Stealing the Heart of Mr. Steele

Chapter 86 [Atlas]

Today is Cordelia's first day as an employee here at Steele Industries.

When I showered and dressed today I took extra care with my appearance. I put on my best gray suit but decided to forgo the tie. I want her to be comfortable around me, to see me as approachable and touchable.

I want to be flawless for her.

I imagine how she must look today, her first day in a new job, and realize that I've never seen her in a professional mode. She was my wife, so I didn't expect her to work. She needed to be pretty for social functions but little else. She did her best to fill the role of socialite, but it never seemed natural for her.

When I saw her at the fashion expo, how she shined under the pressure of building and promoting a line of her creation, she glowed brighter than a diamond. She was in her element. She was meant to be a designer. By forcing her into the role of billionaire bride, I had taken away an essential part of who she was meant to be.

It is 9:03 AM. By now, Cordelia is settled into her work. As I close my eyes, I have a clear vision of where

she is and what she might be doing as she sits at her desk one floor below me. Is she with her employees right now or sitting at her desk watching the view from her office?

I wonder how she is feeling at this moment, now that her dreams are closer to becoming a reality. Is she happy? Is she worried? Is she excited? Is she scared?

I'd like to think she's feeling confident and in control. I imagine she has already met with her senior staff and set her goals for producing her line on time. She has gone over the deliverables with the production manager and delegated many of her smaller responsibilities for Theo to handle. I'm sure that she's made a call to shipping by now to make sure that Marcus has retrieved her collection fabrics and sent them along to Yvonne to be cut.

Maybe as she sits in her new chair, she is taking a moment to relax as she sips a cup of freshly brewed tea and browses her company email, occasionally pausing to admire the ocean view from her office.

Smiling. I type a small message welcoming Cordelia to the company and inviting her out for an early lunch around 11. I plan to take her somewhere nice to celebrate this new part of her professional journey. Pressing send, I imagine her face as she opens the email, seeing it is from me, knowing that I am thinking about her right now and looking forward to our afternoon together.

She's finally part of the family business. It seems right to have my wife working here with me, our child riding along with her. We'll be able to tell Jasper about how important this company has been to his whole family, including his mother. What a pleasant legacy to leave him with.

The time comes and goes for us to meet for lunch and I am so engrossed in adding the finishing touches for a potential contract for a new vendor I don't look up until the clock says 1:02

I missed our lunch date by two hours.

Shuffling to my feet, I dash out of my office as quickly as I can while still looking in control.

When I reach the production floor it is eerily quiet. Only a few people have begun filing back in from their

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lunch breaks and turning on their machines. As I walk across from the elevator towards Cordelia's office, a few bodies tense and freeze as they see me, unaware that I am not there to inspect them, my mind is too occupied with something else. When

I reach Cordelia's office, I politely knock on her door.

"Cordelia," I call out expecting to hear a response. When I don't hear one, I try once again.

Nothing.

Carefully I push open the door.

There is no sign that she has even arrived. No empty tea cup or papers strewn across her desk. There isn't even a pencil out of place on her perfectly organized desk.

I place a hand on the computer and feel it is still warm

She was just here, but she is gone now probably off to lunch with a new friend.

Did she ever see my note?

"Mr. Steele?"

I turn to find my production manager, Theo, standing in the doorway.

"If you are looking for your new designer, she left about thirty minutes ago. I'm not sure when she'll be back, but I can take a message for her if you'd like?"

She didn't wait for me. Had she even thought of me at all?

"Thank you for helping her," I hold up the handwritten note paper. "Please continue to give her everything 'she needs. Treat her with the same level of importance as you treat me." "Of course," she bows slightly.

"Also, please let everyone else know to show her the same level of respect. She has my full trust and I expect the full cooperation of everyone here."

"I understand," she nods.

As I slide past her, out into the hall, Theo has one last thing to say. 'Sir, can I make a suggestion?"

I pause.

"If you want to help her," she suggests, "give her enough space to fail on her own. She deserves the chance to find her way to success."

She then gives me a little salute as she heads back to work.

As soon as Theo leaves, I use a nearby sticky note to write a short note of encouragement for Cordelia. Tracing around the entire message with a large heart, sign it with a single, fluid, uppercase A. Smiling. I head back to my own office. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to see her before the day is over.