Page 34 of The Damaged Billionaire's Obsession
I finally find the panel of switches on the wall, and I flick on every single one.
All the lights come on, even as the blinds fully open, and I look around. It’s of similar size and shape to Jordan and Mike’s offices, but that’s where the similarity ends.
I expected a boring space and minimalist decor in basic colors, like its owner basically.
How wrong I was.
It's decorated in black and earthy tones. The floor is black marble with gold veins, and there’s art. So much breathtaking art on two of the four walls.
The large couch in the seating area is a beige velvet with gold cushions, and there’s a thick, Persian rug under the black glass coffee table.
A huge desk dominates the space, which looks like oak but it’s glossy. I realize then that it’s glass, designed to look like wood. I’m drawn to the perfect order on his desk. There’s not a pen out of place, no dust, and not a single fingerprint.
Does he wipe it off every time he leaves?I look around.
This isn’t an office where a normal person works. This is a sheik’s palace of an office. I'm drawn to the intricately curved structure that rises out of the floor in the far corner of the office, like a tree with curving branches, but instead of leaves, there are small photos framed in glass.
I catch a glimpse of one where there are two boys in overalls standing next to their father. The older one is missing his front teeth. I realize with shock it’s Ethan and a laugh bubbles out of me. He has a brother, and a father too.
Somehow seeing this makes him less of the disapproving Olympian god and more of a goofy big brother and son. There’s lots of photos with Jordan, some with Mike. Another with an older blonde woman. His mother, perhaps?
I see Sabrina in one of them, where Ethan is hugging her and kissing her temple.Wow.
Seeing Ethan being this affectionate with my friend makes me feel a certain way that I don’t care to analyze right now.
After examining the photos for another few minutes, I suddenly remember why I came here, and quickly set to work. I drop my lunch on the desk and tear through the packaging of the hardware that Will has stacked neatly by the desk.
In about half an hour, I’m all set. The software updates are almost finished, and I even managed to have my lunch.
Before I leave, I put the empty boxes to the side and throw the plastic and cardboard wrapping of my lunch into the garbage can.
Will’s desk is empty when I come out, and I debate waiting for him, but then, there's really nothing to report; everything went smoothly, and Ethan’s new system is up and running great. I suppose I can always email them both to know it's all done.
I return to my desk and get immersed in troubleshooting some security breaches Jordan picked up yesterday when an urgent alert pops onto my screen.
MY OFFICE. RIGHT NOW!
It’s from Ethan.
Shouty, aren’t we?What crawled into his ass and died?
And how dare he speak to me that way after I slaved for almost an hour getting him properly set up? And to think, out of all the executives, I spent the most time customizing his dashboard for him. What a thankless effort.
Fuming, I storm back up to the top floor to give him a piece of my mind.
Chapter 9
Ethan
What the actual fuck.In my fucking workspace!
I observe the carnage in my office with increasing discomfort. The torn, discarded boxes thrown haphazardly into a messy pile. My fists curl.
I walk to my desk to see what Bonnie has done, and my eyes snag on the discarded remains of a sandwich in the trash can. Fingerprints dot the desk like raindrops. And is that… a mayo smear? Fucking hell.
I want to smash something.
Ten years of therapy transformed an anxiety-ridden boy into a tightly controlled man. It also trained me to spot anything likely to upset that balance from a mile away and avoid it.