"WHAT? Why are you looking at me like that?" Mr. Fritzgibbons asked her when he caught Sierra glancing at him repeatedly.
They were currently on their way to the other department, bringing flowers and a cake, but she noticed something wrong with the young man. Sierra thinks she has also acquired her boss's OCD because even the smallest in-arrangement bothers her a lot.
"There's something o-on your -" Unable to continue what she was supposed to say, she just pointed to his untidy collar. Mr. Fritzgibbons couldn't get it until she initiated the act. Sierra extended her arms on his nape and fixed her boss's collar and necktie. "That's better, and if you smile a bit, it will be the best."
She even gestured at how to smile, but her boss just frowned.
I make a request once, and I get rejected immediately, she said in her mind.
"What will be my next schedule after this show of yours?" Mr. Fritzgibbons asked Sierra.
"This isn't a show, sir. You have to take this seriously, and with all due respect, you're not a good actor."
"So, you are a good actress?"
"Maybe?" Sierra took a deep breath and stood next to her boss. "You have to earn their trust and alliance, Mr. Fritzgibbons. Do you want to know what I heard in the bathroom earlier?"
"This is the longest elevator ride I've ever had, Miss Jimenez."
"Just smile a bit," she ordered him. "You have no choice and no more turning back."
"Just like the activity, you pushed in our team building? What will I get in return, miss Jimenez?" He asked her one question after another. She thought of putting the boss in all the activities so that the employees see how he was as a boss. "Never mind my last question, but I always get what I want in return."
"You'll get their trust and loyalty, sir. Gaining that is like acing an important test."
"Okay. I think listening to you won't hurt me that much."
"Just this one, sir."
"And you owe me one, miss Jimenez."
The elevator opened, and he got out of there first. She was left dumbfounded and thought over the last thing he said. She still owes the man. Even though she was doing everything to make his name smell good inside and outside the company, she doesn't understand men often, and then they are the ones who say that women are all complicated.
She hurriedly followed the boss because she was holding the gift that should have been given to the employee whose birthday was today. They didn't tell everyone they would start doing the project compassion that Mr. Fritzgibbons' mother claimed at first. Her boss got it back, but they will do it like this. Everything is secret from anyone. Sierra kept it even on her friends and mother as learning from her past mistake.
"Don't forget to smile, Mr. Fritzgibbons!" She reminded him before letting him approach the birthday girl. Sierra also reminded her who had a birthday and some essential details she gathered. That's also an extra point to make it more sincere and come from the heart.
I hope he doesn't forget, she said as she watched him do what they had discussed.
***
SIERRA was eating alone while reading emails on her work tablet when someone took it and sat on the chair in front of her. She shouldn't have noticed, but her appetite suddenly dropped when she recognized who it was. The food she ordered at the cafeteria was delicious. She only ate at that place today because her boss wasn't around. Mr. Fritzgibbons had a private commitment from an unknown person. But Sir Martin gives Sierra a hint of where her boss is.
"Sierra's magic is being the talk of the whole company now," Eric said sarcastically, which she chose to ignore. "Was that for a show?"
"If that's for a show, when did it become your business, Mr. Gonzales?" His hand went up in surrender, and she tried to ignore the young man. She tried to focus all her attention on her ravioli dish. That was delicious, but it lost its flavor because of Eric. "He's not a good actor and a liar. And I don't know if you noticed, but you both have chemistry."
She dropped the cutlery she was holding and quickly put away her things. Sierra thought she could eat quietly, but she was wrong. Maybe she will buy food outside so her stomach won't hurt. Sierra wondered if Eric had eaten something to make him think there was something between her and Mr. Fritzgibbons. She avoids getting involved in any issue that Mr. Fritzgibbons has.
"Sierra, we're not done talking yet. I have something important to ask you,"
She turned around and came a few feet closer to the young man. "Look, whatever you want to say about personal things, hold it because I'm not interested, Eric. Why don't you go to hell, hm?"
Crazy still hasn't changed. He still has the same attitude, she said long in the back of his mind.
Sierra also wondered why he spent so much time catching up on gossip when there was so much to take care of in the department where he was. Even if they don't have time, people insert a little bit to find holes in others.
