Page 51 of The Boss

Except I wasn’t going to leave early because, as soon as I was done with tightening up these last two memos, I had to go see Nate. Which meant by the time I was leaving with everyone else, they’d all see me come out of his office, or they’d be told about it by someone who had seen me.

Had Mr. Kordell even talked to Nate at all? How was I supposed to stay away from him if he kept after me? Didn’t he realize that if I went into his office alone today that it would only serve to make the rumors worse? It wouldn’t matter if I came out right away or not until everyone else was gone. Either one would be a story.

I could refuse to go, of course, but it was entirely possible that he had something work-related for me to do and I was the only one reading more into things. He wasn’t exactly known for being sentimental about his relationships, let alone a fling like the one we’d had. If I presented myself professionally, then I could show him that what had happened between us meant as little to me as it did to him.

The main problem with me maintaining proper work behavior had less to do with the two nights we’d spent together and more to do with the fact that he’d brought Finley into our personal lives. Maybe me being angry about that was a good thing. I could go to his office, listen to whatever assignment he gave me, and then I could tell him that I didn’t appreciate what he’d done. If he had something he wanted to say to me, he could either say it to my face or not at all. No more sending someone else on his behalf. No more talking about our private business with anyone, especially not Mr. Kordell.

All of this flashed through my mind in half a minute and then I was telling Nate that I’d be there as soon as I finished this last project. He sounded pleased as he ended the call, but that could have been my imagination.

By the time I was ready, I had fifteen minutes before I was technically off the clock, and as I headed toward Nate’s office, I wondered if I should have told someone where I was going and why. Then again, it wasn’t like I had an email to show anyone that I’d been summoned.

If I asked Mr. Hancock or Ms. Lamas to go with me, or if I told Mr. Kordell that Nate had insisted on seeing me, it would’ve been simple for Nate to deny it. My word against his, and it was tough to decide which of us would have come out ahead.

Two nights of great sex wasn’t worth all of this.

“Miss Webb, take a seat.”

Even though I’d wanted him to be professional, his bland tone made me bristle. If he’d brought me here for some twisted cat-and-mouse game where he could flaunt how much power he had over me, he and I were going to have a serious issue. For the moment, however, I would hold my tongue.

I sat in the seat directly across from him.

“Ms. Lamas passed along some of your suggestions for possible artists for the label to sign.” He shuffled a few papers in front of him, and I wondered if he’d printed them off for this exact moment, thinking that this made him seem more important, more in charge. “I have to say, the notes you took were seriously lacking.”

I swallowed a protest. If he explained and I was in the wrong, it’d be better for me not to speak at all. If he was wrong, I should keep my mouth shut and wait until I had proof before I told him.

“For each artist you found, you included what social media platforms they were already on, as well as how many followers they already had, but you don’t have notes about each site. What the artist had available. Picture, video, audio. How often they post. What sorts of interactions they have.”

Ms. Lamas had specifically said that she wanted a brief mention of their online presence, not details. In my opinion, that made her the only one who could judge whether or not I’d provided enough information. I filed that bit away as Nate moved on to the next item on his list. I’d wait until he was completely finished so I’d have a more complete idea regarding his opinion of this particular assignment.

“You didn’t include possible name changes for the ones whose names won’t work.”

Name changes? Was he kidding me? Still, I held my tongue.

“If you’re going to work in A&R, you need to know that a name is just as important as talent. With the name comes a brand, an image, and that’s what we sell. A person or group with a stupid name isn’t going to sell shit, no matter how good their music is.”

I wondered what he considered a stupid name, because there were a few band names I could think of off the top of my head that wouldn’t have been my first choice. Then again, I didn’t have a record label with numerous best-selling artists. He might have a point about the names.

What hedidn’thave a point about was how it was my responsibility to do those things when I hadn’t been given those instructions. This sounded more like he needed to tell Mr. Hancock and Ms. Lamas that he wanted their assistants to do more when they were told to search for potential artists.

“Do you understand what I mean when I say that we cultivate an image?”

And that was enough.

“Yes, I understand what it means to cultivate an image,” I snapped. “I may be fairly new to the business, but I did actually pay attention in college.”

His eyebrows shot up. “Is that so?”

“Look, I got your message, okay? You didn’t need to follow up. It’s not like I was planning on stalking you or anything. This morning pretty much did it for me.” I could barely believe the words coming out of my mouth. First the guy on the elevator and now my boss. What had gotten into me today?

I already knew that answer, though. It was Nate who was the issue. Instead of him making me more likely to hold back, it seemed like being around him just pushed all the buttons that made me want to push back.

“I wouldn’t think you were the type to let a little bickering keep you from the best sex you’ll ever have.”

“Since I don’t have anyone to compare you to, I’ll have to take your word on how good you are.” I tightened my grip on the arms of my chair. “But I would think that sex would be like anything else…if you have to say it, maybe you’re not as good as you think you are.”

The corners of his mouth tightened. “I guarantee that when the next guy you’re with won’t be able to find your clit, let alone your g-spot, you’ll think twice about that.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” I stood up. “If you’re done criticizing my work for things I hadn’t been told to do, I’d like to go home.”

---