3. Penelope
Chapter 3
Penelope
My head is spinning, and it feels like so much has happened in the last ten or so minutes. Can it really have only been that long?
I went from being sure I was going to have to walk out of this office building in shame, resigned to another night of sifting through job listings and trying to arrange the meager offerings of my resume into something more attractive just to get my foot in the door, to… this.
Standing in the middle of a richly decorated conference room with all three of the Alphas who run Vantage Digital Systems.
It’s… overwhelming.
Xavier was easy to talk to, in his way. We bantered, and I felt more relaxed talking to him because I was pretty sure there was no way I was going to get the job. I thought he was just humoring me.
But now I have the job, and in the face of the other two thirds of this company’s leadership, I have a knot in my stomach about whether or not I can actually do this.
“Penelope, meet the co-owners of Vantage,” Xavier is saying, bringing my attention back to him. “This is Dominic Harrington and Tristan Blackwell. I’d explain what each of them brings to the company, but you’ll get a crash course on that soon enough.”
“It’s nice to meet you both,” I say, trying to sound confident and not like I want to throw up a little.
I’ve been in rooms full of Alphas before, and I know that they bring a certain presence with them, domineering and controlling, overpowering the room with their scents and their attitudes, but this is different.
Neither Dominic or Tristan are saying anything, just looking at me, but I’m still caught up in the competing scents of cinnamon, espresso, blackberries, and chocolate. Xavier’s lighter scent is there too, grounding me a bit in the face of this new challenge.
Dominic strides forward suddenly, his silvery grey eyes locked on me. To say he’s handsome would be an understatement. His hair is neatly trimmed and so dark it’s almost black. A contrast to the more tousled look of Xavier’s. He’s all hard lines and muscle, and that’s apparent even in the designer suit he’s wearing. It’s tailored so well it seems like it was made just for him, charcoal black and creased to perfection.
He’s all dominance and control as he stalks closer to me, and I force myself to keep my gaze on him and not look away. When he’s close enough, I note that he’s the one giving off the blackberry and dark chocolate scent. It’s enticing and so deep that it’s almost bitter. There’s a spicy undertone to it as well, alluring even as it warns you away.
I take a deep breath, trying not to be bowled over by the wrecking ball of his presence.
“Really?” he says, looking from me to Xavier and then back again. “Her?”
Xavier nods. “Her.” He sounds cheerful about it. “She had a great interview.” He winks at me, and something eases in my gut.
“What companies have you worked for before?” Dominic asks me sharply. “How many years of experience do you have doing office work? How many of those were for a tech company of this size?” He doesn’t even give me a chance to answer, firing questions at me like he’s already sure he won’t be impressed with the answers.
Whatever magnetic pull had been there before is shattered a bit in the moment, and I can feel my hackles raising at his tone. It’s obvious he’s doubting Xavier’s decision to hire me, and I can’t tell if he’s just combative or if he really thinks I’m not worth hiring.
All at once I’m so frustrated with being talked down to. First Sienna, and now this. It makes me braver than I would be ordinarily.
“I’ve been told more than once that there aren’t any tech companies of this size and scope, Mr. Harrington,” I fire back. “So I don’t see how I would even be able to have experience working for one. It’s starting to feel like a trick question to me. Other than that, I can hold my own in an office, and the only way you’ll ever know if that’s true is if you give me a chance.”
The part of my brain that usually doesn’t like to be rude is yelling at me to shut up, to not run my mouth to this Alpha, who pretty much has my fate in his hands right now. But the part of me that’s learned to not let people walk all over me, no matter how intimidating they are, won’t give in. If he fires me after I’ve only been hired for ten minutes, then so be it. I guess.
Dominic’s eyebrows rise, and he doesn’t say anything right away. I half expect him to snap back, to have me thrown out of the building for my audacity or something, but he doesn’t lash out. Some of the intensity drains from the moment instead, and something like a smile quirks the corner of his full lips. Just a tiny one, there and then gone. There’s something more than dismissal in his eyes now, at least, and he’s looking at me like he sees a person for the first time since I walked in.
Those silvery eyes track over my face, and I fight the urge to blush under his scrutiny. What does he see when he looks at me, now that he’s really looking? My heart pounds in my chest, and I force myself to keep the eye contact, not looking away first. It’s not every day you stare down a handsome Alpha in his own office building, but this day has already been a lot.
“Fine,” he says, stepping back and away from me. “You can have the job—on a trial basis. That’s standard, so don’t complain. We need to see if you can handle the pressures of a job like this before we make anything permanent.”
“Sure,” I say, relief flooding through me. “That seems fair.”
“So glad we have your approval,” Dominic says shortly and turns away from the whole conversation. The sudden absence of his presence is almost as jarring as it was to have it in my face.
That leaves me, Xavier, and Tristan standing in the middle of the room. Xavier looks happy to have Dominic on his side, and he turns to Tristan, who has been largely silent since his argument with Dominic was interrupted.
“What about you?” Xavier asks him. “Do you want to grill her a little or are you on board?” A smile spreads over his face like he finds the whole thing funny, and it should be annoying, but it’s hard to look away from him.
It’s hard to look away from any of them.
Tristan doesn’t respond right away. Instead he steps closer and gives me the same kind of examination that Dominic did.
Well, not the exact same kind. Dominic was easy to read, all power and arrogance, like he was trying to cower me with every step he took and every flick of his eyes over my body and face. But Tristan feels more closed off. His face is unreadable, neutral and blank, and it’s impossible to judge anything about what he’s thinking from the guarded look in his whiskey brown eyes.
