Page 56 of Miss Manage

“Good morning,” she returned, her voice polite but cool. No hint of Friday lingered in her tone, and I pretended not to care. Here I’d thought I was decent at compartmentalizing my emotions when it came to separating work and personal, but Charlotte was a pro.

It didn’t help that she looked devastating with her hair twisted up in a sleek, no-nonsense way making me want to ruin it, a black power suit hugging every curve, and those heels in a deep merlot, the kind of color that did dangerous things to a man’s focus.

“I caught up with Sheila about John,” I started, taking a seat across from her. “You should know he called me over the weekend.”

Her shoulders went tight. “And what did you say to him?”

“That he should take the severance and consider himself lucky. The package was more than fair.” I paused, watching her reaction. “He indicated he’d sign by the end of the day.”

Relief flickered across her face, brief but unmistakable. “Good. It’ll be one less thing on our plates. I met with the owners on Thursday where I walked them through the London lease savings, but they still want to move ahead with the full five percent reduction.”

Had she really presented the idea the way I’d outlined it, or had she taken the safer route and not presented it at all? I knew Charlotte didn’t shy away from confrontation, but she was also vying for the CEO position, and may not have wanted to present her competition’s idea.

I hated the doubt.

“Did you press them on it?” I kept my voice level. “Let them know how we’re certain to lose more people if we cut deep because of mistrust in the company? That it’ll affect morale?”

Her eyes glued to mine, irritation flickering. “I made the point, and they made theirs.” She turned toward her desk, gathering a few folders like she needed something to do with her hands. “And they smiled, thanked me for the alternative option, and went right back to the decision they’d already made.”

I opened my mouth, only to shut it again. But damn if the frustration didn’t simmer anyway, tightening my chest.

“We’ll move forward with the layoffs on Friday,” she continued. “I’ve already looped in HR and put security on notice to revoke access once the notices go out. It’s going to be a long week.”

Yes, it would.

“Are we heading to San Francisco next week for our top client? I’d like to bring Rhys in on this one.” I’d been reading up on Julian Harrington, the longtime owner of a top software firm and our biggest revenue-generating client.

She hesitated a moment before answering. “I’ll be leaving Thursday to meet with Julian. You and Rhys can hold down the fort here. I’ll be back on Friday morning, of course.”

The words hit me hard. I blinked once. Twice. “You’re going without us?”

She paused, pen stilling over her notepad. “This client’s…particular. He insisted on keeping it small. It’s just the way it is.”

My already simmering temper boiled over. What was her game? And why was I letting it hit so personally? Simple. Because I had very personal feelings for her. And as much as I’d hoped to keep them checked at the office door, it was clear I wasn’t managing that feat. I’d thought we were rolling the dice on the promotion, not making chess moves to outflank one another.

“So I’m expected to sit on the sidelines while you head into one of the biggest accounts we’ve got?”

Her tone sharpened though her face stayed maddeningly composed. “You’re supposed to trust me, Gabriel. I’ve been working with Julian for years, and when he’s down here in a few weeks to visit Arrow’s office, I’ll introduce you to him then.”

Trust her. The words landed like a challenge and a dare, and my jaw flexed against the impulse to argue. She wanted me to believe this was simply a business decision instead of her personal agenda to build her case for the CEO seat.

I forced a nod. She was shutting me out. Both professionally and personally. And whatever trust we’d been building had clearly only been in my imagination.

For the first time in a number of weeks, I had to ask myself what I would do if I wasn’t letting my personal feelings get in the way.