PROLOGUE

PROLOGUE:

Everyone sat stiffly on their seats. Tensed and scared. 

My hands started sweating, but I kept myself composed as I sat behind the boss that was now making everyone tremble in their seats. 

I looked in front, seeing one of our employees almost crying as he stood in front of the boardroom. Poor Allan.

“Did you think about this properly, Mr. Smith?” Mr. Troy Sanford, the CEO of the biggest, fast-rising group of companies in the industry, pierced his bright brown eyes at Allan who had just finished his marketing presentation.

The boss sat firmly on his seat at the head of the long table in the boardroom. And even in his sitting form, he looked big and tall. Intimidating. Most especially with those striking eyes.

I couldn’t help but grimace at the situation. The devil is showing up again.

“I want all of this redone.” Sir Troy suddenly announced that garnered collective gasps around the room. 

Yup. Like I said, the devil is on the rise.

“B-But, Sir. W-we only have 2 weeks before the launching—“ Allan started protesting, sweat trickling down his forehead and cheek despite the air conditioning in the room. But the boss cut him off with that rich, and deep commanding voice of his.

“I gave you and your team 6 months to think about this, and yet you gave me a presentation that even a middle schooler could pull off. Do you think this is a kid’s play?” The entire room fell silent altogether at how icy the boss’s voice was.

Allan swallowed, seeing how serious Mr. Sanford was. Even I, who wasn’t in his direct line of vision got the chills. 

“Two weeks won’t be much of a difference, considering your incompetence.” Blossoms of red flush crept on some of the employees faces at the boss’s harsh words. Both in shame and anger.

I grimaced. That was real harsh and shameless of him to say. But what do I expect? He’s not called the devil for nothing.

“With all due respect, Sir,” 

We all turned to Ria, one of Allan's team members, when she suddenly spoke. It was evident in her face how she was getting mad. But still, she should know better than interrupting the boss. 

I shook my head. I just know she’d regret this later. 

“We’ve worked our brains so much for this. We worked hard for this launching—“ she emphasized each of her words, but Sir Troy cut her off. 

He stood up from his seat, towering over everyone like the boss that he was. I started standing up either. 

“Then show me the workings of that brain. Let your presentation show the efforts you’ve made. Not this low-quality output that you’ve worked so hard on.” 

And like I said, Ria had nothing to say after that. She couldn’t, when she knows she can’t speak her way through the boss’s high standard. 

Mr. Sanford’s piercing brown eyes watched everyone in the room. “I don’t want to see incompetence in my business. If you continue wasting my time, consider wasting your time in another place.”

The room went icy silent at the threat in his voice. No one dared speaking again. The man knows many people want a spot in his company, so firing people isn’t much of a bad thing for him. 

“Adjourned,” he said and immediately strutted out of the room. I quickly followed behind him, my heels clicking on the floor. 

The boss had already exited the room when I heard the people in the room start murmuring. “How can he do this to us? Is he insane?”

“What a freaking devil!”

I could only sigh and continue following the boss that had already opened his personal elevator towards his office. I got inside as quickly as I could. The tension in my body is still not getting out of my system.

I have my own reason. I need to tell him something today. Great. I could have picked another time, but I can’t. Not when I already told him I’d do this today.

“Sir,” I spoke amid the silence in the elevator with just the two of us. 

“Lia,” the boss called as an acknowledgement, but I couldn’t help the chills running around my body at how he said my name.

He’s never one to call everybody with their first names. For professional formalities, he uses surnames all the time. But I guess I’m an exemption. After all, I’ve been his secretary for quite a while now.

And it’s probably just because of the echo around the enclosed elevator that made his voice sound more… intense.

I swallowed and took a deep breath, composing myself. 

“I mentioned about telling you something important today.” He nodded. 

I let out the breath I was holding. Here goes nothing. 

“Sir, I am resigning. I have already made the necessary documents for my exit, but rest assured that I will not get out of office without training the person who will be your next assistant,” I said, immediately adding the last sentence to iron out any creases that might hinder his organized work and schedule.

I waited for the boss to say anything or give a reaction, but even as the elevator finally opened to his office floor, he just stood in front of me, not even moving an inch.

“Sir?” I asked, curious. But what he did next was something I did not expect.

He turned around and stared at me. I met his intense eyes, feeling like seeing liquid gold around his orbs. 

I stepped back when Sir Troy suddenly came closer, towering over my smaller figure. 

I was never close with the boss even after five and a half years working with him—at least not on a personal level—so having him this physically close was something I wasn’t used to. 

“You’re not leaving, Lia," he said with the most serious look and voice I've heard of him. I swallowed, suddenly assaulted by his presence.

“You’re staying with me.”