Access Forbidden

Chapter 1

This book belongs to Aaliyah Anderson and is solely a work of fiction. All rights reserved.

***

The streets were lively as Naomi rushed down the busy sidewalk with a notebook in one hand and her purse swinging over her other shoulder. Sweat started to ponder along her forehead as she made strides towards the tall buildings and she felt an ache form at the bottom of her foot. Naomi silently cursed at herself. She was running late to an important faculty meeting in the main office. And without a doubt, she knew she would have to face the wrath of her boss.

Naomi rounded the corner and saw her destination up ahead. The sun peeked right above the tall silver structure. It had several floors and tall glass windows that sparkled dimly. She could see the elevators rising and falling through its translucent glass. People were smoothly coming and going from the main entrance. Suddenly the wind blew lightly against her frame. She quickly glanced down at her watch; two more minutes before the meeting started and she accepted the fact that she would unfortunately be late. Naomi increased her speed with her eyes remaining on the building.

Arriving in the main lobby, Naomi made her way inside the elevator and pressed the floor number, seven. She was anxious, she knew that she didn't make a habit at being tardy to work but in the back of her mind, she knew how much tardiness irked her boss. He often reminded his workers that he didn't choose favorites in which Naomi was held to the same standards as her colleagues - no matter how skilled she was in match-making and the entire dating process. He had given her a warning a few weeks ago that if she was tardy again, she would face suspension. And she knew she couldn't risk it.

The elevator door dinged open and Naomi sped out. Practically jogging past the secretary desk, she greeted Heather, with a polite smile.

"Morning Heather," she managed to get out breathlessly.

"Good morning Naomi. My, aren't you in a hurry this fine morning," Heather responded with an innocent giggle.

"Don't remind me," she responded sarcastically as she proceeded down the hallway.

The conference room was on the fourth door on the right. Room 704. Before entering the room she looked at her watch. Only five minutes late. That wasn't so bad but in the work force those five minutes were valuable and could be spent attending to business.

She peeked into the room and saw her colleagues sitting patiently around the table. In the corner, farthest away from the door she noticed the figure of her boss faced towards the white board. This was her chance. Naomi maneuvered around the space to her seat. Several eyes bore into her as she attempted to remain quiet and not be seen. She sat down successfully. Naomi fixed her shirt and smoothed out her black fitted skirt. Figuring her hair was a mess she used one hand and ran it across the top of her scalp hoping no hair was out of place. She knew she probably looked flustered to her colleagues. She sighed in relief. Thankfully she had walked in without him noticing.

"Nice of you to join us, Ms. Riley," Naomi heard a deep voice say. She unconsciously slapped herself and groaned internally.

Following a deep breath she responded, "Morning Mr. Mogul."

Of course she would be caught, the man basically had eyes on the back of his head for God's sake.

He turned around, the two of them making eye contact. To Naomi he looked tired. His old age and experience was the cause of the harsh bags under his eyes. His cheeks slightly sagged. His chestnut mane had a subtle tint of grey. In the crown of his head he had a small bald spot. Scanning his physique she noticed his pricey black suit and dress shoes. He was neither over weight or extremely fit but was in good shape for being an older man.