Arielle and Thomas had parted ways for the last time - saying goodbyes and thanking each other for making their vacation special.
During the time they had spent together, they had felt extremely comfortable with each other. Whether it was doing things they liked or talking about their past, dreams, fears, or taboos; while eating and drinking; or in bed - they seemed to be intensely compatible.
At the same time, they were very much like each other in that neither wanted to intrude upon another’s private space or was fantastical enough to assume something could be permanent between them.
They both felt they would be their most memorable dream, but just a dream and not reality, nonetheless.
After returning to their own life, neither had thought about the other.
**Two months later**
Arielle headed to the headquarters of Payne Group of Industries, PGI. She was poached by PGI rather handsomely.
Mr. Douglas, the HR manager, helped her complete the formalities and introduced her to everyone.
Finally, they arrived at the 49th floor of the building, which held the President's office, secretarial staff, and one of the largest conference rooms in the building.
Mr. Douglas led Arielle to a small meeting room where she was to meet the management staff of PGI before having a one-on-one conversation with the President himself.
“This is Mr. Andrew Knight, Vice-President of Payne Enterprises. He would be your point of contact as he is the only person who has the authority to provide you with all the credentials and the level of access you had requested, except for the President himself.” Mr. Douglas explained.
Quietly he whispered, “He is also friends with the President, so getting on his good side is not a bad idea.”
After the introductions were over, the President himself showed up.
He was supposed to be present for the meeting but was held back by a last-minute call. He joined them as soon as he could.
Just as the door opened, and the two people saw each other, they stiffened, wide-eyed.
But professionals as they were, they reverted to normal within half a second before anyone noticed anything.
Arielle had never thought she would see “Tom” again. They had had fun during the vacation and had not bothered to keep in touch. Seeing him in the company was a huge surprise.
But some pieces started to fit as she recalled the things he had said about himself.
Arielle pretended not to know him and greeted him composedly when Mr. Douglas introduced him.
Thomas had never in his wildest dreams imagined that there would be such a coincidence between them.
He recalled she had mentioned that she was celebrating bagging the biggest deal of her career. Seeing her in that conference room made him realize she was talking about his offer, which, he must admit, was quite generous.
Looking at the shock on her face, she was just as astonished as he was. But as usual, she had quickly put two and two together.
Thomas curled his lips at their strange fate together.
Fortunately, Thomas’s assistant, John Geller, ended their stiff introduction and awkward air.
John had been Thomas’s assistant since he started working right after college. He could sense his boss’s emotions accurately.
It was a piece of cake for him to see that Thomas was acquainted with Miss Arielle Ward and that her being there was a pleasant surprise, albeit unexpected.
He eased the atmosphere smoothly and led the conversation as they covered the key points on Arielle’s contract and her requests with other folks from management.
As per the contract, PGI was to cover Arielle’s accommodation and commute.
John had prepared a gorgeous three-bedroom apartment in the middle of the city center, hired a maid, and arranged for a private car with a chauffeur.
She refused the maid and chauffeur but accepted the car.
At the end of the meeting, Thomas asked Arielle to see him in his office.
“Miss Ward, let's head to my office. You will report everything directly to me, and John will help you with everything you need.”
Arielle was surprised at his words.
Even before Arielle knew Thomas was Tom, she had expected a private audience with him. The change in her point of contact was unexpected.
She, however, managed to shrug it off and reply with composure.
Andrew Knight raised his eyes at Thomas, but seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he stopped overthinking.
He knew how important Miss Ward was to the future of PGI and the astronomical sum she was poached. It made sense for Thomas to manage her personally.
However, instinctively he thought there was more between them as he could sense unusual chemistry.
Arielle stood in front of Thomas’s desk. John, thoughtfully, closed the door behind him after exchanging contact details with her.
“Are we going to continue pretending not to know each other?” Thomas asked.
“Not anymore, apparently,” Arielle said as she took the seat on the couch.
Thomas sat opposite her on the couch.
“So, you are the most expensive Financial Analyst in the industry, huh? I am not even surprised given how meticulous you are,” He complimented.
“Thank you! I can’t believe I bragged about being poached lucratively to you.” She clicked her tongue.
“Well, I am happy to see you nonetheless.” He smiled.
“Me too. Though I would have preferred different circumstances, preferably one where you are not my boss.” She quipped.
“Ah well, small details!” He shrugged.
“Let’s keep our entanglement private, please,” Arielle asked.
“Why?” Thomas was displeased at her wanting to pretend not to know each other.
“If the word gets out, I will get orchestrated for sleeping with the boss and accused of getting this job that way. I would rather focus my time and energy doing actual work and not trying to deal with gossip.” Arielle explained calmly without any hint of anger in her voice.
She could practically see herself hounded by everyone.
“I am sorry. I did not think of it like that. I will try my best not to make things difficult for you.” Thomas understood her point of view, and she was indeed right.
Competent people always have to be careful of being dragged down by gossip and public opinion used by incompetent people who could not compete with them, fair and square.
