Chapter 16 CHAPTER 16
Evelyn’s POV
Her eyes fell from my head to my toes, assessing me. “Who is she?” she asked, turning to Michael.”
“Meet Evelyn Moon, my wife,” he said flatly.
She let out a smile. “You are the one who took Michael from us?” She stood up and walked closer to me. “She is pretty. Average. I expected someone better though. No one knows the Moons.” She glanced at the folder in my arm. “What do you want?”
“I’m here to see Michael,” I said, fighting the urge to be equally caustic.
“Ohh,” she said. “She is a hard worker too.” She walked to the table, picked up her phone and walked out of the office.
A few seconds of silence stretched between us after Rosaleen exited the office. Michael raised his head and looked at me. “This should never repeat itself, Evelyn. You knock before entering my office.”
I squeezed the folder in my arm. “Sorry for barging in on you. I have a proposal to present to you.”
He looked at the folder cradled in my arm. “A proposal?” His voice was laced with amusement.
I stepped forward. “Yes. I don’t intend to not contribute to the growth of Greywood Legacy,” I said. “I have a proposal that will further uplift the product management team.”
“Well, Miss Proposal, you have to follow the right channels of presentation. Present it to the head of your team, and I'll hear about it if it’s good enough.”
My hand fell to my side, dejected. It was obvious I was not going to be getting any special treatments from him. “Michael - “ I began.
He raised his hand up. “And you cannot just walk into my office, unless you are cleared by your head. Or we have an appointment.” His eyes held mine. “Is that clear?”
The air suddenly felt chilly. I nodded. “Noted, sir.”
I turned around and walked out of the office. I was so upset. He didn’t think I was brilliant enough to come up with anything worth glancing at. I was just a pretty face to him, nothing more. I threw the folder on the table and paced in my small office. It was almost 5pm. Should I swallow my pride and just approach Rosaleen?
When I walked into her office thirty minutes later, she looked at me as though she had not just spoken to me in Alpha Michael’s office.
“You are who again?” she asked, adjusting her lipstick with the camera on her phone.
“Evelyn Moon,” I said.
“Oh. The new intern,” she said, dropping her phone. “How do you like your first day here? I hope you can keep up.”
“Fantastic,” I said, sizing her up. She was a beauty. Her skin radiated years of pampering and care. “I wanted to see you concerning a new proposal I have.”
“A proposal? for what?” she asked.
I stepped forward since she had refused to offer me a seat. “For the current product launch. Something to elevate it and bring it closer to those who consume it.”
She leaned back in her chair, crossed her arms over her chest. “Go on. Impress me.”
I pulled the files out of the folder and stretched them to the desk. She didn’t bother to give it a galnce. “This project is one born out of my quest for synergy and I have named it that. Imagine a world where Greywood’s products are able to reach the target audience as accurately as 95%? By liaising with an AI company like Moon’s enterprises, we can create a product that can predict user’s needs with that much accuracy and have these products brought to their attention while they scroll through social media, virtual stores or even through paid adverts.”
Her face remained unimpressed.
“With such a product, we can expect an ROI of more than double its worth in the next two years,” I added. I was going to say more but I didn't feel like I needed to tell her all of my plans just yet. So I stopped, hoping she would see beyond whatever issues she had against me and see the beauty of the product I just presented.
She leaned forward and reached for the documents. She flipped through it, her eyes hardly settling on any page. Then she let out a mocking laughter. “This is your proposal?” She closed the document and shoved it back across the table. It tumbled and landed on the tile. My eyes stung with tears.
“This is your amateur hour, Evelyn. A daydream scribbled in your college classes. A 250% ROI? Where was this genius idea of yours when your father's company was sinking in debt? Greywood doesn’ t need amateur advice. We will only seek expert opinions.”
Then she turned on her laptop. “I know working six hours a day might get boring, having nothing really important to do. Be rest assured, I will keep you occupied so you don’t feel like you aren’t part of the success story.’
I bit my lips, fighting the urge to unleash the fire in my chest. “This is a solid plan, Rosaleen. Something that has not been explored -”
“Spare me, please and use the door. I have important matters to deal with,’ she said, burying her head behind her laptop.
I stood there for a couple of minutes, deliberating on whether to just walk out or shove the papers down her throat. Finally, I turned on my heels and headed for the door.
“Take your trash out before you leave,’ she said, raising her head up and pointing to my proposal on the floor.
I stopped, took deep breaths and reminded myself that this was just a setback. I turned back and walked to the papers on the floor. “Thank you for your time, Rosaleen. I shall be presenting this proposal soon to the chairman. Enjoy your day.”
I walked out as fast as I could. When I got to my office, I locked the door and collapsed on the floor. Tears flowed from my eyes. Why had I imagined this was going to be easy?