Hot Rival ( jenlisa ) ( Gip )

17

Jennie

The phone rings and rings and rings, before it finally clicks over to voicemail.

"Hello, you've reached the private and confidential voicemail of Rich Howe, Vice President of Bailey Kim Living..."

I hang up before I hear anymore. It's the tenth time I've got his voicemail today, and I could recite it by heart at this point.

I tap my fingers on my desk in irritation. Rich has been so hot and cold lately — the other day he was so helpful in getting me through all that paperwork, but ever since then getting ahold of him has been like trying to catch a mouse in a field.

Or maybe a rat, I think bitterly. I quickly push the thought out of my mind. I have no reason to be suspicious — I'm sure he's just busy.

I pick the phone back up and try Sasha, but her phone just rings too. I drop the handset down and sigh loudly, even though there's no one around to hear me.

Bailey Kim Living has an entire floor of offices, and for some reason, Rich's office is way at the other side of the building. I'm not sure why Dad kept him so far away, but maybe that's normal for these kinds of offices. I'm so used to working right next to Minzy — literally, I can back my chair up and run right into her — that I find this whole configuration odd.

I slip my feet back into my heels. I'll just take a little stroll down that way and see if anyone is around. Maybe someone else knows if Rich is out. Geetika has a dentist appointment this afternoon, otherwise I'd just get her to keep trying Rich for me.

I make my way through the office, saying hello to a few people whose names I haven't yet been able to remember, and then come around the corner where Rich and Sasha work.

Rich's door is open and I can see his empty desk, but Sasha's sitting at her computer, clicking away loudly at her keyboard.

"Oh, you're here!" I say happily.

She barely glances up. "Yes," she says, blowing on her bangs.

"I tried calling but you must have been away from your desk."

"I must have." She's still clicking and I gnaw on the inside of my cheek to avoid saying something bitchy.

"Is Rich around?"

She finally looks up, blinking at me a few times. "Sorry, no. He's out."

"Do you know when he'll be back?"

"No." No further explanation, just a slow blink. I roll my eyes.

"Could you just ask him to call me when he gets in?"

She blinks at me a couple more times, which I take to mean yes. Sometimes I honestly think about just firing this woman, but technically she's Rich's assistant, and I suppose if he's happy with her then I should let it lay. But God, I'd love to just tell her to pack her shit and get out of this office.

Of course, she'd probably just blink at me.

I chuckle to myself as I walk back to my office, and then spend the rest of the afternoon, reviewing our ad buys for the coming month.

By the end of the day, though, I still haven't heard from Rich. I stroll back down towards his office to see if Sasha is still around. Rich's door is still open, and this time I can see him sitting there, laughing on the phone with someone.

"He's back," I say to Sasha.

"Yes." Blink, blink.

"Did you tell him I wanted to speak to him?"