Chapter 308
Natalie realized her phone wasn’t with her and quickly asked Anne to fetch it. By the time Anne brought it over, the screen was already lit up with several missed calls from headquarters.
She gave Samuel Thompson a quick apology and stepped away to call them back.
Ten minutes later, she returned to the table.
“What happened?” Samuel asked. Her expression was calm, but he could see she wasn’t in a good mood. It was obvious the call hadn’t been a pleasant one.
“Headquarters knows about the auction,” Natalie said. “They’re upset. I have to write a report, and they’re docking my bonus for the quarter p>
Anne looked shocked. “But we didn’t lose anything. The auction went ahead, and the pieces sold for great prices.” She honestly couldn’t understand why Natalie was being punished when she’d worked so hard to save the day.
Natalie shook her head. “It only worked out because Mr. Thompson stepped in. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have had anything to auction. And I didn’t have a backup plan ready.” She wasn’t letting the excitement of their livestream success cloud her judgment. She knew exactly where things had gone wrong.
Samuel leaned forward. “The Ramirez Group was trying to shut you down. Even with a backup plan, it probably wouldn’t have mattered.” Alexander Ramirez had managed to get both buyers and sellers to cancel their contracts with Billy Firth. No matter how well she’d prepared, if nobody was willing to work with them, it would have been useless.
Natalie was quiet for a moment. “I’m going to talk to Alexander Ramirez p>
After all, she’d managed to pull off the auction through a livestream, something Alexander clearly hadn’t expected. If there was a next time, she knew he’d probably
block every route she could take. She had to face him, no matter what. Thıs content belongs to.net
A few days later, after taking some time to rest, Natalie made her way to the Ramirez Group.
“Hi, I’m Natalie Watson from Billy Firth. I’d like to see Mr. Ramirez,” she said at the front desk.
The receptionist recognized her right away. “Ms. Watson, do you have an appointment with Mr. Ramirez p>
Natalie shook her head. “No.” Alexander wasn’t answering her calls, so there was
no way she could make an appointment even if she wanted to.
“Please wait a moment. I’ll check for you p>
Normally, if someone showed up without an appointment, the receptionist would have turned them away. But Natalie was the VP of Billy Firth and their companies had worked together before, so she made an exception and called ” upstairs.
After about thirty seconds, she hung up. “I’m sorry, Ms. Watson. Mr. Ramirez is busy
right now. You could try calling him or I can help you schedule an appointment p>
Natalie knew calling was pointless. He wouldn’t pick up.
“That’s okay, thank you.” She turned to leave, but then glanced at the lounge area nearby, filled with soft looking sofas She paused ands asked, “Would it be alright if Pwaited over there for a bit p>
“Of course,” the receptionist replied.
If she couldn’t see him now, she’d just wait till he finished for the day.
Natalie walked over and sat down on one of the sofas. The lobby was busy, people coming and going, but nobody really noticed her. She felt restless, picked up a magazine from the table, flipped through a few pages, and set it back down.
She waited, and after a while, her eyes grew heavy and she dozed off right there.
Upstairs, Alexander Ramirez returned to his office after a meeting, with Aaron Lee trailing behind him. “Mr. Ramirez, Ms. Watson is here. She wants to see you.” Alexander paused. “Did she say why p>
“No, sir. The front desk just called. She’s waiting downstairs.” Aaron hesitated for a moment, then asked, “Would you like me to bring her up p>
Alexander loosened his tie, sank into his chair, and closed his eyes, rubbing his forehead. His answer was cool. “No. Go handle your work p>
“Yes, sir p>
Aaron started to leave, but then turned back, his voice careful. “The front desk said Ms. Watson has actually fallen asleep while waiting in the lounge p>