After hearing the news of Harry's retirement, it was hard for Mia to remain so cheerful, knowing that he was going to be leaving soon. However, she didn't want him to see her upset, so she continued to smile.

Two weeks later, the gossip had spread through the office that Harry was going to be retiring. When one of her colleagues had shared the news with her, Mia couldn't help but laugh to herself.

The thought popped into her mind that Harry was right, if he hadn't told her first, she'd definitely hear it from the others and it would hurt.

She'd come to terms with him leaving, she wasn't exactly enthusiastic about it, but then again there was no point sulking right now when he hadn't even left yet.

It was a couple of hours in to the morning and Mia was occupied with her work. She was sat at her desk and typing away, when her telephone began to ring.

Mia glanced at the little screen on the telephone and realised it was a company number, but not one that she recognised.

"Hello?" She answered the phone in a questioning tone.

"Miss Sareen?"

On the other end of the phone was a deep, but oddly familiar, voice.

"Yes, speaking. May I ask whose calling?" She continued to speak in a professional manner.

Mia could then hear the other person let out a small breath, as if they were amused and it left her confused on what she had said that was so funny.

"Richard."

Mia's confusion remained.

"Richard...?"

She stretched out the name a little whilst speaking, hoping the caller would catch onto her drift and offer a last name - one that would help her identify who she was speaking to.

"Carter."

Suddenly, Mia felt her throat go dry once she heard the last name. She felt so shocked and confused, her mind was a mess.

Richard Carter, CEO, was calling her right now. The Richard Carter.

Now it made a lot more sense on why the deep voice sounded so familiar. 'It's him. It's really him,' Mia thought to herself.

This was unbelievable to her. She didn't think he'd even remember her after the small encounter they had - clearly she didn't, not even recognising his voice.

"Oh sorry, Sir...Boss...Sir-Boss...Sir," Mia stuttered through her words, the dry throat of hers not being a lot of help right now.

Mia then heard a chuckle at the other end of the line.

'At least he found her amusing,' she thought, even if she wasn't trying to be funny.

"Are you done, dear?" Richard then asked, his tone sounding quite mirthful.

Richard could understand how Mia didn't know it was him on the phone, but found it quite funny how she seemed to be lost for words once did realise it was him.

It was almost adorable the way she fumbled her words.

"Yes, Sir." Mia then replied, a lot calmer and in control now.

"Good. I was wondering if you were free for lunch today?" Richard asked.

Mia nearly dropped the phone at his question, and looked to either side of her to see if anyone had seen her moment of stupidity.

She was just so surprised at his words. 'Surely ought to be some kind of trap. The CEO wouldn't actually be interested in having lunch with her, could he?'

"Me?" She then questioned him, wanting to clarify if he did actually mean her.

"Well, I am calling you, Miss Sareen." Richard replied, something that Mia had momentarily forgotten.

Despite her not-so-bright moment, Mia found his tone to still be soft and amused, not displeased by her at all.

"Please, call me Mia."

She never liked being called Miss Sareen. It was too formal for her, and made her feel a lot older. If you were to change the title to Mrs, then it would be her mothers' name.

"Mia, are you free for lunch?" Richard repeated his question.

Realising that she had yet to answer his question, Mia face-palmed. 'Trust me to keep the CEO of the company waiting on an answer,' she thought to herself, not her most shining moment.

"Yes I am, Sir." She then replied - as if she was going to say no to him.

"Perfect," the sound of Richard's cheerful voice came through, clearly pleased. "If you could meet me at the downstairs lobby, I'd like to take you out to lunch. I have something to discuss with you," Richard said.

A shiver ran through Mia at the last words he spoke.

He might as well have said, 'we need to talk' instead, since she was feeling the same sense of dread that those words would make her feel.

"Very well, Sir. Um, what time?" Mia said, trying to keep her tone calm, and not letting it show that inside her heart was hammering against her chest as the prospect of having lunch with him.

