Chapter 6
6
Christa
I really don’t like speaking in front of so many people.
Not after my previous work experience, that is. I keep glancing at the clock, still stuck behind my desk, unable to move. It’s Friday and only ten minutes before the quarterly staff meeting starts. My phone pings.
Left you a gift in the top left drawer , River writes in his text. I would’ve sent it straight to your home address, but it seemed unprofessional to send you a gift to an address I pulled from your personnel file .
I stare at the text for a moment, trying to get my brain to work again, but then I open the drawer and find a pale pink box from an upscale lingerie store with a tag with my name on it attached to the lid.
It’s a breathtakingly beautiful lingerie set. Crotchless panties, bra, and a garter belt, an ensemble made from fine sapphire-blue lace with intricate detail work and silk ribbons. My fingertips tingle as I run them over the fabric, my eyes twinkling as I admire the embroidered Swarovski crystals and silver thread accents.
With trembling hands, I text him back. Are you serious?
Don’t tell me I didn’t get your size right. My hands have perfect memory .
It’s unprofessional to send this to my home address, but it’s professional to leave it in my desk at work?
He takes a while to type his reply while I wait on the edge of my seat with a fluttering heart.
Shall I take it back?
No.
Then wear it tonight. See you in ten minutes.
I have no smart-ass comeback. I can only smile as I put the box away. At least I traded one form of anxiety for a much sweeter one—now, I’m less stressed about the staff meeting and more nervous about our dinner date tonight.
“Ready?” River whispers as I take my seat next to him in the conference room.
“As I’ll ever be,” I reply with a weak smile.
Next to River, Nathan and Cassius sit comfortably, going over their briefing notes. A couple of chairs farther down, I see Tony—he sees me, too, and gives me a friendly wave. The chair to my left is empty, but I see a woman coming in with several other members of staff, and she’s looking right at us, a glimmer of recognition twinkling in her green eyes.
“That’s Alexandra Jones,” River tells me. “Our new partner in the green energy department.”
“Oh. Right. You’re developing over there, too,” I whisper, nodding slowly.
Alexandra Jones is a beautiful woman. Slim, with perfect, straight, black hair that cascades over her shoulders. Her skin glows. Her lips are perfectly plump and glossy pink. Her figure is wrapped tightly in a dark green pencil skirt and a soft yellow see-through shirt. Her perky breasts stand out against a lacy bra, and I know she’s wearing it on purpose. Her heels click louder as she reaches us and smiles a most charming smile.
“Good morning,” Alexandra says.
“Hi,” I reply with a soft smile.
She sits next to me but makes sure to lean forward and give the Hawthornes a warm, flirtatious wink. “You gentlemen are looking dapper as ever. Glad you invited me for this,” she says, and every word makes my entrails twist in an uncomfortable manner while I struggle to keep my friendly face on. “Though I’m not technically staff.”
“You’re a friend of the corporation and a partner in our green energy department, so it made all the sense in the world that you should join us this morning,” Cassius replies.
“It won’t take long; don’t worry,” River adds, and I can tell he’s a tad more tense about Alexandra’s presence than Cassius and Nathan are. “I’m sure you’ve got better things to do with your time.”
“And you must be Christa Campbell,” Alexandra says, shifting her focus to me.
“That I am.”
I tune out the murmurs of the people behind us as more staff members come into the room—the last ones, judging by the few empty chairs left. But Alexandra’s presence makes me feel apprehensive.
“I’ve heard wonderful things about you,” Alexandra tells me. “You’re leading their fintech department, right? The payment apps, the bank stuff?”
I chuckle softly. “Yes, the bank stuff as well. Thank you.”
“Forgive me, I don’t handle anything financial in my company. I’ve got great people on my payroll for that. All I do is skim the reports and pray to God I make informed decisions.” She laughs; it’s a sultry sound.
“Verdant Ventures is fairly successful, I’m told.”
“We’re getting there,” she says. “It’s a new company, but the funds are fresh and eager to be doled out, which is why I’m here today.”
“It’s a good field to explore. Renewables are the future.”
