As usual, mine and Mr Stone’s paths did not cross too much during the day. I was now absorbed in the work with Blast. My team had spent the morning pitching the new mock-ups to some of the company’s representatives, and had received very positive feedback about my ideas for a more retro theme. As a result, Mr Fraggon had now begrudgingly accepted me into the fold. Or at the very least seemed to be giving me less and less derisive looks.
Louise, the girl I’d worked with on my first day in the social media department had also been involved to showcase the ads we were going to run on Facebook and other platforms. We’d barely seen each other since Mr Stone had put my desk in his office.
After we came out, she pulled me aside. “Hey, fancy lunch with me today? Unless you have other plans?”
I firmly shook my head. “No, that would be great.”
Thankfully, like me, Louise was saving money to pay off her student
The next few weeks were confusing and weird to say the least. My desk was moved out of Mr Stone’s office, and I realised how unlikely it was going to be that I would ever return to the ‘Sky Lounge’. Thankfully they let me work next to Louise. I think it was partly under the guise that I was now focusing my attentions on the social media ads for Blast, but from the way people raised their eyebrows at me, I wasn’t sure they’d bought it. Louise was my saving grace, helping me to be distracted from the gossip, and making sure she always ate lunch with me.Mr Stone never contacted me directly after that. My make-up lessons with Adrianne ended, so there was no reason for me to visit his flat. I saw him twice in total, and that was only to watch him stride through the marble lobby to the lifts. The only thing I saw from him was impersonal emails to the Blast team about our work. Even within this, he never named me.This is what I’d as
“Wow.”Adriane’s jaw was nearly on the floor, but I hadn’t dared to look yet.Despite the fact our lessons were over, I had still been sent an email by Greta telling me the details of where to go to prepare for the Blast launch. This time there had been no fancy shopping trip. Instead, a selection of dresses had already been picked out for me and were waiting on a rail in the salon. Despite my aversion to dresses, even I couldn’t deny how beautiful some of these were. In the end, I had let Adrianne decide again.So here I was, standing in front of the floor length filigree mirror. Finally, I took a proper look. At first, I squinted, stepping closer to the mirror to make sure it was really me. It didn’t look like me because…well…the reflection looked…kind of beautiful? Adrianne had selected a deep crimson velvet dress. It ran all the way down to my feet, but a long slit revealed the top of my
I made my way shakily back to the table, trying to block out the hundreds of eyes that were watching my every move. Why had he done that? I hadn’t wanted him to make a big fuss of everything, and by the look on Mr Fraggon’s face, he was thoroughly put out by my special mention. Louise on the other hand was giddy.“Oh my god Rosie, that was amazing!”I couldn’t even bring myself to give her a fake smile. I heard the sound of another speech starting, relieved to see everyone’s eyes were now refocused on something else. I hovered at my seat. No. I wasn’t going to sit down. This experience had been more than enough. It was time to go.I leant over towards Louise’s ear. “I’m going to slip out, if anyone asks, just say I wasn’t feeling well. Okay?”She nodded. “Sure, have a good night with Matt.”I slipped of the hall as quietly as I could, but once I got to the tiled flo
I ran until a sharp stich formed in my side and my feet were bleeding. I collapsed against the rough bricks of the wall, breathing hard as images of what had nearly happened flashed before my eyes. I realised how hard I was shaking, and tried my best to take deep breaths, each one stinging my throat. I looked around wildly, not even sure where I had ended up running to. It looked like a lot of streets in London. Dirty, bright and loud, with various takeaways lining the pavement. The people walking around were drinking and laughing loudly, and I felt like I was naked with my leg exposed so much and only the thin shawl to cover my shoulders. I wanted to call a taxi to take me home, but I’d spent the last of my cash on the one to Matt’s.It was then that the tears came. Huge salty drops falling from my wide eyes. They’d been there ever since Mr Stone had confronted me on the steps tonight, and now they were finally being set free. Why hadn’t he conv
I placed my hand against the door. “What…what do you want?” My voice was cracked, and I realised they were the first words I’d uttered since Saturday night.“I want you to let me in,” came back his gruff voice.I rested my forehead against the cool wooden panel. I couldn’t let him in. Not now. I was too broken. “I’m sorry Mr Stone, I’m really busy.”The impact of his fist coming down on the other side of the door made me jump backwards.“Let me in right now, or I will break your door down. You know well enough I have the money to replace it.”I could tell from the tone in his voice he was being serious. Defeated, I moved the metal latch from the door, the chain knocking against the wood. Then I took a deep breath, and opened the door.As usual, he was quaffed to perfection in a navy-blue suit. His dark tendrils styled away from his face. But instead of the tight j
