Chapter 165: What?
"Ben? What are you doing?"
Her assistant, who had been peeking over her laptop screen, jolted upright as if caught red-handed. He straightened his posture quickly, eyes wide with surprise.
"I... I just came here to check my emails," he stammered and explained. "My laptop suddenly crashed, and I’ve already called in a technician to take a look at it. But we’re expecting a few important mails today, so I didn’t want to risk missing anything crucial. I hope you don’t mind that I was using your system—I only logged in briefly."
Melanie walked into the office, and walked around her desk to take her seat and Ben instinctively took a step back, making space for her. "It’s okay," she said, offering a reassuring smile as she lowered herself into her chair. "You don’t have to look as if I caught you stealing company secrets. So, did you manage to check everything?"
"Yes, I did," he replied with an alarmed expression, "And it’s a good thing I did too. The interior designer who reached out to us last month—the one interested in the sports furniture line and our exclusive collections—got back to us. She’s currently working on a major show for StormEdge and is eager to collaborate. I’ve already forwarded her proposal and details to the design department so they can start evaluating the feasibility. If all goes well, Denoit can begin working on the initial design concepts, and we’ll be in a good position to move forward with contract negotiations."
Melanie arched an eyebrow with interest. "Well, that was really efficient of you," she said, a trace of admiration in her voice. "Good call on forwarding it immediately. That could be a huge opportunity if we play it right."
She opened her laptop which he had snapped shut in a hurry her fingers already moving swiftly over the keyboard as she changed the tab and logged into her account.
"And what about the web and app development team?" she asked, not looking up. "Any updates from their side?"
Ben hesitated for a second, watching her become engrossed in her screen again, before quickly replying, "Nothing major yet. I believe they’re still testing the new UI integration, but I’ll follow up with them to make sure we stay on track."
As Melanie continued reviewing her messages and issuing follow-ups in a focused tone, Ben allowed himself a quiet, relieved breath. She hadn’t suspected anything unusual. Whatever nervousness had flickered in his chest began to ebb away—at least for now as he returned to work.