Chapter 8

They waited with bated breath for the further development of events. The chauffeur walked slowly around the car, before he courteously opened the back door. Then their new boss appeared before him.

They couldn't believe their eyes. An uncomfortable silence descended in the crowded room. None of them was able to comment on this. They thought that it was just their hallucination, the result of an overdose of percentages and a hangover from the last day’s party.

How can the new boss afford a jaguar and a chauffeur? What was up? So many questions were stuck in their heads.

They suspected that it was Nicolas' trick, who was unable to grasp the mess that had prevailed in the editorial office since the chief assistant had left the competition. They knew that he wanted to teach them a lesson but who was Alice? In addition, this luxury Jaguar haunted them.

The next day, Alice was the first to come to the editorial office. It would not be surprising, if not for the fact that it was almost nine o'clock and the place was empty. The editorial team just blew her off as she had thought.

She didn't worry too much about it; it was actually just fine for her. At nine o'clock, Nicolas arrived, who was not at all surprised to see Alice sitting alone behind her laptop at the huge collegiate table.

“Good morning, sweetheart! How are you feeling?” He smiled kindly.

“Hello, Master! I'm great! And you?”

“I am fine, sweetheart. As for the magazine, you can see it yourself!” He spread his hands helplessly. “Unpunished lawlessness.”

“I have already realized it, but don’t worry. You won’t be disappointed!”

Nicolas saw a gleam in her eyes. He knew that it was a good sign. He indicated that Alice had a perfect plan of action.

Knowing her for a long time, he assumed that she would use all possible means to accomplish the task entrusted to her to the best of her ability. He wouldn’t like to be in the shoes of any of his subordinates. He had no doubt that she wouldn't let them do too much. He knew it. He just wondered how long they would last with her and how long would it be until they would fold.

“I hear someone. I'll go to my office. I won’t disturb you.” Nicolas moved towards his office. “I’m keeping my fingers crossed, sweetheart!” He added before he went inside.

A moment later, Alex walked in, looking stunning as ever.

"Good morning!" he said.

The image of an empty editorial table did not surprise him either.

"Hello!" She replied.

"This image is commonplace here." He said, pointing to an empty room.

“Nothing new that I didn't know.” She smiled carelessly, as if the situation didn’t surprise her at all.

“While waiting for the rest, I suggest breakfast. On the way I bought fresh bread and fragrant croissants.” He pointed to a large plastic bag in his hand.

Alice nodded without taking her eyes off the monitor.

“Coffee with almond milk, no sugar and French croissants?” He asked, heading towards the kitchen.

“Just a strong one without any milk, please.”

At the sight of the lush unruly spiked hair with a cheeky smile and dark mischievous dark eyes, Alice pondered. Looking at the still childish face, it was impossible to think that Alex was one of the best journalists of the young generation that she has known.

A real, ruthless tough guy, who in an intelligent and sophisticated way was able to squeeze everything out of his interlocutor, even the most deeply hidden secrets from the world.

Within a few years, he had achieved more than many who have been in the industry for years. However, not everyone knew about it. It is a pity that he is wasting his talent, knowledge and skills in the newsroom, instead of writing reportages for some prestigious magazine.

Adam Davis came to the work just a moment later. He was not much older than Alex, no less attractive, but unlike his younger friend, she could see an unbreakable, tough character on his face.

She knew that he loved the sea and everything related to it. He infected half of the editorial team with his passion to such an extent that they went together on canoeing trips or multi-day cruises on the lakes. However, so far he hadn’t found anyone willing to go with him for a catamaran trip, his favorite means of sea transport.

Whenever there was an opportunity to write about important events, such as the celebrations of the Days of the Sea, regattas, and sea scientific expeditions, he would use it with pleasure, using the knowledge he gained over the years. Later, the editorial secretary would get into a fit of rage reading a piece of text which he understood very little of and had no clue of what to cut and what to keep in order to shorten it.

Alex and Adam joined the chief editor who was waiting patiently at the empty table. They were eating breakfast prepared by Alex. The atmosphere was casual and fun. Of course, they talked about cars, computers and technical news.

Adam tried to infect Alice with his passion. To his great joy, it turned out to be unnecessary, as the chief editor revealed that she sometimes sails, but didn’t want to talk about the details of her expeditions.

“Alice, do you like skydiving?” Alex suddenly blurted out. “In two weeks we'll be going jumping. It will be great fun.”

“We are just working hard on our physical condition at the moment.” Adam added.

“Will you jump with us?” Alex asked pleadingly.

"Sounds interesting, but I have at least three reasons why I should live for a few more years." As she said that, she smiled.

“Are you expecting twins?” Alex asked, not hiding his surprise.

“Where did that question come from?” She began to laugh. “I'm not expecting twins. I'm too old for children.”

“Too old?” Alex inquired inquisitively. “You look really great. You don't have a fifty on your neck to say that.”

“Maybe as part of the integration event, you will go to paintball with us?” Adam suggested, who didn't feel like talking about children at all.

“An interesting proposition, I can consider this one. I will think about an integration party, I promise.” As she said that, she smiled at the thought of the integration even though she had already prepared something for them.