Arielle stood on the balcony of the ballroom. Payne Group (PGI) had hosted a Welcome dinner for her, which was more like an unofficial banquet given the number of people who had attended. It had been a week since she had joined PGI and settled in her new apartment. Things were looking great so far. Arielle had been worried Thomas might leak out something about their private lives, but he had been nothing but strictly professional, which had helped her relax and ease into her role effortlessly. This so-called gathering, however, was not something she fancied. She had always kept a low profile and let her work do the talking. Being bad at office politics and not normal enough to make easy friends nor having enough time to socialize, she kept everyone at a distance with a cold face. But PGI had organized this gathering to let their employees know that she was a specially recruited person with high status. It was Thomas’s way of showing his favor. She could not fault Thomas for this
**One month later** Arielle woke up late. She had slept past 3 am after completing the report she wanted to discuss with Thomas that day. It was Friday, and she wanted to get some things out of the way before she could relax for the weekend. Arielle had the unhealthy habit of being too engrossed in her work and forgetting about her health and everything else. The more work there was, the more she would work off on adrenaline, making herself extremely tired by the end of each grueling project. She shut her eyes as she leaned in the elevator and yawned behind her palm. She was aware of the people looking at her wide-eyed as if she were an alien. Arielle could feel a few unfriendly gazes on her, but she ignored them. She had almost two decades of experience in ignoring hostile looks. However, what prompted her to open her eyes a crack was a feeling of someone stealing peeks at her as if she was a precious treasure, and they were afraid of disturbing her. She ignored that as well
**Three months later** Thomas and Arielle were living in their high. Their work was going exceedingly well. They were practically living together. No one knew of the secret fling. They were happy and content with each other. However, the company was in chaos. Arielle was good at her job. She had accurately flagged most of the employees hired through back-doors - using connections or due to sucking up to others, rather than their workability. She had, similarly, flagged troublesome projects likely to end up as a liability. There were a lot of peaceful and forced exits and contract breaches in the last three months. That led to a series of unrest among the employees. The internal stir and tense environment had Arielle and Thomas cracking their heads. It was evident that people were let go due to their incompetence. As such, people hired on merit and doing their work well need not have panicked, but unfortunately, that was not the case. Arielle suspected that someone could be
Arielle was leaning against the counter while her espresso brewed when Emma arrived. “You! Make me a cup of coffee!” Emma ordered Arielle like she would order her servants at home. For Emma, her employees were nothing better than her servants. Being the oldest child, the only child for the first five years, and the only girl in the family, she had been excessively spoiled. No one in her family corrected her attitude as it went from bad to worse as PGI flourished. Emma’s grandmother was the only one who would not tolerate her behavior, even with her husband speaking on behalf of the kids. Perhaps, Emma and Thomas had different personalities despite being siblings because of their grandmother. Thomas had stayed with his grandparents since he was young because he disagreed with his elder sister, which led to constant fights. Emma would avoid anyone in the family who tried to discipline or contradict her. Hence, Thomas lived with his Grandma rather than his parents. Arielle ignore
Seeing Sophia coming toward them, Arielle smiled at Thomas and said, “Go take a long piss or something!” Thomas was dumbfounded. “Excuse me!” Arielle said without changing her expression, “I see Sophia Green making her way here. Let me talk to her in private.” Thomas frowned but did not turn his head. He left after saying, “Whatever she says, don’t take it to heart. I will give you an explanation later.” Arielle frowned but nodded before he left. Arielle acted unconcerned and started playing with her phone as if she had not seen Sophia. “May I take this empty chair?” Sophia asked, emphasizing the word empty. Without waiting for a reply, she took Thomas’s chair and tea as if she was marking her territory. Arielle kept her phone aside and said coldly, “Miss Green, I have company as should have been evident by the teacup on the table and the coat hanging on the chair.” Sophia sneered aloud, “Miss Ward, why are you so hostile towards me? I am here to offer an olive branch.” Arie
**Three weeks later** Arielle had all the proof to sue both Emma and Sophia. When she was about to take action, Thomas’s mother, Emelia Payna, approached her. It derailed her plans. Emelia threatened to make her disappear if found entangling with Thomas, who was due to marry Sophia. Arielle waited for two weeks for an explanation from Thomas, but he did not say a word. Thomas merely explained that Sophia was the girlfriend he had at college, the one who had tried to use him without knowing his identity. Thomas had assured Arielle that he did not have any feelings for Sophia, he had not had any in years, and Sophia was nothing to him. But he could tell something was bothering Arielle. His worries came true when he arrived in her apartment to see candlelight dinner, wine, and a table full of his favorite dishes. “What’s wrong?” He asked straightaway. “It’s scary how well you know me,” Arielle laughed bitterly. “El, what is it?” He panicked. “Let’s break up!” She said, looki
**Two weeks later** The second last Monday of Arielle’s contracted time in PGI proved to be a difficult one. Emma and Sophia had managed to collate some ‘evidence’ against Arielle and were determined to push her to the abyss. As soon as lunch break started, the main LCDs on the reception hall and the cafeteria blew up. A video, composed of a few small clips strung together, was played in a loop. Emma and Arielle were having an altercation in the break room that ended with Emma dumping hot coffee on Arielle. Arielle left the office without informing anyone. Since there was no audio, people only saw Arielle ignoring Emma and being disrespectful. Emma was, after all, a Payne, former CEO of PGI, and current Managing Director. Arielle was just a specially recruited contracted employee. Worse still, she seemed to be dating the CEO, sleeping her way to the top. The next video showed Sophia apologizing and begging Arielle while the latter only had a disdainful, indifferent expression
Arielle spent the entire week drowned in insults and jabs aimed at her, but she was too busy to care. A few people were in awe of her indifference and ability to endure. While a bunch of people thought she was too shameless to care. The majority, however, kept their opinions to themselves. Unbeknownst to them, Arielle was listening to everyone and keeping note of overly verbose people. A part of her job was cleaning the company, which meant she had to root out the bad apples. This rumor had helped Arielle by creating an environment of conflict. It was a chance to evaluate people’s characters. Arielle disliked people who thrived on gossip and other people’s misery without empathy or remorse. She would include them on her list of toxic people ruining the work culture. It was up to Thomas what he wanted to do with them. Finally, the day of the banquet came. Arielle showed up with a date who happened to be the man whose hotel room she had entered in one of those videos. It thr