Emily's POV The day dragged on, after the eventful Mrs O'Connor. I rejected Damon's lunch offer, so he went ahead without me. As I sat alone, in his office, staring at where he used to be, I wondered what was really going on with the both of us. “Let's go home.” He said as he entered. It was still midday, well, some minutes after. The main man, the client who was coming in from the UK hadn't arrived yet, and he was planning to close. “Why?” I asked, surprised “I'm not in the mood for any more work.” He replied. “Well, I've still got a lot to do,” I countered, “Sir.” I added for the much needed effect. “You stop working when I say you should.” He growled at me. Damon was vexed. If I hadn't initially noticed the veins that'd begun to pop a little too much, I noticed the slit appearing in his eye,how his grip on the table had begun to dent it, the smell of his feral breath. “I'll start packing.” I said weakly. Damon made me wish I had my own wolf. I know I always
Damon's POV “I freaking hate her!” I yelled on the phone. I was on call with Adrian. So much was going through my mind, seeing Dathan and Emily too. I thought that chapter was closed. I stormed out in anger and irritation. The day turned out to be more than I ever thought it would be. “Who?” He asked. “Who else?” I bellowed. “Daisy!” “Why would she do something like that though?” Adrian asked, chewing whatever. “You annoy me sometimes, Man. We are discussing something so important and you still have an appetite for whatever it is you are eating?” I asked him in disgust. “I didn't realise it was that serious.” He said, swallowing, almost choking. “Daisy is threatening to cut off our supply to the United Kingdom, Adrian, they buy over thirty percent of our oil. We have estates there! And you do think that's not serious?” I asked, fuming. “What exact reason did she give? This still feels too silly to me.” Adrian replied. “She said she didn't like my assistant.”
Emily's POV Things were beginning to get messier than I ever thought. In my wildest of imaginations, even my reality wouldn't have featured. Damon and Dathan tearing the shreds out of each other's wolves. Damon's room was in a mess, a huge bloodied one. Nala and I rushed them both to the hospital immediately. The palace had an ambulance, so we didn't bother with calling one from the hospital. Side by side, the two brothers lay, unconscious. I prayed hard, fast and fervently. I didn't want to imagine what would become of me if I lost any or both of them. There was a lot of blood, and I couldn't quite guess whose it was. “Your knuckles are white.” Nala croaked. We both sat at the back together, bent over them pensively. “Oh.” I snapped out of my thoughts and stretched my fingers. They still looked quite bony, but not as bony as a few months ago. Plus they now looked more expensive, with the huge diamond rock sitting on it. But that's not the point.. “Do you think the
Ten Years LaterEmily's POV “I never knew your office space would be this…” Mrs O’Connor said as she walked it, looking around with her mouth half open. It'd been a shock, to both of us, when a few weeks ago, she called in to book an appointment. I managed her companies before, but through a third party. “Yeah, well, goodwill.” I smiled and answered non-committal. “It's been what? Over ten years, and you look as young as ever. I'd appreciate beauty tips.” She smirked, and put a foot on my desk. She still wore trendy heels, even though her hair had begun to turn gray. I guess it's just too hard for her to admit. “This is not the place for small talk, Mrs Daisy. You booked an appointment, and you have an hour of my time before my secretary walks in through that door to see me to a nearby event.” I said, putting her in her place. “There are no places for anything. Besides, I'm not one to follow rules.” She smiled. Like her smile couldn't be more annoying, her red lipsti
Emily's POV “The ball starts in two hours, ma'am.” Freda said through a creak in the door. She's the new assistant I just got. “A ball?” I asked, surprised. “Yes.” Freda replied, opening the door slightly to reveal her face. “It's a ball, a masked one. “She added. “I email-ed you the details last night.” “Guilty.” I said in an undertone. I sucked at checking my mails. Not even four years in college, nor three years working for marketing agencies and growth firms changed me. “I hear there will be a lot of dignitaries. Key players across many industries.” She said, “And who's throwing the ball again?” I must've missed that part. “It's anonymous.” Freda smiled. She was beginning to feel at ease around me, and I loved it. “Is that a good sign?” I asked her. “It's a masked ball, so I think so.” She smiled. “Would you like to come with me?” At twenty-seven, I still had cold feet when I had to be in a room filled with people I didn't know. I knew it was just g
Emily's POV “I don't think that makes sense to me.” Tammy quipped. “That's why it's MASKED! You can wear whatever and be comfortable in it. I literally made so much research, so much detail that went into this dress. I wanted you to stand out!” Her voice was already breaking, so Freda put a hand on her shoulder and patted her back. “I'll take it from here.” Freda said softly to her. I hated to be a killjoy, the dress was magnificent. I'd given it just one glance, and I had to tear my gaze away and stare at the floor in front of me. I didn't want to consider it. I didn't want to feel like a princess, or a Luna, or a dignitary. I wanted to be me, Emily, ordinary me. “Can we talk?” Freda asked me. “No.” I replied. I didn't want to talk. I haven't talked about it, I don't talk about it, I wouldn't talk about it. “Sometimes, I hear you sniff in your office. I act like I don't see that your eyes are swollen and red sometimes. Last Tuesday, I ignored the paper cut on your t