For Mia, it was practically like having lunch with a celebrity.

"Will 12:30pm be good for you?" Richard asked.

Usually Mia would have her lunch a little later. She like to delay that hour break for a long as possible, since after that it would make the day feel like it was going quicker.

However, if Richard Carter suggested 12:30pm for lunch, then she was most definitely not going to say anything against it.

Mia nodded at his question, before realising he can't exactly see her through the phone and would need a verbal answer from her.

"It's perfect."

"Good, I'll see you then."

"Okay, Boss...Sir-Boss...I mean, Sir," she replied and smiled his time just buried her face in the palm of her hand from the sheer embarrassment she was feeling.

'Of all times to act like a muppet, she chose now,' Mia thought.

She could hear Richard let out a chuckle on the phone, before saying goodbye and ending the call.

Lunch with the Boss, how bad could it be?

Waiting for lunchtime seemed a lot harder than it did on the usual days. Every time Mia would glanced at the time on her desktop, it'd barely passed five minutes. This was torture for her.

She tried to focus on her work, but even then it wasn't helpful. All the numbers in front of her just reminded her of the time. She just kept seeing '12' and '30' within her spreadsheet.

Finally, it came to the 12:25, and wanting to make a good impression, Mia left a little earlier, thinking that she could wait for Richard. It was probably best not to keep him waiting on her.

Grabbing her coat, Mia left her desk to go down to the lobby.

She couldn't see Richard at the downstairs lobby and so instead she took a seat on one of the sofa.

Mia took her phone out, as a way to distract herself however she couldn't help but bounce her knees. She felt so nervous at just the idea of having lunch with Richard Carter - actually having lunch may just send her into some kind of breakdown.

As she stared at her phone screen, her name being called out, in a very loud voice, caused Mia to look up - along with a few other people too.

She saw Richard Carter walking towards her, dressed in, no doubt, a very expensive suit. He had a wide smile on his face, showing the little wrinkles near his eyes.

Mia couldn't help but smile back at him when he looked at her like that.

"Hello, Sir." She greeted him, placing her phone back in her coat pocket and standing up to face him properly.

"Please, call me Richard," he told her.

He didn't really want any kind of formality between them, but he could see the hesitation on her face at his words. It would probably be a little awkward for her to treat him casually.

"Um, it just doesn't seem appropriate," she replied, a small frown on her face.

She couldn't imagine just referring to him as Richard. If anything Mr Carter seemed more proper, anything else just didn't seem respectful enough.

Richard shook his head. "Nonsense. You are to call me Richard, clear?" He said, lowering his voice, making it sound like a command, yet the expression on his face remained soft.

The look on his face, had Mia grinned. It reminded her of Harry, when he'd 'command' her to make some coffee, or share her slice of cake.

"Crystal," she then replied.

"Glad we have that settled," Richard smiled, and then stretched out his arm. "Shall we?"

"Of course," Mia smiled.

As the two of them walked out the lobby and into the cold air, Richard looked to Mia.

"Do you have a place in mind to eat at?" He asked.

Usually Mia would go to an easy place to get lunch, a sandwich deli or burger joint, even somewhere where she could get a meal deal. However, these didn't seem like any of the places she could suggest to Richard Carter.

Instead, she shook her head.

Richard smiled. "Perfect, I know just the place," he said, before leading the way.

Of all the places that Richard could have taken her for lunch, this was the last place that Mia would've thought was on his list.

Sitting in the restaurant, the surprise on her face was still evident with Mia looking around and taking in her surroundings.

There was a sixties-themed, diner vibe to the place. The floor was checkered in black and white, whilst bright-red, leather boots were used for seating. Posters were stuck up on the wall, including cars, celebrities and even a leather jacket incased in glass.

This was not the kind of place that Mia thought Richard would ever eat at.

"Are you okay, dear? You haven't eaten."

Richard's voice snapped Mia back to reality, and she glanced down at the table, realising she'd not yet eaten her food, and then looked up to see Richard smiling at her.

