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38 - Amenable
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2024-10-29 19:42:56"This is ridiculous."
"Ms. Munson, please -"
"And oh, my God, if anyone calls me that one more time, I swear to God I'll - Jia! Get over here."
Jia obeyed, hurrying with a sharp series of clicks as she scuttled over on her stilettos. Amazing how quickly she had become accustomed to brisk-walking in these without breaking her ankles. Didn't mean her toes felt like they were breaking any less.
"Hello, Dolly," she said cheerily, forcing her voice to sound as sunny as possible. She was complete faking it, of course, but it seemed like the atmosphere could use a little positivity, artificial or otherwise. The look on the redhead's face was abominably irritated, and Jia knew well that that was not a good sign. It was almost time for lunch and Atlas was due back anytime now - it was a miracle that Dolly had lasted this long, honestly.
"You hear that?" the enraged woman demanded, turning around to glare at Lydia and Daniel who had followed her out of
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"And...Dolly? This seat's open."On the other end of the table, the redhead turned her gaze on Jia only to give her a single baleful scowl. "It is open," she agreed. "Doesn't mean I want it." With that, she turned away again and leaned back in her chair, aggressively massaging her own shoulder with an angry look on her face."Aren't you hungry?""I can eat over here."Jia pressed her lips together for a second, and then turned them up in a wide smile. "You look sore. And tired. Why don't you eat and I'll take care of that?" She beckoned her over again with a flap of the hand.Dolly stopped for a moment and threw her a suspicious stare. "Take care of what."Jia didn't miss a beat. She raised her hands to shoulder height and pantomimed giving the woman a massage with a few flicks of the wrist before speaking again. "I'm at your disposal," she said cheerfully. "...If you'd like to join us. But you don't have to if you'd rather
In the Shadow of the CEO 40 - Professional
"Mr. Grayson -""Yes?"The sharp response lanced through Jia like a cold knife, and she had to steady herself so that she didn't rock back from the sheer frigidity emanating from Atlas right now. And yet there was a heat in his eyes that made her wonder if perhaps he wasn't about to physically pick her up and hurl her out the nearest window."Ms. Munson hasn't shared anything compromising about you, if that's what you're concerned about, Mr. Grayson."Jia made sure to hold his stare - no matter what! - so that he could see her earnestness. As much as she wanted to keep backing up to put more space between them, that would put her directly against the wall, and she remembered only too well what had happened the last time she'd done that."Then what exactly have you two bonded over? You're not much a drinker as far as I can tell, Ms. Moon."Well - how would he know that? What if she was, in fact, a drunkard on her own time? In truth, she
In the Shadow of the CEO 41 - Boyfriends
"You must be kidding."Jia spread her arms a little in a disarming, helpless gesture. "It'll be brief," she said. "I'm just supposed to make sure you're settled in comfortably.""You're babysitting me.""No," she insisted. "Mr. Grayson just wants me to -"Dolly's hand chopped at the air between them, narrowly missing Jia's nose with a swipe. "My God, just call him Atlas. If I hear one more person call him Mr. Grayson again, I'm going to lose it -""Atlas, sorry," she amended immediately. They were alone in the elevator as they dropped down toward the parking garage in the basement level; no one else was around to hear her call her boss so familiarly. If it meant soothing Dolly's aggressive outbursts, then the small sacrifice was more than worth it."So Atlas wants you to make sure I'm not playing with matches or taking candy from strangers -"More like taking candy from babies when it came to Dolly's personality, Jia thought pri
In the Shadow of the CEO 42 - Weekend
Dolly wasn't even awake when Jia quietly slipped by, letting herself in with the pass code when she received no reply after knocking several times. She swept her eyes around the living room and found the entire place spotless - had the housekeeping team already come by to clean everything up?She tip-toed over to the bedroom and peeked around the doorway to find the woman lying tangled in her sheets and sleeping the wrong way. Well, at least she looked fine. At the very least, she was still breathing, so she hadn't managed to sneak enough alcohol to poison herself in the middle of the night.And that was that. The woman was alive, which meant Jia had the whole rest of the day to herself until the evening when she stopped by again. She checked the time on the digital clock before fleeing the penthouse, legging it back down to the bus stop and then the subway station so that she could make it back to the Bronx in time."Almost there," she panted into the pho
