Page 135 of Imogen

“No, no. It’s not about the game,” he assures me.

“I’m confused,” I admit.

“Laura and George told me what you did for the VIP launch.”

My heart races. “Look, don’t blame them. I told them they could come to me if they needed help with the plans I made before my departure from the company. Please don’t take it out on them. I shouldn’t have gotten involved.”

“Imogen, Imogen,” he calls out, stopping my rambling. “I’m not upset with them. I’m actually calling to see if we could set up a meeting to talk about the terms of your return.”

“My return?” I ask. “But I’m fired.”

“We want you to come back,” he offers.

“I don’t know, Mr Carpenter. A lot was said and done, and I’m just not sure I’ll be comfortable working there again.”

“Please, come to the meeting. If it’s a no, we won’t bother you again.”

“I’m away right now, but I’ll email you when I’m home to arrange something.”

“Thank you,” he replies, and I swear I hear relief in his voice. “I know we don’t deserve it after everything, but I would like a chance to apologise.”

“I appreciate that,” I reply, not knowing what else there is to say.

“I’ll look forward to your email.”

“Enjoy the rest of your day,” I tell him, and end the call after saying goodbye. I turn to Ben, utterly gobsmacked. I never thought I’d hear from him again.

“I take it he’s realised just how big of a mistake he made and wants to fix it,” Ben guesses.

“Yep.”

“How do you feel about that—him calling and his offer for you to go back?”

“I don’t know what to feel. I know it wasn’t personal, it was business, but the way he addressed me was personal. Or at least, it felt that way to me.”

He pulls me against his chest. “You loved working there, Immy. Do you not want to go back?”

I close my eyes as his lips press against my temple. “I did love working there. But it won’t be the same if I go back. No one will trust me. And they’ll always stare and talk about me behind my back.”

“You don’t seem like the kind of person who would get upset over that,” he points out.

“I wouldn’t normally, but it felt like a family there. Not like at Dad’s work, but a different kind, and I felt like I belonged. Going back now, I would feel like an outsider.”

“I’m not so sure about that. They would probably tread carefully around you. For someone to come back after a scandal like that, it will prove how valuable you are to the company. They’ll be scared to go against you.”

I grin because he has a point. “Maybe. I’ll see what he has to say and think it over.”

“If he begins to offer things to bribe you back, tell him you want a chance to prove to him you can do more than you did originally.”

I pull back to gaze up at him. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, there’s a reason he wants you back, love. All workers in places like that are replaceable. Hell, I’m easily replaced at my job. If he’s asking you to return, it means you are irreplaceable. But you need to placate him into thinking you worked for it. So offer to prove yourself by managing your own project in return for ten percent of the profits. By the end, you should have his trust, you’ll be running your own projects, and he’ll have no choice but to give you a raise.”

“I’m not sure how you think that will work. No one has ever been given their own project.”

“Then make him start now. Show them you are meant to be there, and if he says no, prove you can do it yourself and he’ll kick himself over it. You have nothing to lose. You’re already fired.”

I love you.

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