The Editor

Chapter 1

I PULLED my dirty-blonde hair into a high bun, pulling some pieces down to frame my face, completing my look for work today. I wore a white button down, which was tucked in neatly into the charcoal fabric of my pencil skirt, and some gold hoop earrings, a long with some subtle eye makeup. Filling in my eyebrows and applying my ruby red lipstick I headed to my kitchen.

My home was a small modern-styled penthouse in central Toronto. You could see the CN Tower from my window and I very much I enjoyed the view and the city life. It was something I expected to be a part of after I decided to try my chances and become and editor for one of the biggest magazines in the country, ROUGE Magazine.

My phone started buzzing on the bedside table, I looked at the caller ID and saw that the caller was my boss and CEO of ROUGE, Kaiden Moore. Kaiden was a kind gentleman, but was in business mode for the duration of his work day. After hours though, he turned into a different person.

"Hello Mister Moore. Why are you calling so early in the morning?"

"Sav, I wanted to let you know that I need you in my office as soon as you're here; I'm assuming you're already on your way?" I scrunched my freckled nose at his informal use of my nickname, short for Savana. It was a business call.

I shifted my weight to my right foot. "I was just about to leave, don't worry I'll be there right away."

"See you then." He hung up the phone.

Talking to him always made me nervous, especially considering he was my boss and the owner of the company I worked for. I could get fired on the spot for any wrong move.

I grabbed the coffee I had prepared before getting ready for the day, placing the lid atop the travel mug. I then grabbed my red strapy heels and placing them on my feet. Statement shoes of course.

Heading out the door into the hallway and locking it I made my way to the elevator. I lived on floor 35 of my complex, so the ride down the lobby took some time.

After exiting the building I waved down a taxi, the ride to work was always uneventful and the drivers never engaged in conversation. I thought Canada was supposed to be the nicest country in the world?

Heading up to Kaiden's office I tried to calm my nerves; what could he possibly want to talk about with me? Was I getting fired? Did the last issue of ROUGE do poorly?

I knocked twice on Kaiden's office doors and opened them to find his tall frame staring out to the city below through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows which covered most of his office.

"Mister Moore?" I asked causing him to turn around.

If I said i didn't find Kaiden attractive I would be a liar. He was incredibly handsome, which striking green eyes and olive skin. His dark hair was swept back in a pompadour style. You could definitely tell his family was from southern France, which was evident in his skin and sharp features.

"Sav, when it's just the two of us you can skip the formalities." It was odd for him to allow such a thing as he was strict in how formal his company looked.

"Alright Kaiden, what was I called here for?" I asked, curiosity getting the best of me.

He gestured me to sit down on the leather chair in front of his desk, him doing the same and sitting across from me. He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a magazine from the opposing company, HUSH.

"I'm guessing you have no idea why I called you in here," He spoke softly. "But I can assure you that you're not in trouble in any way."

A breath I didn't know I was holding escaped my lips.

"Look at the cover of this magazine and tell me what you see."

He pushed the magazine toward me and I picked it up, investigating it. It had a skinny blonde model wearing a skin tight blue dress and holding some sort of puppy. The headlines included "How to get a flat stomach in TWO WEEKS!" And "Sex tips to blow his mind!". I didn't really know what I was supposed to be looking at so I stated the obvious.

"This looks like a regular magazine." I deadpanned.

"Exactly, but do you see what they're promoting? Sex and dieting! And who are these magazines being targeted at?"

I saw his point. "Teenage girls."

"This is why I called you here today, you're my best editor Sav. I want to create this months issue based on what teenage girls should actually be looking at and seeing in the world. I want to see real people on the cover of a magazine, not some overly-skinny woman who probably works out for 7 hours and eats one meal a day." He said taking the magazine from me and pointing at it aggressively. "And you're the one who I want to create it."

My eyes widened. "Me? Are you sure Kaiden? I don't know about that." Why me? I'm not sure I could do this, a whole magazine issue all by myself?

"I know it seems like a lot." He comes to sit on the desk in front of me, taking my hands in his. I gasp slightly at the sudden contact. "But I wouldn't ask you if I didn't think you could do it."

His green eyes bore into my brown ones. "Please, even if you need some time to think about it. I'm going to help you through this."

I took a deep breath. If he really wanted me to do this, I could at least try.

I looked up and smiled at him.

"When can we start?"