In the Shadow of the CEO 43 - Devoted
The movie was an A-list blockbuster with at least a dozen distinct explosions, several burning buildings, and plenty of high-octane car chases, one of which involved a tank. In other words, it was exactly the kind of movie the twins would have chosen anyway had Dolly not asserted herself before they ever got the chance."That was sub-par," the woman was complaining as they trailed out of the cinema room. "Every line in that movie made me cringe.""But not as much as when Bale snapped that guy's elbow the wrong way," Jisu quipped. "That was rough."At least he was getting along decently with Dolly, Jia noticed. Jini was as quiet as usual, but judging by how she was glancing around and taking in the sights instead of dragging a sullen glare over the floor, she was in a better mood than usual too. Maybe this wasn't an awful mistake after all, Jia thought, especially since the other woman hadn't asked a single question about the twins yet."So are you a
In the Shadow of the CEO 44 - Spontaneous
Jia was learning far more about Atlas than she had ever wanted to. And how was it that Dolly even knew about any of this when she had allegedly never slept with the man himself? Something was suspect here; it couldn't really be that the woman had found out everything in a secondhand fashion, could it?"The last time he was in a committed relationship was - years ago. I remember her, gorgeous woman. He was so fresh-faced, you wouldn't believe it, but even then he was always cold. It looked like it suited her, though.""Oh," said Jia. "I can believe that."Dolly seemed completely immune to the forced politeness in her tone and continued to forge ahead. "She's actually Daniel's sister. Super big deal, that, apparently. Don't know why considering that people date in the workplace all the time, and it wasn't like anyone could accuse Atlas of playing favorites. Not the way he drove her hard on her jobs. God, he was so frigid that at some point, the rumor actuall
In the Shadow of the CEO 45 - Sobriety
"...Dolly, what did you...""Shhh, it's okay," the woman said as she rubbed soothing circles on Jia's back. "You're fine.""I...no...something's wrong...""No, you're just a lightweight. Come here, we'll go outside where it's nice and cool."Jia rubbed at her eyes but had to abort the movement halfway; she nearly stumbled and only just managed to catch herself with a hasty grasp on the corner of the bar counter."What do you mean," she slurred. "I'm...All I had was soda."Dolly rubbed her nose and sniffed. "Yeah, you're right," she said after a few seconds, and then proceeded to lift Jia up by the arm and hobble her over to the entrance past milling customers."Dolly...""Okay, fine, I may or may not have mixed something in there while you were in the bathroom.""You...!"The redhead had dragged her out the doors by now, and a crisp evening breeze swooped down to buffet them with a stinging vengeance. "Relax
In the Shadow of the CEO 46 - Stains
"I, um, think repeating what she said would only frustrate you, sir."Oh, no. That was a bad answer. Why had she thought that saying it would soothe his anger in any way? As soon as the words left her mouth, Jia realized with the utmost horror that it might seem as if she were patronizing Atlas."I expect you to be honest with me, Jia. We've had this discussion before."When had he begun calling her Jia instead of Ms. Moon?But she supposed now wasn't the time to think idle thoughts. She wracked her mind to figure out what it was that the man was talking about. What discussion?Oh, right - yesterday in the hallway when he had asked a very similar question then, too. Jia stared up at the man, still shocked that he had appeared out of absolutely nowhere to stand right in front of her like this. But more than that, he didn't sound like himself: his voice was angry, but strangely not so much intimidating as it was frustrated and...worried?
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In the Shadow of the CEO Author's Note
The ending has been modified due to feedback from several readers that were unsatisfied with the ending. While I can't really say I'm proud of the cut version because it doesn't properly envison what I had in mind for the story's conclusion, I'm happy to let readers leave off the story on a thoroughly final note.As a result, I have withdrawn plans to write a sequel and will leave the story as is. But thank you all anyway for coming with me on this journey! :DFind me on facebook @ManaSolStories so that you can keep up with my other stories here on GoodNovel instead.
