Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
Zoe
I walk into work with a renewed sense of energy after staring in the mirror for twenty minutes last night, reminding myself that I deserve this. I’ve worked hard for this job, and I’m not going to let a stupid coworker knock me down.
I remember the first time I entered through these massive glass doors. I felt so alive and like all my dreams had come true as I looked around at all the businessmen and women entering one of the skyscrapers lining New York City.
This building holds everything from stockbrokers to law firms to multibillion-dollar companies, and I’m among the lucky ones who get to work here every day.
The pride of working here gives me just the boost I need as I stand in the crowded elevator, waiting for the eleventh floor to arrive.
When it dings and the doors open, I excuse myself past the massive guy standing in my way.
“Oh, sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t see you there,” he says as he scoots to the side to let me by.
Of course, David is standing right there at our reception desk and witnesses our little exchange.
“Don’t worry about it,” he shouts to the guy. “She is easy to miss since she’s so short.”
I smile up at the guy who has to be six-foot-five, compared to my four-foot-eleven frame, and grin, just wanting to get out of the elevator at this point.
The guy leans down a little and whispers, “Don’t let him give you any shit.”
I laugh out loud, then respond, “I won’t,” before glaring back at David and entering our floor.
The guy’s chuckle behind me as the doors close makes me smile at David’s snide expression.
I shouldn’t be surprised he made a comment about my size.
I know I’m short. I’ve been like this my entire life.
If he thinks I’m not used to being the shortest person in the room, he’s got another thing coming.
I’ve always let my size fuel my fire. People may think I’m a little girl when they first see me, but I’m anything but, and my biggest joy in life is proving people wrong.
“Morning, Jennifer,” I say to our receptionist with a smile, ignoring David as I head toward my desk.
CR Marketing has the entire floor, and the owner, Christina, believes that in order to be the most creative, there must be no walls boxing us in, so our office is a massive open space with the only walls being her office, the breakroom, and bathrooms. She wants us to always feed ideas off each other and work together, so each of us has a desk, and we get to decide which way it faces or how our workstation flows.
I set my bag down and take a deep breath.
“What did David do now?” Jana, my coworker that I absolutely adore, says over her laptop as she types away.
“Nothing. He will not get under my skin today,” I announce with a definitive tone, then take my seat and pull my laptop out from my bag.
“Eh, it’s early. Give it a half hour,” she teases, so I throw a pencil at her.
We decided a few months ago to have our desks face each other, butted up against one another, and it’s been the best working experience, having one another right there to bounce ideas back and forth.
She grabs the pencil. “Oh, sweet, one of your Prismacolor pencils. Thanks!”
I hold my hand out, asking for the expensive colored pencil back, not realizing that’s what I threw her way. She always teases me that any colored pencil will do just fine, but I’ve always loved these ones for their brighter colors and how smooth they are to work with.
She winks, then tosses it back to my desk.
I open my laptop and see the email Joey talked about last night, asking me to sign up for the app.
I have a few minutes before our morning meeting, so I take out my phone, click the suggested app, and wait for it to download while I go place my lunch in the break room refrigerator, then head back to my desk to go over the other emails waiting for my reply.
“You guys coming?” David says as he walks past our desks.
I roll my eyes before sliding my chair back, and plaster a fake smile on my face, making Jana laugh.
We all head toward the back of the room, where a large conference table sits, lining the floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook Manhattan.
Everyone takes their normal spots—me facing the window so I can remind myself just how cool it is to be up this high and David directly across from me, like he knows he’s blocking my view and getting a kick out of it while he does so.
Christina goes over the projects we’re finishing up and checks in with everyone on what they’re working on before she discusses new business—the part of the meeting that always has everyone on their toes, waiting to see what exciting things she has planned next and who will get to be project lead.
“Now, onto new projects,” she says, making everyone perk up.
“A longtime friend of mine is starting up a new company and has asked us for help with the launch. This will be a huge project, planning everything from logo design to signage to ads. We’re handling all of it.
Due to the scope of the project and the timeline, I’m assigning both David and Zoe to work on it together. ”
My eyes instantly go wide before looking at David. He just smirks, then turns his attention back to Christina. Neither of us says a word.
