Get A Grip, Devon!

DEVON

I reached the factory site at nine-forty five. And if I say I was gobsmacked by the number of people that had gathered at the gate of the factory then that would be clearly an understatement.

I was busy playing a video game on my phone. But when we neared the factory site, Christine shook my shoulder in urgency. She didn't say anything, only pointed outside the car.

And when I lifted up my head to look in that direction, I forgot about my game and the level I wanted to cross. The large crowd stood outside the gates in peace as if they were waiting for someone and that someone was definitely not me.

It was clear from their hostile gazes in my way though they couldn't really see me through the tinted windows.

I locked my phone and slipped it inside my pant pocket. The playful, relaxed Devon was gone, and now they would face Devon Sanders, the arrogant and ambitious businessman who cannot take a loss of even a dime.

I wore my shades once the car entered the large gates. I saw Smith and his assistants barking orders at the security head. The car stopped right in front of the temporary office that we have built.

My driver killed the engine and then rushed out of the car to open my door. As soon as I stepped out of the car, I could feel the tension brewing in the air. But then light murmurs caught my attention, and I turned my head to look at the gate that the security was closing now to see many awestruck faces.

I didn't know if they were awestruck because of my looks or my age, but whatever it was, I enjoyed the attention I received.

"Good morning, Boss! Please, this way." Smith hurried me inside the office.

I went to sit in my chair, and a man brought a tray full of coffee mugs.

"Where is the file I asked you for?" I asked, getting comfortable in the chair.

Smith placed the file he was carrying in front of me. "It's here, Sir. This file has all the correspondence that has happened between Sanders Fertilizers and Petrochemicals, and The Greenchase Foundation."

I checked the time to see that I had only ten minutes before the meeting.

"Where is she?" I asked, flipping the pages of the file that I had already studied but thought about taking another glance to not fall short on my arguments.

"She is not here yet sir."

My head snapped up at Smith. "Doesn't she know that the meeting is supposed to begin at ten? She should be present at least ten minutes prior to the time."

Smith shifted uncomfortably in his place. "I know sir but... Elena Bell... that woman cannot be dictated. She does things on her wish and there is no one who can force her into something she doesn't want."

I threw the file on the table angrily, and everyone jumped in fear.

"Who pays you the salary Smith? Devon Sanders or Elena Bell?" My voice boomed, frightening the man.

"I... I am sorry, sir. I didn't mean to praise her. I... I was just... telling the facts about her." He tried to justify himself.

"Rubbish!" I cursed, swivelling my chair to face the large window from where I could see the workers gathered outside the office.

The clock of my patience was ticking faster than the time. Only two minutes were left before the meeting, and yet there was no sign of that unpunctual woman!

My jaw was clenched tightly, my eyes were fixated on the gate that I could see from where I sat. And when I was about to explode in anger, a beaten-up Chevrolet entered through the gates.

And before I could see more, the workers flocked around the car until it stopped at the front of the office. I stood up from my chair, amazed at the people's reaction, as I could hear and see the crowd outside the gates, yelling and hooting as if a celebrity had arrived.

Who the fuck is this woman? I couldn't help but think.

The car didn't slow down until it stopped. I tried to look beyond the wall of people, but all I could see was only a number of heads obstructing my view. The door opened, and the crowd moved to the door of the office.

The security instantly ran to hold back the crowd.

While I was still wrapping my head around what just happened, the door of the cabin opened, and I turned my head to see a man walking in.

He looked fairly young, and as soon as his eyes met mine, he stole them away to never let it happen again. I smirked satisfyingly.

A woman dressed in black trousers and a blazer that had the logo of TGF embroidered on its pocket entered. And I just blinked. Her hair was styled in a bob cut, and she wore thick-rimmed specs as her eyes searched for me.

So that was Elena Bell? All this hype, this madness, this anticipation was for... THIS woman?

A rumbling laughter was on its way to exit my throat, but then another woman entered the office. The air was knocked out of me as if someone punched me hard in the guts.

My mind and body froze as I stood like a statue. My hands that rested on the window pane slipped lifelessly to hang limply beside me.