"Sierra, do you know where your boss is?" Miss Bernadette asked when she found her inside their office.
"He's with Sir Martin, I think? He's the one who said where Sir Aidan is now,"
"Where is that exactly? Martin is not answering his phone, and I need your boss to sign these papers."
"On his penthouse, miss Bernadette. Do you want me to bring that to him personally?"
"Will you do that?"
"Yeah, I have some documents that need his signature too."
"Thank you so much, Sierra," she smiled and said goodbye to leave so she could return immediately. What kind of boy's secret that her two bosses have?
Fortunately, Sierra was sure that her boss was in his penthouse. That's the hint she got from Sir Martin's text message. She hoped she was right because if not, she'll be doomed!
***
SIERRA keyed in his boss' passcode when she arrived at Mr. Fritzgibbons' property. As usual, the inside of his boss's house is clean. But when she got to the living room, she saw all the women's clothes scattered everywhere. She frowned as she saw lingerie hanging on the lampshade. After that, she heard a loud growl from the room to her right.
Judging only by the clothes she found, and the murmuring heard now, Sierra was sure that a miracle was happening inside the room. Should she leave? Because the boss did not reply to her, she continued to go even though there was no response from Mr. Fritzgibbons. The grunt grew louder and later turned into a scream. That scream, filled with so much pleasure, made Sierra gulp hard.
"I shouldn't be here," she said, then quickly went out, but it was too late.
"Sierra..." Mr. Fritzgibbons said after seeing her. Her boss's lower body was wrapped in a towel, and his whole body was still sweaty. The fatigue from his performance inside his room was evident in his appearance, which Sierra did not want to see. It was also strange that he called her by her name instead of her usual name.
"Hey baby, can I call you again?" A slender, groin woman hugs him from behind.
Both of her shoulders slumped when she saw it. The number one rule when it's a one-time thing, there should be no physical touch involved. The woman who's with Mr. Fritzgibbons failed that test.
She saw the irritation on his boss's face, especially when he undid the woman's clinging to him. "No, you won't do that because my wife is now standing in front of us." Mr. Fritzgibbons pointed her out, then smiled mischievously.
Sierra scoffed. She couldn't believe that she had suddenly become her boss' fall guy. She folded her arms in front of the two and tapped the floor several times with her pointed-toe heels. It's the one Mr. Fritzgibbons gave her before, and the pair of heels fit perfectly on her feet.
"Aren't you going to leave, or do you want me to drag you out of here? You have to choose wisely because I can do the latter now," she said thoughtfully, and the woman looked scared. "Pick up your clothes now, and don't forget that lingerie on the lampshade." There was a mix of menace in her voice, so the woman couldn't help but cry.
She just watched it while Mr. Fritzgibbons returned to the room to shower. When the woman left, she went to the cleaning area and got a vacuum cleaner and a rag to clean the couch she was going to sit on. Even though she was disgusted, she continued to do so and arranged for the papers to be signed by Mr. Fritzgibbons.
"You're a great actress, Miss Jimenez," she was stunned for a moment by his boss because when he came back, he only wore casual clothes.
"Was that why I owe you because you know I'm going to come here and catch you having sex with someone else? Can't you think of an alibi? You made me your wife?"
"She buys it already and reminds me to treat you out for dinner." She beamed in response to this. "What do we have here?"
"Ms. Bernadette needs these documents from the finance department." She fixed it and then handed the young man a ballpoint pen.
"You're good at keeping secrets, right?" he asked before signing the paper.
"It depends on the secret, boss."
"Can you keep today's secret to everyone? I only told Martin I was here, but he is talkative, so you are here today."
"Rest assured, I'll keep everything a secret, and it's also not nice to talk about another's sex life to another." He breathed deeply. Sierra's last sex was her boss, and it's the night they procreated Ezekiel.
"Do you have a good relationship with your husband?"
"I don't have one. Only an intelligent son." He looked at her, and she looked at the young man. "We're done here. I'm leaving so you can rest."
"Thank you for thinking that, miss Jimenez. Next time, please text me before coming in." That's precisely what I did! she shouted in her mind. Sierra clenched her hand and took another deep breath. "Try losing up, Sierra. Just try it once..."