Xenia was interrupted by Cassie's high-pitched voice.
"Gregory, I came to get you. I don't know if Wendon informed you, but we organized lunch to welcome you all."
"Oh," Gregory replied, a little perplexed.
Xenia took advantage of the situation to slip out, leaving Gregory to face the devilish redhead.
"I hope she isn't giving you a hard time," Cassie said as soon as Xenia was no longer on the radar.
"Who?"
"Xenia, she is a real little wild spirit who thinks she owns the place. She's one of those new-age women who neither know their place or respect work ethics. She is always yelling about whatever rights. You nailed her mouth shut this morning."
"Cassie."
"Yes."
"At lunch, I don't talk about my colleagues or subordinates. It's my break, a moment where my mouth is only supposed to open to welcome food and water."
A simple shut-up would have been okay. Can't he keep it simple? Cassie thought.
The woman hugged her jacket around her to cover herself from the waves Gregory's cold aura sent.
Gregory strode to the door, where he held it open for Cassie, who was taken aback by the attitude switch. The man was cold but remained a gentleman; this made him more appealing to the red-haired eyes.
XY XX
Niki widened her eyes, excited to ask, "so, tell me everything?"
"Oh, Niki, I swear I'm not going to make it. I don't know what I did to deserve this."
"Maybe it's because you were late."
"No, Niki, they didn't pick me there, and you heard him right. He thinks I'm his minion."
"Xenia, don't forget he is here to audit; you should be fanning him."
"I know, I should, and I would be kissing butt, but the guy is patronizing."
"It's his first day; maybe he just wants to show who's the boss; he'll probably be different tomorrow."
"He better be because I'm not going to take no bossing around from someone who has Harry Potter's wand stuck where it shouldn't."
"You are terrible," Niki said with a broad-spread grin.
"What, it's true though he is so stuck up."
Nikki smiled, "I find him quite sexy with his full English accent; it reminds me of Mr.Darcy, played by Colin Firth. No, Micheal Fassbender, oh yeah, he is as hot as Micheal."
"You mean Pride and Prejudice; you are fleur bleu. Want to exchange? I'll ship your Firthbender to you; I hate men like him."
Niki cocked an eyebrow, "Is there a man you don't hate?"
"Let me think," Xenia said, sitting back in her chair, arms crossed.
"You shouldn't even have to ponder, "Nikki shook her head in disapproval.
"I know Sponge Bob; he cracks me up," Xenia said, clapping in her hands.
"Oh my Good Lord, Xenia, he isn't even real, and he's not even a man."
"Sia loves him."
"You let her watch sponge, Bob?" Niki inquired face expressing what kind-of-mom-are-you look.
Almost every woman in Xenia's entourage gave her that stare. Everybody had their opinion on how she should raise Sia.
At first, the constant remarks stressed her, and she made more mistakes than Xenia opted to listen to herself even if people thought she didn't know how to educate her child.
Xenia munched her Cesar salad, not adding another comment, and Niki started to brief her on the latest novel she was reading on wattpad.
"There's the Leftover woman and What Vincent Wants."
"Niki, why don't you write your books?"
"You know how embarrassed I am, and I would like to write a romance, but I feel like everyone has already imagined the best plots, and I won't be able to do better."
"Even if it's the case, what matters is the recipe, how you cook your dish. Do you want people to read your stories, or do you just want fame? I mean, you've been constipated for years with the stories in your head. Just let them out. I remember the work you did back in high school."
"Oh no, that was terrible. Xenia, come on, and what if I let out my stories and people say it's shit."
"No, you have talent. If you put your story on that site you love, you'll have thousands of fans. Trust me," said Xenia giving Niki a wink.
Niki supported her through so many trials; encouraging her was the least Xenia could do for her.
"By the way, it has nothing to do, but why are you still eating salads almost four years after giving birth.
"My stomach, since I've had Sia, it pops out as soon as I eat something. I managed to get rid of the zebra crossings of stretch marks. God bless Palmers Cocoa butter, now I only have this frigging stomach to go, and I have my nice figure back."
"You are crazy; everybody is always going on about how tight your body is, and what a shame it is that you're a lesbian."
"Well, serve them, right. I will never let a man lay his cheating hands on me again."
"You are such a drama queen. Never say never, dear. You never know what encounter you'll make in life."
Xenia glared at her friend before starting to attack her carrot cake.
XY XX
At another restaurant, nearby Gregory, too, had his fair share of questioning.
"So Gregory, how's your day so far?" asked Christophe Gaudet, one of the financial advisors.
"Good."
"And you, Mrs. Pratt?"
"It's perfect."
The quick and short answers created a little discomfort on the French side of the table.
"Don't worry about these two workaholics. They are happier to be here than you think," Wendon said, showing the managers a killer smile to unknot the gloomy atmosphere.
The other members of the director's team gave more detailed answers, which reassured the French side.
Everyone was tucking into dessert when Gregory got up.
"Monsieur Carlton, is there something wrong?"
"I think the duration of lunch is an hour; I have exactly 5 minutes to regain my position."
The whole table was silent; some even dropped their spoon along with their mouth.
"Quel fayot," Gregory heard someone whisper.
Jaila got up too, "Mr. Everett, I'll be going too."
They really can't keep a low profile even for a day, Wendon thought. The director smiled nervously, "well, hurry along, can't be late on your first day, can you."
The two managers left, leaving the others in an awkward position everyone started to get up to do the same.
Only Wendon remained with three old department heads whose habits were to have 3-hour lunches paid by the company.
Gregory, you are an accurate metronome. Even with this simple gesture, he singled out the people who overstepped certain privileges.
"Gentlemen, let's finish the last dessert which you'll be having as members of Astoria. Of course, the tab is on me, eat."
The men huffed in their chairs, and one even loosened his tie understanding the new team of managers' objective was a total, not partial wipeout.
Astoria was in a dangerous situation; it was Wendon's job to make the cuts where necessary.
XY XX
"You were hard back there. Raise your foot on the pedal," Jaila whispered in Gregory's ear as she got in the lift, which went up to the odd-numbered floors winking at him as the doors closed.
"Well, you are a serious one," Cassie said. The woman was the only member of the French team who dared talk to him.
"They pay me for it," Gregory said as he stepped into the lift, which filled up, forcing him to be a little too close to Cassie.
The women's perfume tickled his nostrils with its sweet accents, which made him a little nauseous. The journey to the 18th floor was long.
"Gregory, please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything," Cassie said as they parted in front of the lift.
"I won't hesitate," he replied with a small smile, which made the woman melt, thinking she had scored some point with the stern man.
Gregory walked away, wondering if Cassie had seen the smile the way he intended. Jaila told him to slow down a little; she was right; it was their first day; perhaps he was a bit overboard.
As he passed the office door, he wondered if Xenia was back too.
The man found her seated at the place he had sat earlier in the morning.
"Ehㅡ," before he could finish, Xenia was replying.
"It's an open space we can sit where ever," she said with a cocky smile, which stated CHECKMATE ON YOUR FACE.
Good Gregory thought, two can play that game, and I'm quite a player.