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Epilogue
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2024-10-29 19:42:56
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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for the story's conclusion, I'm happy to let readers leave off the story on a thoroughly final note.As a result, I have withdrawn plans to write a sequel and will leave the story as is.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 1 - Atlas Grayson
Wednesday nights at La Dolce Vita had never been so disastrous. This time, it was as if every rich businessman breathing in the Manhattan borough of New York City had stampeded through this restaurant, but as it so happened, the lowest point of Jia's evening hadn't even come to pass yet.She had known something was wrong when Richard sent everyone else home minutes after the massive VIP dinner event concluded - but then asked her to stay behind to clean up. Alone. Yes, he was an exploitative asshole who freely abused her vulnerable circumstances, but he had never done this kind of thing before: he simply hadn't ever been around for the Wednesday night clean up himself.Ever.If anything, he was the one who always went home early after the weekly Hell Night and made everyone else take care of the mess without him. But not today, though. No, not tonight - because the owner of the five-star La Dolce Vita was intent on making an even worse mess rather than cleaning anything up.A wine glas
In the Shadow of the CEO 2 - Home
"Your address, miss?"Jia's head jerked up. "Sorry," she said hastily, wanting to pinch herself for zoning out in a stranger's car.This was why she preferred the subway. Yes, it would have taken far longer than this forty minute drive from Manhattan to the Bronx, but anonymity among strangers felt so much safer. And she could only imagine what kind of attention they were attracting now as they cruised down a dirty, pot-hole ridden street manned only by a few homeless, some delinquents out past curfew, and generally everything that the rich and glitzy Manhattan wasn't. The Bronx borough - particularly this side of it - was a different kind of beast altogether.
In the Shadow of the CEO 3 - The Resume
"Mr. Grayson, you have a guest waiting in the lobby. Would you like to see her now?""We're not done here.""Yes, sir. My apologies, sir."The intercom clicked off with a swipe of Atlas's finger scarcely before the woman on the other end of the line, his newest assistant, had finished speaking. "You can continue, Daniel," he said with a wave of his hand as if he hadn't just potentially scarred yet another new assistant with his coldness. It didn't matter. She probably wasn't going to last long anyway. "You were saying?"Another man stood before him on the other sid
In the Shadow of the CEO 4 - Questions
“Why do you want to work here?"Jia hesitated. “I’m sorry?” she asked, eyeing the man behind the desk with a leery uncertainty disguised as a case of bad hearing. Or maybe she really had heard him wrong, because what he asked made no sense at all. Last she had checked, she hadn’t had a choice in coming here.“Why,” he repeated, stressing the syllable with a sardonic impatience, “do you want to work here, I said.”“I…” Was this a test, or some kind of sick joke? She was here because he had blackmailed her, plain and simple. Jia wished Mr. Grayson had at least invited her to sit before b
In the Shadow of the CEO 5 - Silk
“Do I have to pay for all of this?”Lydia gave Jia a scolding look with a furrow of her perfectly plucked eyebrows. “Don’t be silly,” she chided before dropping the pile of clothes into the other woman’s arms. “Who would make you pay to take old discards? Imagine. We have to pay to get our trash taken out, you know.”Jia’s eyes dropped down to inspect the expensive fabrics with an apprehensive grimace. True, she had never had an eye for fashion. But these looked just as stylish and modern as any ensemble fitted onto mannequins in department stores, all far beyond her budget. Trash, Lydia had said, but if this was trash, what did that make her wardrobe?“Are you sure these are discards?”she repeated skeptically, and squinted at the topmost article on the stack. Was that a Gucci logo? Discard, really?“Well, all right, not all of them are,” admitted Lydia. “But the damage you would do to our image if
In the Shadow of the CEO 6 - Weakness
Jia breathed a sigh of relief when Lydia finally put away the binder full of the Dos and Don'ts of dealing with Atlas Grayson. The other woman was still barreling through a heated scolding session on how inappropriate Jia's conduct had been back in the CEO's office, but after twenty minutes of haranguing her for it, she finally seemed as though she were beginning to tire out.“I understand," said Jia, keeping her voice patient and calm as if soothing a spooked horse. “It won't happen again.”“I told you to never question him! Even things like how he would like his coffee or how the day is are off-limits, and then you go and directly contradict him - !”Jia resisted the urge to jump up and flee the room. Of all the ridiculous insanities of her circumstances, the reverential fear the assistant had for her boss had to take the cake. What was this, a cathedral? Was Atlas Grayson the pope? She swallowed the resigned sigh building in her
In the Shadow of the CEO 7 - Unforgettable
“Mr. Grayson is unavailable to take your call, but I can pass on a message for you.”Lydia was somehow juggling three binders, her smartphone, a stack of unstapled sheets, and a large coffee while handling the phone call with the utmost professional demeanor. She sounded downright automated.“I will make sure your message reaches him. Thank you, Mr. Li. We look forward to the conference tomorrow.”The phone dropped back into the pocket of her slim suit jacket, and Jia was left mystified by how exactly the woman had achieved such a feat when both of her hands were still full. Lydia seemed to think nothing of it as she proceeded to speed down the corridor with all the urgency of a Formula 1 car on a straightaway. Somehow, despite being taller than the blonde and most definitely possessing a longer stride, Jia found herself panting slightly to keep up.“Daniel is our Chief Operating Officer,” said Lydia as they rounded
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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
When Atlas finally came to bed, it was already past two in the morning. Jia had let the twins know she wouldn't be coming home - and although they probably thought she was up to mischief, the reality was that she knew she couldn't leave Atlas alone tonight. Even now, he sat on the side of the bed, slouched over with his elbows on his knees.She sat up and rested her fingertips on his bare, muscular shoulder. He felt so strong, and yet..."Sleep," she told him. "You'll know what to do tomorrow."He reached back and grasped her hand in his before turning around and sliding under the covers beside her. She was ready when he pulled her close and began kissing her neck and working his way down her chest, pulling on her clothes with growing insistence. But instead of yielding, she reached up to cradle his face in her hands and urged him with slight pulls to lift his head and look at her."Atlas," she murmured as she stared up at him. "I'm glad you told me."He stilled, so she kept on."If yo
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
