Love Your Moves: A Billionaire Valentine's Romantic Comedy Page 6

  I didn’t just want to let her go, though. Deciding to step in to see if I could find some reason, beyond her beauty, to keep her on the payroll, I leaned forward and mentally rolled up my sleeves. It was finally time for me to really do something. Or to try at the very least.

  Chapter 9

  TORI

  My heart was beating a mile a minute. It was all I could do not to barf on the polished mahogany table in front of me. So far, I felt like my interview was going well, but I knew it had been a brutal morning for my coworkers.

  I’d been waiting in the small waiting room outside, knowing I’d be called in next when I’d seen one of the receptionists running out crying. When I asked Avery what’d happened, she’d said everything had seemed fine one minute, and the next she’d gotten fired.

  Since she’d also seemed reasonably confident that her interview had been going well until she’d gotten the axe, I wasn’t about to start counting my chickens before they’d hatched. Anger still filled me when I looked at Benjamin Reed’s showstopping face. So what if he was a big shot and our new owner? He’d been handing out pink slips all week like it was chocolate at Halloween.

  My gaze kept drifting to him, but every time I caught myself doing it, I looked away. Keeping my anger in check was the only way I’d get through this interview, and I wouldn’t be able to do that if I kept seeing the man responsible for all the heartache and pain outside.

  Carl Patterson, the COO, was luckily the one asking all the questions. I felt Mr. Reed’s eyes on me, on every move I made, but at least I didn’t have to speak directly to him. When I’d first walked in, there had been a couple of moments when it briefly felt like something was passing between us, but that had to have been my imagination.

  He’d simply been taking my measure and I wasn’t yet sure if I’d been found wanting. I felt like my answers were good, but none of them so far seemed to have impressed the billionaire staring at me. The man didn’t give a single thing away with his expression. It was like stone, a completely unreadable slate.

  When he interrupted before Carl could ask his next question, I refused to be intimidated by him. Sure, he was hot, wore suits that cost more than my rent, and had built a wildly successful company, but that didn’t make him any less human than the rest of us.

  He didn’t even look like he was that much older than me. If he wanted my respect, he could damn well earn it.

  Sliding his elbows forward on the table, he leaned in slightly and waited for me to look at him before throwing his hat into the interview ring. “I’ve heard you’ve got lots of ideas for things, Ms. Mitchell. Do you have any ideas that might increase the company’s profitability?”

  I glanced at Bruce, knowing he was responsible for good ol’ Ben being under the impression that I had an idea for everything. My boss was impassive, staring stoically ahead as if he didn’t have a care in the world.

  When I looked back at Benjamin Reed and his itchy trigger fingers folded together on the tabletop, I didn’t hesitate to let him know my thoughts on the matter. “You can make the company more profitable by not firing anyone.”

  Without flinching or giving any indication of what he thought of my suggestion, he nodded and slightly narrowed his eyes on mine. “Unpack that idea for me.”

  “With all due respect, Mr. Reed, you don’t know these people you’re coming in and tossing out. Everyone here has a special skill, and not all of those skills can be quantified by a list of boilerplate questions.”

  “Explain,” he demanded, blue-brown eyes making me feel like I was looking into the shallows of the Adriatic Sea. His voice was as deep and commanding as I remembered it being, even though he was now only to talking to me and not the entire workforce.

  There was something appealing about it, though. In another time, another place, he had the kind of voice that could make armies fall into line or end wars. Instead, he was using it to intimidate people he viewed as lowly employees on the totem pole.

  What a waste.

  I tilted my chin up, ready to defend my idea despite the fact that it had been born from anger and had popped out of me in the spur of the moment. “Everyone here adds value to the company as a whole. If you start dismantling parts of it, you’re going to disturb the whole and you won’t ever be able to put it back together without all its parts.”

  It felt like all four of us stopped breathing all at once. Bruce watched me with wide eyes filled with mirth, obviously thinking it was funny that I’d been given enough rope to hang myself. Carl looked strangely satisfied, sharing a look with his big boss before said big boss cocked an eyebrow at me.

  “This isn’t the first company I’ve acquired,” he pointed out as if I should’ve known how many other poor victims he’d had before. “In every one of them, I’ve had to fire people. In every one of them, the company has become more profitable after. What makes this situation different?”

  “Correlation doesn’t always equal causation, Mr. Reed,” I countered, being formal even though I had taken to calling him by his first name in my head. Maybe he would even become Benny Boy there from now on because I was about to school him. “How do you know those companies wouldn’t have become even more profitable if you’d kept everyone? Perhaps the key to the increased profits was to do with your management and having a well-known brand such as your own behind them rather than the people you’d gotten rid of.”

  He tapped his chin with a long forefinger, his head dipping as he considered my suggestion. Before he could say anything, Bruce decided to intervene. “We have someone else to interview, Ms. Mitchell. Please wrap things up.”

  Benny Boy sat back in his chair, folding his hands over his flat stomach. His eyes, while still beautiful, were suddenly cold as ice. “I’ve heard all I needed to hear. I’m very sorry, Ms. Mitchell, but we won’t be needing your services any longer.”

