Beneath the Ice

Chapter 4

By the time Lisa returned to the office the next morning, her feet were still sore from the dinner the night before, and her pride was hanging by a thread. She hadn’t just survived Jennie’s icy stares and the dinner’s terrifying amount of cutlery—she’d learned two important things: 1) Jennie could cut you down with a glance, and 2) Lisa had the fine dining etiquette of a toddler.

As she stepped off the elevator, she ran into her reflection in the glass wall of Jennie’s office and paused to check herself. Her hair was a little messier than usual, and there was a faint coffee stain on her blouse that she hadn’t noticed earlier. *Oh, fantastic. Off to a great start, Lisa,* she thought, grimacing at the smudge.

Pushing open the door to the executive floor, she braced herself for another long day. Jennie was already at her desk, of course, focused on a mountain of paperwork. Lisa always wondered what time the woman actually *left* the office—if she even did.

“Morning, Ms. Kim!” Lisa greeted with a fake cheeriness that she hoped would mask the fact she was still half-asleep. “How’s the queen of the corporate world today?”

Jennie didn’t even look up. “Busy.”

Lisa grinned, more to herself than anything else. “Wow. Great to see you’re in your usual *chipper* mood.”

Jennie’s only response was a pointed silence, which Lisa had learned was the corporate version of “Do not push me today.”

But Lisa wasn’t the type to back down easily. “Well, I brought coffee,” she said, holding up two cups. “One’s black—because I assume you like your coffee as cold and bitter as your demeanor.”

That earned her a flicker of movement from Jennie’s eyes, which barely glanced at the cup before returning to the paperwork. “I don’t drink coffee.”

Lisa blinked. “You don’t? Like, at all?”

Jennie’s expression was unreadable. “I drink tea. Herbal. Coffee is too… chaotic.”

Lisa squinted at her, as though she’d just heard something scandalous. “You mean to tell me you survive those 16-hour workdays on herbal *tea*? No caffeine? How are you still alive?”

Jennie’s gaze lifted slowly, locking onto Lisa with a look that could have made even a grizzly bear back down. “Discipline, Ms. Manoban. Something you might want to learn.”

Lisa held up her free hand in surrender. “Alright, alright. Tea it is. Next time, I’ll bring you... chamomile or something. Whatever fuels the soul of a corporate warrior like yourself.”

Jennie’s gaze lingered for another moment before returning to her computer. Lisa, sensing the conversation had reached its natural (icy) conclusion, awkwardly set the extra cup of coffee on Jennie’s desk and retreated to her own corner of the office.

---

For most of the morning, Lisa worked in relative peace, answering emails, organizing schedules, and trying to figure out what exactly was going on with the Singapore tech expansion that Jennie had casually mentioned the night before. But, of course, peace never lasted long around Jennie Kim.

“Ms. Manoban,” Jennie called out without looking up from her screen.

“Yes, Ms. Kim?” Lisa spun around, almost knocking over a stack of files in her haste to respond.

“Where is the report I asked for on the partnership logistics with Hong Kong?”

Lisa paused, racking her brain. “Uh, that’s due... today, right?”

“Correct. And I expected it this morning.”

“Right.” Lisa winced internally. “I, uh, definitely have it... almost done. Just needs a final proofread, you know? Gotta make sure all the... uh, ‘t’s are crossed and ‘i’s are dotted. I'll get it to you ASAP.”