I smiled at Melissa as she placed a coffee cup in front of me. She took the pain of bringing me coffee to my office room while she had a hundred other things to deal with in my absence. “Mel, you’re a godsend.” I said, bringing the coffee to my mouth. “I’m happy to help however I can.” She smiled. “How is your hand now?” I looked at my left hand, now devoid of the cast. “It’s much better. The doctor said I can come back to work now, so here I am.” “I’m glad.” She said, “But still, to let you ease in, I just scheduled a few meetings for you so you don’t have too much coding work. You can delegate that job to your juniors.” “I’ll see what I can do. I do have a meeting with Calvin, right?” Her lips formed a straight line, “Yes, I couldn’t avoid it. He was very adamant about it.” “It’s alright, I’ll handle it.” I said, with a wave of my hand. As Melissa left, I turned on my computer and tried to catch up on work. So much work was done in my absence, and although I tried to stay in
I gotta repeat it. Melissa is a godsend. If her curiosity did not make her come looking for me, Calvin would have probably landed his disgusting lips on mine, making me want to kill myself. “Cassie?” She called as she opened the door, making Calvin jump at least three feet away from me. “Yes.” I said, louder than required to ensure that she heard me. As she walked inside, her eyes shifting between Calvin and me, she understood that one of us needed rescuing. “What are you doing here?” “Just wrapping up the meeting.” Calvin replied. “In here?” She asked, glancing around. It was a store room. “Wanted some privacy.” He said, “And we just got done.” “Great, so I guess I can grab Cassie?” “Of course.” I said, and walked out of the room before he could protest. Instead of the elevator, both of us took the stairs and headed into my office. Once inside, Melissa widened her eyes at me. “What the hell was he doing?” “I have no idea.” I said, “I was heading downstairs and the next t
Enzo almost made the impossible come true. Whether it was saving me from my past or hunting my father down and fixing an appointment with him, there seemed nothing he couldn’t do.A week ago when he told me about this, I could hardly believe it. After my mother managed to let me believe that my father was in a foreign country getting treatment for his ailment, I made peace with the fact that she would perhaps never let me meet him. Hence it took me a while to believe that Enzo had managed to find him. However, it wasn’t until now, where I’m standing outside a hotel, staring up at what could possibly be my father’s room, that I realized that this was real. I was indeed going to meet my dad. “What are you waiting for?” Enzo said, his arm coming around my body in a side hug.“I’m not ready.” I said, “What if he’s sick, Enzo? Really, really sick?” “Then he’d be glad to see his daughter.” He said, kissing my forehead. “Go on in. Make him happy. I’m sure he was waiting for this day.” “
As the weekend rolled, Mr and Mrs Ashford invited me to their estate to spend a night there. Work was beginning to take up most of my time, and so was Calvin. I was sure that if I stayed in the city for longer, he might show up at my doorstep. Hence, I reluctantly accepted Ashford's invitation. But it was a bummer that Enzo could not accompany me there. “An old friend of mine is flying from the UK to visit me.” He said, “I haven’t seen him in a year, Cassie. I need to be here.”I couldn’t even fight him on this. Maybe I should have consulted with him before giving my commitment to the Ashfords. It was too late to cancel now. So here I was on a saturday, making my way to the Ashford’s estate alone. As expected, the Ashfords received me outside like I’m some child and ushered me inside. Once lunch was served, Mr Ashford began talking. “So, Cassandra.” He started, “When are you getting married?”The spoon I was holding fell down on the plate, breaking through the silence of the plac
Enzo’s POV I watched as Raymond pushed a shot of whiskey in my direction. “Cheers, brother.” Smiling, I took the glass and clinked it against his. Raymond was an old pal of mine back when I was studying in the UK. While I flew back to the states to work here, Raymond took over his family business in London.We both led busy lives, so meeting each other frequently was no longer feasible. Unfortunately, we only made the time to meet each other when we desperately needed the other person’s help. I downed the drink in one go to kick start the evening, Ray following my cue. As the bitter liquid passed through my throat, I couldn't help but wince. “So what gets you here, Ray?” I asked, asking for another drink. Ray gave me a smirk, “Well, to meet you, of course.” I cocked my brow at him. “I know you only meet me when you need me for something.” “Can’t deny that.” He said with a hiss. “We gotta correct that man. Some might think we’re using each other.” I shrugged, “So let them. We’r
Enzo’s POV I looked up at him in surprise. “How do you know that?” He sighed, “It’s precisely why I’m here, Enzo.” I waited patiently as he took another sip from his whiskey, perhaps to knock the edge off of what’s coming. “Calvin Anderon is our biggest competitor right now.” He said, “And not just that. He was a partner with us before he decided to screw us over and send our company into losses.”“How did that happen? Did you not do a background check before signing with him?” “It was clean.” He said, “You see, when he was entering the Europe market, his was already an established player here in the states. Everybody was eager to sign a deal with him, and we were one of them. He had funding from Arnold Harper, one of the most trusted investors. So it was a no brainer. But things didn’t work out, and his company suffered huge losses. Harper pulled his investments, and Calvin was desperate to stay afloat. So he decided to screw us over, and took us down with him. This is probably
