Bossing My Friend Page 5

  I strode into my office, my coffee spilling slightly with the force of my steps.

  “Elsie!” He jumped off his chair.

  “Jared.” I spoke firmly, placing my coffee down on my desk so I could cross my arms over my breasts.

  I could feel my cheeks burning up. I wasn’t supposed to see him again. We’d parted ways last night. Why was he still in Chicago?

  He was dressed like the previous day. In an equally smartly tailored business suit and tie. His thick blond hair neatly styled, his stubble looking perfect on his chiseled, sharp jaw.

  “You really can’t keep coming to my office like this,” I snapped and he grinned. Was this some joke to him?

  “Am I embarrassing you?” he asked.

  “You’re making it difficult for me to get any work done. Why are you here?”

  Jared breathed in deeply, looking about my office and assessing my space.

  “The thing is, Elsie, that I had a thought last night and I wanted to come and speak to you about it. I could have done it over the phone, but I didn’t want to seem impersonal,” Jared said with a professional coolness I’d never seen in him before.

  The Jared I knew, on his Harley, in his leather jacket…was a rebel, was the guy who always got into trouble. Now I was seeing a new side to him. The one that had earned him all these riches and all his success.

  “What thought?” I asked, keeping my head held high. My heart was racing in my chest. Could it be possible that he wanted something more? More than just the meaningless sex we had last night? I didn’t want my mind to go there, to be hopeful…but I couldn’t help myself. Jared Morin had always been the man of my dreams.

  “I want you to come work for me,” Jared replied.

  He had a smug grin on his face…his usual half-smile. Jared was confident. He believed I would squeal and clap my hands with excitement.

  Instead, I was in shock…at his audacity. How dare he!

  Jared

  “What the hell did you just say to me?” Elsie was furious. I could see it on her face, the way her lips quivered as she said the words.

  I stood my ground, pushing my hands into the pockets of my pants.

  “You heard what I said, Elsie. I want you to be a part of my team,” I replied, staying calm.

  Elsie’s arms dropped to her sides. She was wearing a dark skirt and a floral blouse tucked in. Her hair was messily tied in a knot on top of her head. Once again, she didn’t bother with makeup or looking corporate. While I scanned her, Elsie’s blue eyes focused narrowly at me.

  “How dare you come in here, to my office, and try to recruit me! After what happened last night!” Elsie hissed. She was trying to keep her voice down but she couldn’t control her rage.

  “Maybe I should have waited and gone to your apartment this evening?” I asked and Elsie’s jaw dropped open.

  “Are you insane? You shouldn’t be doing either of those things. You should be getting on a flight out of Chicago and leaving me alone!” she snapped.

  I smiled, nodding my head.

  “But you see, Elsie, I want you to be a part of my company. I couldn’t just leave without asking you,” I continued.

  “Jared! You don’t know what you’re talking about…we…” She stepped towards me now, dropping her voice even lower. “We slept together!”

  “I remember that quite well.” I smiled at her again.

  She growled and whipped away from me.

  “How do you not see how inappropriate this is!” She was turned away from me, like she couldn’t look at me anymore.

  “Elsie, we’re adults. We slipped up. Things happened. We just dust ourselves off and move on. It’s not going to happen again,” I told her. She turned to me again with a jerk.

  “You know that from personal experience, is it? How many other women you work with have you slept with as well?” she hissed. Her cheeks were burning up, the tip of her nose was red again. The answer was none, but I refrained from responding to that question.

  This conversation wasn’t about the fact that we had sex. It was about a job offer.

  “I can assure you that you will find my offer very attractive,” I continued. Elsie was glaring at me, and her shoulders were heaving with anger.

  “I want you to be the head of my expansion projects in South America. I’ve come to learn that you have experience in dealings in that part of the world. You will have access to a company car and accommodation, full access to my private jet, and the salary package plus bonuses I can offer you will be in the region of…” I continued confidently but Elsie cut me off.

  “Just stop talking!” This time, she’d spoken loud enough for people outside to hear her. She clamped her mouth shut and stepped up close to me again.

  “Just stop talking and get out of my office, now,” she thundered, pointing at the door. When we were younger, Elsie was mild natured and cheerful. Now, it seemed like she was carrying a lot of anger on her shoulders. I kept the smile on my face.

  “I haven’t finished listing out the perks of working for me,” I said, and Elsie shook her head. Her blue eyes were wide with shock and anger.

  “I don’t need to hear it. I’ve dedicated my life to working for this charity. I’ve been involved in good work. In work that changes people’s lives. What makes you think, for even one moment, that I would give all this up? To come work for your greedy money-making machine?” Elsie spat the words at me. I had to clench my jaw to hold back my temper.

  I had tried to be patient with her. To be reasonable with her. But when she insulted my work, my company that I grew from nothing — I was mad enough to drive my fist through her wall.

  Elsie could see that her words affected me.

  “Was that your plan all along, Jared? Did you seek me out in Chicago to offer me a job? Is this why I’m hearing from you after ten years of absence?” she hissed. Her face was inches away from me, close enough for me to kiss her if I wanted to.