“Oh, yes, they are. And with brilliant, business-savvy minds such as theirs,” she says, nodding at the Hawthornes, “we’re going to make quite the stir on the market.”
“Alright, I’ll go first,” Cassius says, then gets up and looks around. “I think we’ve got everyone here.”
I sink into my chair, naturally inclined to make myself as small and as unnoticeable as possible while Cassius goes to the podium and greets his executives with a broad smile and a powerful voice that echoes across the large room.
“You’re nervous,” Alexandra whispers.
I’m not sure if she’s trying to poke me or trying to be nice.
“Yeah, I am,” I reply with a deep sigh.
“Let me guess, they’re going to have you go up there and introduce yourself.”
“Yeah.”
“Just pick someone in the crowd to look at,” she says while Cassius delivers a quick introductory speech about the last quarter and where the corporation is headed in the following quarter. “Forget about everyone else. Look at this person and tell them what you want to tell them.”
I almost laugh. “I know the Hawthornes, though. It would be ridiculous to introduce myself to them. I guess my brain can’t process that.”
“Look at me then,” Alexandra suggests.
“Without further ado, pleas welcome our new partner in the green energy department, Alexandra Jones of Verdant Ventures!” Cassius announces.
“Oops, that’s me,” she says and gets up.
Instantly, she shines like the morning star, bright and breezy, as she makes her way to the podium. Everything about her is in perfect control while the crowd claps to welcome her into the fold. Her gaze wanders across the room, and I can tell she’s enjoying the spotlight. Fearless. Composed. The complete opposite of me.
And she keeps smiling at the three brothers. It bugs the hell out of me.
“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen,” Alexandra says. “Like Cassius just said, I’m here as a partner solely in the green energy department since I’ll be providing the funds for the equipment needed to get the branch off the ground. Needless to say, I am super excited to be a part of this venture and to, hopefully, be responsible for generating plenty of new jobs in a city and state where the ballooning unemployment rate is in need of deflating.”
She laughs lightly, and the crowd laughs with her. They agree.
“Interesting woman,” River whispers in my ear.
“She seems nice,” I mutter as Alexandra continues her speech.
“Not only do I get to invest in the future, but I also get to work with your dashing, charming, and super-talented bosses, the revered Hawthorne brothers,” she says. “With them, I am eager to bring something to the table that will help pave the way for greater things to come.”
She goes on to talk about her role in the green energy department, dropping a light joke here and there, and the staff is gobbling up every word.
“Fucking hell! how am I supposed to follow that?” I mumble.
“Getting stage fright?” River asks me.
I nod slightly. “A little, yeah. I’m not a big fan of talking in front of a crowd. My work keeps me behind the computer screen. That’s my comfort zone.”
“You don’t have to do this,” he says, “if you don’t want to. The last thing I want is for you to feel pressured into doing anything you don’t want to do, Christa.”
I think about that, but then Alexandra gets a raucous ovation, and my competitive side rears its ugly head. “No, I’ve got this. It’s healthy to step out of one’s comfort zone once in a while,” I reply and get to my feet.
I switch places with Alexandra at the front of the room, and she goes back to her seat, but not before giving me a subtle nudge. “Remember, focus on me.”
“Everybody, now it’s time to welcome the new head of our financial technologies department.” Cassius speaks into his lapel microphone without getting up from his seat. “Which is another ambitious endeavor that will have our full attention over the next quarter.”
I turn to face the crowd, and suddenly, I’m too overwhelmed to speak.
Despite wanting to ignore the woman altogether, I can’t help but focus on Alexandra. “Good morning, everyone; I’m Christa Campbell,” I manage, the tremor in my voice traveling across the room. My cheeks burn. I keep my eyes on Alexandra. It’s working. The words are starting to come out in a coherent fashion. “As Mr. Hawthorne just said, I’ll be in charge of the financial technology department, which is currently on the verge of developing three extremely promising products. As the Hawthorne Corporations expands, seeking new horizons made sense, and the fintech market is still growing. There’s room for better payment apps, better crypto investment apps, and as many of you might know, there’s definitely room for better internal banking systems.” I pause.
