Turned Around

10

With those words said Sophia closes her eyes. Simon lets her face go and just sits there for a bit. "So why didn't you want to go out with me last night?"

"I was willing to risk my job, not my life. I hadn't realized just what the consequences would have been before. Now I do," Sophia states in a deadened voice.

"Father wouldn't have killed you," Simon says softly more than a little pleased by her words.

Sophia gives a bitter laugh. "Oh, please, I may feel more comfortable with your father, but I'm not stupid. Crossing your father, you said it yourself, is a death sentence. If he wouldn't hesitate to kill his own son, that he has great pride in, then there is no doubt that he would kill me, a nobody."

Simon doesn't say anything. He thinks about things for a bit. If she wasn't working then it wouldn't be a problem. She's already physically in danger due to Corey's actions and the chain of reactions it started. By dating her it wouldn't cause her any further damage than has already been done.

"When I graduate, do you know where your father wants me to work?" Sophia's voice breaks into his thoughts and brings him back to the present.

He watches her face closely as he tells her, "He wants you to work under me at the main corporate offices. You'll be a vice president."

Sophia looks at him incredulously. "You can't be serious." That is unheard of. She has absolutely no experience in the business world other than her internship last year.

"Very. You are too skilled to be stuck in the lower level jobs. You will be working exclusively with me. Once you are up to speed and feel comfortable you will be given a great deal of my workload. All final decisions of import will be made by me, but you will be taking care of the everyday decisions. You'll be spending a great deal of your time summarizing things for me, so that I can focus on other aspects of the holdings." He knows that she understands his words by her turning pale. 

"You are being given this chance because both father and I are convinced that you have the ability to do this. We are very impressed with how you handled yourself during your internship last summer. We are especially impressed with how you handled the sexual harassment that went on in that office. Something the other workers and even managers turned a blind eye to. That kind of hostile environment is unacceptable. You were willing to take a stand even though it could have cost you everything. That is what is needed, leadership that is willing to take a decision and stand by it, even if it means losing everything."

"I didn't know Mr. Royal or you knew about that," Sophia says faintly.

Simon smirks, "That was the corporate offices, Sophia. Although we were unaware of the circumstances, once they were brought to light we checked it all out. I especially loved how you smacked the manager that squeezed your sweet behind." He's wanted to do the same but has too much respect towards her to do so without her consent.

If she hadn't already been laying down she would have fallen over. "Oh my go-you saw that?"

Simon's once jovial tone turns dark, "Oh, yes. That and everything else. Father and I reviewed the security tapes for months seeing all the harassment that went on. That will never happen again. Father was very displeased by it. It is acceptable for those of similar rankings to date, but using your authority to molest those of lower rank or incorrectly treating those of equal rank is prohibited. That manager was well aware of the rules. All the managers are aware of the rules. They'd all been warned. That particular manager had been warned more than once."

"He was just fired right?" Sophia says fighting her tears. She didn't mind him losing his job, but she didn't want him to lose his life for what he did.

"I'm not to talk to you about the darker business, Sophia, you know that. What you don't know won't hurt you. In some cases that may not be true, but when it comes to the darker business it is always true. Don't ask, because if you do enough you might be told and that is something you really don't want to happen." Simon doesn't want to lie to her, but he wants her to understand that there are some things she just doesn't want to know about. Things he never wants her to know about. But he doesn't mean to make it sound threatening.

"I-I'm sorry, Simon, I won't ask again." Sophia can't hide the quiver in her voice. In that moment she's as scared of Simon as she's ever been of Jared.

"I scared you now didn't I?" Simon says sighing. "I didn't mean to. I don't want you hurt, Sophia. Please, just don't ask things that link to the dark business."

"I didn't know that question was linked to the other. I'm sorry."

"Now you are scared of me, dammit. Look I'll leave, when you are ready you are welcome to come out. If I'm still here, I'll give you a tour of the estate. If not then father or someone that he designates will do so. Then we'll pack up your apartment, unless you'd prefer to deal with the apartment first then the tour." Simon had hoped to talk her into quitting so that he could date her, but now he thinks he's lost his chance.

"You are free to go all over the estate, however, I will warn you that there are areas that deal exclusively with the darker business. On the tour those areas will be excluded, so if you aren't taken to an area that is why and please don't ask about it." Simon gets up off the bed and with shoulders not quite slumped but no longer straight he leaves the room.

Sophia waits until the door shuts behind him softly. Once she knows that he's gone she allows herself the luxury of tears once more.