  But right now, I didn’t want to. Elsie Carr thought I was nothing more than a rich swine. Once again, Elsie was the one taking the moral high ground. She thought she was better than me. Just like she’d been brought up by her family to think.

  I wasn’t going to let her get away with it this time.

  “I’m staying in Chicago till you change your mind,” I replied.

  Elsie growled and spun away from me. She went back to her desk and sat down on her chair with a thump.

  “Get out of my office, Jared,” she said, starting to open files on her desk. She wasn’t even looking at me anymore.

  “Eventually, you’ll see that this is an offer you shouldn’t refuse,” I said. Elsie sipped her coffee and switched on her computer.

  “I need you to leave and I’m going to make sure nobody lets you into this building the next time you’re here,” she said and looked up at me.

  “You can’t keep ignoring me, Elsie,” I said and she scoffed.

  “Why not? You did it for ten years!” she snapped.

  I stood in her office in silence for a few moments. She wasn’t going to talk.

  “Just think about it,” I said and walked out of the room.

  Some of her co-workers stared at me as I left the building. What had she told them about me? I knew they recognized who I was.

  I meant it when I said I wasn’t leaving Chicago till she’d accepted my offer. For the past ten years, I’d done nothing but win at life and Elsie Carr wasn’t going to strike me down.

  Elsie

  He told me to think about it. What else was I supposed to do but think about it? I spent the rest of the day at work, struggling to complete the presentation I was preparing. Jared had ruined my day. My week. My month. I didn’t know when things would return to normal again.

  I charged back home the first chance I got to leave the office and locked myself in my apartment. I didn’t want any unexpected visits from Mona this evening.

  I still couldn’t get over the fact that Jared wanted me to work for him. He h
ad the guts to offer me perks! A car. His private jet! What did he think I was going to do? Drool at his offer? Leave my office and just jump in to work with him?

  I paced around my apartment, with an open bottle of wine in my hand. I needed the drink to calm me down. I couldn’t believe it.

  After ten years of complete absence, he had the arrogance to walk into my office and offer me a job! Just the morning after we had sex. Did he think I could just forget about it? I didn’t even want to look at my couch again. I would have to throw it out!

  Maybe this was normal for him…maybe he slept with women casually all the time now. It didn’t mean anything to him. The fact that he’d fucked me, it meant nothing to him.

  I held back the tears that were brimming in my eyes. I wasn’t going to cry over him anymore. All these years I’d clung to a hope…that if Jared and I ever met again, we could pick up where we’d left off. That evening, my last evening with him in Madison Green, was etched like a tattoo in my brain.

  I’d finally convinced my parents to have him over for dinner.

  My family were aware that I’d been spending a lot of time with Jared Morin. The boy next door whom my parents were wary of. Initially, when Jared and I first started hanging out, my mother had tried to warn me repeatedly.

  “Honey, he’s not a reliable boy. Please be careful. I don’t want to tell you what to do, but he has no interest in school. He’s going to drop out and be a bad influence.” Mom’s voice was still strong in my head.

  I was thirteen, Jared was fifteen, and once we started talking we couldn’t stop. I’d always just admired him from a distance. Everyone else in our neighborhood and our school kept their distance from him. He was a loner, he was ridiculed — but even before he became “cool”, I knew that Jared was special.

  We grew closer and closer over the years. My parents and Mona quickly realized that they couldn’t stop me from hanging out with him. Jared and I did everything together.

  Mom had been right; he did eventually drop out of school and started working at an auto-repair shop. I didn’t care. I wasn’t concerned about his education or what he was going to do in his life. All I cared about was that we had fun together, he was a good friend, and I was into him.

  So, it was the first time in five years, on this particular evening, that my parents finally agreed to have Jared over for dinner. I was excited. He’d never been in my house before. Now, he was going to sit at our table and sample Mom’s delicious spaghetti and meatballs.

  Jared cleaned himself up well for the dinner. He ditched his leather jacket for his best shirt, swept his hair back from his forehead and shaved. I was eighteen by now, old enough to know that my feelings for him were going nowhere.

  I hoped that now, if my family slowly started accepting him as a presence in our household, I could finally tell him. It was time. We’d been friends for five years and I’d kept my feelings a secret from him. Jared was always there for me, but as a friend. I didn’t know how he felt, if he shared my feelings…if he was even attracted to me.

  But I’d waited long enough. I couldn’t wait anymore. I made up my mind that I would finally tell him the truth.

  The dinner went smoothly. Jared was well-mannered and polite at the table. He and Mona even joked together.

  After dinner, I helped Mona clear the table and clean the dishes. Jared sat in the living room with my parents, watching TV. Mona and I brought out the ice cream in bowls.

  But he left quickly after dessert. I was hoping that he might want to come upstairs and spend some time with me in my room. It would be the perfect opportunity for me to tell him how I felt. But Jared ate his ice cream, barely finishing it, and then left. At the door, he hugged me tightly, and then walked back to his house without looking back.

  I was disappointed that he hadn’t stayed, but I couldn’t have predicted what would happen next. That he would just disappear the next day.

