To add to it, he didn’t even look up or greet me as I entered. The woman with wiry white hair whom I had never met before chirped as soon as I shut the door, “Congratulations, Izzy! We have amazing news for you. Take a seat.”
I readjusted my pinstripe wool pencil skirt and glanced between both of them with so many questions running through my mind. “I’m sorry. Is he a part of this—”
She cut me off by talking over me. “Oh, Mr. Armanelli sits in on some office procedures. He is a supervisor here. Have you met—”
“We have.” My tone gave away precisely how much I despised him.
“Right.” She shifted in her chair. “Well, please take a seat.”
Chewing on my cheek, my heart beat faster. Thinking over the last conversation I’d had with Cade, I replied, “I’m fine with standing.”
“Of course. Of course.” She chuckled. “Well, you’ve been reassigned to Stonewood Enterprises, and it was such a great contract that you’ll be starting in the next week. No long waiting period.”
“Reassigned?” I stuttered, the air whooshing out of my lungs. I felt like I’d been sucker punched.
“Yes, we’ve acquired a wonderful contract.” She slid it across her pristine white desk while he typed away like no one was in the room.
The fact that he was even there—after having never set foot in this office in all the time I’d been there—was him waving a red flag in my face. Like he wanted to fight.
I cleared my throat and straightened my blouse, not picking up the packet to even appear intrigued. “But what if I don’t want to be reassigned?”
“Well, this is within the state’s rights, Ms. Hardy. If you check section...” She droned on about distance between home and work and where I was needed and a bunch of other crap I knew wasn’t true. I just glared at him with his smug expression as he lifted his gaze to smirk at me.
Anger, swift and hot, flew through me faster than I could control. “You requested this, didn’t you? The almighty Caden Armanelli.” I wrinkled my nose at him in disgust.
Immediately, the woman stood, her blue eyes widened into orbs of concern. People didn’t just sneer Cade’s full name. Businessman, my ass. We all knew when they threw around the Armanelli mafia name they got what they wanted. “Ms. Hardy, we’ve talked with a few of your team members, and there is state work you’ll still be doing there. It’s a great opportunity for you all to be contracted there. Cassie and Braxton will be transferred too. You’ll get amazing corporate raises that the state can’t compete with. You’ll even get to travel for work, and it’s good for the team.”
“Let me guess.” I popped a hip. “If I don’t go, my team doesn’t either.”
The woman stepped between Cade and me, like she wanted to break our eye contact. “You’ve done fantastic work, and we’d like you all to stay together, yes.”
“This can’t be protocol.”
“Honestly...” She sighed and rubbed her eyes like she’d had a long day. Her wrinkles, testaments to the stress she faced, moved with her hands. “I’m going to level with you. It may not be protocol, but if you don’t comply, you all will most likely be out of a job.”
I leaned to the side enough so that I could see him. “That true, Cade Armanelli?”
One side of his mouth hitched at me sneering his name. “Ms. Hardy, I promise corporate America will suit you.”
The lady nodded. “Cade does run most of the data security teams here, Ms. Hardy. I do suggest you take the offer. Your salary—and the salaries of everyone on your team—has been doubled, and you probably have more opportunities there than you do here.”
I sighed.
I would have thrown a tantrum, demanded they reconsider, and maybe even thrown a pen or two around. But that was the Izzy of years ago, before I lost myself to passivity. I was better now. I’d reformed. I’d packed my emotions up into a nice, neat box so no one could say I was being a diva or indulging in that personality of mine that got me into trouble.
Everyone said I was such a grown-up now, but most days, it felt like I was simply tired. Keeping a lid on so many emotions would do that to a person. Still, I accepted my lot and hoped I could go home soon for a nap and reset. “Thank you for the opportunity,” I told her, the words as sour as limes in my mouth.
Cade’s eyebrows raised. “That’s it?”
I swear, he wanted a fight, but I wouldn’t give him one. The woman hurried on with a nervous chuckle. “I promise, it’s for the best. You’ll thank me once you’re settled into your new position. You’ll see. You’ll probably have more time on your hands there.”
What she didn’t understand was that Iwantedto do all I was doing for the government. I wanted—no, Ineeded—to work hard for them. My mind didn’t do well without a goal or something to occupy it. It was how I kept the indulgent side of me, the side that was bottled up, from creeping out.
Cade was ruining everything, and he damn well knew it.
Three Months Later
Cade: Stop trying to hack into government property.