Cassie’s POV After the not so pleasing lunch, the rest of the day did get better. Perhaps because I only spent most of it with Mrs Ashford. She was a sweet and patient woman. She had an answer to every question I asked, and she did plan the day well to keep me entertained. However, the Ashfords went to bed early, so after having an early supper, I was ushered into my room. I was offered to sleep in my mother’s room, but I was too weirded out by the idea to accept it. Hence, I found myself mindlessly scrolling instagram in the guest bedroom at nine thirty. Right then, I realized that I missed Enzo terribly. He was always around to keep me entertained or atleast to give me a nice orgasm at the end of the day. I didn’t know who I missed more, him or his fingers. I opened Whatsapp and shot him a message. ‘What are you doing?” - CassieHe instantly saw the message and sent me a picture. As I downloaded it, I saw that it was a picture of a whiskey glass on a bar table. ‘Nice. Wish I
“Bye, Cassie. See you at the office tomorrow.” Calvin smirked. He got up from his seat and grabbed his bag, making his way toward his car. And within a minute, he was out of my sight. And as if on cue, Enzo’s car drove in. I could not help but sigh with relief. I was not in the mood to explain to Enzo what Calvin was doing here. I had given him enough reason to be upset about my working arrangement. He didn’t need to know that Mr Ashford was also on Calvin’s side. We didn’t spend long after breakfast. I didn’t want to, so I made up an excuse that I was feeling sick and let Enzo drive me back home. “You seemed eager to get out of there.” Enzo mused, reaching for my hand in my lap. “Yeah, it was a bit too much.” I said, “I needed a break.” “Is that all?” He said, “Or has it got to do anything with the fact that Calvin was there?” I stiffened, glancing at him slowly. As soon as he registered the look on his face, his question was cleared.“Right, so it was him.” Enzo said, “What
Enzo’s POV Today was awful. It was packed with meetings with difficult clients who refused to budge. I hated dealing with people like them, who have unrealistic expectations about what a firm can do for you. But sadly, they are powerful people, so you need to get them on your side. And thankfully, I had enough experience in this field to deal with such situations. I headed back to my office at the end of the day, ready to go back home when I found my associates seated inside. “Ugh,” I groaned at the sight of them. “Whatever it is, it has to wait until tomorrow morning.” “You’re going to want to hear this.” Mark said. “It’s about Raymond.” I frowned, looking at him, “What? What about him?” “Take a seat.” He said, pushing a file toward me. As I opened it, I quickly read through the contents of it. I scoffed in disbelief, looking up at the both of them for confirmation, “He wants to work with us again?” “That’s right.” I shrugged, “But why? What changed?” “He says a certain som
The next morning, Enzo had already left for work when I woke up.And for the first time in a while, I was grateful for it. I didn't want him to know where I was headed this morning. Apart from being a great friend, Melissa was also an excellent stalker with connections all around the city. Within a span of twelve hours, she got me the information I needed to carry out my plan. So there I was, walking across the road toward the restaurant where the man I wanted to meet was peacefully having lunch. I had no choice but to disturb him. “Excuse me.” I said as he sipped on some water, “Mr Raymond?” He nodded, frowning at my intrusion. “Yes. Do I know?” I put my hand forward, “Cassandra Harper. Nice to meet you.” He took my hand as the gears in his head turned, and no sooner, his eyes widened with realization. “Wow. You’ve got to be kidding me.”“I hope you don’t mind my presence,” I said, taking a seat in front of him, “But I need to talk to you.” “There’s nothing to talk about, Miss
My day at the office went a lot better than I’d expected when I first stepped out of the house this morning. After a relaxing bath at home, I prepared to go out for dinner. I waited for Enzo, although I doubted he would join me. He preferred to ignore me at all times now.After waiting for him for an hour, I decided it would be best to go alone. I was about to switch off the lights when I noticed something. I walked to the dustbin and opened it. Much to my relief, the velvet box that Enzo threw in it was still there. With a heavy heart, I dug it out and opened it. Tears blurred my vision as I stared at the brilliant princess cut diamond that was resting on the band. Taking it, I held it close to my chest, letting the tears run down. This cannot be it. I will prove to Enzo that I was ready for a marriage. I made several mistakes in the past, but now I had the chance to correct them. I walked back to my bed and slipped the ring into my bag. I was not going to give up on us so soon
