After I Saved Him My CEO Said We Were Strangers Chapter 02
I stayed in the hospital for a few more days.
Coworkers streamed in to visit, keeping my room lively.
“Blair, you took a hit for the boss. You’re a shoo-in for a promotion after this,” one of them said, only half-joking.
“When you get that promotion, don’t forget about us.”
I forced a smile and said nothing.
Reed never came. Not once.
His assistant stopped by a few times with flowers and takeout, but he always set them down and left immediately, ever the polite professional.
The day I was discharged, I handled the paperwork myself and took an Uber back to my tiny apartment in Brooklyn.
After I got together with Reed, I spent most of my time at his Central Park penthouse.
I’d barely been back this year. I’d almost forgotten to pay the heat.
New York was still cold in late March, and the apartment felt like a refrigerator.
I cranked the heat and crawled under the covers.
The room slowly warmed, but the hollow ache in my chest remained.
The next morning, the moment I walked into the office, my coworkers swarmed my desk.
“Congratulations! I guess we can’t call you Blair anymore. It’s Director Kelleher now.”
I froze.
“What are you talking about?”
“Didn’t you see the intranet memo? The project department is getting a new director.”
“You have the best performance record, and you just saved the boss’s life. Who else would it be?”
“You’re back today, so they were probably just waiting to make the announcement.”
“The new director owes us all dinner tonight!”
They all talked at once, their grins genuine.
I looked from one excited face to the next, and a slow smile spread across my own.
Reed and I were over. I’d accepted that.
But that was no reason to sabotage my own future.
Reed might have been a terrible boyfriend, but as a boss, he knew how to lead.
Ever since my senior year internship, he had personally mentored me, guiding me through one project after another.
I’d come this far. I could run projects on my own. I had earned that promotion.
Just then, the elevator doors slid open.
Reed stepped out, a young woman at his side.
She wore a sharply tailored suit, her makeup flawless.
Reed stopped, his gaze sweeping across the open-plan office.
“Everyone, I’d like to introduce Sophia. She’s our new project director.”
“Tonight, we’ll have a welcome dinner for her. It’s on the company.”
The air went still.
One of my coworkers couldn’t stay quiet.
“Mr. Blake, Blair started here right out of college. She’s always been a top performer—everyone knows what she’s capable of. Giving the director position to someone else just doesn’t seem right.”
Reed glanced over, his tone glacial.
“The company has made its decision.”
Another colleague spoke up for me.
“Blair just took a steel beam for you. How is this fair to her?”
Reed’s expression darkened as his gaze cut across the room.
“That only proves her judgment is poor and she lacks composure. Someone like that isn’t suited for a management role.”
My coworkers exchanged uneasy glances. No one said another word.
I stood frozen, a chill seeping into my bones.
Sophia stepped forward, extending a hand to me.
“Hi. You must be Blair Kelleher.”
“The resort project files—could you please organize them for me? Reed has already handed the project over to me.”
For a second, I couldn’t find my voice.
I had been on that project from the very beginning.
I looked at Reed.
“Reed, I’ve been handling this project from the start.”
“Isn’t it a little inappropriate to make a switch now?”
I had pulled countless all-nighters for that project.
Sometimes I’d be at my computer so long he would physically scoop me out of my chair and carry me to bed.
He knew exactly how much that project meant to me.
But he wouldn’t meet my eyes. He looked away.
“Sophia is an Ivy League graduate. She’s more than capable. I trust she can handle it.”
I clenched my fists, then slowly forced them open.
I already knew what I had to do.
I turned to Sophia.
“It will take some time to organize the files. I’ll email them to you by tomorrow morning.”
Reed had already turned and was walking toward his office.
His back was straight.
And completely unfamiliar.