“Damn, it’s so… dead,” I blurt out. “How do you people live here?”
“We don’t. That’s the thing!” Alina exclaims, and I can see others nodding their approval. It makes me feel like the odd one out, but I guess I brought it on myself by not fully reading that stupid onboarding manual. I had no idea they took this stuff so seriously. “We draw a clear line between work and personal life here. We have strict working hours, we rarely work overtime, and we make sure to not keep anything in our office space that might make us want to stick around when we don’t really have to. It's an important thing for us, this healthy life-work balance culture…”
When she puts it like that, it does make sense. It also makes everything I brought over insanely trivial and useless.
“You’re right.” I sigh deeply, feeling my shoulders droop. “I’m so sorry, Alina. I was so excited about working here that I didn’t fully read your onboarding manual. I just thought I’d bring as much of my favorite stuff with me because I’m the kind of person who devotes most of my waking hours to a project that I deeply care about. In this case, it’s Asclepius under the Bucklow Tech umbrella. I had no idea my little potted cactus would cause so much trouble…”
“Potted cactus?” Alina raises an eyebrow.
I have no choice but to set the box on the edge of the nearest desk so I can take out Pepe, the only plant I haven’t managed to kill. It’s a short and plump cactus with long, thick thorns and a light purple blossom bursting on one side. “I was so glad to see this place had east and west windows,” I mumble, my cheeks burning red.
“I think the cactus can stay,” Will says upon reaching us with a bemused expression. I kind of like that twinkle in his eyes. It spells mischief, if I’m not careful. “As long as it helps with your productivity. But everything else can stay at home, Miss MacArthur. Once you do an in-depth reading of our onboarding manual, you’ll understand why it’s so important to us. Alina has done a tremendous job of writing and updating that thing for every new employee of Bucklow Tech.”
“Right. Okay. Thank you, sir.” I exhale sharply.
Alina offers a smile. “Let me take this stuff over to your desk, in the meantime.”
“Come to my office, Miss MacArthur,” Will says. “There’s a brief induction process I need to take you through.” I recognize the lawyer waiting in the doorway of his office. Zara something. Sharp and gorgeous and insanely self-confident. Everybody here is just so… bold. I’m like a squishy overbaked peach by comparison.
“Take Pepe, too, please,” I say and slip the cactus back in the box.
“Sure,” Alina mutters.
I’m particularly awkward in situations where I’ve managed to color outside the lines. With Will Bucklow, the stakes are even higher on account of me calling him a prick over a stupid coffee queue. Sure, he outbid a rival company for a ridiculous amount of money in order to hire me, but I’m sure there’s only so much he’ll take from yours truly before he stops taking me seriously altogether.
And when that happens, that will spell the end of Asclepius.
“Shall we?” Will motions for me to follow him.
“Let’s go,” I reply and walk meekly behind him as we cross the remaining half of the open space and glide into his sunny office.
Once the door closes behind me, I’m inclined to breathe a sigh of relief, but a different kind of atmosphere soon hits me as Zara sinks into one of the guest chairs, offering me a seat in the other one while Will settles behind his desk.
I’m on his turf now.
I’m in the blue-eyed lion’s den, and I am utterly defenseless.
Worse, this is my second interaction with Will Bucklow, and also my second fumble.
CHAPTER5
OLIVIA
It takes an apparent forever for me to even look up.
Zara doesn’t take her eyes off me, likely expecting me to say something, but all I’ve been able to do in the past minute or two is stare at my hands, fumbling mutely in my lap. Will isn’t saying anything either. It’s like they’re both just waiting for me to make a fool of myself. Because I haven’t done enough of that already. Sheesh.
“So, um… you mentioned something about an induction?” I manage to ask, my voice a croak as my gaze finds Will’s again. Every time it happens, it makes my heart stop for a sweet second. What a dangerous and inappropriate feeling this is, and yet I cannot shake it. Perhaps I’m a masochist deep down, and Will is the universe’s way of punishing me—or maybe it’s giving me precisely what I deserve. I’m not sure yet. “How… um, how will that go?”
“Well, first of all, I presume you’ve already met Zara Henstridge, our company’s attorney,” Will replies, nodding toward the short-haired brunette.
“Yes, we’ve met and spoken a few times already,” I say. “I should say it again, though—it’s a pleasure, Miss Henstridge.”
“Call me Zara, please,” she says, then looks to Will. “She’s all yours, I’m afraid.”
“Tough luck,” Will shoots back with a dry smirk.
“Maybe I’ll reach out to Lilian’s office and see if she’s still interested in a good divorce litigator. I might introduce her to someone in exchange for a lobster dinner,” Zara says, then gets up to leave. “Have a great day, kids. Will, I’ll pick you up for drinks later.”