CHAPTER 1

PRESENT DAY

WHEN ALVIN entered the entrance of the eight-story building of Prime Marketing Incorporated, he was greeted with a smile by the guard on duty. He had inherited the company from his parents.

Their business had started as a hardware store, Acosta Hardware, which he had managed to grow over five years into a distribution company for various construction products. And though he wouldn’t admit it, Alvin knew it was all because of one woman.

When he felt the familiar pain slicing through his chest, Alvin quickly pushed the thought out of his mind.

If there was one thing from his past that he never wanted to revisit, it was about Patricia. It always brought back that piercing pain in his chest, a feeling he didn’t like.

It felt like the pain was just lodged in his chest, permanently there, only to resurface and sting like a fresh wound whenever he thought of her.

He shook his head and sighed deeply as he entered the elevator. It didn’t take long before he reached the eighth floor, where his office was.

The next floor of the building was his penthouse. He rarely slept there, as he often preferred to go home. His penthouse had a roof deck, but as mentioned, he rarely stayed there, opting instead to be with his parents.

“Good morning, sir,” his pregnant secretary, Layla, greeted him.

“Good morning, Layla. Coffee, please,” he said as he pushed open the door to his office and stepped inside.

Layla was one of the pioneer employees of their company, meaning she was his first secretary. But since she was close to giving birth, he had no choice but to sign her resignation letter.

“Sir, the HR department already has my replacement,” Layla informed him as she placed the coffee he requested on his desk.

“I hope she passes so we can do the turnover as soon as possible,” she continued, as if asking for his agreement.

Alvin nodded, smiling as he took the cup of coffee and sipped. “I hope she’s as efficient as you are so that I won’t have a hard time, and we won’t encounter any problems.”

“She definitely is, sir. From what I heard, the applicant graduated Cum Laude. And in fairness, sir, she’s beautiful, single, and would be a perfect match for you!”

Alvin was no longer surprised by Layla’s tone. Since what he considered one of the most painful moments of his life happened, he had removed the idea of entering into a serious relationship from his mind and heart.

That was despite the fact that he and Patricia never had a clear talk about the status of their relationship.

Maybe he was partly to blame.

He never talked to her and never found out her true feelings for him. But despite all that, he knew that Patricia’s decision to leave him was not the answer. Because the only outcome of her action was proving that everything meant nothing to her, so she didn’t hesitate to leave.

*****

“CONGRATULATIONS, I’ll accompany you to the Boss’s office so you can talk,” the HR Manager, who had interviewed Patricia, said with a smile.

“Thank you, Ma’am,” Patricia replied, smiling sweetly.

“Call me Miss Malou,” she said kindly.

Patricia nodded. “Thank you, Miss Malou,” she repeated.

As they exited the elevator, the woman, who Patricia guessed was between forty-five to fifty years old, spoke again. She was beautiful, with short, slightly wavy brown hair that complemented her fair complexion.

“Layla, is the Boss in?” Miss Malou asked the woman sitting behind the desk, whom Patricia assumed was her predecessor. The woman was pregnant, which explained her resignation.

She nodded. “He’s inside, Miss Malou,” she said, then smiled at Patricia, who returned the smile.

“Okay, have a seat there,” Miss Malou instructed, pointing to the long sofa in the waiting area. “Wait for me,” she added before leaving.

It wasn’t long before Miss Malou returned. After giving Patricia some instructions, she left again.

“Go ahead, he’s actually been waiting for you,” Patricia heard Layla say, probably noticing her hesitation in simply turning the door knob.

She smiled at Layla.

It was normal to be nervous, especially since it was her first time meeting her future boss. But her heart seemed to be pounding more than usual, even though this wasn’t her first job interview.

Maybe it was because this was a different position.

In the end, Patricia decided to dismiss all those thoughts. She took a deep breath, mustered her courage, and turned the knob to open the door. She stepped inside and closed it gently behind her.

Inside, her gaze immediately landed on the man seated behind the working table, seemingly busy with the numerous papers spread out before him.

It had probably been five years since then. But despite that, Patricia had never forgotten the face of this man.

He wasn’t looking at her and appeared engrossed in his work. But as if sensing her presence in the room, he looked up.

She had opened and closed the door gently, hence the delayed response. Or perhaps he was just really busy.

“G-Good morning, sir,” she couldn’t hide the tremor in her voice as she faced Alvin for the first time in years, in such a scenario.

She saw the shock register on Alvin’s handsome face. Meanwhile, she couldn’t deny that she was affected by everything happening. She felt like the room had suddenly shrunk, even though it was quite spacious.

“Have a seat,” Alvin said, pointing to the chair in front of his desk before casually returning his attention to the papers.

Patricia was secretly hurt by Alvin’s action. With that last thought, she bit her lip. Five years had passed, and it might no longer be appropriate to refer to Alvin as a young man. Perhaps the term “man” suited him better, considering he might already have a wife and family.

When Alvin looked up again, frowning, Patricia quickly moved and sat in the chair he had indicated.

This time, she had Alvin’s full attention. She realized this when he put down his pen and looked her straight in the eyes.

Patricia felt even more anxious under Alvin’s gaze. But she couldn’t always be like this. Well, it was probably normal to feel this way, but she had to know how to control it and when to stop.

“Can I see what you’re holding?” Alvin asked formally, but she was still affected.

She quickly handed him the folder. And as she watched Alvin read it, she couldn’t understand why he was treating her this way.

When Alvin spoke to her, it was as if they had never met before or as if they hadn’t been friends, let alone anything more.

Feeling overwhelmed, Patricia lowered her head.

Leaving suddenly wasn’t the right thing to do, but her mind was a mess back then. It might seem shallow, but sometimes, well, often, a person who loves and is hurt becomes shallow.

“Widowed?”

That snapped her back to the present.

She nodded before speaking. “Yes, sir,” she replied.

“For how long?” Alvin asked again.

“Almost four years, sir,” she answered, briefly meeting Alvin’s gaze before quickly looking away.

“So, that’s the reason you had to find a job? Am I right?” Alvin asked again, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

She nodded. “Yes,” she replied briefly.

With her heart pounding wildly, Patricia couldn’t bring herself to look at Alvin. Was she uncomfortable or scared of him? She couldn’t tell.

Suddenly, now that she was facing him, her mind seemed to stop functioning, and all the memories from five years ago came flooding back.