CXII

CXII

My heart was hammering away in my chest, it felt like it was going to explode from my body. It felt like being sent to the principal’s office back in high school. But at least I know what to expect but this one was unexpected. I don’t know what to expect, I wasn’t the only one who took the test. So why was I the only one the CEO called to his office of all places.

I send a quick text Kennedy,

“I am being called to the CEO’s office, I don’t know why, do you think I did something wrong?”

His response comes as we step into the elevator.

“Think positive thoughts Mimosa.”

I breathe out from my mouth, trying to calm myself down. Everything was ok, I was not being taken to the office to be sacrificed, after all, I didn’t do anything, I’m okay. I’m probably going to be applauded. I’m okay. I’m just okay. Everything was still going fine.

“Do you have any idea why I was the only one who was sent to the office?” I ask the man leading me there.

He turned to look at me, the man was young, maybe in his early thirties. His jaw was a perfect shape, he looked like the kind of guy Mariana would like, I almost tell him I wanted his contact information. The name on his employee card read Damian Wills. I would look for him after everything, set him up with Mariana, heaven knows she needed to get out of the house.

“I was hoping you knew, I thought you knew the CEO and this would be my first time seeing him, or seeing someone who knows him.”

“No I don’t know him, I will be meeting him for the first time today, I haven’t really thought about who he might be either.”

“I guess that makes two of us.”

“I guess it does.”

“You don’t have to fear anything though, if your work was graded by the team and somehow the CEO saw it and wants to see the face behind such good work.”

I highly doubt that but I would like to comfort myself with that.

“Did you happen to see my work?”

“I’m not supposed to say but your work was by far the most impressive of them all, where have you been hiding?”

I blush beet red.

“I never got past the resumé submission stage, my resumé isn’t one of the most impressive. I didn’t attend college.”

“You mean to tell me all that was pure talent?”

I nod proudly,

“You are even more impressive than I thought.”

“Thank you. So you think I got the job?”

“Unless the CEO has a problem with you, I don’t see why not.” I hoped to God the CEO didn't already have an unforeseen problem with me. If that was the case, then it was bye bye to sweet dream job.
My phone dinged with a notification from Mariana. It read.
"Your mom is watching over you, she won't give you any thing you can not handle, trust me, every little thing will make sense soon. You are doing just okay." My heart swelled with gratitude for the girl, she had always been my back bone.

The elevator dinged, indicating that we had come to the floor with the CEO. If felt like those moments in movies where the protagonist had to go and fight the villain. The main antagonist. You know the one where you watch with clammy hands gripping your seats tightly in hopes and anticipation that your hero wins, after all, you have been rooting for them since the beginning of the movie, they can't fail now. They can't.

“Welp, I guess this is my stop. Good luck!” Damian tells me. I take a long look at his sharp black suit, he looked good in a suit but I know someone who looked a lot better in suit than he does.

“Thank you.” I say as I step out of the elevator.

I see one man standing outside the office, he was large, much larger than Kennedy too.

Wow, I was comparing a random stranger to Kennedy now?

“You can go in, the CEO is waiting for you.”

I take a deep breath, not knowing what to expect, I don’t know if it was a man or woman.

My hand touched the cool hand of the door and I pushed it open. Revealing an office with Danielle sitting there she is wearing a deep green jacket over the same shade of green dress.
Her make up was so impeccable that I almost got lost staring at her face. I almost think she is the CEO, but she spoke.
“Lisa, we meet again.”
“Yes we do.” I smile at her.
Seeing a friendly face made my nerves ease up a bit. I can’t even call her face friendly, but it was a recognizable face in a sea of un recognize-able ones.

“I should have known we would be seeing often after I saw you that day in Miami.”

“I never dreamt I would see you again, at least not up here.”

She chuckled.

“We will be seeing each other a little more often these days.” She says with a smile.
I was confused as to what that meant.
“Right this way, he has been waiting for you for a while. I shouldn’t keep you much longer.”

“I am actually very nervous, do you know why he called me up here?”

She starts to go towards this door that read, CEO.

“I doubt there is any reason to be nervous. Relax, you are good.” She tells me as she pulls the door open and pushes me inside.

I frown,

“Kennedy? What are you doing here?”

He was sitting at the desk of the CEO, dressed in a dark blue tux that matched my shirt. The grey shirt and black jeans he wore this morning totally discarded.

My eyes bulged as my mind started to reel. Everything started to make sense. All the things that had gone by these past few days began to make sense.

“You are…” I left my question hanging in the air.
"You have been lying to me all these while? All the times we slept together, you never thought of telling me?? Yes we never talked about it but this is lying by omission. Deliberate omission. You never thought to mention it. Did you think I was a gold digger? You thought I would want to be with you because of your money so you never said anything right? Wow Kennedy, how could you keep this kind of thing away from me? This is huge, you are the chief executive officer of my dream company and you purposely left that part out in all our discussions? How much of a laugh did you get out of it, when ever I went to bed beside you, I bet you laughed really long and loud huh? Think I was clowning as I lay next to you in oblivion?" I thought all of this at once but I say nothing. I waited for him to explain himself. He had to tell me something that made sense.

He stood up and I could see it, he was the CEO of Bavard. He was the one that built Bavard from the scratch and groomed it effortlessly to what it was right now. That’s why it seemed as if he didn’t work, but he does work. All these while I thought he was a bum, but he built a company from scratch that I could only admire from a far all these while.

“I have been thinking of ways to tell you, but I didn’t know how, I decided to show you instead.” He says sheepishly.

“I have just one question, did you do this because you love me?”

“Do what?”

“The job thing, I feel like I already have it.”

“No no, I just asked them to increase their workers, they did need the man power, then I made room for the test. The rest was all you, I promise I never picked you for the job, you proved yourself.”

I smile.

“You are so impressive. I always knew you were impressive, but this? This is very impressive.”

He smiles at me cockily.

“Want to see something even more impressive?”

“Even more impressive than you being the owner of the company I have admired for so long? I doubt anything could be more impressive. And have you seen this building? This office? That title?”

“You are impressive too, here.”

“What’s that?”

I walk towards him, he was holding a white envelope in his hand.

“Your employment contract , employee number, your card will be given to you before you leave today .”

I look at the envelope in his hands without moving to collect it. It was gold to me, watching it brought tears to my eyes. It was all I ever wanted. And it was here, brought to me by the man I was in love with.

“You earned it Lisa. You did it.”

“I did it.”

He pulled me towards him in a hug as I cried tears of happiness. Everything I have ever wanted from life was right in front of me, finally everything was going according to plan.

“I have one more surprise for you.”

I clean my eyes and look at his smiling face, I smile at him too.

“Show me.”

We walk outside to the roof, I see the famous helicopter that brought and took the CEO back. And now I was going to enter the helicopter too.

“Wear this.” He shouted over the noise of the helicopter.

I take it from him gingerly and wear it.

“You are so impressive you know that?” I shout over the sound of the helicopter blades. It was going to be difficult to have a conversation like this.

“That’s all you’re going to say?” He shouted back at me.

“I love you.” I shout at him.

He grinned, he must have heard me. I loved his grin. It was so pretty.

“I love you.”

“Look at that.”

I look down at what he is pointing at. In what seemed to be balloons words were spelt out,

WILL YOU BE MY GIRLFRIEND?