presenter 3 - Mindy Williams, Summary of Fiscal Year

If you have any relevant updates or data that you believe should be included in the presentation, please send them to me at your earliest convenience.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Best regards,

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