He gives nothing away, and it leaves my head spinning, trying to figure out what he’s looking for.
Can he tell that my one interview outfit is thrifted and probably several seasons out of style? Is there a stain somewhere on it from my hasty morning coffee before I showed up for the interview? Is my hair messy? Is there something in my teeth?
Where Xavier was warm and open and Dominic seemed to burn hot, Tristan just seems cold by comparison. A different kind of intense that leaves me fighting the urge to shiver.
He’s every bit as handsome as the other two, bearded, with shaggy dark hair that falls into his eyes a little bit. A scar cuts across his right eyebrow and down his cheek, the skin roughened and slightly darker than the rest of his complexion. But despite the prominence of the mark, it doesn’t take anything away from his looks. If anything, it just adds to the whole rugged and brooding thing he seems to have going on.
Interestingly, where Xavier and Dominic’s scents seemed to suit their personalities, I’m hit with a wash of sweetness from him. Like freshly baked cinnamon rolls and toasted almond croissants. It sparks a longing in me, my hands itching to knead dough and dust sugar.
Tristan comes closer, even closer than Dominic did, looming over me with his tall, muscular frame. My breath catches in my throat, and I feel sure that all three of them can hear my heart slamming against my ribs at this point. He still doesn’t say anything, just standing there silently, giving me nothing to go on. It’s scary, honestly, having this much of an Alpha’s focus, but I can’t deny that he’s hot and the power he has so casually makes my mouth a little dry.
The moment stretches on for what feels like forever, and I don’t blink, I barely even breathe.
Then finally, Tristan looks away. He glances at the other two and grunts, jerking his head in a nod.
Xavier breaks into a grin, and the warmth of it thaws some of the ice leftover from the interaction—if you could call it that —with Tristan. It’s easier to focus on him anyway, and to let his good humor soothe my anxiety over all of this.
“That’s that then. I knew the two of them would see reason.” He winks at me and my cheeks flush with color. Great. I was doing so well, too.
“If that’s everything, we’re busy,” Dominic says, his tone short and brooking no argument.
Xavier huffs a laugh and rolls his eyes, gesturing for me to follow him. “Let me walk you out, Ms. Dalton.”
I nod gratefully, ready to be done with this conference room and the other two Alphas. I turn back just a bit as I follow Xavier out, struck by the way Dominic and Tristan look in the light that pours in from the wall of windows. They look almost regal as they go back to their meeting, strong and powerful, and I have to tear my eyes away so I can hurry after Xavier.
Out in the hall with the door closed, I breathe a small sigh of relief.
“You did great,” Xavier tells me, like he can read my emotions all over my face. Maybe he can. “Getting past the two of them was the biggest hurdle. At least until the work starts.”
“I think I’ll be grateful for the work,” I manage. “At least that’s more familiar.”
He laughs, shaking his head. “Don’t worry. They’ll warm up to you. Now that this has been the longest job interview in the history of job interviews, let’s get you out of here.”
We walk back toward the elevator so I can take it down to the ground floor. As we go, Xavier flips into details mode.
“So, as we discussed, you’ll start on Monday. It’s a nine to five sort of thing, unless we’re under the gun, then it might turn into eight to eight or seven to ten. But that’s pretty rare, and we try not to have our staff pushing those kinds of hours if we can help it. For Monday, get here a little early so you can fill out paperwork and get oriented in the office.”
I try to keep myself focused on what he’s saying, knowing it’s important information, but my head swims a bit, making it harder than it should be. It’s coming down from the adrenaline of this strange morning, combined with the way I can smell Xavier so clearly in this hallway. On top of that, I still have the scents of the other two Alphas lingering, like proximity to them has left their scents on me.
Either that, or the scent of them is just so ingrained in this place, as if they’ve scented it and left their mark to show it’s theirs and theirs alone.
Whatever the reason, it’s a lot, and I feel dizzy with it. Cinnamon and nuts mix with dark chocolate and spice, and over it all is the fresh mint and coconut smell of Xavier. It’s such a heady mix, and it makes my mouth water.
I put a hand out to the wall to steady myself and go to take a deep breath, which is a mistake. My head is overwhelmed with mint and coconut and whipped cream, although it barely drowns out the other scents.
I look up and all I see is Xavier, gazing at me with concern on his handsome face.
“Are you all right?” he asks, reaching out like he wants to help steady me.
“Yeah,” I say quickly, moving back, away from that hand. If he touches me, it’s only going to get worse. “I mean, yes. I’m fine. Just tired.” I force a laugh and hit the button for the elevator, praying it will come quickly. “It’s been a long morning.”
“I get that,” Xavier says, nodding. “But I wouldn’t have hired you if I didn’t think you could do it. Just don’t lose that spark I see in you, and you’ll be fine.”
I nod back, and a few seconds later the elevator dings and the doors slide open. I could weep with relief as I step inside and mash the button to take me to the ground floor and out of here.
“See you on Monday,” Xavier says, waving as the doors close.
I wave back until he’s out of sight and then slump against the cool metal wall of the elevator. It’s easier to breathe in here, at least, and I put a hand over my thundering heart. I told Xavier I was fine, but alone in here I have to wonder if that’s actually true.
I needed a job, needed one desperately. To the point where it was starting to look appealing to see if the local diner was hiring waitresses. This job is the best option I have, but all I can do is hope it wasn’t a mistake. It feels like playing with fire, working for three Alphas who are each powerful in their own right and who have such overpowering scents.
Because the truth is, I lied about one thing in my interview. One very big thing.
I’m not a Beta. I’m an Omega.