I looked down at the table, faking interest in the lines and knots of the varnished wood.“Rosie, you need to tell me. I might be able to fix it.”I wish he could fix it. But, how could he? It was impossible.Without warning, tears seeped out. “You can’t fix it,” I said, my voice cracking. “What’s done is done.”I pressed my fingers against my eyes, rubbing the tears away.I heard him take a deep breath. I understood that the patience he was showing me must feel unnatural. He was used to getting his way, almost immediately.“Have you told anyone else?”I shook my head.“Not even that friend you’ve mentioned? Or…,” he cleared his throat. “Matt?”The mention of his name out loud was my undoing. I began to sob. “No,” I snapped. “It was him who did this to me!” I clapped my hand over my mouth, but the dama
I didn’t lock the door. I wanted to show him that I trusted him. I soaked in the bath as Mr Stone’s…wait…Ezra’s words soaked into me. Did he mean that he actually saw me as more than an employee? Or even more still? After everything that had happened though, I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. He had appeared to see me as nothing more than a project. He had put me through some gruelling tests. He’d also slept with Emma during our time together. Not to mention the woman I’d seen him with at the launch. I was sure there was others too.And even if by some bizarre chance, he was being truthful, was I ready for it? The incident with Matt had only just happened. I sighed. Of course, when he said he’d cared for me, he hadn’t stipulated exactly in what way he meant. I cared for Vanessa deeply, but I didn’t want to sleep with her. Yes Mr…I mean, Ezra and I had done sexual things together, but I wasn’t so
It was the light that woke me first. Letting my eyes adjust, I took a moment to enjoy the warmth on my face. I looked down to see his arm slung lazily over my waist, and I realised we were both facing towards the French doors that opened onto the balcony. I so badly wanted to turn around, just to see if I could see him sleeping, but I was frightened that I might wake him. I warred with myself for a moment, before deciding to go for it anyway.Inch by inch, I moved my torso. His arm remained heavy upon me, but I managed to flip myself until I was on my back. I traced my eyes from his chest, up to his face, and almost jumped out of my skin when I saw he was awake. His coffee-coloured eyes were bright.“Good morning, Rosie.” His voice was husky and thick with sleep.I felt my cheeks grow hot, but I managed to smile in response.“Thank you for staying with me. It helped,” I answered truthfully.It had helped enormously. I would
I wanted to look at Vanessa, to what her reaction was. But my eyes were stuck on the screen, barely believing what I was seeing was real. His dark eyes seemed to be boring into my own.“My name is Ezra Stone, and I am a foolish man.”I felt my hands begin to shake, and I dug my fingers into the armrests to try and control myself.“I have lived a life without love, and so when it finally arrived, I didn’t know what to do. And so, I did the only thing I knew how. I pushed it away. But I no longer want to do that.”Tears began to slip down my face.“So, this my public pledge to win back the woman. The woman who’s smile melted my heart. The woman who showed me there was more to life than money. The woman who introduced me to milky tea and full English breakfasts. The woman who I want with every fibre of my being. The woman who changed my life, forever.”The screen cut out and the lights went up. I
Eight long days went by. By the third day the story about Ezra and I was old news. He hadn’t contacted me at all since Vanessa had sent him that text message, and maybe that was for the best. A few days after the story came out, Emma stopped turning up to lectures. I wondered if Vanessa had talked to her dad, but she promised me that she hadn’t. At first, I wondered what had happened to her, but then I realised that I didn’t care. I shouldn’t be wasting my time thinking about people like that.I wish I could have applied the same principle to Ezra, but he was far more difficult to forget. Everything seemed to remind me of him. One of our lectures would cover a marketing trick that he used and I see him at his desk. I’d see a fancy deli and I’d remember his favourite food. Sometimes when I was walking down the street, I would catch a glimpse of a tall man in a dark suit, and I would snap my head towards them. But of course, it was never him.
I was relieved that Vanessa decided to not adopt her usual ‘tough love’ approach. I’d managed to hold it together all day, but I didn’t have a lot left to rebuff any further judgement.“I can’t believe that bitch did this to you. This is why I work with animals. People suck.”We were sitting on my bed while I used a wet-wipe to clean the smeared make-up off my face from crying.“Yeah well…it’s not even her I’m the angriest with…” I trailed off, looking at the once pristine wipe that was now a grubby rag.Vanessa sighed. “Hah. I haven’t even got on to that bastard.”We went silent for a moment, neither of us knowing what to say.Just then, my phone rang. I fished it out of my pocket, almost dropping it when I saw who it was.“It’s him.”Vanessa’s face went instantly sour. “Don’t answer it!”