The crowd is paying attention to me, but they are clearly not as enraptured with me as they were with Alexandra.
“Anyway, that’s going to be my scope. Developing these products and making them worthy to compete against the existing giants in the fintech market,” I continue. “Given my professional experience in the field, I know I’ve got what it takes to deliver, and it is truly an honor to be a part of this Hawthorne-funded project. I look forward to putting my skills to good use.”
Alexandra frowns slightly, then mouths the word “questions” at me. Without so much as a second thought, I lean into that.
“Now, if anyone has questions about me or my role here, this is your chance to ask.”
A hand goes up from a young man in a teal shirt. His smirk doesn’t sit well with me.
“Yeah, I have a question,” he says.
Instantly, the Hawthorne brothers’ heads turn, and I see the quiet anger darkening their faces—Nathan’s, in particular. I only need a fraction of a second to realize there’s some degree of animosity there, and I’m probably going to be collateral damage.
“Sure; shoot,” I reply.
“What exactly makes you qualified to run an entire department dedicated to financial technology that’s supposed to revolutionize the market?”
“A combination of my education and my years of experience in the field.”
“So, because you went to CalTech and you know the Hawthornes, you can just land a job here?” the guy asks.
Okay, there’s definitely some bitterness there, but I don’t want to be on the receiving end of someone else’s frustration. “You glossed over the experience part,” I calmly reply.
“You’re in your mid-twenties, tops. How much experience could you possibly have to justify your position as head of that department?” he asks.
Cassius is about to open his mouth, but to my surprise, Alexandra Jones stands up first and turns to face the teal-shirted guy. “Clearly, Christa’s resume speaks volumes,” she says. “Now, if you’re miffed because you didn’t get the position yourself, maybe try working on what disqualified you in the first place instead of trying to undermine people who actually worked hard to get where they are today.”
“Wow,” I whisper, noticing some of the appreciative nods and murmurs Alexandra is getting from the rest of the crowd.
“I find it incredible when a young woman reaches such a high point in her career, especially in a field as challenging and as male-dominated as fintech,” Alexandra adds. “While I’m sure there were plenty of other candidates who maybe fit your age and experience criteria, other than yourself, that is, they obviously didn’t make the cut. It’s that simple.”
River joins Alexandra with a reasoning of his own. “On top of that, Christa has an impressive work history with a prestigious fintech giant. For privacy reasons, she is not comfortable sharing the details publicly. But I assure you, Colin, she earned this position. Maybe take Alexandra’s advice and stop making a fool of yourself.”
“My apologies,” Colin sneers, but he sounds anything but genuine.
Alexandra and River take their seats. The Hawthorne brothers and this mysterious lady seem to have banded together in my defense. It makes my little fit of jealousy seem ridiculous now.
“I look forward to working with you,” I say in closing.
Cassius steps forward as I start to return to my seat. “You were great, Christa. Ignore Colin. He’s a pain in the ass,” he whispers.
“All good,” I reply and go back to my seat.
As soon as I’ve got my back turned on the crowd again, I feel safe. Out of sight, out of mind, as they say. My hand lingers on the armrest as I catch my breath and give Alexandra a thankful nod while Cassius moves on with the staff meeting and introduces a couple of new hires in other departments.
“Thank you,” I say to Alexandra. “You were right about the single-person focus.”
“Bad idea on the question part. Sorry,” she replies with an embarrassed smile. “Usually, when I tell people to ask me questions, they don’t come for my throat.”
“It’s okay. It’s done. Thank you for your support, though.”
“Girls have to stick up for each other.” She gives me a wink.
A moment later, as I move my focus to Cassius, admiring his confidence and the sheer masculine power he exudes, I feel River’s hand discretely covering mine on the armrest. My gaze travels slowly to meet his, and my breath falters.
There is a peculiar warmth in the hazel pool of his eyes. It fills me with the kind of self-confidence I might’ve used earlier to clap back at that Colin dude, but I’m grateful for it, nonetheless. I find comfort in knowing I’m welcome and wanted here. I might rebuild my home here, after all.