Even with my photographic memory, I couldn’t remember my “first day” at Martin Enterprises—I was three, after all. The fuzzy moments I do have mostly involve funny faces and high-pitched, soft voices. When I got older, people gave me candy and stickers.

Here at Gibbons Group, no one really noticed me. They didn’t know me as the boss’s daughter or the CEO’s fake future fiance. I had a real chance of impressing them as a boss on my own merit and building bridges! 

My stomach fluttered full of excited butterflies as I approached Damon’s secretary’s desk in my best business professional outfit. “Hi! I’m Alina,” I said. “What’s your name?”

“Marianne.” After a beat, she squinted. “Oh, you’re back! Did you want to check on his suit jacket?”

“No, it’s my first day.” I laughed. “I was hoping you could direct me to my office.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Oh. Let me just check.” Her fingers whirred across the keyboard, and she scanned the reply, her lips rolling inward. “Let me put you in the conference room until Damon gets back.”

“That’s okay, I know where it is.” I knew where something was! Already in a good place.

I marched in and took a seat. I didn’t actually have anything to do yet, so I combed through old documents for permission settings.

My phone trilled, my chest tightening when I saw the caller ID: Dad.

Part of me wanted to send it to voicemail. But this was our second chance. In a few years, I’d never be able to answer a phone call from him again, no matter how uncomfortable the conversation might be.

I swallowed hard and swiped to answer. “Hi, Dad.”

“Hello, Alina! Are you running late today? I tried to check your location but you must’ve turned it off by accident.”

I leaned back and shot a bewildered glance out the window. “Dad, I quit.”

“We all say things we don’t mean when we’re upset. Why don’t you take a few days off? And when you come back, we’ll pretend this whole thing never happened.”

I got up, looking out on the glowing horizon beyond Martin Enterprises. “You know I love you, Dad, but there are some problems I alone can’t fix. And they’d still be there if I went back.”

“Take two weeks paid vacation, then, and we can talk when you come in.”

“I can’t, I’ve already—”

“I’ll send you a spa certificate! Relax, enjoy—oh, I’ll take it in a minute, Cora! Bye, sweetheart!” He hung up before I could get a word in.

I shook my phone at the city between us. “Why won’t you listen—”

The conference room door swung open. A few people looked at each other before shuffling in, eyeing me warily as I hid my phone behind my back and straightened my spine with a strained, but pleasant, “Hi.”

“Hello,” a few of them murmured, giving me a wide berth and continuing their conversations.

A woman with long, dark hair showed me a timetable on her tablet. “Hi! Excuse me, we’ve reserved the conference room for the marketing team...”

I could really use a distraction.

“Do you mind if I sit in?” I asked, rolling my chair to the side.

The coworkers looked at each other, shrugging and furrowing their brows, so the woman laughed a little and asked, “Who are you?”

I thrust my hand out, beaming. “I’m one of the new managers, Alina!”

Oh my god, how many times would I get to say that?

I felt powerful, invincible! Like I could force alliances and conquer problems one handshake at a time!

“Hi, I’m Neelam.” The woman smiled. “What are you managing?”

“Um… everything?” I laughed, sweat beading at the back of my neck. “We’re still sorting out the semantics. And my office, obviously.”

“Ohhh.” Neelam raised her eyebrows and nodded.

Okay, it was probably weird to have a new boss with no responsibilities, departments, or an office. There hadn’t even been an announcement yet.

“You know what? I just realized I have a ton of new-hire paperwork to go over, so I’ll just…” I gathered my setup and waved, remaining as upbeat and professional as possible. Only one chance to make a good first impression. “Nice to meet you all! I hope we get the chance to work together soon!”

As soon as the door closed behind me, I let out a breath.

Thankfully, Damon was just getting back to his office.

I trotted towards him. “Hi! So, where should I start?”

His gaze lingered on my silk blouse for a second. “Sorry, Marianne has maintenance setting up a spot.”

“That’s fine, but I meant actual work-wise.” I smiled.

“I thought you just wanted the title?”

Tilting my head, I frowned at him. “What’s the point of that?”

“Ah, right. Take a seat.” He gestured to the chair in front of him. “Maybe I can rustle up something.”

“I could help with your projects.” At his sharp look, I sat down and crossed my ankles. “Whatever you have is fine, though. I know a little of everything. Or I did, at Martin Enterprises.”

We sat in silence for a few minutes while he scanned his emails and I jostled my ankle. Finally, his phone rang. “Yes?” His eyes widened. “Yes! We’ll be right there.”

I gathered my stuff and stood up, excited to be part of a “we” again. “What is it?”

“Marianne found you a temporary office!” He ushered me out the door with eager determination. “Let’s go get you settled in.”

“Geez, someone wants their personal space,” I teased.

I picked up the pace as we followed Marianne down the brightly lit corridor. I smiled at every plant, framed photo, and office on the way. Finally, we stopped in front of a solid gray door. All the other offices had glass...

“Here we are,” Marianne said, holding her ID to the card scanner until the light flashed green.

“Thanks!” I opened the door and peered inside. The cramped space was packed with old tech and office supplies. In the corner, a cable box and laptop took up most of a tiny table I recognized from the break room. A copier/fax machine roared to life.

I leaned back into the hall with them and deadpanned, “This is a closet.”

Marianne bowed with a strained, nervous smile. “This was the only space we could convert last-minute.”

“It’s not ideal,” Damon admitted, lightly placing a hand on my back. “But what do you think? Can we make it work until another space opens up?”

Standing by Damon’s side, his fingertips burning through my blouse, I considered the alternatives: smothering silence in his office or bouncing from one conference room to the next.

“This will be great,” I decided, raising my chin.

“I’m glad to hear it!” He smiled so earnestly that something tugged in my chest. “I’ll leave you to it, then.”

And then, to my surprise, he did.