7

    A gleam of victory appeared in Ruby’s eyes. She felt nothing short of a heroine, Nate needed her, not only was he going to lose a huge amount of money, his company was going to make it to the bad press. It was every reporter's dream to get dirt on Nate Jacobin.

Nate was now having a word with the representative. Ruby took a minute to admire his office. 

  The grey drapes complemented the upholstery which she could tell cost a fortune. His office was immaculate, not a single speck of dust in sight. The ornate figurines looked like they were polished with oil. 

She drew in a breath as she walked round the office, there were no pictures of his family or even him. 

 “Same old cold hearted Nate”she mumbled to herself as she took her seat

  “Miss Ruby, are you still down for the job?” Nate asked as he walked in

  She couldn’t miss the hint of desperation mixed with irritation in his voice. It was the first time she’d seen him under pressure, Nate was always cool and collected. 

Something about his frustration wanted to make her smooth out the stray strands of hair on his perfect face.

She shrugged off her thoughts, now wasn’t the time for that.

  “Of course, I would take the job, you look very pitiful” she smirked and was satisfied with the look of rage on his face.

  “Also, I want a down payment by the end of today” she quickly added.

Her landlord threatened to throw her out by the end of the week as she owed two months of rent.

  

                            *************

     Ruby was conscious of the six pairs of eyes that stared at her. Nate had hurriedly assigned her to an office and she began to work. After about two hours, she was presenting the hurriedly drafted business plan to a board of CEOs. These people were well respected and prominent in the business world. They also had the power to help advance her career and status.

She held her breath, she was done presenting the business plan and was waiting for a reaction from the board.

  “Honestly, I’m impressed” she heard one of them say, nodding his head.

She finally let out her breath, all along, she was scared she was going to mess up the business plan and Nate would happily fire her just a few hours into her new job.

  “With this business plan, the reconstruction site would be a huge success” a lady said

Ruby gave her a warm smile, she had seen the woman a couple of times on TV but had forgotten her name. 

It was a dream come true, everyone seemed impressed.

  Nate cleared his throat and the room went silent. Ruby felt herself hold her breath again. When she was writing the business plan, she desperately hoped that he was going to approve of it. She hated herself for it but couldn’t help it. Years ago, when she wrote her debate points, she would pay extra attention to the details in hopes that he would be impressed and finally notice her.

    “The presentation is not bad”he said dryly 

He was content with the frowned etched on her face. It was one of the best business plans he had heard in his entire career and he agreed that she was important to his company.

  Ruby thought of a thousand things she could do to him right there and then. Not bad? How rude can this man be? She scowled as her fist curled into a ball.

She had just won his company a huge contract and he wasn’t thankful.

She scoffed as she took her seat, she couldn’t understand why she was affected by one silly comment. Her brows furrowed as she hoped he would choke on his water.

  An hour later, the meeting was dismissed after Nate signed the contract.

  

“I think of you as a jerk and I’m not sorry for dumping hot chocolate on you” she pouted as she cornered him when they were out of earshot.

 “You realize I’m now your boss don’t you?” He glowered 

He was in a better mood after he signed the contract, the last thing he wanted to see now was the annoying brunette with funny glasses. 

  “I saved your company, the least you could do was to say thank you and probably give me a raise”

Nate scowled, he had never met anyone with Ruby’s audacity, she was quick to speak her mind and criticize him.

  “I can see clearly that you seek my approval but you have to work harder to get it” he smiled smugly

He was glad he was finally getting back at her.

He wasn’t generous with his compliments and believed his workers had to work extra hard to get them.

  “Why the heck would I seek your approval? You mean nothing to me!”

Ruby could feel her voice shake and her emotions got the best of her. Yes, she sought his approval but she couldn’t help it. 

All through her stay in high school, she wanted him to say at least a word to her but he never did. Now, they were working together, he was being mean to her.

  “Miss Ruby Barlow, I suggest you mind the tone you use when speaking to me” Nate warned, his voice low and stony.

 “Oh really? You’re so incompetent you couldn’t draft a business plan yourself” she fired 

Once the words left her lips, she regretted it.

Ruby wasn’t one to ever lose her temper or get annoyed easily even in the worst situations but with Nate, everything was different. She loved and hated him at the same time.

     “Excuse me” he mumbled and walked out

Ruby sighed as she slumped into a chair and watched his retreating figure.

“Why did he have to push me to the wall?”she cried “Did I go too far by calling him incompetent?”

She groaned and she rubbed her chin worriedly.

She had disrespected him yet again and he could fire her if he wanted to.