My lips parted in shock, and I was sure my eyes were bulging out of my head as they took in that woman from head to toe.

Her white shoes clinked against the floor as she strode lightly, swaying her hips confidently. Her shoulders were squared, and her chin was up in the air.

Her oval face extruded pure confidence. Her full pink lips glistened under the light in a darker shade of pink. Her burgundy waved hair was tied up in a stylish ponytail, and not even a single hair was out of its place.

I couldn't help but stare at her full breasts, which made my throat go dry.

"Mr Sanders?" Her familiar voice jolted me out of my trance, and I felt like that hot pan that is thrown under cold water. Fumes came out of it with a sizzling sound.

My heart, mind and body were no different than that hot pan and that cold water, it was her soothing voice.

"Elena Bell! The CEO of The Greenchase Foundation."

I just... blinked.

Christine came to my side and nudged me as subtly as she could, but the way Elena's lips twitched, it told me that she noticed it.

My hands suddenly felt heavy like metal logs. And my heart... I was surprised how it still kept me alive, given the alarming rate it was beaten at.

Mustering every ounce of energy in me, I slowly lifted my hand to accept hers. And the moment, our hands touched, I felt the same bolts of electricity as that night.

I didn't know what she felt though. The confidence that she wore on her face changed into something else. But before I could pinpoint what it was, it was gone, as if it was never there in the first place.

We shook hands, and before I could savour the feel of her, the touch of her cold skin, and admire how perfectly her hand fits in mine, she pulled it away.

Christine cleared her throat. "Miss Bell, please have a seat."

Elena glanced at Christine. Her brown eyes were instantly on alert. She nodded her head without a hint of a polite smile and went to sit in the chair across from me.

"Boss, what the hell are you doing? Get a grip! She is not even that hot!"

And that last sentence suddenly made me question why I had that woman working as my PA when she couldn't even understand my taste.

But she was right about one thing though.

'Get a grip, Devon! Get a grip!', I tried to focus my mind, but that focus stayed only until I sat in my chair and looked up again at the woman sitting in front of me.

But then my eyes caught my father's picture that was on the table for some weird reason. I didn't know if Smith was secretly in love with Victor Sanders or if he was his worshipper, but the man strangely had his picture placed on the table.

Though annoying and creepy, that picture came to save my troubled ass.

"You are late!" My voice came out stronger than I thought.

Her eyes shifted to meet mine and yet again, there was no hint of recognition in them. It saddened me greatly, but my father's sharp glare kept me on the right track.

"I think you are weak in reading right time, Mr Sanders. I stepped in through that door at sharp Nine-forty nine and shook your hand at sharp ten."

I caught the woman and the man who accompanied her stifling their smiles.

And that made my jaw tick in annoyance.

"Anyways, let's get to the point, Mr Sanders. We have already put our demands forward. And if you think you can negotiate through this meeting, then let me save both of our time. It is not going to happen!

I am here for this meeting only because I want to know your decision. Give me the date when the last person working on this project from your company will leave Swindon. We don't have anything else to discuss."

Leave her? Again?

'Focus! Focus Devon!'

"Miss Bell, please! I want you to first listen to the changes we are planning to make in our project. In that way we can find a middle ground for both parties. Think about the hundreds of workers who can get employment because of this project." Christine tried.

She tilted her head, holding Christine's eyes with her captive ones.

"There is no scope for a middle ground here, Miss..."

"Mill, Christine Mill. I am Mr Devon's PA." Christine offered her hand for a handshake.

I watched as Elena stared at her advanced hand for a moment, but I couldn't make out anything from her expression.

And when I and Christine both thought she would insult Christine by ignoring her offering, she surprised both of us by shaking hands with her.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Mill!" She said, and Christine smiled in relief.

"But that doesn't mean I am ready to waste my time in unconclusive discussion." She added quickly.

My eyes were trained only on her. She looked the same yet... very different. She was not that underconfident, cheerful, crazy woman. The way she spoke, the way she walked, the way she was dressed and carried herself, it all spoke class.

But the woman I was searching for in her was the exact opposite of that. Where was she now, or was I searching for her at the wrong place?