Chapter 106 Isn't It Because You Are Giving the Instructions
Ryan was about to say, "Katniss has already been transferred," but Tristan had already hung up.
A few seconds later, Ryan showed up in the CEO's office, nervously saying, "Mr. Forbes, Katniss has been transferred for a while now."
Tristan took a drag from his cigarette, raised an eyebrow, and said, "You can go now."
"Got it," Ryan replied.
In the big office, Tristan stood alone by the floor-to-ceiling window, his tall figure looking all mysterious and stuff.
Katniss figured Bella might show up, but she didn't think it'd be this soon.
The mall had just opened, and as she finished tidying up and stood at the store entrance, she saw Laura rushing over. "Katniss, go sort out the warehouse."
Katniss glanced at Bella, who was strolling towards them, and nodded at Laura before heading to the warehouse.
Laura wasn't really trying to help her; she just didn't want the store's business to get messed up.
This morning, Brenda had a customer coming in for a fitting and to pick out a dress. Word was, this customer was loaded and always went for the priciest stuff.
Probably worried Bella would mess with her sales, Brenda quickly greeted her. "Miss Astor, welcome."
Bella looked around and said, "I want Katniss to serve me."
Brenda, who was leading her to the lounge, paused. "Well, tough luck. Katniss isn't here today; she took the day off."
"Not here?" Bella stopped too, giving her a skeptical look.
She glanced at the lounge and then scanned the store, confirming Katniss wasn't around, and frowned. "Hiding from me? Let's see how long she can keep this up!"
Brenda gave a fake smile, walked Bella out, and then followed her a bit, whispering, "Miss Astor, how about I add you on Facebook?"
Bella looked surprised and asked, "Why?"
"Like, if we get new dresses in, I can let you know right away. Or if any employee takes a day off, I can inform you immediately." Brenda's eyes were downcast, her words not too direct.
But Bella got it, smiling as she pulled out her phone and added Brenda on Facebook.
"Good job. Next time I come to order a dress, I'll look for you," Bella said.
Brenda was so happy she could barely contain herself.
At ten o'clock, Laura came back from a meeting with news that Tristan would be inspecting today, and everyone needed to be on their A-game.
"Laura, maybe we should keep Katniss in the warehouse. If Miss Astor comes back and Katniss doesn't serve her right, Mr. Forbes might blow a fuse, and we could all be in deep trouble," Brenda blurted out, seeing Laura was about to let Katniss out.
Laura thought it over and nodded, "Alright, let her stay in the warehouse until Mr. Forbes finishes his inspection. You two keep an eye out."
With that, Laura went off to handle other stuff, and Cynthia gave Brenda a thumbs up.
Tristan started his inspection from the first floor, and by the time he got to the eighth floor, it was almost noon. He stopped at the store entrance after making his rounds.
His tall frame and icy features, with lips as perfectly sculpted as a statue, scanned the three people at the store entrance.
Laura quickly greeted, "Mr. Forbes."
"Mr. Forbes!" Brenda and Cynthia's voices were filled with barely contained excitement. They'd been at Grand Era Mall for years and had only seen Tristan from a distance once. This was the first time they were so close!
Tristan raised an eyebrow slightly, barely perceptibly furrowing his brow as he glanced back at Ryan.
Ryan was stunned for a few seconds before quickly saying, "Laura, I remember you're about to be transferred. Besides these two employees, isn't there another one in the store?"
"Huh?" Laura didn't react immediately. Grand Era Mall had tons of brand stores and employees, and they actually remembered she was about to be transferred!
"There's another employee, organizing the warehouse," she quickly responded.
Tristan's expression stayed cool, showing no signs of change, but he stood still.
"Didn't I say that everyone should be on high alert for the CEO's inspection?" Ryan gave Laura a look.
Laura was startled and quickly sent Brenda to the warehouse to fetch Katniss.
There wasn't much to organize in the warehouse, so Katniss took the time to familiarize herself with the various dress fabrics, as she wasn't very knowledgeable about such professional matters.
Suddenly hearing Brenda call her with a serious expression, she thought something major had happened and got up to come out.
Seeing the crowd at the store entrance, with Tristan standing out like a sore thumb, she was stunned.
This was the inspection entourage, with most of the high-level execs from Synergy Global Corporation, as well as the heads of Grand Era Mall and Tyler, behind Tristan.
As the head of Grand Era Mall, Ralph Cook knew Katniss. Seeing her in the specific employee uniform of the eighth floor, his eyes almost popped out in surprise.
"Isn't that..." His shock left him speechless until Ryan pressed down his hand, which was pointing at Katniss.
Ryan subtly shook his head at Ralph, who quickly zipped it.
"Katniss," Laura called softly when she saw Katniss frozen at the warehouse door.
