Chapter Three

“Miss Ridley, can you please get me the Brandon files? Also get me a cup of coffee, black, no sugar. Thank you,” the dark voice said. Miss Ridley scurried into the office with the files. She dropped the files and scurried to hand the coffee to the man. Because she was so terrified, she spilled a few hot drops onto his hands, and she nearly died. “I am terribly sorry mr hastings, I am so sorry.” “It's all right, Amelie. Get me a wet wipe,” the man said, dismissing her with a wave of his palm. She scurried off to get a wet wipe from her desk.

Not that her boss was some sort of monster; far from it. Normally, he was quite cool and considerate, but today was different. He just had a meeting with his father, who came to the office unannounced and spent the next few minutes berating his son. Naturally, this drove her boss into a rage. But he was the considerate boss that he is. He never transferred his aggression to his staff.

She quickly brought him the wet wipes, apologizing profusely once again. Steel gray pools under knotted brows looked directly at her, and she couldn't help it when an “ipppp” escaped her lips. “Why are you so flustered, Miss Ridley? We all make mistakes, don't we? Gladly I didn't sustain any burns, so I can still work, not that I would penalise you if I had a burn. I'd have preferred a burn; at least I can go home early today under that excuse,” raising her glasses to the tip of her nose, Miss Ridley responded, “Sir, you could go on a break or a vacation. You haven't taken a vacation, a day off, or sick leave in well over two years; you even come to work on most weekends. If I owned a business, I would go on as many breaks as I want.” The man regarded her intensely, and she shrivelled under his gaze. Then he suddenly burst into a rich laugh. “It isn't that simple, Amelie. Where I come from, breaks are seen as a kind of weakness. Plus, we have quite a lot to achieve in so short a time. What do I have on my schedule for today?” Miss Ridley quickly took her phone out of her pocket and chirped away. “At 11 am, you have a meeting with the development team. At 1 pm, you have the promotional photoshoot. At 3 pm, you have the meeting with the legal team. After that, you have to meet up with Mr Henry Clifford. And that will be all for the day”

The man had his hands together in the collapsed prayer pose over his nose as he listened to his secretary. He sighed when she finished. “Thank you, Miss Ridley.” “You’re welcome, sir. Would you like me to send up some food for you? I noticed you haven't been eating much of late,” the man sighed again. “That would be great, Amelie.” “Alright, sir, it will just be a few minutes.” With that, she left the office, and the man sank into his chair with a defeated sigh. He was having such a great day before his father interrupted his day to spew his disappointment. The quarterly revenue updates on the companies were delivered yesterday, and even though the businesses did great, his father was anything but impressed. His father urged him to do better, comparing him to others who did even better. Sighing again, he ran his hands through his dirty blond hair.

Jefferey Hastings is by no means a plain-looking man; you can consider him a total heartthrob, with a full head of dirty blond hair that has all the ladies swooning, graced with very light steel-gray eyes that feel like they're boring into your soul. His face is also framed by a beard the same colour as his hair, which he keeps trimmed and professional. His body is also filled with rippling muscles; you could call him an Adonis. Standing at a full height of six feet four, he was every woman’s fantasy; sadly, he hasn't had the time or desire to appreciate or entertain their advances.

“Sir, it's almost time for your 11 am meeting.” “Thank you, Miss Ridley.” Jeffrey gathered up the necessary files and joined the development team in the boardroom. They were developing software that helps people plan, calculate, save, and invest their finances without the rigorous process of manual calculations. The meeting ran till 1:10 pm, and he had to leave for his promotional photoshoot after Miss Ridley prompted him.

If there’s anything he hates, it's getting his photo taken and being in the public eye. He didn't even have a social media presence, save for a dormant F******k account. His kid sister often chided him and called him a reincarnated old-timer who couldn't let go of the Stone Age. Truth is, he just wanted to have a quiet life without the publicity and external probing. However, he knew that was next to impossible, as he was the frontman for some of the family's business, and so was he.