"The food not to your liking?" He then asked curiously.

Mia shook her head gently. "No, it's just..." she paused, not knowing if she should say, but Richard nodded, encouraging her to carry on. "I'm so surprised you picked this place."

When they had left the lobby, Mia assumed they would've taken the route towards one of the more fancier places to dine, but Richard led her to one of the smaller streets, she was confused.

The placed was essentially in a hole in the wall, and definitely something that would've been overlooked. The small sign hanging was barely visible.

"What did you expect?" Richard asked, before taking a bite of his own burger. He looked like a kid who just been given a happy meal.

"Fancy restaurant," Mia replied, as she ate a few fries.

Richard laughed, her assumption wasn't too wrong. "Ah that's only for client's, I'd much rather prefer a place like this," he said.

When he had first started out in the business, Richard had learned that building connections and networking was a real key towards success.

Treating clients to fancy restaurants, wining and dining, was a real help. It would make them feel special in a way, and they would want to build on that relationship with you.

Over the years, Richard had done a lot of this, and in the position he was in now, the clients he dealt with were more of the 'wine and dine' category. Taking them to a simple diner wouldn't be a good business move.

When it came to younger clients they would probably would appreciate this kind of place however, it would be someone like Sebastian or the sales team, who would be the ones to take them there.

"You and me both," Mia then grinned, before she took a bite of her burger.

Over the fun little lunch they had, Richard and Mia got to know each other a bit more.

Richard had come to find out just how hard working and dedicated Mia really was, achieving high grades throughout university, and even achieving academic awards for it. He was interested to know more about her ambitions and where she wanted to go in life - from what she had told him, he was impressed.

Mia had also learned more about Richard as well - well more than she had read in business magazines and online.

She discovered that his passion for construction stemmed from his childhood.

Richard's father wasn't a rich man, and their little family lived in a small, dingy flat, that just barely kept the roof over their head. As a young boy, Richard always heard how his father wanted build a house for them, but was never able to. This then pushed Richard towards building and construction, leading him to be the man he is today.

The two of them had finished their meals, feeling incredibly full, but continued sipping on their milkshakes.

Richard then cleared his throat, catching Mia's attention "So, the thing I wanted to discuss with you," he then said.

Mia stopped sipping her milkshake midway to focus on Richard. She had completely forgotten about why he initially invited her to lunch.

"Yes?" Mia asked.

Despite all the milkshake she had just had, Mia felt like her throat had just gone dry. She felt so unsure on what was about to happen, she just assumed the worst, like her being fired.

"How do you like working in accounting?" Richard then asked her.

Mia blinked slowly, wondering if she had heard him right.

'All that worrying, for this question?' Mia thought to herself, feeling so silly all of a sudden.

Realising Richard was waiting on an answer from her, Mia opened her mouth but in that moment Richard held up a hand towards her.

"Be honest," he told her with a smile, putting his hand back down and sipping on his milkshake.

Mia thought for a second about her reply.

'Would it be appropriate to tell him that she found it boring, or is that too honest?,' she thought.

"Well it's nothing fancy, but honestly this was my first job out of university. I didn't know what I wanted to do specifically and Harry gave me a chance at this, I was more than happy to take it," Mia told him her honest answer.

It was probably in her better interest to not be so blunt.

"I see," Richard replied, processing her words. "I presume you know about Harry leaving?" He then asked, and Mia nodded sadly.

"He told me last week," Mia said, swirling her straw around bit in her cup.

Richard could see the saddened expression on Mia's face and realised just how much she cared about Harry. It was heartwarming.

"Harry is a dear old friend of mine-" Richard began to say, and Mia glanced up at him, his expression almost mirroring hers, "-Seeing him go will be hard, especially since I'm still going to be here."

Mia smiled at his words. "I understand," she said.

It was something she felt too. She had coworkers that she liked and had a good relationship with, but with Harry around it was different. Not seeing his face when she came to work everyday was going to be hard.