Emily's POV “No, you didn't!” I exclaimed as I saw the ‘ride’ my office had planned. It was a firetruck! “Why?!” I choked on my words because I was laughing. Being with Tammy and Freda for about three hours had made me a very different person already. I was laughing too hard, smiling too wide, saying things as they came to my mind. “In Frank's words, they've gotta be warned.” Freda answered, mimicking Frank's deep baritone. I made a mental note to thank him as soon as the ball got done. According to Freda, it was going to last all night. “Here we are.” I murmured as our ride, which was far out of convention, pulled up at the hall. It was a really big hall. I wondered how I'd never seen it, even though I was not so new to the city anymore. “This is a big deal.” I sighed. “Yes! And I need you to be happy.” Freda smirked. Tammy was able to trim down a gown they had made already for show, and it fitted Freda only too well. She was in silver, and I in red. We bo
Adrian's POV When I first heard of the masked ball, I thought it came at the nick of time. I had just broken up with my girlfriend. It's not like I didn't see it coming, but no one is exactly fully ready for that first lonely night, or morning after a break up. It feels so strange, so painful. I took the invitation out of Damon's hands in a heartbeat. I almost asked why he was throwing the ball in some other city, which was miles away from home, but I knew the answer. Asides for Mount Leigh being one city that housed too many of our escapades, it was just the right distance that Damon wanted to be from home. I really couldn't care less about how things were with him and Zyna. Sometimes, she shows up with a black eye, other times, it's with multiple hickeys on her neck. So I thought better than to ask. “This party is a drag, man.” I whispered to Damon. He was masked, in a checkered blue and white suit, but I could still tell him apart in the crowd. “I don't think so. The rea
Emily's POV I was a little pissed. And so far, I've succeeded in annoying Frda. I honestly didn't mean to, but with the mental space I was in, I just couldn't care much. We ate lunch in silence, and she even offered to pay for her food. I felt a bit jabbed. For someone who's worked very hard to own her own world, and that of those around her to an extent, it kinda made me hurt. And all I had to blame was that stupid meeting with a childhood crush. Damn it. I really thought I was over him I should have known from the point where I started feeling uneasy and even nauseous after accosting him in the morning. Everything I'd done suddenly seemed wrong. I made it through the rest of the day, wishing I could rewind time, but each time I looked at the clock, it was always a second more, not less. I finally gave up. The hours followed each other, albeit slowly, and by 5pm, I was so damn ready to go home and cry. Not that the day hadn't been productive, no, far from that. But th
Zacs POVHeaven knows I did a great deal holding myself back from lurching at Damon with the trash he was asking. Every new question he asked made me further convinced that this is the wrong place for me. Him ordering me out was almost the last straw, but I had one more thing to do. I literally counted down till 5pm. My eyes only left my watch to attend to a few things on my screen. Otherwise, I was so damn fixated on getting out of his freaking establishment. For all I cared he could blast off. With the subtle message I left Emily, I had a more interesting half of the day to look forward to, hopefully. I needed to return Damon's wretched shoes, and clothes, they weren't bad looking, he was just very badly behaved. My clothes were in the car, and more than once, I'd done a quick change or redress in the garage, so I decided to go for it again. I entered the office garage, like I do any other day. Cautiously checking for presence of any other life form. When I'd satisfied myse
Freda’s POVI hate to be that girl, but… I tried hard, fighting the thoughts that kept creeping into my head as I waited outside Emily's office for her to come. The last thing I'd have expected was for her to see that guy down. He was an eye candy, I can't lie, but he was a bit too conceited. My type though. As I waited outside her door, with my eyes glued to the elevator, waiting for her break light, my patience finally wore out, not like it was a lot prior. I opened the door slightly, and left it that way, in case I needed to make a quick exit. My eyes were still moist from how bad I choked on the tequila earlier, but it didn't stop me from seeing the handkerchief on Zac’s recently vacated seat. Silly, crazed me, I picked it up to get a whiff of his scent, the masculine fragrance that filled Emily's office only minutes ago, and still did actually, only a little more faintly. When I unfolded the handkerchief, I realised there was more to it. Zac wrote something on it. Unfo
