TURNS OUT SOFIA WAS RIGHT.Today, Damien didn't wake me and let me sleep in. But when I awoke to him fresh out of the shower in nothing but a towel, he let me know I could take the day off. I didn't even have to ask. He assumed I'd be nursing a hangover—which he was right.I told him I still plan on coming into the office. After I slept in, of course... Better late than never.Coming out of the bathroom with a white towel twisting my hair into a topknot, I discover a box lying on our bed. Blue ribbon runs along its edges, shining in the afternoon glow through the windows, and crosses into a neat bow containing a white notecard.I hold back a grin, reminding myself I'm still angry about how Damien overreacted yesterday.Hannah—it reads in Damien's annoyingly sharp handwriting.Please accept this gift as my sincere apology and peace-offering.I made us reservations tonight for dinner. Wear this to the office today,and I'll take it as your acceptance to come.Intriguing arousal pools in
"H-HE HAS? Did he say what for?""He mentioned needing a note-taker. The meeting is running longer thanexpected. Some design issues are being discussed.""Oh, okay." I feel glued to my seat. Damien has never asked me to takenotes during a board meeting, and I can’t come up with an explanation for why he’d call me in after the last text I sent him."I'm sure you'll be brought up to speed." He beckons me with his hand. "Come on."Grabbing my laptop, I peel myself from my chair and follow him on heavy legs. When the meeting room comes into view, I pale at the number of people sitting around the table. Some who wear more business casual clothing stand with clipboards in hand, as no chairs are available. Except one.To Damien's right.My blond escort opens the door for me, and I enter to hear Damien's confident voice fill the room. "—and the latest tests for the Nano-X chip show significant performance bottlenecking."A man sitting across from Damien lets out an exasperated sigh. "Yes, t
HANNAH IS a presence I've grown to need, much like a soothing melody to my ear or oxygen for my soul.For the past two weeks, her warmth has chipped away the chronic stress from my shoulders like wax dripping from a candle, leaving behind a man I can hardly recognize—with a sense of calm and joy.On several occasions, I've laughed so hard with her at the most mundane of things, that tears lined my eyes in a way they haven't since... I don't know how long. It's very clear to me now that she makes me not only a better lover, but a better person, who sees optimism in an unpredictable future, instead of trying to control it.A week ago, she convinced me to take a day off work to go have tea with my mother. Never would I have done that—obviously, not because of my mother, who I adore. But because the very thought of leaving my company unattended, even though I know there are people I specifically hire to handle my affairs when I'm absent, has always been horrid to me. As if one day off cou
HANNAH IS a presence I've grown to need, much like a soothing melody to my ear or oxygen for my soul.For the past two weeks, her warmth has chipped away the chronic stress from my shoulders like wax dripping from a candle, leaving behind a man I can hardly recognize—with a sense of calm and joy.On several occasions, I've laughed so hard with her at the most mundane of things, that tears lined my eyes in a way they haven't since... I don't know how long. It's very clear to me now that she makes me not only a better lover, but a better person, who sees optimism in an unpredictable future, instead of trying to control it.A week ago, she convinced me to take a day off work to go have tea with my mother. Never would I have done that—obviously, not because of my mother, who I adore. But because the very thought of leaving my company unattended, even though I know there are people I specifically hire to handle my affairs when I'm absent, has always been horrid to me. As if one day off cou
NOTHING SPARKS my imagination more than the touch of the wheel beneath my fingertips, even if I'm not tall enough to see through the windshield."Vrr... Vrrr!" I mimic the purr of the engine, feeling vibrations as I pinch my lower lip between my teeth and push air from my lungs.There's no light inside Daddy's shop, not when it's past midnight, aside from the glow from a small desk lamp on top of his workbench. But that makes the thrill more worth it, sneaking out late without making a sound, letting my mind run rampant.With one turn of the wheel, I'm roaring down an open road with no destination in sight. A sandy breeze whisks my hair past my shoulders, invading every crevice of the roofless red Mustang I drive beside an endless ocean."Brrr." My lips flop with a funny feeling.With the next turn of the wheel, I'm a champion speed demon on my sure way to win my seventh NASCAR trophy. My legs elongate to their appropriate size, the bottom of my foot pinning the gas pedal to the groun
MY BIOLOGICAL FATHER doesn't want to be found.One quick search of Victor Strauss online gave me all the information Ineeded, including his company and personal phone number. I've called many times—late last night, early this morning and an hour ago—stating who I was and practically begging him to talk to me.Which felt wrong in and of itself, because why should I have to be the one to beg? Was his reaction at the charity event all an act? He certainly recognized me and tried to chase me down before Damien got to me first.The only answer I received was as a cryptic envelope slipped underneath our door ten minutes ago. Inside, black ink marked a white slip of paper.The Crimson Lotus9:00Lifting my head to the Vietnamese restaurant glowing neon red againstthe rainy night sky, I cross the street, studying those inside. But I'm unable to see anyone. The windows are quite dark, which wouldn't bother me so much if this wasn't such a sketchy part of the city.Upon my entrance, a bell ab
I WISH I could go back to the girl I was a month ago, who was only trying to save her family from bankruptcy.Not from their murder.Sitting on the floor of my bedroom, I rest my back against the side of my bed as light streams underneath my closed door. I twist the engagement ring around my finger, embracing the pointless warmth it gives me.Damien and I can't be. But I still put it on the instant I got back, allowing myself to pretend for a while longer that the world believes we're newly engaged and we're unveiling the most anticipated microchip of the twenty-first century.But that can never happen. Tomorrow, Damien will be alone on the stage, his father watching with satisfied eyes as he tells the audience it's Bass Mobile who wins the prize for an entire year. Their stocks will skyrocket, their phones soon reigning supreme, and its users will never know the danger they slip into their pockets.My phone rings on the floor next to me, shining a familiar face I’ve grown to love on
HANNAH SITS in a simmering silence that would intimidate anyone. Makeup artists blot fuzzy brushes to her face. A man behind her clamps a strand of her hair between an iron. And another tapes a wire underneath the strap of her blouse. Sitting on a black swivel chair, the bottoms of herflayed pantsuit reach the ends of her thin stilettos.She hasn't said a single word since entering backstage over an hour ago,and I know she must be planning something, not that she's going to share anything with me. She distinctly left that part out last night when she blew up my entire world to splinters, then informed me to go about our presentation as normal.Do you trust me? she had asked.And I didn't hesitate then, and I won't now, even before dozens of live- recording cameras and thousands in the audience.Mysterious schemes rage behind her eyes like dark tides of the sea, hinting at the rarely seen danger inside the woman before me, making me question who it really is I'm in love with... It's