Ignite Me (The Annihilate Me Series) by Christina Ross Read Free Book Online Page A

mind?”
    “How about the
Starbucks inside Trump Tower?   It’s
not far from here.”
    My heart was
hammering in my chest when I wrote:   “Perfect.   See you tomorrow at six.”   Thinking that this conversation was
over, I shut down the message, glanced up at him, saw that he was looking at me
with an intensity that unnerved me, and then, perfectly rattled, I pretended to
look over my paperwork a final time.  
    Blackwell was
still on the phone, but it sounded to me as if she was wrapping up her
conversation when my computer dinged again.   And when it did, I almost panicked
because I heard Blackwell say, “Right, right.   Let me look into that and I’ll get back
to you shortly.”   I read the message
as quickly as I could.   “I’m looking
forward to getting to know you, Madison.   But I’ll leave you alone for now, as much as I don’t want to.   So, until tomorrow.   —Brock.”
    The moment I
clicked off the message, I heard Blackwell call out to me.   “Madison?” she said.   “Would you come here, please?”
    Great , I thought as
I stood up and faced her.   She’d
been aware of this the entire time. . . .
    I went to her
door.   “Yes, Ms. Blackwell?”
    “Coffee,” she
said.   “ Rapidement !   Let it cool for precisely one minute before you bring it to me,
otherwise it will be too hot, and that won’t do.   Also, after that particular telephone
conversation, I need a fresh glass of ice.”
    “A glass of
ice?” I asked.
    “Yes.   Ice.   Fill a glass to the top with it.   I crunch on it throughout the day while
thinking of all the people who dare to overstep my authority.   I bite down on each cube as if it were
someone’s head.”
    Lady, how about
having your own head checked?
    “Would you like
anything else?” I asked, relieved that none of this was about why I was clearly
using the instant-messaging system.
    “Not now, but
at noon, you’ll be consumed.   So, be
prepared for that, because it’s coming.”
     

 
 
 
 
    CHAPTER
SIX

 
    Later that day,
after filling out all of my paperwork, handing it over to Margaret, and then looking
through some of the red folders so that I could get a feel for what types of HR
issues rose to Blackwell’s level, it was nearly noon when she called me into
her office.
    “Madison,”
Blackwell said.   “Would you come
here, please?   There are certain
things I need you to do tout-de-suite .”
    “Of course,” I
said.   I stood up from my chair,
caught Brock lifting his head and watching me as I smoothed away any wrinkles
from my skirt, and then, feeling a bit flustered by his attention, I went to
her doorway with a legal pad and pen at the ready.
    “Why do you
look flushed to me?” she said.
    Not again. . .
.
    “Am I?”
    “You are.”
    “I’m not sure.
. . .”
    “Are you warm?”
    Apparently, one
look from that man is all it takes for me to become an inferno, Ms. Blackwell.
    “Not
particularly.”
    “Hmmm.   All right, fine.   Perhaps you have hypertension—look
into it.   But first, two things.   I’d do the first one myself, but
obviously, at this point, I trust Tiffany implicitly, so I’ll just leave it to
you.   I need you to stop by their
store on Fifth and collect a necklace recently fitted for Jennifer.   Then I need you to go to my favorite
little takeout spot on Park, Le Salade, and get me a large serving of
roughage.”
    “Roughage?”
    “Lettuce
greens.   If you weren’t so slim, I’d
suggest that you pick up a salad for yourself and enjoy.   But that’s not the case, so be it.   However, if you are hungry, I highly
suggest that you try one of their salads.   You can eat it at your desk, if you’d like.   Here’s what I want in mine.   Are you ready?   You need to be, because it’s my only meal
of the day, and it can’t disappoint.”
    “I’m ready,” I
said.
    “First, begin
with a tender layer of baby spinach leaves—and a fair amount of
them.   Don’t skimp.