I had just filled my plate with food at the office cafeteria when I heard Melissa’s voice from behind. “Cassie!” She called, making me turn around. She approached with a concerned look on her face. “I heard what happened yesterday. Are you okay?” I gave her a small nod, “I’m fine, Melissa. Thanks for asking.” “I never thought he would do something like that.” She said, “He must have gone crazy.” “Mel, I don’t really feel like talking about it. Do you mind if…” “Sure, of course.” She said, “I'll get some food and join you alright? Go ahead.” After five minutes, Melissa came back with her plate and took a seat in front of me. We quietly enjoyed her meal, while she gave me occasional glances of pity. And it wasn’t just her. Most of the people who entered the cafeteria stared at me, giving me curious glances. I wondered how the news spread so fast. “Did you speak to Mr Clark?” She broke the ice finally. I shook my head, “No, but I will after lunch.” I said, “I couldn’t get his app
I looked at him in helplessness. I was guilty. I knew I made a mistake, but how can I make him see it? I can’t go back in time and change anything. It was too late for that. All I can do is apologize and tell him that I wouldn’t do something like this again. “Enzo, I told you I’m sorry. It was my mistake. I should have listened to you.” “No, Cassie.” He said, “It’s too late. I had to get a fuckign restraining order to protect you from him. Your sorry doesn’t change anything. You should never have gotten involved with him in the first place. You should never have gotten into his car. Heck, you should never have worked for him.”“You cannot expect me to stop working and sit at home, Enzo.” I said, “I wanted this job-” “I did not say that. I merely asked you to… forget it.” He huffed out, “And you know what? What if I did? Why do you think I put restrictions for you, Cassie? Was it for my selfish benefit?” I shrugged, “I don’t know, Enzo. I thought you were worrying for no reason, l
The entire ride back home, Enzo was dead silent. Not a word, not a whisper. He refused to even look at me. He got me up to his apartment and led me into his bedroom. After tucking me inside the duvet he closed the door and went away. I woke up shortly after to have dinner, but Enzo was nowhere in sight. ‘Where are you? Are you coming for dinner?’ I sent him a message but I didn’t get any reply. I called him multiple times, but it kept going to voicemail. ‘Enzo. Please pick up the call.’ - Cassie. ‘I’m worried. Where did you do?’ - Cassie. ‘I heard you’re not at the office. Where are you, Enzo? Just tell me you’re fine.’ - Cassie. It was late in the night when I finally heard the door open. I fell asleep on the couch after hours of waiting for Enzo. I was worried sick the entire time, calling everyone I knew to ask about him. But nobody knew where he was. When I finally saw him entering the house, I couldn’t help but sigh in relief, but I also felt angry. “Thank God you’re bac
“There you are.” Calvin said as he finally spotted me by the gazebo. I widened my eyes, looking at the girl in surprise. How did he find us? “Are you done with your little walk? You’ve been at it for almost twenty minutes.” He said, folding his arms across his chest. “Well, I wanted to see the place.” I said. “Isn’t that why we’re here?” “In case you’ve forgotten, we have work to do, Cassie.” He said, “And it is urgent. It cannot wait anymore.” “Well, then you may get to it. As I’m still in the mood for some… seeing around.” From the looks of it, I could tell that he was growing rather impatient. Ever since I came back from the changing room, I have been acting distant from him. I made the effort to escape from him multiple times, and I was sure he picked up on it.“No, Cassie.” He said, “You’ve had enough. Now, you’re going to listen to me and do as I say.” I scoffed, “Yeah, I don’t think so, Calvin.” I was about to turn around and leave when he caught my wrist, whirling me a
I glared at Calvin's face as he spoke to Mr Clark on my side. He was seated across from me, but I couldn’t wait to put more distance between us. I wanted to get out of here as soon as possible.It had been a week since my fall out with Enzo. We were barely on talking terms, and I couldn’t even blame him for it. Last night, I told him that I declined the offer to go to the UK, and Enzo just nodded at that. He was still upset at me for how things turned out at the dinner that day. “Cassie, you’re coming with us?” Mr Clark asked, snapping me out of my thoughts. “I’m sorry, what?” I asked, frowning. Where was he going? “To Mr Anderson’s office.” He said, “We’ve discussed it, right?” We did? I must have zoned out. I quickly got up to stand, “Yeah, let’s go.” Once we got into the car, Calvin decided to get behind the wheel, with me in the passenger seat and Mr Clark in the back. As the both of them talked, I couldn’t help but notice how miserable I felt the last few days. It was not ju
For the first time ever, Enzo didn’t show up to pick me up. I waited for an hour before I decided to take a cab to my venue, after several of my messages went unanswered. If he had no intention of showing up, why did he promise? I felt tears prick at my eyes then. It was going to be so embarrassing for me. Stood up by my partner after the team was so excited to meet him. How could Enzo be so negligent? He could’ve dropped me a bloody text! “Hey, guys!” I said, spotting Melissa by the table. Her partner was by her side and a couple others from my team. “Cassie, where’s your date?” I gave her a sorry look, “Sorry to disappoint you, Enzo is-“ Right then, I felt a hand snake around my waist. And the touch was too familiar. “Sorry, I’m late.” Enzo’s voice chimed in my ear. “Oh,” I said, turning around in surprise. “Wait, you guys didn't come together?” Melissa asked in surprise. “No, I was running late because of a last minute meeting.” Enzo said with a polite smile. “I’m Enzo, b