So, this was what the threat had all been about. I hadn’t stopped seeing him, so as a consequence, nude pictures of me had been leaked, and false information printed. I wondered how Greta had got to the point of hating me this much. We barely even knew each other. Had she been in love with Ezra?By the time I got back to my halls, I realised I could still make my mid-morning lectures. The fact this thought occurred to me surprised me. After all, I could so easily sink back into despair and not leave my room. But I was tired of that. All my life I had been fearful about what others thought. That fear had kept me trapped, restricted from living my life. I knew I had nothing to be ashamed of. I had done nothing wrong. Hiding away in this room was going to solve nothing. It would only prove to the world that I had been beaten once again. Last time, Mr Stone had saved me, but this time, I was saving myself.Taking a deep breath, I found some of the fanciest clothes I
The phone woke us both up with a start. It was early, that much I knew. Ezra clocked the name on the screen and answered it immediately.“Morning.”I heard a male voice on the end of the phone.“What do you mean?” Ezra’s tone changed from light to dark in seconds.“No, I haven’t seen them, I’ve just woken up.”Still on the phone, he got out of bed. He held the phone next to his ear with his shoulder as he pulled on his clothes without even casting a glance my way. Was it Mr Franks?“Yeah. Send me some copies over by email.”He strode into the kitchen, where I heard him switching on his laptop. I sprang out of bed, finding any kind of clothing to put on before going off to find him.He was sat down, elbows on the table with his fingers pressed into his lips. The deep frown line in his forehead told me this was anything but good.“What is it?” I
I didn’t even want to blink. It was so incredible. I of course had never been on the London Eye, as it was too expensive. However, now I was up here, I could see it was worth every penny. I couldn’t deny how strange it was being in a glass bubble at this height, but the views were too breath taking to ignore. Some people might question how I could find a cityscape so beautiful considering I grew up with the turquoise waters of the south coast, but I did. It was a different kind of beautiful. To see all the wide spectrum of architecture both old and new was wonderful. You could see the majority of the London landmarks, from Big Ben to Canary Wharf. When I thought about all of the people living their lives in this iconic city, my head swam.Erza stood next to me in silence. He had booked out an entire carriage for our own use, so the only sound was the low hum of the structure rotating. At first I had chastised him for wasting money when we could have just got regul
When we finally sat down to breakfast, I couldn’t help but let my mind wander back to the note. I ate the omelette he had made us in thoughtful silence.Noticing, he asked what I was thinking about.“The message…do you think we should contact the police?”Ezra shook his head. “No. Let me handle it for now. If we tell the police they won’t allow me to investigate myself.”I frowned at him. “But how are you going to do that?”“Rosie, don’t you remember I’m a billionaire?” He raised his eyebrow at me, before placing his knife and fork down on the empty plate. “I can hire people to look into it.”“…legally?”He began to laugh. “Yes Rosie. I’ll hire a PI that I know. I’m a CEO, not a gang lord.”I narrowed my eyes at him. “I just wanted to check.”He leaned back in his chair, his ex
I was shaking so much that I dropped the paper. It fluttered to the floor, the harmless inanimate sheet flying through the air as if it didn’t have the disturbing message written upon it. Not wanting anyone to see, I bent down to retrieve it before shutting my front door and locking it.For fear of fainting, I sat down on my bed, doing my best to regulate my breathing. I wasn’t sure how long I sat there, but the next thing I knew my phone was ringing. I answered it, finding his soothing voice travelling down the other end.“I’m outside. Are you ready?”“S-someone, someone has left a note for me.” I stuttered.“I’m coming up.”I knew by the tone in my voice he could tell I was upset. Five minutes later he was knocking on my door.“It’s me Rosie, open up.”I went to the door to find him standing on the other side with a concerned look on his face.&ldqu
The vibrator was lying on the bed next to us. He picked it up, his thumb flicking the switch on to the first setting. It hummed in his hands, and I stilled, as if I expected it to give me an electric shock when it touched my skin. He brought it closer and closer to my breast, hesitating just before it came into contact with my nipple. When it finally buzzed against me, I gasped. The sensation of the cool coating vibrating made my pussy get even wetter. It also reminded me how good the last time had been. He traced it from my breast, down my stomach, all the way to the slit between my legs. I let my head rest against his chest, closing my eyes to enjoy the moment.“You take over now.”I took a deep breath and allowed him to place the item between my shaking fingers. I almost dropped it, the adrenaline was pumping through my veins so hard. He returned his hands to my breasts, the action making me realise how much I actually wanted to touch myself. Witho