"You know, I've spoke to Harry about you," Richard said and Mia looked at him wide-eyed. "He has nothing but praises for you."

Mia smiled at this.

"But he also knows that accounting isn't for you," Richard added.

She couldn't help but let out a little scoff. "He praises everyone."

Mia rolled her eyes thinking of Harry. 'He was such a softy, he probably couldn't help himself,' she thought.

"Only those that deserve it," Richard told her.

He'd known Harry long enough to know, whilst the man was as soft-hearted as you could be, he never would give out praise to those who didn't deserve it. He'd worked hard all his life and so he could really appreciate in others.

"If you could, would you carry on working in accounting?" Richard asked.

Mia shook her head, this time not having to think too long about her response.

"Probably not," she said. "I studied business at university, and I liked it, knowing I wanted to be part of that world but just not sure what part to be exact."

The only problem Mia found with studying business was that it opened her eyes to so many different aspects of it, not just the finance related part.

She had so modules that she hadn't even thought about and this then caused her to be confused on which path she wanted to follow.

Richard chuckled. "I was the same, the only difference, I knew that I had a passion for infrastructure. There were a lot aspects which intrigued me, but at the end of the day I knew it was construction and infrastructure that I wanted. That then helped me build up this company."

For him there was only one career in mind, making his choices easier, but he understood how Mia must be feeling.

"It's remarkable," she then acknowledged. "I've actually read about your success and it's truly amazing."

"Thank you," he smiled.

Another sip of his milkshake and Richard cleared his throat.

"So I have an offer for you," he said, tilting his head to the side.

'Time to work his magic,' he then thought, feeling like the genie from Aladdin.

"Okay?" Mia answered.

She wasn't too sure she liked the smile Richard had on, it was one of those all-knowing ones, like her flatmate Nicole would have before trying to doll her up.

"I want you to be my son's assistant whilst Sophie is off on maternity leave," Richard stated.

Mia blinked slowly, trying to process what he just said.

Maybe she heard wrong? Or perhaps Richard has another son, who also has a pregnant assistant named Sophie? That is probably less likely.

"Pardon?" Was all that she could say in response.

"You heard correctly," Richard said.

He himself wasn't sure whether Mia's reaction was positive or negative.

"I think you have the wrong person," Mia chuckled nervously, thinking this is probably all some kind of mistake.

As far as she could recall, she didn't apply to the role nor had she ever mentioned wanting to be someone's assistant. She only helped out Harry went he needed it, apart from that, Mia didn't think she was qualified enough.

There was also the fact of who's assistant she would have to be, and that didn't make this any more appealing to her.

"I actually think I have the perfect person," Richard retorted, disagreeing with her.

Mia just shook her head. "But why me? I mean, you don't really know me. I could be completely wrong for the role."

It was probably not the most appropriate way to talk to your boss but Mia couldn't help it, not when he wanted her to work for Sebastian.

"You're right, I don't know you, but Harry does. He's only ever had good things to say about you," Richard replied.

"I've never been someone's assistant before," Mia confessed, hoping it is reason enough for Richard to realise he really is asking the wrong person.

However Richard didn't seem fazed by it.

"You were never an accountant before, yet you're doing a great job," he pointed out.

Mia was about to object, but Richard interrupted her before she could say anything further.

"Look, let me be honest, when I first met Sophie I didn't even know if she had the qualifications, yet I had a gut feeling about her, and my gut is never wrong. I've made business decisions according to it - although don't tell anyone that. I have the same feeling about you, Mia."

"With all due respect, Richard, I really think you may be wrong this time."

"This won't be a permanent position, half a year probably, and after that you don't even need to go back to accounting."

Mia wasn't too sure on how this turned into a negotiation. She was trying to decline his offer, not make him turn this into some kind of a deal.

Richard himself couldn't understand what exactly it was, but there was something about this girl that would make her the perfect person to replace Sophie whilst she was away.