Total pages in book: 44
Estimated words: 41351 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 207(@200wpm)___ 165(@250wpm)___ 138(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 41351 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 207(@200wpm)___ 165(@250wpm)___ 138(@300wpm)
Apparently she didn’t because she smiled and slowly crossed and uncrossed her legs as if she were trying to draw his attention to them. “Maybe but I value your opinion. You didn’t make partner by the time you were thirty-three if you weren’t the best at what you do. That’s almost unheard of in a firm this large.”
Ethan pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. This wouldn’t be as easy as he thought and he needed to be careful of this situation because he was still in a position of power and she was his subordinate. “Andrea, going forward, I insist you utilize the proper chain of command and as George is directly over you, it would be more prudent for you seek his assistance first as he’s more up to speed with what you’re working on. We have this hierarchy established for a reason and that’s to make sure the firm runs smoothly and to help associates quickly resolve any issues they may have. That includes getting opinions about cases. Am I being clear?”
He’d thought her face was red before but now it was positively scarlet. “I don’t understand. You’ve never had a problem with my questions before. You said you always prided yourself on having an open door policy and I see other associates come in and out of your office all the time.”
“It’s true, I do have an open door policy but I trust the associates in this firm to exercise their good judgments and not abuse it.”
She stood abruptly. “I didn’t realize I was abusing anything. Ethan if you had a problem with me stopping by your office so much, I wish you had said something earlier. I’m not stupid. I get this is your way of letting me down gently, but you shouldn’t have led me on. Is this how you get your kicks? Playing with people’s affections?”
Ethan bit the inside of his lip to keep his readied retort from coming out. He was trying to spare her feelings, but she wasn’t making it easy for him. “I’m sorry you feel that way. I trust you’ll set up a meeting with George to discuss your case?” He realized she’d only used the case as an excuse to visit his office and he suspected she knew it too but he wouldn’t make this bad situation worse by saying it out loud.
She glared at him. “Why did you take me out and pretend you were interested in me?”
“Andrea, this isn’t an appropriate conversation for the office.”
“Then when? You don’t take my calls and turn down my invitations. When is a good time?”
“But that’s the kicker. You have been calling me, and inviting me out, not the other way around. We went out to lunch a few times and those were mainly centered around business. I freely admit, I enjoyed your company because you’re intelligent, witty and pleasant to talk to. I wasn’t averse to being your friend but you started coming to my office often and uninvited. It was then apparent to me you saw our interactions together for more than what they were. When you invited yourself to my sister’s engagement party you crossed the line. You backed me in a corner making it impossible for me to tell you no.”
She looked like she wanted to respond but Ethan held up his hand to continue. “I only intended to invite you out after that night to make things clear to you that what we have can never move beyond the platonic stage. I should have told you sooner but I got sidetracked and frankly I forgot. So there you have it. I apologize for hurting you but I never led you on.”
Andrea glared at him, her eyes narrowed to slits and her fists balled at her sides. “Fine,” she finally bit out. “I’ll never stop by your office again since it offends your delicate sensibilities.” She turned on her heels and headed toward the door after the parting shot at his manhood.
“Andrea?” He stopped her before she turned the doorknob.
She turned back around, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “What?”
“Make sure you adhere to the company dress code from now on.”
If looks could kill, Ethan would be dead ten times over from the venomous glare she shot his way. Without another word, she stomped out of the office and slammed the door behind her.
He breathed a sigh of relief thankful that was over. Andrea was a prideful woman who would probably ignore him from here on out and that was fine with him. Even if she wanted to enact some type of revenge, he knew she wouldn’t because she valued her career above anything else.
Ethan had found himself in a similar situation several years ago and he wished he hadn’t willfully ignored the signs and let pride get in the way of dealing with it before it got too out of hand. Instead it started a series of events that led to the dissolution of his marriage.