Chapter 24

Amaris' POV

I watched as his gaze dropped to my body and even though I was sitting he could see well enough to notice that I was wearing a pantsuit. I shifted uncomfortable under his piercing gaze....no matter how many times I denied it he was intimidating. "Explain yourself." His eyes narrowed into thin slits. I already knew what he was talking about so there was no need to beat around the bush. His jaw clenched and unclenched before he spoke again. "Don't make me repeat myself."

I pressed my lips together trying to summon up courage before speaking. "If I recall correctly, Sir...." I drawled. "...there were no restrictions against pant suits in the email you sent to me so technically I can wear them." I expected him to say something but he didn't so I just continued as I arranged the files on my desk, anything to not look into those dark orbs glaring at me. "You wanted me to dress formally and here I am, dressing formally. Or...." I raised my head meeting his gaze again. "....this doesn't look formal to you?" I lifted a brow, proud of myself that I somehow managed to pull it off.

His eyes darkened with rage as the color drained out of his pupils. "Miss Carter....are you...questioning me?" He said in a surprisingly calm but cold tone. One that sent shivers down my spine. Come on girl, just breathe. You can keep this up for another five minutes. Don't let him walk all over you. Don't let him get to you.*

"I'm not questioning you, Sir. I just wanted to know if you saw this look...." I swept my hands down my body. "....as dressing informal."

I looked up expecting him to speak but he didn't say anything. Ugh! "Besides we're having a meeting today....so I decided to look a little more...." I paused looking for the exact word. "Professional."

"So....." He finally spoke. "You decided to break my rules just because we're having a meeting today." He looked at me with an irritated look which was kind of almost normal now. "I'll let you off the hook this time Carter," he turned on his heel, striding out of the office. He then paused in his tracks before saying. "But try this again and I promise you.....you're losing your job on the spot." His icy tone sent another chill of shivers down my spine as the coldness of his words cut through me like a razor blade leaving a trail of goosebumps behind. Argh! Why did he always make me feel so uneasy!

He hadn't left yet so I decided to apologize even though it wasn't something I would normally do. "I'm....." I was about to apologize when it struck me. Wait a minute, I wanted to lose this job right....there ain't no way I'm apologizing to this jerk, he could go jump off a building for all I care. He's the one who hired me in the first place so he should be the one to suffer, not me.

"What was that?" He turned his head just a little inch to the right so I could see one of his eyes.

I was about to utter the word "nothing," then I realized that I was going to sound a bit scared. "I just wanted to say I'm perfectly fine with it." A smug smile crept up my lips. "I think you should fire me." I crossed my hands over my chest. "I'm pretty sure I can get a better job somewhere.....at least I won't get to see your annoying face five times in a week." I muttered that last part to myself but I made it loud enough so he could hear me.

I could see a vein pulsing in the side of his head as he clenched his fist but he didn't say anything, which would have surprised me if he wasn't weirdly quiet today. Well, I guess the gods are on my side today. I watched him leave and as expected he didn't shut the door but I was too happy to even care. I just pissed off the Caleb Thorne again. And it felt so fucking good. I let out a loud chuckle before getting up to close the door.

As I walked back to my seat, I couldn't help but think about the things that Caleb would do to get back at me. My mind raced with possibilities but I pushed them all aside. I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of infiltrating my thoughts. Not when I had work to do.

~~~~~~~~~

As expected the meeting went smoothly but what kept bugging me was why Caleb was so quiet. Don't get me wrong he was quiet most of the time but this time was just so different. He didn't even say anything at the meeting, he just sat there watching everyone blabbing about the changes they could make in the company and I had to write all that shit down....while standing!

When the meeting was over I headed to my office so I could make a report on the notes I had taken down. I also had a lot of filing and paperwork to do and I was already tired, like really tired. But I didn't have a choice, I didn't want that jerk barging into my office again.

A couple of throbbing headaches, eye stings, keyboard burnouts and back pains later I was done with all the paperwork for the day. I glanced at my screen and I had to admit we were making really good profit this month. A small smile plastered on my face when I imagined Caleb thanking me for the good work I've been doing. Yeah right. Caleb? Thank me? Apparently he was nothing but a huge thorn in my side, literally. Well he should be glad his name is really working out for him.

I was still trying to wrap my head around the fact that someone as awesome and kind as Kian Beck was a friend of his. I mean he's nice, he has manners and he even smiles. An image of Kian smiling flashed in my head and I couldn't help but grin. If only Caleb was as nice as he was, my life wouldn't have been less miserable.

I heard the faint sound of footsteps heading in my direction and I jerked my head up towards the door. Great. Just the right person I wanted to see. My friend deepened as I watched Caleb walk into my office for the second time today. What did he want from me? I inwardly groaned.

Make sure you finish on time today. His warning echoed in my head. Oh shoot. I shut my eyes tight before opening them again, how could I forget. Caleb had unexpectedly decided to review all the paperwork himself today, which was unusual since he normally doesn't bother himself with such petty things. But for some reasons best known to him, he chose to make an exception today and I couldn't help but wonder why.

"Miss Carter," he greeted me with a small nod. "I suppose you're finished with the film for the day?" He said with his hands clasped behind him. Even though he didn't smile, his time was surprisingly cheerful and sparking my skepticism. There was something about him that didn't quite add up. I tried hiding my suspicion as I peered at him with a scrutinizing look. What the heck was he up to now