Cheating By The Rules | Harry Styles AU (ongoing)

chapter 13

"Come in!" I exclaimed after someone knocked on my door. Looking up, I was met with one of my employees. "Hey, Zoe."

"Good morning, Ivy," she said as she walked in. "I know you gave me until the end of this week, but I finished it half an hour ago. I thought you might want to check what I'm about to email Chris Howard."

"Of course, I do. Please, take a seat," I instructed her. Amidst the conversation we were having, my hands moved across my cluttered desk - trying to minimize the chaos. I had a habit of turning my space into a war zone.

Zoe sat across from me, and she opened her laptop. "After I sat down with the entire team, we decided to adjust the samples a little bit. Too many color palettes might be extremely overwhelming, so we ended up with three. We figured that giving Chris too many options wouldn't make it easier to choose a favorite."

"Clever," I praised her. "Even though you went for fewer options, I agree this is a strategic move. Can you send these to me so I can email Chris? I'm sure he will reach out before the end of the day, and then we can set everything in motion."

"Yes, I will," Zoe answered, radiating a smile. "By the way, is the one o'clock meeting still going to happen?"

"I don't have my schedule in front of me, but I assume that's the meeting in which we're going to discuss Patrick Anderson's festival called Neon Lights?" I asked, and she nodded in confirmation. "I'm thinking about moving it to twelve because I have to leave early today. I can let Rachel order us some lunch so we have a delicious meal while we brainstorm together."

"That's not a bad idea," Zoe mentioned with a cheeky smile on her face. "Should I tell the others?"

"If you want to do that, that'd be perfect."

"Okay, then I'll email everyone." Zoe closed her laptop before standing up. "I'll see you in a bit."

"Bye, Zoe." I called out when she left the room. Once she was out of sight, I reached for the phone to dial Rachel.

"How can I help you, Ivy?"

"My one o'clock meeting needs to be rescheduled to twelve. Also, could you order us some lunch? We're meeting with fifteen people in the conference room, and I don't want anyone to starve while we are putting our plan on paper."

"Sure. Does it matter where I get your lunch from?"

"We haven't tried this spot around the corner, right?"

"No, we haven't. Do you want me to give them a call?" Rachel inquired.

"Absolutely. And if they accept the order, please give them a generous tip."

"I'll make sure that happens." Rachel responded kindly.

"Don't forget to order something for yourself too."

"I won't." Rachel assured me. "Anything else?"

"There's one more thing," I spoke up. "I'll be going home early. I think I'll leave around four. Therefore, if someone calls, please let them know I will reach out tomorrow at the earliest."

"Noted." Rachel said.

It had been a day since Harry and I agreed upon a moment to see each other, yet every tick of the clock seemed to stretch into an eternity - agonizingly slow.

Normally, whenever I found myself getting nervous, I could confide in my friends. This time, that was out of the question. I had only myself to confide in.