Her Heartless Billionaire

Chapter 2

I took a deep breath and walked towards the receptionist, who looked at me with a cold, unwelcoming stare. I knew that I had to make a good impression if I wanted to land the job, so I put on my best smile and tried to appear confident and self-assured.

I cleared my throat and spoke in the most formal tone I could muster.

"Good Morning, my name is Alison Smith. I'm here for the interview as the personal assistant of Mr Christopher Knight."

I waited patiently for her reply, but after three minutes had passed, I began to feel uneasy. Was she ignoring me?

'Jeez, what's wrong with this woman? How long will she take to reply? And that Grinch was calling me deaf. Huh,' I wondered silently.

I can't afford to be late for this interview. Summoning all my courage, I forced a fake smile.

"I'm here for the interview," I announced, raising my voice a notch. "Could you please direct me to the appropriate location?"

"The interview location is on the 56th floor." The receptionist's voice dripped with arrogance. "No need to shout, I heard you the first time." She added, rolling her eyes in displeasure.

Although I wanted to put her in her place, I decided against it. I didn't want to make two enemies in the same workplace in one single day, so I let it slide this time.

What's her deal anyway? Does she have a thing for the Grinch I just ran into? I must admit, he's quite the looker, like a prince from a fairy tale.

As I glanced at the wall clock behind the receptionist, my heart sank. The clock was ticking down to 8 o'clock, with only 5 minutes left.

"Oh no, I'm going to be late!" I exclaimed, my voice laced with panic.

"What's the big deal? It's not like you're going to get this job." The receptionist muttered under her breath, although she spoke softly, I heard her words loud and clear.

"When you reach the 56th floor, find Miss Parker, she will be able to assist you further." She said with a dismissive tone and a fake smile.

I nodded at the receptionist and muttered a quick thanks before sprinting towards the lift. My heart was pounding in my chest as I saw the doors closing. I was running for my life, but just as the doors were about to shut, a kind stranger reached out and stopped them from closing on me.

I let out a sigh of relief and exclaimed, "Phew! I made it. Thanks." I stopped for a moment, catching my breath, and took the kind stranger's hand. In one swift motion, he pulled me into the lift.

"Don't mention it." I heard his deep husky voice.

I looked up and met the gaze of a person with stunning green eyes. My goodness! He looked a bit like Paul Walker but with green eyes. He flashed me his bright, white, and straight Colgate smile, which I gladly returned.

I gasped for air and said, "I can't thank you enough for saving my life. If you hadn't stopped the lift, I would have been late for my interview and suffered a heart attack." I paused to catch my breath before continuing, "You're a lifesaver!."

He chuckled softly and said, "If you knew the boss, you wouldn't be so keen to work here. He does an excellent job of making people's lives a living hell." His words filled me with unknown fear, and I felt even more nervous than before. I gave him a weak smile.

"Oh great, if I'm successful in this interview, I'll be his new PA. YaY!" I said, my tone sarcastic.

"What!" His eyes widened at this information, and he gave me a sympathetic look. "That's bad news because he's heartless. None of his PAs have lasted more than three months. They've all left the job or been expelled from it because our boss is a heartless tyrant." He whispered the last part in a serious tone.

"By the way, my name is Jacob Carter! I work in the finance department on the 55th floor." He introduced himself with a wide smile and offered me a handshake.

With pleasure, I took Jacob's hand in mine and introduced myself. "I'm Alison Smith. It's great to meet someone as humble as you in this workplace."

The elevator stopped on the 55th floor. Jacob turned to me and said. "Alison, I would love to chat, but I'm running late. Lateness is taken very seriously in this office, and it can lead to termination without a hearing. I wish you all the best for your interview, and it'd be great to have you here." He spoke quickly and ran out of the elevator, waving goodbye. I could tell Jacob was running late, and so was I!

I hit the button for the 56th floor and checked the time. It was 7:59, and I had just made it in the nick of time. When the elevator dinged, I sprinted down the hallway towards the receptionist's desk, which was located in the centre of the building.

"Good morning my name is Alison Smith I'm here for the interview," I said everything in a single breath.

"Miss Smith, you're late. At Knights Enterprise, we take punctuality seriously and do not tolerate carelessness," she replied bluntly. Unfortunately, it seems that she wasn't very friendly either.

I'm sorry. Actually, I bumped into....." I started off.

"No need for your explanation. Sign here please." she rudely cut me off. I opened my mouth to say something but decided against it. It was my fault for waking up late and blindly bumping into that Grouchy Grinch.

I reluctantly signed the paper. She snatched the papers out of my hand like a hawk swooping down on its prey and added them to the pile of papers, which I assumed were from other candidates.

"Take a seat in the waiting area, and you'll be called in when it's your turn." She said, pointing to a seating area that was almost full of people. Most of them were women, with their faces heavily made up and wearing revealing outfits that were not appropriate for an office environment.

I found an empty seat next to a brunette who was busy applying lipstick and taking selfies with her iPhone. I couldn't help but wonder if we were all here for a personal assistant's job or a modelling gig.

As I sat down next to her, she gave me a disapproving look that made me feel uncomfortable. It was as if she was judging my outfit, and she pulled a disgusted face before returning to whatever she was doing. I huffed in annoyance, wondering what was wrong with all these people and their attitudes. First, there was that handsome – no, I mean grumpy Grinch, followed by the ground floor receptionist, and then I had to endure the rudeness of Miss Parker, who looked like a Victoria's Secret model with a thigh-high pencil skirt and a tight-fitting blouse.

'Who are they trying to impress? I'm sure it's Mr. Knight,' I thought to myself.

I had heard a lot about him from Sami, who claimed that his dashing looks, irresistible sex appeal, mesmerizing gray eyes, and chiselled eight-pack abs were more than enough to make any woman weak in the knees. Mr Christopher Knight embodied the perfect image of a man of great power, beauty, and charisma and the ultimate playboy. He was a billionaire tycoon with dashing looks and a rotten personality.

"Miss Parker, if everyone's here then send them in one by one." The cold and authoritative voice reverberated through the hallways, making everyone jump.

All eyes swivelled to the source of the sound, but I didn't need to look. I knew exactly who it was. The Grinch himself, his presence like a thunderbolt, commanding attention and respect from everyone around him.

Miss Parker's voice stuttered like a car engine struggling to start as she replied.

"Ye-yes mm-Mr Knight."

'WHAT!' I felt the world spinning around me.

.

.

.