  Now, as I paced around my apartment, I felt those feelings again. Frustration, anger, worry, fear…they were all jumbled up as I waited for days for his bike to return to the driveway. When I knocked on his parents’ door, his father — in a drunken haze — showed me the note.

  Jared had left it on their kitchen table.

  I’ve left home. Don’t try and look for me. Good luck.

  It was short and to-the-point. There wasn’t a word about me on that note. I had no idea where he’d gone: he left me no clues.

  And now, ten years later, I was back to feeling the same way again. Lost and clueless. I didn’t recognize this man anymore. I didn’t know who he’d become. All I knew was that I still had feelings for him and I hated myself for it.

  Jared

  I sent Elsie a text that evening, not expecting a response from her. I didn’t want to just turn up at her apartment, but that’s what I would have done if she didn’t reply.

  Meet me for dinner tonight. Fairlawn Hotel, at the restaurant. I’m not leaving Chicago till you’ve heard me out.

  I waited for an hour, ready to leave my hotel room to go to her apartment. But she replied.

  I’ll be there at nine.

  I reserved a table for us and arrived at the restaurant way before time. It was the same hotel where I was staying. The most premier location in Chicago. Was I trying to impress Elsie by inviting her to my hotel? Maybe I was.

  I wanted her to see what I’d made of myself. I wanted her to acknowledge that I was successful against all odds. When we were younger, she felt sorry for me. I didn’t want her to feel sorry for me anymore.

  Elsie arrived on time. She was wearing a beautiful green cocktail dress, one that accentuated the earthy tones of her chestnut hair. Her makeup was simple, but it made her face glow. Quietly, and keeping her head held high, she made her way to our table.

  “Hello, Elsie. I’m happy you could make it.” I was courteous with her, holding her chair out so she could sit down.

  “You didn’t give me much of a choice,” she retorted. I was hopeful that maybe she’d turned up tonight because a part of her wanted to see me too.

  Now I knew what Elsie looked like naked, the body she was hiding underneath that dress. She was irresistible to me, but I had to resist her. Elsie and I were never going to happen. I’d given up any hopes of that a long time ago. Tonight was all about business.

  She stared at me firmly over her glass of sparkling water.

  She broke the silence between us. “What am I doing here, Jared?”

  “You’re here to listen to what I have to offer,” I told her and she rolled her eyes.

  “How many times do I have to tell you that I’m not interested? I just want to get through with this dinner, and then you’re leaving Chicago,” she stated and looked at the menu in front of her.

  I watched her as her eyes flitted over the menu. She was beautiful — she always was. Even as a kid, I knew that Elsie Carr would be the most beautiful woman I would ever set my eyes on. Young love was hard to die. That’s all it was. Puppy love. My life had changed drastically since then, and Elsie didn’t feature in it.

  “I know you have moral reasons for working at this organization,” I began, and she slapped the menu down.

  “It’s what I love doing. If I wanted to go corporate, I would have done so long ago!” she snapped.

  “Well, look at it this way. You’ve spent enough time working for a charity. You’ve done your bit…now it’s time for you to make some real money,” I said. Elsie shook her head with anger.

  “It’s not all about the money, Jared. Although, I can see that’s all you care about now,” she hissed and looked around the restaurant. It was a luxuriously flamboyant place. The kind of restaurant I wouldn’t even have dreamt of walking into when we were kids.

  “I’ve made money myself, so it’s precious to me. I had no help from anybody,” I retorted, and Elsie sat back in her chair. She was playing with the cutlery nervously on the table.

  “If you’re going to give me another speech about your miserable
childhood, save it, Jared. I’ve heard it all before,” she said.

  It angered me to hear her speaking this way. She had no respect for what I’d achieved. She’d seen it first-hand. She knew what I’d been through. Now, Elsie had turned into everybody else in that miserable town of ours. Just like them, Elsie didn’t care about my hardships anymore.

  “Where I come from is a daily reminder for me to do anything I have to, to succeed!” I snapped, gripping the glass of water tightly in my hand. Elsie’s eyes drifted to it. She could see I was trying to control my rage. Was she egging me on? Was she saying all this on purpose to make me lose my temper?

  “Anything you have to?” she asked. I sat back in my chair.

  “Forget about it, Elsie. Let’s just get to the point,” I growled.

  “What kind of things have you done, Jared?” she asked. Her eyes were narrowed at me. Her lips were viciously pressed together. She looked like a woman who was on a blood-hunt.

  “I have a file here containing everything you need to know about the position I’m offering you,” I said, ignoring her question. Elsie stuck to her agenda.

  “How many women have you fucked to convince them to take your job offers?” Elsie hissed.

  I stood up from my chair in rage. Heads turned at my angered reaction. She was doing it again! She made me lose my cool. I gritted my teeth and glared at her.

  “I am trying to have a professional conversation with you,” I growled under my breath. Elsie’s blue eyes sparkled as she stared back at me victoriously.

  “You remind me of your dad,” she said.

  I breathed in deeply, holding down my rage. She’d taken it a step further. This time, she’d really done it.

  “You’re just like the rest of them at Madison Green. On your fucking moral high-horse,” I said, in a low, deep voice and swung away from her.

  I didn’t need this shit. I was done. It wasn’t worth it.