“You should know better than anyone, Milan.” Ciara muttered in a sharp tone, few lines were visible on her forehead. “I don't accept such a proposal, cancel it as soon as you can to avoid giving him false hope and impression.”Swiftly, she dropped the dial phone receiver with a small sigh and rubbed her temples afterward as if she were trying to wade off the invincible headache she was having. “Ah —work!” She lamented under her breath, in a sharp yet weary tone.The soft knock on the door interrupted the calm yet awkward silence, snapping Ciara off her daze. “Come in…" She lazily uttered, her gaze solely fixated on her desk.The door creaked opened the next few seconds, with the soft clinking of heels against the floor following suit. “Ma'am…" The voice called Ciara's attention.—instead of a proper reply, Ciara gestured for her to sit, without raising her head to spare her a glance. “Sit, Sheila.” She muffled out slowly. “What's the outcome? I'm curious about it.”Sheila smiled was f
“Did you inform them about the meeting, as I've asked of you yesterday?” He asked her, searching through his drawer frantically.“I do, sir…" Miriam's reply was short and plain, nodding her head positively but at a slow pace. “I wrote them a group text, and they all replied to it, but still, I'll send a brief reminder when it's almost the time.”“Thank you, Miriam,” he said with a sigh of relief, finally locating the document he had been searching for. “It's important that everyone is aware and prepared for the meeting.” He smiled warmly at her, appreciating her diligence and attention to detail.He did not tell her anything about what's needed to be at the meeting, but Miriam was sure it was because of the previous day incident —the anonymous company that was interested in becoming a shareholder with them and their tempting offer. Her boss rarely calls meetings and even if he does call one, he never showed up; always leaving them to decide the fate of the meeting and expecting feedb
Ryan was exhausted due to the day's work, he's been working overtime the last few days, he felt he needed no time to lag behind and needed to fill in all the lapses as possibly as he can —any other things that come in as aid should just be an addition to his tireless hardworking.He caused whatever ill fate that has befallen him, and he should be the one to bear the consequence of his mistakes and recklessness. Most times, he felt bad to see his staff too, working overtime and going home quite much later than they were supposed to.None of them was reluctant nor say a word against him; not even did anyone think of resigning from work. During times, he did feel gratitude towards them, they had decided to stand by him during his hard times too —most especially Miriam, she never stops putting him on track whenever she felt he's losing his way.Ryan knew he couldn't be more lucky than he was already —he got the kind of staff needed and the support too, they made sure he did not lack that
“I'll be back from work later than usual today, don't stay up late if I don't come back early.” Ryan told his mother, as he made to pick his briefcase. “I'll be spending a couple of days here with you, I feel really empty living alone in that big house —it's scary, something.”His mother smiled, relieved that he was going to stay with her for a while. “Of course, dear. I'm always here for you,” she said, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “During the weekend, we can go to the park and enjoy the beautiful autumn scenery.”“My schedules are tight these days, and I'll be working during the weekend too, I can't promise you that.” He replied to her slowly, politely turning her offer down.Mrs. Lerman did not bother to reply as she was trying to conceal the surprise she felt, her gaze solely fixated on her son. She was happy to have her son at her home, even if it was for a short while. She hoped that they could spend some quality time together and catch up on each other's lives.Ry
Sheila walked over to Milan's counter and placed her both hands on the desk, resting her weight on it. “Hey, Milan.” She cited. “I sent something to the printer, do print it out for me.”Milan's gaze was fixated solely on the system before her, with her fingers doing wonders on it before. “Sure, I'll…" She replied almost immediately in, rushing her words. “After I'm done with this write-ups, I need to have them finished before…"The impatient side of Sheila took over her as she cut Milan off abruptly, giving her no chance to complete her words. “There is no later or after, Milan, and leave whatever you are busy with immediately.” Sheila doped out, countering. “I want it done now, I need to deliver it to boss as soon as she arrives.”Milan sighs, not buying the idea of leaving her typing, but she has no other choice to it —she will have to do as told. “Sure, just a few seconds…" She lazily muttered, standing up from her seat to the other side of the counter.A minute or two later, Mila
“I see you received my mail already.” Ryan said immediately after the formal exchange of pleasantries as he gestured towards the seat before him. “Please, do have your seat.”Sheila did have her seat as offered and dropped the document with her on Ryan's desk, adjusting her dress lightly afterward. “Yeah, the mail was received earlier today and I had to reschedule my plans for today, so I would meet with you.” She said, slightly pushing the document before him.Ryan did not let a second slide as he picks up the document immediately. “I suppose your company has it own format for dealing with deals and proposals?” It was supposed to be a plain statement, but it came out as a question —but rhetorical.“Well, yeah…" She stated simply. “To be on the safe side, I guess.”Ryan nodded curtly, finding her reply more pleasing. “Well then, let's see what you got here in the document. I hope it goes well with me because I might call off this if it doesn't.” He said to her, yet to open the files.
Ryan sat alone in the expensive leather chair, dwelling in the disquieting stillness of his office, feeling both overwhelmed and lonely. He rummages through his thoughts, his gaze over the offer from the anonymous lady. The audacity of her request agitated the placid water of his mind, producing ripples that echoes hauntingly through his soul.Could he genuinely consider ceding sixty-five percent of his company and even going as far as relinquishing his position as the chief executive officer? Shock and frustration were the emotion at war with in him, betraying an almost physical pain on his chiseled credentials.Still, he understood that the proposal from the anonymous lady wasn't a mere preposition; it was a potential lifeline, a chance to salvage what little remained of his company.As he looked down at the impeccably written argument, thoughts raced through his mind like a storm. The new offer stood at 65%, a 10% increment from the initial agreement, the woman had gagged up her wa
“Ma'am, I have some news regarding the Lerman deal,” Sheila said as she stepped into Ciara's office, banging the door softly behind her.Ciara slowly looked up from her desk, her expression was unreadable. “Go ahead, I'm listening.” She answered in a voice just as plain, her facial expression.Sheila took a deep breath. “Mr. Lerman did give a response to our proposal when I met with him earlier today, but I'm afraid it's not the response we were hoping for.” Sheila said, carefully picking her words.A flicker of anger flashed in Ciara's eyes as she leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms, her expression cold and steely. “What did he say?” she asked, her voice tight.Sheila took a moment to gather her thoughts before uttering a response. “He's rejecting our offer, he said that he's not willing to give up majority control of his company; he was furious when he told me these. He added that he's willing to accept a minority investment, but not what we proposed —he is sticking with t