Fake Marriage Box Set

I laughed. “Yeah, don't I know it.”

“Anyway, nothing major has been happening. I went out for drinks with some of my coworkers last Friday, and that was kind of fun. I miss going out with you, though. You made a much better wing-lady than Christina from accounting.”

I felt another pang of guilt. “I know I haven't been the best friend lately, but I feel like things are really looking up for me now,” I told her. “And you know that as soon as I have the money to come out for drinks with you again, I'll be there.”

“Hey, relax,” Misty said, reaching over to grab my hand. “I was just teasing. I know that you're busy right now, even beyond your financial situation. You just concentrate on you, and I'll also concentrate on you, and eventually, we'll get you and Emma back on your feet again.”

I smiled at her. “You're the best friend,” I told her. “I don't know how I got so lucky.”

“Maybe you used up all your luck with meeting me, and that's why you've had shitty luck with everything else,” Misty suggested.

We both burst out laughing, and I felt happier than I had in ages. For the first time, it felt like maybe things were finally starting to turn around for me, just like Misty thought. I could only hope so.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Andrew

In a fit of anger, I tore up the former meeting agenda. There were a number of important points on it that I wanted to discuss, but it looked like we weren't going to have time for them. Instead, we were going to need to focus this meeting on the company's recently published quarterly revenue numbers. Exclusively.

I had, of course, planned to touch on those numbers, but I hadn't expected them to be as bad as they'd ended up being. Not that Orinoco was in any sort of trouble, but we hadn't even come close to hitting our internal goals for the quarter.

It might not seem like much; the company was still surpassing its competitors in terms of productivity and revenue, but those internal goals were in place for a reason. Once we started slipping on those, it was only a matter of time before some other company toppled our dynasty.

Put simply, if we didn't continue to grow, we were stagnating or worse.

When I stalked into the meeting with the company executives, I could tell from the hush and a couple pale faces that they knew exactly what was coming. It was no secret how I handled the company.

I slammed the quarterly report down on the table, glaring around at the rest of the men and women gathered in there. “Let me see a show of hands if any of you haven't seen the latest quarterly numbers.” Nobody moved. “That, at least, will save me from wasting the time going over them,” I said sarcastically. “Does anyone want to take a guess at what I'm so upset about?”

Still, no one moved. I snorted. “See, this is exactly the problem. You all seem to lack ambition. No one wants to be the first to step forward. And we can't afford that, in the industry that we're in. I'll give you one more try: does anyone want to tell me why we can't afford that in the industry that we're in?”

Silence. I scowled and pointed towards the intern, Bobby. “Bobby, why don't you come up here,” I said. It wasn't a suggestion.

The kid paled and hurriedly made his way towards the front of the room, even though I knew that if he really had his way, he'd be running from the room as fast as he could.

“Bobby, why don't you tell everyone what you think,” I said. Again, not a suggestion. “Why can't we afford a lack of ambition in the industry we're in?”

I could practically hear him swallow. “Because if there's a lack of ambition, there's a lack of innovation,” the kid stammered, looking over at me to see if he had answered correctly, before quickly turning his eyes back towards the rest of the executives.

“And?” I prompted.

“And, uh, if there's a lack of innovation, we don't stay ahead of our competitors?”

“Are you asking me that?” I said incredulously. “Bobby, go sit down.” The kid scurried to obey. “Is that the problem?” I asked snidely, glaring around at the executives. “Do you all have some uncertainty on whether or not we need innovation? Because let me tell you, our competitors are already snapping at our heels. We're one step away from being just another has-been. But it seems that some of you would rather rest on our laurels than continue to improve the company, is that it?”

“But sir, we're still increasing our profits,” one of the marketing executives protested.

Everyone else turned to stare at the man, myself included. It wasn't unheard of for someone to speak out during these meetings, but everyone knew that the person who spoke out during these meetings got fired immediately. It had been a while since anyone was stupid enough to do that.

The marketing exec seemed to realize what an error he'd made as soon as the words left his mouth. He squawked and put his hand over his mouth, looking as though he'd give anything to take those words back. His face turned an interesting shade of purple.

For a long moment, I just stared at him, letting his fear sink in. “And tell me, Mr. Harrison, do you think that our internal goals have no purpose?” I asked him.

“Of course not, sir,” he said, tripping over the words in his eagerness to get them out.

“Does anyone want to tell me why we have internal goals?” I asked, not taking my eyes off the quaking man. No one spoke, but this time, rather than call someone out, I slammed my hand down on the table, making all of them jump. “We have those internal company goals for the same reason! The only way we're going to keep our profits up is if we continue to improve as a team. The world is changing, and our industry is changing every day. Every day, there's a new competitor out there. Every day, the other companies in our industry are watching us and trying their very hardest to overtake us. If we start to relax, if we let ourselves slip, we're one short fall before becoming obsolete. Does everyone understand that?”

Everyone was again silent. It was on the tip of my tongue to continue the dressing down, when suddenly, unbidden, I thought of Lexi. I wondered if this is what it had felt like for her, being fired from her job. Becoming the scapegoat for the company, despite the fact that she'd churned out plenty of good work in the past.