She found someone else

Episode 4

"That's me." She replied again, clutching a file against her chest. 

Still shocked, Ricky looked from Audrey's hair down to her feet as he could not resist the temptation of looking. She wore a red armless low neckline top, and a black jacket with matching black straight pants. Her hair was neatly pack up, and some strands were left flying across her face. 

Ricky got hold of himself, realizing he was beginning to stare longer than necessary. He cleared his throat, and dismissed any expression that could betray him. "Audrey. I don't know...what you're doing here." 

"May I sit?" She asked, pointing at one of the four chairs surrounding the large desk. 

"Sure." Ricky replied, pointed to a seat directly opposite him. 

"Thanks." Audrey mumbled. She came forward, put her bag down and sat down. She placed the file in her hand on the desk, pushed it towards Ricky. "Will...you check?" 

Ricky stared at the file, his brows raised. "What are you doing?" 

"Trying to get employed." Audrey replied. She smiled, looking into his face. She'd always wanted a connection to work in a suitable place befitting her educational qualities. Who would be a better connection if not Ricky Anderson? 

She needed to pay back the money from the contract as soon as possible, and to free herself from self-pity. 

"Trying to get employed? You've never needed to work." Ricky's reply came. He took hold of the file, and started to flip through the pages. 

"You told me yourself. I need to pay back the money from thr contract if I'm going to terminate it. Right?" 

Ricky glanced up from thr file. "You have a lot of things to sell off, Audrey. The jewelries, shoes. Bags..." 

Audrey shook her head in disagreement. "You got me all of those, Ricky. I mean...Mr. Anderson. If I should sell those things to give you back the money... what difference would it make? You are the owner of all of those properties. I prefer to work myself, and pay you back with the money I will earn. 

"I'm qualified for this, Mr. Anderson. I met all the necessary requirements. Please, don't say no." 

Ricky stared at her, wondering what happened to the snuggling Audrey. She looked different. Kind of. He shrugged. "That will be on two conditions; that you will have to pass the interview first, and that the relationship between us must be kept away from work. Absolute discretion." 

Audrey nodded, even though the last condition hurt her to the bones. "That's very clear to me, Mr. Anderson. I will be professional in my job."

"Miss Westwood will take you to the interview center. All you have to do is wait." Ricky replied. Absentmindedly, he tapped his customized pen on the desk continuously. 

Audrey watched his movements and hid a smile. Sue knew him perfectly well. All these years, she'd watched in, studied him, and could boldly say she knew 95% of his character. He was confused, and she knew he desperately wanted to say no to her request.

Audrey stood up, picked up her bag and started to walk to the door. 

"Audrey." Ricky called, halting her to a stop abruptly. 

She turned, a polite smile on her face. "Yes, Mr. Anderson?" 

"What would you like to be called? Mrs. Audrey or Miss Christine?" Ricky asked. Christine was Audrey's last name before her contract marriage. 

Audrey listened to the question, digested it and thought about it for a while. She would have loved to be called Mrs. Anderson, but that would be letting the cat out of the bag, and putting ideas into the staff's minds. Bearing the same name with the Anderson heir was definitely going to spark up some interest. However, calling her Mrs. Audrey would mean that she's married, but to whom? 

"Miss Christine would be perfect." Audrey finally replied. "Luckily, I didn't change my name since university days. You see." Audrey breathed the last words, and her voice shook. 

Ricky looked betrayed by her answer for a slight moment, then shrugged. "That's perfect." He replied, and nodded towards the door. 

Audrey compressed her lips, turned and was out of the office. 

"F*ck." Ricky cursed under his breath, buried his fingers deep into his hair. "What the hell is this?" He asked out loud. He wanted to say no to Audrey right there and then, he didn't want her to be interviewed at all, but he couldn't bring himself to deny her of the chance to work. And she needed the money. 

Ricky stopped for a while, lifted his head and stared at the door, wondering why it bothered him to have Audrey working for him. It was actually not a big deal, since he was perfectly sure he was in control. 

He stood up, arranged his hair and picked up his suit which he threw on, picked up his cellphone and headed out of the office. 

*******

3:45 pm.

"Did you get the job?" Xavier asked as soon as Audrey hopped into the car. "You should. You look happy." He added, igniting the car. 

Audrey put down her bag on her laps, leaned forward and threw her arms around the young man, resting her head against his chest. She remained in this position for a while, taking in deep breaths of relieve. "Thank you." She finally mumbled. 

Last night talk with Xavier had yielded a positive result like it always did. She'd gotten the idea to apply for the PA post from her brother after she'd explained what was happening. They never kept secrets from each other, and even the pregnancy was no longer a secret to Xavier. 

Xavier took his hands off the steering wheel, and hugged back the fragile lady. He closed his eyes behind her, listening to the thumping of her heart; to the fragility of her body.

"You can always count on me, Audy. Always." He suddenly withdrew, and moved away from her as far as he could. 

Audrey smiled and sat straight. She sighed deeply and turned to look at Xavier. "How's Diana? She must hate me right now for making you take me to the hospital."

Xavier laughed at the mention of Diana's name. "Don't lay attention to her whining. She's just acting her last born character. Come on. Let's go. You don't want to be late for the doctor's appointment." 

Audrey sank into her seat, put on her seatbelt as the car rolled out of the Anderson estate. 

*******

Outside the main doors, stood Ricky. He'd watched Audrey get into the SUV. He saw the hugs, the relaxed mood and the intimate discussions. His hands clenched in his pockets, his teeth gritted as he watched the car disappearing out of the estate. 

Of course. This was the reason she wanted to get away. She found someone else. He thought irritably.