CHAPTER 4

Amaka's POV:

"Sorry, sir. I was mistaken. I thought you were someone that I knew before," I said, as his blue eyes held mine.

"It's fine. Come ahead for your interview. Why do you want to work here with us?" He asked, clicking on his laptop like he was going through my credentials.

I was affected seeing him, but the fact that he acted like he didn't know me again or recognize who I was, made me tremble.

"Hello?" He raised an eyebrow and looked at me.

"Right. I am a digital marketing student, and I graduated with distinction. I think I will help your company in marketing their products and services online," I said, my gaze lowered as I tried not to look at his face.

Joseph had changed, and he looked more masculine and handsome. My son resembles him, only that Jason was fair like me.

"I see," he replied, and clicked on his mouse.

"We only employ staff that are committed to their jobs and don't breach our company agreement. If you dare to breach our company agreement, you will have to pay a fine of 5 million naira for it," he said.

"Okay. I am an honest person, sir. And you don't have to worry about that," I said, lowering my gaze and avoiding his eyes.

"Hmm," he agreed. "You can meet with Ms. Anita to sign up with her."

"Thank you, sir," I replied, standing up from the guest chair as I looked at Joseph Ericson once more. He had returned his gaze back to his laptop, and I cannot believe that he doesn't recognize me.

Did I change? My eyes welled up in tears, and he looked at me.

"What's the problem, Madam?" He asked, meeting my gaze, and I searched his dark, handsome face to see if he was affected by me. But none.

"Nothing, sir." I quickly replied. Blinking my teardrop away, as I moved out of the guest chair. I could feel his eyes on me, but I didn't look back as I left his office.

I wanted to resign working here. But this was the very first job that I would be getting after graduating. How can my child's father be the owner of this establishment? Was that really Joseph Ericson?

I looked back as his office door closed with an inscription, "CEO - JOSEPH ERICSON OFFICE."

My brows furrowed upon realizing he was the one. I looked away and met with Ms. Anita's curious gaze on me, and she asked me, "How did it go?"

I smiled, seeing the other newcomers looking at me. As they were all fresh out graduates too, and young men and women.

"It went well, ma'am. I was just a bit emotional. Can I see the document?" I asked, and she replied, "Sure." She gave me the documents to look at. I quickly read the terms and conditions with working for them.

It was an exclusive agreement, meaning I wouldn't get to work for another company or to tarnish their group name.

I sighed and signed it, even though a part of me didn't want to.

I wanted to know if Joseph had a memory loss for failing to recognize me.

It had only been four years, and he was acting like he never knew who I was. Why was I so affected seeing him?

I took my copy of the agreement, and kept it in my bag, while Ms. Anita informed me, "You will have to wait to meet with your new coach."

"Okay, ma'am," I went to sit waiting. After a while, she came and said, "Come with me. You will be working under Simon Braxton. He's our marketing manager, so you can assist him with his job."

"Okay," I replied and followed her into Simon's office. The company was a four-story building, and I was surprised to see Simon was the same man who had paid my transport fare earlier in the morning. Unlike Joseph, Simon smiled and welcomed me, "Have a seat, pretty."

"Simon! You should know that such compliments aren't allowed here, except you want to lose your job," Ms. Anita warned him, but he laughed it off.

"Don't be jealous, Anita. I know her before, so move away. It's nice meeting you again, pretty. What's your name?" Simon asked me, ignoring Ms. Anita's threat. She grimaced, "Do not say that I didn't warn you."

She pulled Simon's office door open and left us, leaving me alone with him.

I braced myself forward to take a seat.

"Is everything alright, Miss?" Simon asked, looking concerned at me. I was sure that my face had turned crimson.

"Yes, sir. I'm fine," I replied, taking out my white handkerchief from my skirt pocket and wiped my face.

"Oh, please do away with the 'sir'. Just call me Simon, okay? I am not that old, and the boss is older than me, if you ask," he flashed me his nice set of white teeth, and I was forced to smile at his words.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. So we get to work today. How fate works," he smiled, and I smiled back.

"I will have the company security man to set up your office here. You should know that we will be getting along, so that I can lecture you before you move to your personal space," he said, leaning against his chair, and I looked around his office.

Just like Joseph's office, Simon's office was painted in white, and he had a large desk with his laptop before him.

"Alright. So my work starts today," I said to him, and he replied, "Yes. Or do you want to go home?"

"No. I am fine," I replied, and he smiled back.

"Let me call the security man to come and set up your office, I think that will make our work easier," he picked up his telephone and placed a call, and a security man came in.

The security man wore a white top, black trousers, and black boots.

"You sent for me, Simon," he said, and Simon replied, "Yes. Get a new office desk and a new laptop for my assistant," he told the security man, who looked at me and replied, "On it."

"Oh! I forgot my handbag. Let me get and get it," I told Simon, and he smiled.

"Feel free."

Once I stood up from Simon's guest chair, I stepped out of it and exited his office. His office was on the fifth floor, and likewise the boss's office.

Some staff work on the second and fourth floor. As the third floor was their meeting hall.

Ms. Anita had already lectured me about their company when I accepted and signed the contract with her.

I went back to the locker to take my bag and kept the key.

As I turned to head back to Simon's office, Ms. Anita came out of the boss's office on the fifth floor and smiled at me.

"How's your work with Simon going? You shouldn't pay any heed to him, and know that the boss's office is just next to his. Most of the offices have glass walls, to keep watch of whatever is going on. And also CCTV footage."

"Oh!" My cheeks burned redder.

"You don't have to worry about all that. Simon and I just coincidentally met today in a bus, and I have not really known much about him," I told her, and she gasped, "Oh! That's fine. You're free to reach out to me if you need further assistance. Take care, Miss Amaka."

"Alright," I replied and Ms. Anita walked away to her office, I sighed and went back to Simon's office to join him.

I was consciously aware that the boss was watching us in his office. They had cameras, and also, glass walls demarcating the offices from one another.

"Are you alright?" Simon asked, looking concerned as I stepped into his office to join him as the company's new assistant digital marketer.

"Yeah," I smiled, and he grinned back.

"Here's your new chair and your small desk. It will keep you comfortable, alright," he said, gesturing to the new chair and small desk set up in his vast office.

"Oh! Thank you," I smiled at Simon, and he rose from his chair, walking over to the new desk and chair to meet me.

"You shouldn't thank me, Amaka. We are like partners now, so my duty is to make your job easy," he leaned beside me as I sat on the new chair.

"Alright," I said, and he turned up the laptop to test it. I shifted my focus on the screen loading and watched him set it up.

"You will have to fill in your name and password and register. Any further assistance, reach out to me," he rose from my desk once he was done setting up the laptop, and I smiled at him.

"Thank you," I watched Simon move back to his chair, and I focused back on the laptop. I looked around the office and at the tinted glass wall, wondering what Joseph was up to. The glass was dark, and I couldn't see the next office. However, I felt nervous, knowing that I was under surveillance.