Damon's POV Every second Zac spent in there with Emily made me ask myself if I was a fool for not properly thinking these things through. ‘I think you want to see her.’ I remember Farh chirping, after watching me knead my thighs in intense expectation. I ignored him, even though he was very correct, and both of us knew it. I didn't play my cards right at the ball. I'm very sure the kindest emotion she feels towards me is repulsion. “Any other thing you want me to know?” I asked Zac. “Yes,” He replied, “Our phones switched for some reason.” “Here.” I handed his over to him, and took mine. Zac didn't say anything, we just quietly switched. I didn't trust him too much. I needed to find out what he'd been up to, so I sacrificed eavesdropping on their convo, for a moment with his phone. Funny stuff? The phone was half empty. Nothing worthy to see. Just a bunch of texts, from him to me, and all other staff at Damon Inc. Nothing else. I flung the phone to the b
Zac’s POVFreda, the girl from earlier, stumbled into Emily's office as fast as she could. I could literally almost see the speed. “I'm sorry I couldn't get ice.” She apologised as she set a cup before Emily and I. “I'm not sure your boss wants to treat me to this.” I smirked. Emily grabbed the cup Freda’s had placed in front of me, handed it back to Freda, poured them both a drink, and asked Freda to gulp it down right before her. “We can't deal with these people ‘professionally’” She answered Freda’s unasked question. I loved the scene. Most beautiful thing I'd seen in a while. I wished I could have them both to me, at a different time, under completely different circumstances. I shook my legs lightly, like it'd shake out the nasty thoughts on my head. I cleared my throat to remind them of my presence, even though they were still so much aware Freda choked on her glass, and I enjoyed watching Emily help her. They scurried out, where I heard Emily had her over to s
Zac’s POVPlaying a character is so hard. I coughed over a hundred times when Damon, my boss, first lit my cigarette. I could handle alcohol, no doubt. I take it like I take water, no biggie. But puffs? Well, I've been made to do it once, and I'm sure I'd never repeat it. Damon made Farh drive me in his newly acquired cyber truck. Proud bastard. “So are you going to get talking?” Emily asked. “You know, about your illegal business.” She added. She's not the girl I used to know any longer. This one was bolder, more outspoken. Emily I used to know was a little more timid, I mean, she'd always been blunt, but not this blunt. I snickered a bit. I had a feeling that Damon wanted the meeting to go without me revealing my identity to her, but since he did not give any clear instructions to that effect, I was gonna default. The absence of law is the absence of crime. “Gotten a name now?” I asked her. Her brows furrowed, and she leaned back. It'd become a staring competition. I
Emily's POV As I approached the cyber truck, one I'd seen only on TV, I took large breaths and swallowed several times. It felt like I'd swallowed my voice too. “Hello.” I said, as I got within what I deemed to be earshot. There was no response, and it made me second guess if I really spoke out loud or in my head. I heard a snicker, and that was the sign that he undoubtedly heard me. I didn't know who it was, but I could very well narrow my options. Regardless, I was determined not to take bullshit from anyone. “I think the ‘no smoking’ signs are clear enough. Good morning.” I said, but not before I slapped the half burnt cigarette out of his hand, and crushed it beneath my feet. “Good morning, Emily.” He looked up and smiled at me. It was a pretty smile, I couldn't deny that, but I was already too irritated, so I smiled curtly and made my way inside. My steps were firm and my strides were gallant, but in me, I was as scared and anxious as an eight year old who was left
Emily's POV Since Freda got the mail asking to have the meeting on Monday, at our office, I'd been walking on eggshells around myself, scared I'd jinx my new fortune. I couldn't do anything to upset mother Destiny for the sweet new path she'd set in front of me. Funniest part? I'd never really been so religious, but I prayed to whoever listened, and at the end of my prayers, it was weird cause there was no name mentioned, like, I had no one to address it to. “I'm happy you're here.” I said to Freda, unprovoked. The clock on the wall read 06:15, Mon. It was the D-day, matter of fact, just a few hours left. I was nervous, and I constantly felt like my bowel was full and needed emptying. Freda, on the other hand, seemed quite chill. She was playing scrabble online, and in my nervousness, I begged her to put me on, after making two silly moves, I logged out, convinced that I was indeed too nervous to concentrate. ‘How am I gonna do this?’ I asked myself in an undertone. “G
Damon's POV “Hell, even I am not sure of what I'm doing. You don't have to be.” I chuckled and sniffed out the light at the bottom of my cigarette in his drink. “I'm sorry sir.” My assistant apologized. Ironically, he's the first guy assistant I'd gotten. After Zyna, I'd plunged into the world of women, letting my life revolve around them, or them revolve around me, I don't care which. “You don't have to be. I get your concern.” I admitted. Regretting that I'd scared him so bad, and made his drink undrinkable. I signalled to the attendant to take it away and bring a new one. It was a Saturday morning and we were already at the bar. The house, my father's palace, was no longer my home, I'd have invited Zac over. I doubt anywhere could ever be with Zyna in it. All the nasty memories I've tried to fight off always come washing back every single time I step foot into the house. If it wasn't such an important heirloom, I'd have converted it into another office space, and re