  I couldn’t believe it when I walked out of the conference room, numb from the crown of my head to the tips of my fingers and toes. I’ve just been fired.

  Walking back to my desk, I threw myself into my chair and wondered what I’d do next. All this time, it had been a hypothetical question. While I’d been thinking about it for more than a week, I hadn’t seriously thought it would become necessary to look for a different job.

  Now that it was my reality, I had no idea where I’d even start. I could get another job, but there would be some competition since a lot of others from my company were on the market now. The other problem was the time of year.

  No one went on a hiring spree before the holiday season, except maybe malls looking for elves to fill Santa’s Villages. While being an elf could certainly be fun, it was only seasonal work. There was no way I could afford to take something that would keep me from searching for another full-time job if it was only for a couple of months.

  Realistically, I wouldn’t get another permanent position in my field until the new year. Christmas is going to suck. No one was going to hire someone before their holiday break.

  All these thoughts flew through my mind, but it was difficult to process any of them. Let alone the implications they would have.

  It was like I was looking at myself from the outside in all of a sudden, like I was floating above my own head, watching a woman who looked like me struggle to deal with the truth. There I sat, after years of studying for my degree and busting my hump for the company, and I was out on my ass just like that.

  Benny Boy hadn’t even hesitated for a second before giving me the boot. If he hadn’t wanted to hear my suggestions, why had he even asked? Unless, of course, as I’d suspected all along, the interviews were nothing but a farce.

  Must be nice to be a billionaire with so much time to waste and not even have to worry. Fresh rage lit the insides of my veins, licking at my blood as it was pumped through my body by my still racing heart.

  It was difficult to believe that someone so cruel could come wrapped in such a pretty package. Benjamin Reed was evil personified, and yet he walked aro
und looking like the millions of bucks he’d made by dancing on the dashed hopes and dreams of others.

  As the shock began to wear off, I became aware of the fact that the office was mostly empty around me. Although I knew I would be in for many more hours of disbelief in the days to come, at least I could start to regain feeling in my extremities.

  This was all just so surreal, but it didn’t make it any less real. It was happening, and I suddenly wanted nothing more than to get it over and done with.

  After taking another minute to collect myself, I headed to the HR department to find out about my severance. As instructed. Just like the good little lamb I was. Gag.

  There was a whole line of my coworkers, or former coworkers I supposed, in the same boat. Some were crying while others stood rigidly with almost no color in their cheeks. There were others yet who looked like they wanted to punch someone—my money was on Benny Boy and Co.—but then there were also the ones who just looked heartbroken. I didn’t know which of those categories I fit into, but all of the above worked quite nicely.

  Judy Day, ironically enough from the HR department itself, cursed in the line in front of me. She fluffed up her bright red hair, pursed her lips, and spun around to face me.

  “Screw ‘em all,” she proclaimed loudly enough that most of the line heard her. “Let’s go out and drown our troubles together to commiserate.”

  Cheers followed her outburst. Judy and I hadn’t ever spent much time together in the past, but that was no reason to say no.

  “I’m in,” I said, proud of how even my voice sounded even if I didn’t feel it at all. “Forester’s Arms at seven. Don’t be late. Tell everyone except those suits.”

  There was some more cheering, but I also knew not everyone would come to the popular after-work bar I’d mentioned. More than a few people had to go home to their families to explain what had happened and to pray to every god known to man that they would keep afloat until they landed another job.

  I would be praying too, but at least I didn’t have a spouse or children to face when I got home. Kari had been on my ass about pursuing that candy dancer opportunity. There was no doubt in my mind she was going to be more than a little bit excited when she found out I might not have any other options now.

  There was probably a movie montage night in my near future, where we’d dress up and sing show tunes while she critiqued my moves. At least I have something to look forward to.

  In the meantime, while I was still trying to wrap my head around what had happened, I might as well go out for a drink with the others who felt the same way I did. If there was ever a time I needed a stiff drink, it was today.

  “Forester’s Arms at seven, people,” I hollered again, cupping my hand around my mouth to make sure my voice carried. “Let’s go out with a bang, shall we?”

  Chapter 10

  BEN

  “I’ve finished the report on the terminations at Prosper,” Carl said, walking into my office late in the afternoon the day after we concluded the interviews. “I’ve also let Bruce go, as requested. I didn’t agree with all your decisions, but that guy had to go.”

  “Yeah, I know, but why do you think so?” I pushed paperwork away to make space for my arms and propped my elbows on the desk.

  He sat down in the chair, shrugging one shoulder before crossing his ankle over his knee. “He’s one of the old boys that coasts on his connections and treats his subordinates like inferiors. There’s no space for someone like that here. He wouldn’t have been happy with us anyway if that’s the way he operates.”

  “Agreed.” I nodded. In Bruce’s case, it had been clear what had to happen but the same couldn’t be said for everyone. I hadn’t been able to shake the look on Victoria’s Mitchell’s face when I fired her and I’d been tossing around questions in my head ever since. “Do you need any additional help on your team at the moment?”

  Carl frowned, brown eyes curious when they met mine. “Not really. Why do you ask?”