Katniss snapped out of it and quickly walked over, standing beside Laura and nodding slightly. "Mr. Forbes, Mr. Gray, Mr. Cook, Mr. Wright."
Everyone's eyes were glued to Tristan. No one dared to speak unless he did, especially Ralph, who was cautiously watching Tristan.
Tristan turned and walked to a nearby trash can, pulled out a cigarette, lit it, put the lighter back in his pocket, and switched the cigarette to his other hand. He didn't say anything or leave.
Ralph quickly whispered to Ryan, "Mr. Gray, what's Mr. Forbes doing?"
"He's having a nicotine craving," Ryan said awkwardly, making up an excuse, and then turned his gaze to Katniss. "Next time Mr. Forbes comes, make sure to come out and greet him."
"Okay." Katniss nodded slightly.
She glanced up and saw Tristan still smoking in the designated area, not moving, and no one else dared to leave either.
"Um..." Ryan didn't know what to say, so he cleared his throat and walked over to Tristan. "Mr. Forbes, any other instructions?"
He had seen Katniss, yet remained silent and did not leave.
Ryan really didn't get Tristan.
What confused him even more was when Tristan glanced over with a deep look. "No. Isn't it because you are giving the instructions just now?"
He extinguished the cigarette, tossed the butt into the trash can, and walked away with an air of nobility.
Not having time to think too much, Ryan quickly signaled for Ralph and the others to follow.
Tyler, who had been hanging back, took another look at Katniss. He hadn't been mistaken earlier; Ralph knew Katniss.
'Katniss must have some significant background,' he increasingly thought!
He whispered a couple of instructions to Laura, "Keep an eye on the new girl."
"Yes," Laura responded, puzzled.
Katniss raised her eyes slightly, her gaze falling on Tristan, who was leading the group. Even just his back was captivating.
He came to inspect Grand Era Mall once a year, and this year's inspection was at the beginning of the year. She had already accompanied him once.
His sudden return made it hard for Katniss not to overthink, even though she knew it was impossible, she couldn't help but fantasize.
"Stop staring, Mr. Forbes is gone," Brenda said sarcastically, noticing Katniss still looking in Tristan's direction. "Did you get transferred because you were caught spying on Mr. Forbes at headquarters? Otherwise, why would Miss Astor target you so much?"
Cynthia's eyes lit up, suddenly understanding. "That makes sense. Who is Miss Astor? How could she target a nobody for no reason?"
Their eyes were full of disdain. If Laura hadn't been standing nearby, they would've said even worse things.
"Alright, everyone, back to work," Laura said, looking at Katniss. "Since you're here, focus on your job and ignore them."
Katniss nodded. "Okay."
In a corner, Brenda pursed her lips, thought for a moment, and took out her phone to send Bella a message: [Miss Astor, you can come over after 9:30 AM next Monday.]
Every Monday, Laura had a morning meeting. Without Laura, she wanted to see how Katniss would handle it!
Bella didn't ask why it had to be Monday. After replying to Brenda, she suddenly thought of someone—Jessica.
During her lunch break, she sent Jessica a message on Facebook, asking if she could go shopping with her next Monday.
This was an unexpected good thing for Jessica!
Although she didn't get the position of the CEO's assistant after Katniss was transferred, at least she kept her job.
Bella still wanted to go shopping with her, which meant she considered her a friend.
Even though she would lose a few hundred dollars in attendance bonuses for taking a day off, she still agreed.
After seeing Tristan at the mall, Katniss didn't see him again for several days.
She thought she would have to wait until the weekend when she tutored Kieran to see him again, but she saw him on Friday night.
The night was long, and snowflakes were falling gently from the sky. Her long hair was covered with a layer of snow.
Even her curled eyelashes had snow on them. She wrapped her thick down jacket tighter and walked through two streets with her hands in her pockets.
She immediately saw the low-key Range Rover parked under the streetlight at her doorstep. Tristan was leaning lazily against the car, a cigarette slowly burning between his fingers.
His short hair also had a layer of snow, indicating he had been standing there for a while.
The snow was falling, muffling her approaching footsteps until she was level with the car's rear. Only then did Tristan's gaze sweep over.
"Maybe I should give you a key, so you don't have to wait outside next time," Katniss said, her mouth moving, but Tristan couldn't quite hear her.
His attention was entirely on her face, unable to get enough of it, and her glossy lips were particularly enticing.
He flicked away the cigarette butt, slightly tilted his body, pulled her over, and pressed her against the car, bending down for a light kiss.
"Wearing lipstick?" It tasted like cherry, very fragrant. He couldn't help but take a deep breath.
Katniss nodded. "It's cold, my lips are dry."
So she wasn't wearing lipstick, just a fruity lip balm.
She looked up, her eyes reflecting Tristan's handsome features, and his eyes were already burning with passion.
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