Off The Record

Chapter Seven - On Record/Off Limits

I didn't speak or move. I couldn't. I was frozen. I hadn't thought about Alec being there until Ezra had mentioned him. All I could think about was how I could still feel his lips on mine and how much I wanted that back. Ezra on the other hand was already back in his car.

Once Ezra was gone I went back up to the office and sat down at my desk. I had been there for all of five minutes, when Jessica came over and pulled up a seat. I stopped what I was doing and tried to ignore the nagging pit in my stomach. Maybe she wanted me off the project? Maybe she was taking over. I turned to look at her, she looked nervous, though I wasn't sure why.

"Hey look, I need to go out of town for a different story and I really just don't have time for this Ezra Stone piece as well. I know you have the skill to write this, and I passed it by Alec earlier. You have your first piece... if you want it."

I stared at her, and my mind was barely able to compute. My first article was going to be about the guy I just made out with in an effort to make my boss jealous. Yep, this was a mess.

I nodded and bit my lip.

"I want H- it." I replied, almost saying him, not knowing which man my brain was thinking of.

"Great, look I think you'll nail it. I'd better get on the road, but if you have questions, I'm around on slack."

Jessica left as quickly as she'd sat down. My computer notification went off and I opened the work slack. It was Alec, and he wanted to see me in his office.

I wasn't sure I could keep the façade up to his face. I'd never been much of a liar. I stood up anyway and walked through the office. I stopped outside Alec's office door and knocked.

"Come in."

I pushed the door open and walked inside.

"You can close that behind you, take a seat, Ivy."

I closed the door and sat down. Alec seemed a little more reserved than normal, like he was bothered, but even he wasn't sure what about.

"I'm sure Jessica has let you know already. She has to head out of town for a different story. She believes, and I'm inclined to agree that you'd be more than capable of doing this all on your own."

I smiled and nodded. "Thank you for the opportunity. I'm really excited."

Alec's eyes narrowed very slightly and he leaned back in his chair. He had a pen in his hand, which he fidgeted with between his fingers before placing it down on the desk.

"Truth be told, I've known you were ready to start taking assignments and writing your own pieces for a while. You're my best copy editor... were my best copy editor."

I smiled, and it was genuine. It was nice to hear him say the words and in that moment I didn't even care if whatever side hustle Ezra and I were pulling was moving things along. Though I should have, I'd earned the promotion.

"So this won't be a one off?" I murmured.

"No, you're one of my writers now. With that comes perks and responsibilities."

"Okay?" I tried not to sound too excited, but I had been waiting for this opportunity since I'd started. The perks didn't matter, I just wanted to go and get started in my new role right away. Alec continued to talk.

"You get a company card. You can use this for business lunches, clothing, and transport. You need to keep all receipts for tax purposes. Your salary will increase from now, and you will get paid bonuses for each completed assignment. There is a contract to go over and sign, I'll have the HR girls send it to you later today."