5. Tug of Hearts

Jacob’s POV

A wave of unease washed over me the next morning when Rima didn't answer her phone. Yesterday, she had been eager to meet up and head to the firm together for her first day. She had picked up the phone almost immediately, but now, after two disconnected calls, there was no response.

I wondered if she had forgotten to take her phone off silent and overslept. I was already preparing a lecture for her on punctuality when I left my apartment with a tense expression. As usual, Travis was by the door, ready to take my laptop bag "Good morning, Mr. Snow" he greeted cheerfully.

I gave a terse nod, opening my front door before he could reach it and headed straight to Rima's apartment; which was directly on the right side of mine. Sensing my foul mood, Travis hesitantly asked "Is everything okay, Mr. Snow?"

My frustration grew when Rima didn't answer her doorbell after a full minute "No, most certainly not" I muttered, pulling out my phone to call her again. I could faintly hear her phone ringing from inside her bedroom. It was clear her phone wasn't on silent, so why didn't she answer? I pocketed my phone, my unease intensifying, as I banged on the door with my fists.

"Should I break the door?" Travis asked nervously after a minute of unanswered knocking.

I nearly agreed, my mind conjuring up dark scenarios of Rima hurt inside her apartment. But before I could confirm, the door finally opened. I was about to demand an explanation when the sight of her stopped me in my tracks.

Her eyes were red and puffy, dark circles marred her pale face. She was wearing a thick, dark navy matching pajama set and had her arms tightly secured around herself.

Clearly taken aback by the sight of her unsettled and troubled, she spoke before I could, adopting a composed tone "I'm so sorry, Mr. Snow. I had a hard time falling asleep last night because my stomach was hurting. When it finally calmed down, it was almost 5:30 in the morning. That's why I overslept. I don't want to make you late. Travis can take you to the office, and I'll be there within 10 minutes at most"

I stared at her, baffled. Her words didn't match her appearance "I called you three times. There's no way you didn't hear the phone" I said, my voice strained.

"It was on silent. I'm sorry," she replied quickly.

I took a step closer, directly in front of her "I don't tolerate lies, Rima. You weren't oversleeping. I could hear your phone all the way from the front door. There's no way a sleeping person wouldn't hear it or wake up to my banging for the last two minutes. So either you were ignoring me or you were passed out. Judging by your face, I'm guessing the latter. What the hell is going on? Did you have another panic attack?"

She pursed her lips, looking at me defiantly "Like I said, I didn't hear the phone. I only woke up to your banging on the door. I'm a deep sleeper, I guess. It took me a long time to wake up, especially because I was overtired"

I scoffed, not believing her for a second. She could fake her tone and words, but she couldn't fake her eyes. They told me she had spent the better part of the night crying

I said firmly "Fine, you want to stick to your words, go ahead. You have the rest of the day off. Go back and sleep, so you'll feel better tomorrow, Tessa will come by to check on you, she has a spare key so don’t worry about getting out of bed to answer the door again"

As I turned to leave, she protested in a strong voice "I don't need the day off, Mr. Snow. I'll be right behind you"

I gave her a stern look "You will have the rest of the day off. It's an order" Before she could protest further, I turned and left her apartment, heading straight to the elevator. As I waited for the doors to open, I heard her shut her door with a loud bang.

I turned to Travis, my voice tense "Please tell me I'm not imagining things! There's something way off about her, isn't there?"

"You're right, Mr. Snow," he agreed. "And I think your assumption about her being passed out is the only explanation"

I shook my head, unable to grasp what was going on with her. I reached my office ten minutes later, my mind swarming with conflicting thoughts about my mysterious personal assistant. I had promised myself to keep a distance and not meddle in her personal life, but she was making it difficult dammit.

My heart strained to solve her mystery, to be there for her, to let her know she had someone to talk to because it was quite clear she had no one else.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t realize 20 minutes had passed until Rima walked through my office door. I turned around, my eyes widening in surprise, not because she had ignored my order and come anyway, but because the person standing in front of me was a completely different person than the one standing in her apartment looking broken and vulnerable.

