The first step in his quest to change the nature of their relationship was asking her out to dinner. Ideally, he would do this in person. She would be upset if he did it at the company, so he would arrange a meeting and bring up dinner later. He sent her a text, trying not to give too much away.
Quentin Blake: Are you free tonight?
All he had to do now was wait for a reply. Even if she was busy tonight, they could pick a different day this week that worked. Or rather, Em would say when she was free, and he would make himself available. It was hard to plan around her schedule since he didn't know what she did on the days she couldn't meet with him. He hadn't seen signs of any obvious hobbies in her apartment. Her studio was very cozy, and he'd found it sufficient for their previous liaisons. She kept it clean and had lots of soft things everywhere, rugs and blankets and pillows. She had one big lamp in the room which she'd thrown an old mesh shirt over to give the light a warm tone, and it always sort of looked like it was lit up by firelight.
Quentin thought of his own home. The interior designer they hired had done a great job of everything clean, beautiful, and functional. His brothers had made suggestions, which the professionals then used to build the Blakes their dream home. Quentin hadn't cared much back then, so he told them to design his rooms like the rest of the house. Everything was of the highest quality, extremely comfortable with a smooth appearance overall. It wasn't colorful, like Em's place was. He didn't have any throw pillows.
He'd wanted to bring Em home with him for a while. This was the first time he imagined her reaction to his actual room. It was the complete opposite of hers. Maybe he would buy new lightbulbs. He could switch out the couch, and put some of those pillows on there. He could even get a TV. He could ask Martin to recommend a good one, with a big screen and high quality, and he could hang it up across from the bed, so they could cuddle up and watch a movie together. Something funny, so he'd get to see her laugh again.
"Are you interested in purchasing a production company?" Travis had apparently returned from his last task, and was standing over his shoulder, staring at his screen. This was normal for them. Quentin could be… uncommunicative, so Travis often just watched him and inferred what he would need. He was a very skilled worker.
"No." Quentin said. "I was just… looking."
"If you'd like me to write a report on current cultural trends, I can start on that as soon as I get your approval on the dev updates."
"No, that's fine. I'm not… It's not for work." Quentin didn't know why this line of questioning was so uncomfortable.
"...Oh! Were you planning on watching a movie, sir?"
"Obviously." Quentin tried not to be annoyed. Travis was a good employee.
"I could recommend a few, if you'd like. Depends on the genre, of course."
"Do you like to watch movies?" Quentin never had enough time to sit down and watch anything. He liked to make sure his employees got sufficient time off, though. Not everyone should have to work the way he did. He'd never actually asked what Travis did when he wasn't here.
"Um… yeah. Yeah, I like watching movies." Travis was quiet for a moment, and then he said. "I actually write movie reviews on the side. Just for fun, I mean. Obviously this job pays enough. More than enough, I mean. You're very generous."
"Cool." Quentin said. Travis flushed, and quickly turned around. Quentin had no idea what that was all about.
"Thank you, sir. Is there anything else you need me for today?"
"No. I'll send those dev update approvals through in a minute, so send those through and make sure they're executed properly. That's your priority for right now."
"Got it." Travis began to walk out of the room.
"Also…" Quentin tried to look for the right words. "If you wanted someone to think you knew a lot about movies, what would you watch with them?" Travis smiled, almost laughed.
"Personally? The Princess Bride. It's got everything. Fencing, fighting, torture, revenge…"
"What?"
"Nevermind." Travis left the room.
Quentin checked his phone again. Em hadn't replied. That was fine. She didn't usually check her phone while she worked. Maybe he would swing down there and talk to the Dev team about their progress. He would take the elevators, so he'd have to walk past Marketing. He just wanted to see her once.
Travis looked at him a little strange when he walked past, but didn't say anything. He slowed down a bit, trying to play it cool. He never had to try before. This was just one of many new experiences he'd had since Em had come into his life. Someday, he would tell her all about it.
That blonde girl was standing in the hallway when he arrived at the dev floor. If he stopped to talk to her, he'd have a reason to hover by the window.
"Mr.Blake!" She squealed, which seemed unnecessary. "Good morning! Is there anything I can help you with?" She ran towards him. He took a few steps forward to meet her.
"I wanted to see the progress of the latest project for myself."
"Of course! I can personally walk you though…" She kept talking, but Quentin stopped listening. Em wasn't at her desk. He stepped forward to see if she was talking to her boss. Tiffany stepped forward to accommodate him. Now he could see all of Marketing clearly. She wasn't in the room, and neither was the weasel. He took three steps back to check the breakroom. They weren't there either.
"Quentin?" He was already walking away, too distracted to respond to the girl. He marched into the Marketing office.
"Where are they?" He growled. The employees were clearly shocked to see him. Kate regained her composure quickly.
"Em and AJ are scouting sites for the market research event we're hosting next week. Is there anything I can help you with?"
So that weasel was out gallivanting around Hum City with Em on company time. He growled again, and Kate took a step back.
"I don't want those two assigned on projects together going forward. I expect you'll see to it." He stared Kate down. It would be simple to bend this small woman to his will. He expected her to crumble right away. For a moment, it looked like she might. But then something changed in her eyes, her expression.
"Unfortunatey, I require the approval of my superiors for personnel decisions like those."
"I am your superior."
"The Marketing department is under Ms. Chen's jurisdiction. If you want to pursue this further, you would have to speak with her. Of course, as one of the busiest people in Novatech, I'm sure you don't have time to spare on little matters like this. I am perfectly capable of managing the assignments of my department, and if my performance is unsatisfactory, trust that my direct superiors will take action."
Quentin desperately wanted to make some kind of rebuttal, but he had nothing. This wasn't the place to lose his temper.
"Fine" He practically spat, and then walked back out of the room. He headed straight towards the elevators. He wasn't in any position to talk to the Dev team.
He used the ride up to sort through his muddled thoughts. By the time he reached the top floor he had already begun devising a plan. He was confident walking down the halls, knowing he had everything under control.
He stopped at Travis's desk, and the man looked at him expectantly.
"When you're finalizing next quarter's budget, give Kate Davis a raise." Travis nodded, and Quentin went back to his office.