He zoned out for most of the photoshoot and only moved mechanically as the photographer prompted him. They also had a surprise interview to publicize their upcoming software launch, and he was utterly irritated and tired by the end of it. Thankfully, Miss Ridley pushed his 3 pm meeting by thirty minutes so he could catch a breath, and she had lunch sent up for him too.

He was absolutely grateful for the help and support of Miss Ridley. She was a cousin twice removed on his mother's side, and she came highly recommended. After the much-needed break, he went to the meeting with the legal team, which was very boring but necessary. He internally heaved a sigh of relief when the meeting was over. Today was one of his less busy days, but it was still quite crushing; he couldn't wait to meet up with Henry.

“Mr Hastings, Mr Clifford would like you to know that he set up a reservation for 5 pm at Maison de Viande. He also said that he would be waiting for you so you can take your time if you're running late,” Miss Ridley said over the intercom. “Thank you, Miss Ridley. You've been very helpful today; you should head home soon. Thank you once again for the food. It is your birthday in three days, right? Take a two-day break. Just because I can't have breaks doesn't mean you shouldn't either.” “Thank you so much, Mr Hastings, best boss ever!” Amelie chirped into the intercom. Jefferry smiled as he replaced the receiver. He forced himself to clear up other tasks before he met with Henry.

At 5 pm prompt, Amelie prompted him to leave for his meeting and bade him goodbye for the day. In seven minutes, he was on his way to Maison de viande. He checked in with the host, who confirmed his reservation and led him to his table. He broke into a wide smile when he saw his friend, and they gave each other a firm handshake. “How's it going, Jeff? You look like you’ve aged ten years. What bothers you so?” Henry asked as he took his seat. Sighing perpetually, Jeffrey took his seat, rubbing his eyes with his right hand. “The old man came into the office unannounced today.” Henry sucked in a breath, looking sympathetically at his friend. He knew just how intense Arthur Hastings can be. “What is the issue this time around?” Henry asked. “We received the yearly revenue report yesterday, and he got a copy, unfortunately. I can't fathom what busybody gave it to him,” Jeffrey said, running his hands through his hair. A waiter comes up to take their order.

“Good evening, sirs. My name is Joshua, and I will be your server for the night. What would you like to order for starters, sirs?” “We would like to order a bottle of white wine. You can go ahead and suggest something great. For appetisers, I'll have the Gougeres and the escargots à la bourguignonne.” “Great, and for you,u sir?” The waiter turned to Jeffrey. “I'll have the salade lyonnaise and a side of brioche bread,” clasping his hands together, the waiter declared, “Excellent choice, gentlemen. For the wine, I'll recommend the Sancerre. For the main course, I'll recommend the steak au poivre and salade parisienne. For dessert, I'll recommend the Tarte Tatin and the Mille-Feuille.” “Excellent, Joshua! Thank you for the recommendations. We will go with those.”Alright, I will be with you shortly”

“Is it wrong to despise your father enough to wish he was no more?” Jeffrey asked, staring intently at his friend. “You can't say that, Jeff. I know your dad is a monster, but he still has a place in your lives and in the society” laughing sarcastically, jefferery remarked “the world at large will be better off without arthur hastings in it. That man has been a boulder on the backs of my mother, siblings and myself. Nothing we do is ever good for him.” with a sympathetic look, henry reached accross the table and gave his friend’s hand a comforting squeese “ I cant say i feel what you mean, but be rest assured that youb will be off his rader soon enough. For now, lets eat and make merry” jefferey visibly relaxed and soon their server brought their wine and starters and they both fell into happy conversations about work and thier personal lives.

“I bumped into Caleb a few days ago, looking dapper as ever and flanked by two ladies,” Jeffrey rolled his eyes as he took a swig of his wine. “I swear women would be the undoing of Caleb.” “Amen to that.” Henry raised his glass, and they cheered to that, ending the night on a great note, unaware of a looming scandal.