  “We just went through interviews with a couple of hundred people in little over a week. I’m just worried that we might’ve overlooked some talent we could use here at our home office.”

  “It’s very possible.” He kept his gaze on mine. I knew him well enough to know that he was trying to figure out what was going on in my head. “You don’t usually second-guess yourself.”

  “I’m not second-guessing myself.” I exhaled deeply through my nose, frustrated enough that I scrubbed my hands over my face. “Everyone who went needed to go. Prosper no longer needed them. My only concern is that we might’ve been able to use some of them. It seems redundant to have to go through the hiring process soon for positions we have available here if we already interviewed people who might’ve been able to move over.”

  His spine straightened and the corners of his lips quirked as he slid his foot back down to the floor, shifting forward on his seat. “Wait. Hold up a second. Are you actually feeling remorseful about firing so many people?”

  There was disbelief and amusement laced into his tone. I shook my head. It wouldn’t work to have him believe that I was going soft. Before he could get too comfortable with the idea, I gave my head another shake and arched a brow at him.

  “I was just wondering. Calm the hell down before you hurt yourself. I wouldn’t want you disappointed in me when you realize I haven’t changed.”

  “Disappointed in you?” He clutched his chest, chuckling as he shook his own head. “Never. I stopped believing you’d feel guilty about firing people at around the same time I stopped believing in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy.”

  “Hey, if the Tooth Fairy isn’t real, where’d all my money come from back in the day?” I grinned, happy to steer the subject away from my feelings about the terminations.

  Carl was right. I never second-guessed myself and I never felt guilty about the people I had to let go. Although it might not feel that way to them, it wasn’t personal. It was just business.

  In my game, having to cut jobs to save the company was par for the course. Financially healthy companies that I acquired were the only ones that sometimes found themselves exempted from the exercise, but even then, it had often been necessary to trim the workforce a little.

  Just because one employee had somehow wormed her way in under my skin with her purple-blue eyes and curvy figure didn’t mean I had to rethink the process. If the girl was as good at her job as she thought, she’d find another one in no time.

  Forcefully shoving the maelstrom of unusual thoughts and feelings into a lockbox and slamming the lid, I decided to put it behind me. The interviews were done, HR was finalizing their packages, and it would soon all be a distant memory. She would soon be a distant memory.

  “Let’s set up an integration meeting with the remaining employees next week,” I said, getting back to the business at hand. “Send Jason and his team. They’ll set up the systems and do the training.”

  “Will do.” Carl didn’t even note the instruction down. He already knew what had to be done. “We’re meeting with the board next week too. I’ve already uploaded the report on the terminations and David should have his part done on the financial aspects by tonight.”

  “Good. I’m looking forward to putting another one to bed.”

  He nodded, drumming his hands on his thighs. “Since we’re winding down our business for today, Sue wanted me to talk to you about Christmas.”

  “She did?” My brows lifted. “The wife want you to take some extra time off? You can have it.”

  “Nah.” He laughed. “That’s not it. I’m not sure I’d last at home for longer than a few days anyway. I love my girls to the ends of the earth and beyond, but I’m way too old to keep up with them.”

  “You’re thirty-six, bro. That’s not old. Maybe you’re just lazy.”

  He flipped me off, his head thrown back as he kept laughing. “Maybe I am. You’ll see when it’s your turn. Kids have way too much energy to burn off for anyone except a saint to keep up
with.”

  “Speaking of saints, what did Sue want you to talk to me about if it’s not time off?”

  “Oh.” He tilted his head forward to look at me again. “She wanted me to invite you to Christmas dinner with our family. Her folks are coming too, and my brother and his family. It’s bound to be chaotic, but that’s just part of the beauty of Christmas, I guess.”

  “Tell her I said thanks for the invitation, but I won’t be able to make it. I’ll probably just take my jet to a tropical island somewhere.”

  “That’s what I told her.” He chuckled. “You’re a busy billionaire. You wouldn’t want to have some boring family Christmas in the suburbs.”

  I smiled as politely as I could muster, but I wasn’t really feeling it. The real reason I’d turned him down without even thinking about it was because I was a selfish asshole. I didn’t think I could watch my friend and his happy family on Christmas without feeling jealous or, worse, regretful.

  When I’d married Nic, I’d really thought we would have our own family by now. I was ready for it, hungry for it even. The day I figured out she only wanted the finer things in life and didn’t want to ruin her figure or her lifestyle by having a baby was one I’d never forget. It was only one of the things that had led to our acrimonious divorce, but it was also the thing I was still the most bitter about.

  Spending Christmas with Carl’s family would only serve as a reminder of what I didn’t have, and I couldn’t buy that kind of life even if I spent all the money I had on it. If I couldn’t get it and couldn’t buy it, I didn’t want to be faced with it.

  “Yep, give me the tropics over that any day,” I lied. “I really do appreciate the invitation. Maybe next year.”

  “I’ll let her know.” He flashed me a smile before getting to his feet and angling himself toward the door. “That’s it for me today. See you tomorrow, boss. Have a good one. Don’t stay too late.”