The person in front of me now exuded confidence and determination, evident in her bright colored, red dress, the set of her matching red lips, and her impeccable makeup that erased almost all traces of her ordeal. I asked her in a cold tone “I thought I was pretty clear, wasn’t I?”

She answered indifferently “I appreciate your concern for my health, Mr. Snow, but I’m perfectly fine. I’m not going to miss a full day of work just because I had a couple of hours of sleep. You asked for commitment, and I’m not about to break it on the second day of the job”

I sighed and said a little more softly as I approached her “Look, Rima, if I gave you the day off, it doesn’t mean that I think you’re not committed. It means I can see that you really do need a day off to collect yourself, and there’s nothing wrong with that. It won’t give me a bad impression of your work or your devotion. I don’t know what happened since last night, but apparently, something did. If you don’t want to talk about it with me, that’s totally fine. But that mask on your face, the one you’re showing me right now—I can see right through it. You can apply all the makeup in the world, dress immaculately, and radiate positive energy all the way down to the lobby, but no trick in this world can ever hide the look in your eyes. You’re struggling with something, and you need to find a way to accept it instead of ignoring it. Because that mask you’re hiding behind—the one you think is protecting you—is going to melt off, and I mean that in a bad, destructive sort of way”

She fixed me with a cold look “I have no idea what you’re talking about. I’m perfectly okay, and there’s nothing about me that needs fixing”

Anger flared. She was being so stubborn and difficult. Difficult to ignore and difficult to make me let it go without breaking my own promise and crossing my line with her.

“Why must you always be so infuriating?” I demanded.

“Why must you always poke your nose where it doesn’t belong?” she shot back.

“You’re impossible!”

“And you’re intrusive!” She yelled. “I told you to leave me alone. What part of that can’t you understand?”

I ran an aggravated hand through my hair “The part where I’m supposed to sit by while you’re clearly distressed and do nothing! Despite what you believe, I’m not actually heartless”

“I don’t think you’re heartless,” she said through gritted teeth. “I just think you have control issues and can’t stand not getting your way!”

Stung, I stepped closer, gratified when she didn’t retreat “This isn’t about control or getting my way. This is about the fact that we have a connection whether you want to admit it or not. I’m worried about you and I want to help. Why won’t you let me?”

“Because I don’t need your help!” She shouted. “I need you to stop telling me what I need and listen when I ask you to leave me alone!”

Her defiant stance and sharp tone rattled me more than I cared to admit. We had only just met, yet I found myself dreading the thought of her anger and longing to see her smile. I didn’t know where these intense feelings were coming from, I only knew I couldn’t ignore them.

I took in her rigid posture, the way she wrapped her arms around herself as if needing protection. She lifted her chin bravely but her eyes told a different story. There was a vulnerability there, a secret plea she couldn’t voice.

“I’m trying to listen,” I said gently “But I can’t shake the feeling that you need someone right now. That you need me”

Her eyes flashed at my words, a spark of heat amid the frost “You don’t know anything about what I need. We only just met, you’re my boss, that’s all”

The reminder of our roles should have doused the fire within me but it only raged hotter. I stepped even closer, again, grateful once more when she didn’t move away from me.

“Is that really all this is?” I asked softly “Because I don’t believe that and I don’t think you do either”

She shook her head but didn’t speak, a lone tear sliding down her cheek that she was trying extremely hard to hold back. Without thinking, I reached out to brush it away, my thumb grazing her soft skin. She started at my touch but didn’t pull back, her eyes locking on mine.

In that moment, the rest of the world fell away. There was only her, this mysterious woman who had come into my life and filled my senses until there was no room for anything else. I knew it made no sense, we were strangers, but my connection to her felt as ancient as time. I couldn’t explain it but I knew one thing with absolute certainty. She was meant to be in my life, meant to be mine. If only I could find a way to make her see that.

“Talk to me,” I coaxed, my voice husky with emotion. “Let me in”

She shook her head again but this time her resolve was crumbling. I could see her walls coming down, brick by brick, as her body swayed closer to mine. She was fighting it but I would be patient. I would wait for as long as it took until she realized what I already knew deep within – that together was where we were always meant to be.