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Amanda waits for the bus outside Devenmentiel’s offices, carrying her stationary, her travel mug, and a whole assortment of knick-knacks in a bulky cardboard box. She had to resign. She made the company look foolish in front of a client and tarnished the reputation they’d worked so hard to build for it. Thomas was surprisingly understanding, especially considering that they aren’t close, but Roy was furious and she doubts Devon will ever trust her again. Quitting was the right thing to do. The company needs a fresh start without her there holding them back.
The only question is what’s next for her. She’ll struggle to get a job with her real qualifications considering they were partly why she had to lie in the first place, but she has a respectable amount of experience in the industry now which works in her favour. But once a potential employer finds out about why she left Devenmentiel, which they are bound to find out eventually, that job opportunity will disappear. And the longer she goes without finding a job the harder it will get.
As the clock ticks by waiting for the bus to arrive, another passenger appears in the corner of her eye and she scoots to the edge of the bench to leave them plenty of room.
“I don’t take the bus,” a familiar voice says.
Amanda looks up to see Jason standing there with his arms folded and a taunting grin on his face. Is he here to gloat? To rub salt in the wounds? Well, she’s not going to give him the desired results. Grey rock, no reaction is the best reaction.
Amanda removes the box from her lap and places it next to her on the bench so Jason can’t sit too close. After that, she remains silent.
Jason chuckles and takes a seat at the other end of the bench with the box between them.
“Your bunny is… cute,” Jason says, peering in at her belongings. “Not the sophisticated kind of décor I had expected of you but then again that perception was built on a façade, wasn’t it?”
Again, Amanda refuses to be riled by him and makes a deliberate gesture of checking her watch for the time. Still a few minutes before the bus arrives and she’ll never have to see Jason again. If there’s one small silver lining to all this it’s that leaving Devenmentiel means leaving its rival behind too.
Failing to get the desired rise out of her, Jason switches tactics. “Have you wondered who whispered in Mr de Saint-Bardeon’s ear, hmm? Sure, your little slip-ups did get his attention but he’s not suspicious by nature and he let it go. But after my email, he took the appropriate steps, don’t you agree?”
Amanda leaps up from the bench. To walk away? No. But not to confront him either. In that moment she is paralyzed, unable to speak as she realises her world is crashing around her because of Jason’s petty squabbles with Devon. Yes, he made no secret of his rivalry with the company, but to this to her? She underestimated the depth of his hatred.
Jason allows the moment to pass silently, watching the gears turn in her head with a smirk that says he’s enjoying this,
When Amanda gains her composure, she refuses to lash out and give him the reaction he’s looking for. She’s better than him. Yes, she fucked up, but at least she didn’t hurt anyone on purpose. Instead, with tears welling in her eyes, she clears her throat. “Your life must be very empty if you spend this much time thinking about Devenmentiel.”
With that, she grabs the box off the bench and turns to walk away. There’s another bus stop on the same route just down the road and even if the stop is busy, it’ll be much more peaceful there.
Before she can get very far, Jason is in her path, blocking her way.
“Jason, you’ve had your fun and I don’t work for Devenmentiel anymore so you can leave me alone now.”
“About that…” Jason begins, his face looking less delighted but in no way apologetic. “It was just business. You’ve known for quite a while now that I want to destroy Devenmentiel, it wasn’t personal.”
Amanda stares deep into Jason’s eyes, if looks could kill, this would’ve done it. “That changes nothing. I’m unemployed whether you meant to hurt me or not”
“You won’t be if you join us at Goldreamz.”
Anger makes room for bafflement. Why would he want to hire her? Does he have a conscience and want to make amends for the damage he’s done to her life. No, that’s not his M.O., there’s something fishy about this.
Amanda’s eyebrows narrow and her nose scrunches up. “What?”
Why would he want to go and do a thing like that? Her reputation is in tatters, so why would he risk Goldreamz becoming guilty by association? It just makes no sense.
“I mean it, Amanda. I think you’ll find Goldreamz provides the kind of lifestyle you imagined for yourself.”
Now he’s trying to sell her on it. No, there has to be something more to this. He wants intel on Devenmentiel or he wants to rub it in their faces that he’s lured away yet another member of their staff.
“After everything that’s happened, why would you want to hire me?”
“I see a lot of myself in you, Amanda,” he says, watching her reaction. It’s meant to be a compliment but he knows she won’t take it that way. “You’re willing to do whatever it takes to succeed. I admire that in a person.”
Amanda shakes her head. “No, I regret it all. I-”
Amanda stops when she notices the bus pulling up at the stop behind them. She looks at it, weighing her options, but makes no move to go. The bus stops to let off a passenger, but with nobody boarding, it quickly departs.
Jason watches the bus drive past them and smiles. “If you were certain that you didn’t want the job, you’d be on that bus right now.”
Before Amanda can disagree, he continues on. “Look, you can defend your good moral character however you please, but at the end of the day, you wanted something and you didn’t stop until you got it. You focused on the end result, not the tactics. That’s what I look for in an employee.”
Amanda doesn’t know what to say. He has her pinned all wrong but he seems sincere in wanting to hire her. But what would her friends think? If they even are her friends still. And what would it be like to work for him?
“And I don’t think you’re in a position to reject offers, Amanda.”
But no matter how she feels, he’s right. That’s all the really matters, isn’t it?
Amanda lets out a deep sigh as if steeling herself for what she’s about to do. “I’m willing to discuss the role and your offer.”
Jason beams a cat-like grin. Getting to this point was the challenge but now that she’s moved past her initial shock of the idea, she’s sure she’ll find the job and its benefits to her liking. She’ll make an excellent addition to the team.
When Jason leads Amanda into Goldreamz’s imposing gold and glass building to discuss the details, he gazes up at Devenmentiel’s neighbouring office. Nobody catches his eye, too busy putting out fires and entering crisis mode. But in a few days when the dust has settled, he’ll delight in informing Devon of his latest hire.