Meetings

Before 10 a.m., Stella came in to inform him that the other party had arrived for the meeting, and were sitting in the meeting room, receiving a nod from him.

Adam got up from his seat, took his laptop and the file from the table, heading towards the door. Stella followed his back, keeping a small distance between them. Once he was at the door, he paused in his steps, opening the door only to stand at the side, just like a pure gentleman that he was, so that Stella could step out first. 

Stella raised her head in confusion only to be met by a pair of deep gray eyes that were staring back at her.

"Ladies first." She heard him say. Giving him a bright smile and whispering a thank you in reply she walked out. He followed her out quietly. On their way to the meeting room none of them said anything. Both were lost in their own thoughts.

Adam had always been a gentleman. He was brought up that way by his father. His father taught him to respect everyone despite their status, especially women. Despite being born with a silver spoon in his mouth, he was never a spoilt kid. He was only a bit strict when it came to the business.

Stella was lost in her own thoughts while walking next to Adam. She noticed that he had deliberately slowed down his pace so that she could walk next to him rather than following him like an assistant is supposed to, just like she used to for the last two years. She was a hard-working secretary in two different companies previously. The first company was a big name in the timber industry. But her superior was a lady. No matter how much hard work she did, she would still end up getting scolded for something she never did. Later on, she came to know it was just because she had a pretty face. Her female co-workers were jealous of her and ended up creating troubles for her. She has no choice but to resign after a year. 

The second company was a bigger one and was an investment firm. Her boss though treated her good and even appreciated her at times. What she didn't know was that he had his own motives for doing so. When she realized it, it was already a bit late but she managed to leave that place for her own good.

Because of her past experiences, she had her doubts towards Adam. Maybe he was just like his previous boss. Treating her good because he took a liking towards her. In fact he might have accepted her just because of the very sole reason and had underlying motives as well. But she felt something was different about him, but what, she couldn't put her finger on it no matter how hard she tried. 

As they reached the meeting room, Adam once again opened the door letting her in first, and she stepped in quietly with her head lowered, her eyes boring into the marbled floor. 

Adam started talking to the team while sitting in his usual spot which belonged to the President of the company. Stella sat on his right, opening her laptop to note down the minutes of the meeting.

"Good morning, gentlemen. I hope you guys are doing well."

After receiving everybody's greetings, he continued.

"I went through the draft sent by your company. I must say that was good but there were some conditions which didn't set well with me so I changed them. Specially the one related to the partition of profit. I can not agree with it at any cost. Though you guys are investing a lot of money but not more than Levinson's Corp. Moreover, most of the resources are also provided by us. So, instead of a 60/40 split, I want it to be a 65/35 split. Of course the 65% is for Levinson's Corp." He said, making his staff laugh under his breath.

Ignoring them, he continued, "This is a revised version of the draft, go through it, if you guys have any sort of questions, please feel free to ask my people here. They will clear up your problems. The contract is already ready, if all is done then you can sign the contract at the moment as well Mr. Anthony. I have another meeting so I will be leaving. Thank you for your precious time. I hope you make a good decision for your company."

He stood up and made his way to the door , only to realize a little human being was missing from his side. He stopped in his tracks, "Stella?" he said, clearing his throat.

Stella came out of her dreamland, stood up and made her way out following him. She was a bit confused about what had just happened. Lost in her own world, she didn't notice that a certain someone had stopped before him.

Thud!! Her face crashed against a muscular back, her nose became slightly red, and her eyes misty. 

Adam turned around and scolded her politely, "If you have something bothering your mind, just ask me Stella. No matter what it is I will answer it." He raised his voice the slightest bit and continued, " And at least watch where are you going. What if it was a door rather than a living person?"

"Well! Your back is no less than a door Sir." She replied, still rubbing her nose. Her snarky reply made him laugh that echoed within the quiet hallway. 

He wanted to make a sarcastic remark but decided not to when he saw her misty eyes. 

"You alright Stella? Should I call a doctor for you? Uhhh! Of course I should. Why am I even asking such a silly question?"

Before he could even unlock his phone, he was interrupted by Stella.

"There is no need for that Sir. It's just my nose is stinging a bit, that's why my eyes are tearing up. It will be fine in a while on its own."

"Are you sure?" Adam asked with concern.

"Yes Sir! I am sure." 

"Okay. You should go and take some rest and there's no need for you to accompany me to the lunch meeting."

"But it's a meeting..." She tried to speak up but was interrupted midway.

"It's just a casual lunch meeting to discuss one of the previous projects. It's not that much of a big deal. I can handle it on my own. Now off you go. Go take some rest. You can carry on later with your work."

"As you say, Sir." 

Just as she was about to leave Adam gave her his handkerchief to wipe off her tears which had almost escaped her eyes. Seeing her hesitate, he spoke up, "Just take it, or else my staff is going to think that I bullied a newbie."

She took it with hesitation. No matter what, he was her boss and she wouldn't feel comfortable if he was going to be misunderstood because of her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now, off you go."

Adam watched her leaving as he made his way back to his office.