In the Shadow of the CEO Epilogue
Jia pushed Atlas away from herself with a furtive look around the dim rear hallway they found themselves in. "Stop that! Someone will see."But he didn't listen. With a low, rumbling chuckle in his chest, he pressed her up against the wall and nuzzled her neck, breathing her in as if he couldn't get enough of her scent. She did her best to keep from melting in his arms as they snaked around her, one around her waist and the other coming up to cup the back of her neck, but a small gasp left her lips when she felt him grind his hips against hers."The things you do to me," he whispered in her ear, and she had to bite down hard on her tongue so that she didn't let out a breathy moan and tremble against him.No, they were absolutely not doing this. They were in a restaurant. In public! At a party! The last time they had done this, they had almost gotten caught by a waiter and only barely managed to hide themselves in a tangled mess in the utility closet."Atlas -""Fine, fine," he said, an
In the Shadow of the CEO 95 - Offerings
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In the Shadow of the CEO 94 - Choices
Clearly, they weren't going to be heading back into the building anytime soon. Jia took a deep breath before turning to look at Ava, making sure her face betrayed nothing but steady composure."You care about Atlas," she said shortly, "and so do I. It's your right to doubt my intentions, but our relationship is ours and no one else's. Meaning that it's his choice to stay in one with me, just like it's my choice to do the same with him.""So, in other words, you don't care. About letting the company crash because you can't give him up?""...I'll consider everything you said to me today. You can interpret my intentions however you want. I care about Atlas. He is important to me. So is Pandora Lights. I am not 'giving' either of them up like I'm swapping trading cards.""That's a nice, self-righteous way of saying you'd rather screw the whole company over rather than let go of his money. Before you say it's not about that, I'll just remind you that it's funn
In the Shadow of the CEO 93 - Adjustments
"How is our new schedule working for you?"Jia pressed her knees together and looped her hands around them as she thought about how to answer. She liked this place more than she had thought she would the first time she came, and the second. It was strange how liberating it felt to be in the one place she felt the most vulnerable."I think it's good," she said. "I didn't think I'd want to be here more than I had to, but you were right. I felt a lot better this week. And I think I was more stable. Well, stronger, I guess.""That's good," Dr. Brody - or Lisa, she preferred - remarked. She smiled at Jia and settled back in her armchair. "Do you want to tell me about it?"She made herself more comfortable on the sofa as well. Their very first meeting a month and a half ago, Lisa had told her that she was free to lie down if she preferred, that the kind of therapy she conducted encouraged her to be as comfortable as she could be physically so that she could be
In the Shadow of the CEO 92 - Games
"Mr. Burhock!""Jia, so good to see you again. How are you! You look ten times more lovely than before, how is that possible? Maybe if I spin around once, it'll happen again."Mr. Burhock was his sweet, jovial self as usual as he pulled her into a hug and pounded her back a little too hard with his plump fist. He babbled on about his new grandchild and about the rigors of childproofing his house now that there would be yet another small baby running about wild. No, he wasn't his usual jovial self - he was exceedingly so, more than normal.They were meeting in the hotel lobby of the Ritz-Carlton hotel. Ava would be here in a second as well once she adjusted her makeup in the bathroom. And then they would be off to a eat a celebratory dinner, a reservation at Burhock's favorite Greek restaurant. Jia was looking forward to it for more than one reason. For one, it was the one time Atlas would be eating with them instead of working himself to death in his offic
In the Shadow of the CEO 91 - Trees and Forests
"You should come help me."Jia had allowed Ava into the outer office when the woman came knocking, not bothering to ask how she had managed to come exactly at a time when Atlas and Lydia were in one of the conference rooms on the lower floor for a meeting. Then again, those two were getting busier and busier, and nearly a third of their day was simply attending video conferences; perhaps it was a coincidence after all.She had to stop suspecting Ava just because she was jealous. And she knew that was the reason, too. She had promised herself a week ago after the conversation in Atlas's car that she would remain self-aware, that she would handle herself with integrity when it came to the other woman. This was business. This was professional....It was still hard."What can I help you with?"Her response was the right one. She knew it already, but there was a pleased glint in Ava's eye as if she were impressed that Jia hadn't come running up with her
In the Shadow of the CEO 90 - Idyllic
Itwas nearly ten. Jia had begun to wonder if perhaps he would show up at all an hour ago, a stray thought that she could feel ballooning into another episode now that she knew what to look for. Knowing the enemy made it easier to fight, so she had spent a little time reorganizing the kitchen to take her mind off of Atlas and Ava and whatever they were talking about for the past five hours.When he did show up, she didn't even answer his call. She simply toed on her sneakers and shuffled out in a hurry with the shoes only half on her feet.He was standing outside his car and leaning against the passenger door. When he saw her appear, a faint smile turned up the corners of his mouth, and he opened it so that it could slide upward to let her in. She was already in a long, worn out white T-shirt and a pair of loose training pants, both of which had seen better days and absolutely did not suit the glamor of the car or the man who owned it -Stop, she told herse
In the Shadow of the CEO 89 - Concealed
Jia blinked and stared, not entirely certain that she had heard Atlas correctly. She couldn't have. It was only because she had been thinking hard about how to approach the topic of Ava tonight that she thought she'd just heard him say the name, that was all. She tried to step around Atlas and move closer to Erica to give her a proper greet since they hadn't seen each other since this morning for a cup of coffee (and water), but when she peeked around his shoulder, she found the woman staring straight at Atlas's face instead.It hadn't occurred to her how tall Erica was until now, as she watched them square off in an apparent staring contest. Or was it because she was standing up straight and squaring her shoulders, revealing her true height instead of carrying a moderate slouch when last they had met?In fact, everything about Erica was different now. Her appearance was the same, but her eyes were sharper and colder, and the way she tilted her head slightly at A
