What the hell was the CEO himself doing interviewing potential employees?
“Welcome, Miss Carson,” he said smoothly in a crisp English accent. “Please, have a seat.”
I sat down timidly, trying not to be overwhelmed by how closely they were staring at me. I was particularly aware of Marcus’s fixed gaze on me, and when he smiled at me, my heart soared. He explained that even though Reynard Technologies was a gigantic corporation, he still liked to know everyone who worked under him, because the business was more of a family than anything else. He liked to be involved, and he liked to get down and dirty. As he said this, his lips curved up in a soft smirk, and I suddenly imagined those lips all over me. I swallowed discreetly and forced myself to focus on something else. Like his long and manicured fingers… I could imagine them all over my body, on my neck, caressing my cheeks, my face, my breasts…
Fuck!
This was going to be difficult.
I tried to answer all the questions they asked as well as I could, and I explained how eager I was to work and help the company in any way I could. Marcus seemed pleased with my answers, and the other board members all seemed to be satisfied with my answers.
When the interview finished and I was on my way out, Marcus suddenly said, “What do you like to do for fun, Miss Carson?”
I turned back slowly, confused by the question. “Um, sorry?”
“After a long and stressful week, what do you like to do in the weekend?” he asked. I had to think of the right answer, because I didn’t want to seem like a boring person who had nothing going on in her life.
“Fishing,” I blurted out suddenly. “I always used to go fishing with my dad. But I also play golf sometimes.”
His smirk widened, and he nodded knowingly. “Good to know.”
I left the room in a daze, utterly stunned by how effortlessly handsome one person could be. When I returned to the lobby and found Emily, she practically leapt on me and started to ask as many questions as she could get out. But she was whisked away before I could answer any of them, and I sat there quietly and tried to control my breathing. There had been something charged between Marcus and me, even though I had no way of proving it. I could feel it in my chest, and I wondered if he felt it too.
After Emily’s interview, we headed home and spent the next few hours talking about how handsome Marcus was, and about what we would do if we managed to get the job. Neither of us said anything about the fact that one of us wasn’t going to get it, and we both just lived in the moment.
But then, a few days later, we both got an email from the company. We opened them at the same time, and as I read the email, I was lost for words with each sentence I read:
Dear Olivia Carson,
Thank you for taking the time to apply for the position of Junior Marketing Associate at Reynard Technologies. However, after careful consideration, we regret to inform you that you have not been selected for this position. This decision was not reached lightly, as you were a very strong candidate. Unfortunately, we have chosen to go in a different direction.
We wish you all the best in your future endeavours. Thank you for your interest in Reynard Technologies.
Margaret Wheeler,
Senior Marketing Manager,
Reynard Technologies.
The realisation hit me like a high speed train. I wanted to sink to my knees and start crying, but then Emily suddenly leapt into the air in excitement beside me. I turned to find her dancing and screaming at the top of her lungs, saying, “I GOT IT! I GOT IT!”
I wanted to feel sorry for myself, but I was happy for Emily. If I didn’t get it, then she deserved it. I wouldn’t want anyone else to get it except her. And when she calm down and realised what this meant, she hugged me and told me that more opportunities would come.
We both knew they were just empty words, but I didn’t argue.
I thought that would be the end of that, until about two weeks later after she’d started going to work and I was still sending in my applications to other tech firms. I was just about to leave the apartment when a knock came on the door, and I opened it to find Marcus Reynard himself standing in the hallway, wearing a black polo shirt and white sweatpants. My breathed hitched at the sight of him, and I couldn’t understand what was happening. But he offered me a handsome, dazzling smile, and he pulled out some golf clubs behind him.
“Get changed,” he said. “We’re going golfing.”
Three months later, I was standing at the altar and saying yes to this perfect man, who had swept me completely off my feet. It was like a fairytale, and I had never been happier. Emily was my maid of honour, and she was genuinely happy for me.
Or so I thought.
Now, four years later, I’m standing at the entrance of our apartment exactly where Marcus had stood that day, and staring into his cold, empty eyes. Emily was standing across the room, wearing his shirt and trying not to look at me. I couldn’t even look at her, the hurt and betrayal so painful that I was starting to choke up as I stared at my husband. I waited for him to say something. Anything. But he just stared blankly at me, as though he couldn’t even see me standing there.
“How could you?” I whispered, nearly breaking down as I stared at him. “How could you do this to me?”
“You weren’t supposed to find out,” he said simply, his voice cold and void of emotion.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I thundered. “Is that all you can say? I wasn’t supposed to find out?”
“Liv…”
“Shut the fuck up!” I yelled as soon as my name left Emily’s lips. “I don’t want to hear whatever bullshit excuse you’ve cooked up.”
I turned to face Marcus once again, who was still staring blankly at the wall behind me. He looked like he wanted to disappear, like he wanted to be anywhere else in the world but here. He didn’t look like he was sorry. He just looked like he was disappointed that he was caught.
Without thinking, I yank off my wedding ring and throw it in his face, then I turn around and storm down the hallway, saying the one sentence I never thought I’d say:
“I want a divorce.”