This is going to be a huge opportunity, and we are at least smart enough to not make a big deal of it here, in front of everyone, but I know I’m not the only one shitting myself when Jana kicks me under the table.
I kick her back, hoping no one notices while Christina closes up the meeting.
Needing a second to myself, I grab my things, wanting to bolt away from the table as fast as possible, but I’m stopped short when Christina says, “Zoe and David, please stay so we can go over the specifics of the new project.”
I close my eyes, take a deep breath, and turn to rejoin them at the conference table, only this time, I’m sitting closer to Christina. David gathers his things and comes to join us both at the head of the table.
“First, I just want to say thank you for this amazing opportunity. I won’t let you down,” David says in a total kiss-ass way.
I don’t miss the fact that he said, “I won’t let you down,” instead of we.
“Of course, I have no doubt you two are the perfect pair for this project,” Christina says as she flips through her notes for, I’m assuming, paperwork to give us.
“Your presentations yesterday proved it. Our client was equally impressed with you both. Maybe if yours wasn’t coffee-stained, Zoe, they might have gone in your direction. ”
The smirk he gives me makes me want to climb on this table and punch him in the face.
I try to keep my expression straight even though I want to internally scream that it wasn’t my fault!
She finds what she’s looking for and sets a copy of the report in front of both of us. “Beef tallow is hot right now, and our clients are creating a high-end skincare line. Here are their specifications for you to review.”
“Beef tallow?” David asks, confused. “Isn’t that just beef fat?”
“It is,” she confirms. “And it’s supposedly amazing for your skin. It will be all organic, very few ingredients, and all grass-fed beef. They’ll be sending over samples for us all to try. And yes, David, I want you to try it too.”
He raises his eyebrows and cocks his head to the side. “Beef tallow it is.”
“I’m excited.” I speak up. “I keep seeing it on my feed, and I’ve been wanting to try it.”
“Well, it’s your lucky day then. They want to get the product on the shelves as soon as possible, so I want to see concepts by the end of the week.
And, no, don’t bring me your individual ideas.
Work together and bring me a few that you both approve of.
I chose you because of your background and cutthroat reputation”—she points at David—“and your … girliness”—she points at me—“and we need to blend the two. Got it?”
“Got it,” David says as he stands.
“We won’t let you down,” I say, gathering my things, then standing as well.
“Here.” Christina picks up all of her stuff. “You guys stay and set a game plan. We don’t have any scheduled meetings today, so the conference table is all yours.”
She leaves, and the air in the room shifts instantly. One second ago, it was humming with we can’t believe we were chosen for this energy. Now it’s pure, unfiltered great, I’m stuck with you annoyance.
David and I stare at each other, a silent conversation filled with disdain passing across the table.
I break the battle of wills we have going on between us and sit first. Thankfully, he does the same.
I’ve never wanted an actual conference room with walls and doors in our office until now.
I wish there were a way for me to say what I’m really feeling without everyone else hearing, but instead, I put on a fake smile and try to get started on our project.
“What did she mean about your background?” I ask.
“Trust me, if it were relevant to your role, you’d already know.”
“Obviously, she thought it was important,” I bite back.
“She was just explaining why she chose us. Now, if you’re done speculating, let’s focus on the project instead of things that don’t matter.”
I grit my teeth and pick up the paperwork she gave us.
We’ll be creating the logo, color scheme, and packaging, as well as working with website designers and setting up their store displays.
It’s a huge opportunity that I’d be dying over right now if it didn’t involve the bane of my existence sitting across from me.
“So, how do you want to split this up? Should I do product research while you start coming up with some logo ideas?” he suggests.
I go to argue—because that’s what I always do with him—then pause and take in what he said, thinking I actually like that idea. I’ve always loved doodling ideas for logos and hated doing the research part.
I don’t want to let him off that easy though, so I let out a breath and roll my eyes, just to be a little overdramatic, then stand and push in my chair. “Fine. Want to meet again after lunch to go over what we’ve come up with?”
“Okay by me.”
He stands and leaves me there, feeling like an idiot holding my things and not moving. When I do, I turn and see Jana staring at me with wide eyes.
Trust me, Jana, you’re not the only one who’s surprised by today’s turn of events. I just hope we manage to get through it without killing each other first.