Page 83 of The October Arrangement

“Especially knowing the situation,” he said.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I asked.

“That means I watched her today, Simon. She wasn’t looking at you for approval. She didn’t need you to answer for her. When marketing pushed back, she stood her ground. And most importantly, everyone in the room stopped seeing her as the woman you brought in about five minutes after she started talking. Tear up the rules, son. Just this once and see what happens.”

I left his office and stepped into mine. I’d spent years making sure the women I slept with never crossed into my professional life. That was why I never pursued anyone at the office. I kept my life clean, simple, and controlled. But every day I spent with Bella slowly undid all of that. I was afraid that if I brought her into the company, it would all vanish and turn to chaos.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Simon

I stepped into the foyer and set the bag of Thai food I’d picked up on the island. Harold was sitting in the center, staring at me. Raine jumped on the island and rubbed against Harold. Traitor. I ran my hand across her back.

“Where’s Bella?” I asked.

She meowed and rubbed her body against my arm.

“I don’t understand cat language.” I smiled.

“Are you talking to the cat?” Bella walked into the kitchen.

“No.”

“Liar.” She opened the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water.

“I brought home Thai for dinner.”

“Oh, thanks. I didn’t get a chance to cook.” Something sounded off in her voice.

“I didn’t expect you to cook.”

“Good. Not in the mood anyway.”

Now I knew something was definitely wrong.

“Sit down. I’ll grab the plates,” I said.

She took a seat at the table. I picked up Raine from the island and set her on the floor. After grabbing two plates, I set the table and brought the containers of food over.

“You never told me what happened yesterday with Geneva,” I said.

“She sang my praises. Sales doubled since I did the fall campaign. Views are up, and they can’t keep up with the orders fast enough. She said so far this is the best quarter they’ve ever had.”

“That’s great, Bella. But I don’t understand. Why did you have such a shitty day yesterday?”

“Because she told me Hattie is coming back November 1st, and she’ll be doing the Christmas campaign. I’m so stupid.” She shook her head.

“No, you’re not. Why are you saying that?”

“Because I really thought Ever & Oak would hire me for a permanent position. I knew this was temporary, but in the back of my mind, I believed that I would do such a good job that they would have no choice but to hire me. October 31st is approaching quickly, and I’m no farther ahead than I was when I came to New York. I suck.”

“Stop it. You do not suck. You’re incredibly talented.”

“Then why can’t I get a permanent job?”

I stared at her as she sat there, feeling defeated with tears in her eyes. I hated seeing her like that. And the same feeling washed over me as it did in the conference room this morning. The need to protect her. I stood up from my chair, walked over to the refrigerator, took the ten-rule list off, and brought it to the table.

“What are you doing?” she asked.