Chapter Four_ The Tension Returns

JASMINE

“You must be the new assistant,” the bald headed man -he had introduced himself as Kent- said the moment he confirmed who I was and what I was there for. “We apologize for the rushed resumption and hope you would love working with us.”

If I achieved what I came here for, then the one person who should apologize was me. In a few months, I was going to make them unemployed.

Just like me.

Charles and my mom made me attend a one hour lecture, where the former droned on and on about everything I needed to know about Mr Warner, his one army rival. The cause of all his downfall in the political world.

If I didn’t know better, I would assume my stepfather had a crush on his rival.

“It’s okay,” I said, trying my best to force a smile, “I am a bit nervous, so I guess starting early was the right cause of action.”

Kent placed a gentle hand on my shoulder, the grin on his face contagious. If I was looking for a new work bestie after ditching Jane and Rachel, then I hoped he was available.

The office wasn’t a particularly large one. It was a sprawling, open space. The walls painted a deep, electric blue and were lined with floor-to-ceiling windows that offered breathtaking views of the city skyline. There was a huge difference to where I had worked before, where the suffocating smell of dust always threatened to choke me.

“You’ll hardly actually see Mr Warner mad at anyone if you just do your job,” I listened to Kent, “ Send him his emails, schedule his meetings properly, and just do his job. Contrary to what others might say, he is not a bad man.”

I had no idea why he made those statements. From what Charles had made me believe, Mr Ambrose Warner, a fifty seven years old politician, had the cleanest record to date. In the eyes of everyone in the political world who had one or two scandals attached to their name.

He was a fucking god.

He had two children. Twins. He was the grandfather to a beautiful girl. His wife, Anabel Warner was rumored to be one of the sweetest of women, offering large donations to charity organizations and holding some sort of fundraiser every other week.

That wasn’t a skill set in my mother’s portfolio. She was okay with winning cases in court and prioritizing the mental health of her stepchildren to her own child.

Being a personal assistant to a politician turned out to be vastly different to being an assistant to some nobody. I had to sort through a lot of documents, reporting those that sent inappropriate emails while also scheduling a ton of meetings where Mr Warner had to talk about what he planned on doing when they made him the new governor.

There were also visits to various organizations, for each day of the week.

I wasn’t even the travelling with his personal assistant. I was just the ‘stay in the office’ one.

Lunch break was spent with Kent, where he gave me the detailed tea about all the failed relationships with his ex.

And then it was back to work again.

The next day wasn’t any different. The highlight to it was I made another friend that loved to fill the awkward silences with stories from whatever popped into her head.

“You are way better than the last assistant,” she said, biting into her burger once it was time for a break. “ She refused to listen to any of my stories and would rather binge watch movies on the work system.”

I had to roll my eyes at her assumption that I wouldn’t do the same.

“You shouldn’t talk ill of someone that’s not here to defend herself,” Kent interrupted before I could ask my question. He raised an eyebrow at her. “It is considered rude where I come from.”

A quick way to shut her up.

I looked at Kent through a different lens now. Tall and lanky, bald headed and always quick to give me all the tea about the ex. He was a perfect decoy, if anyone asked me.

But for who?

The girl seemed to take the bait, turning her attention away from what she intended to say, to her half eaten sandwich. She caught me staring at her, but chose not to say anything.

Just a wink and a tap on the hand.

“You would love her job.”

******

There was a saying that the third time was the charm. I had two different work programme scheduled on the same day. The day Mr. Warner was supposed to officially resume work at the office, since the dismissal of the last PA.

After sending multiple emails and listening to office gossip about him, I had no idea if I was enthusiastic or nervous to meet someone like him in the traditional working light.

He had a meeting to attend with some CEO of a special defense security company that seemed to be the best at what they did. Maybe if I was lucky enough to impress said CEO, Mr. Warner would see me in a different light.

“Hey!! New girl!!” I heard her before I saw her. The brown haired girl from the cafeteria the previous day, with Kent. She had a bag by her side, probably filled with an array of makeup.

She had a sort of bubbling spirit that was quite contagious, her lips spread out in a wide grin. She wasn’t the type of girl I would make my friend at first glance. They were the sort of people with grating voices that seemed to cause my ears to bleed.

I raised my eyebrow at her, “To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit,” my eyes glanced at the time on my laptop. Ten thirty. “It is not yet lunch time.”

She stretched her hand to me, “I suppose you don’t really know me. My name is Ruby.”

I placed my hand on the thighs, my nails digging into my skin as I fought the urge to say something biting or sarcastic. I wasn’t here to make friends and the sooner Ruby understood that, the better for her.

She continued when she saw I wasn’t ready to say anything.

“Kent isn't who he say he is. He acts all nice and innocent, until he gets the opportunity to sleep with you. Stay away from him.”

Okay then. She was the sort of girl that warned others about the men that tried to sleep with them.

The vibrations from my phone interrupted me, Mr. Warner’s name flashing on the screen. I had to excuse myself before I answered the call.

Polite. Obedient. Respectful.

“Good morning, sir,” I started, ready to listen to the sprawl of information he had prepared for me.

“I had an issue with my last assistant. I need you in my office now.”

He didn’t let me get a word in before the line went off.

The corners of my lips widened to provide a gentle smile. I packed up my iPad and picked up a stylus pen from the numerous ones I saw in my drawer.

Then I turned back to the brown haired girl in my office. “Mr. Warner wants me in his office now. Can I drop a rain-check on this conversation.”

Since the main office wasn’t a very large building, it didn’t take me a colossal amount of time to get to the front of the door of his office. But I was a nervous wreck by the time I got there, my heart beating so fast I was pretty sure it wanted to fly out of my chest.

I had to take a few seconds to make myself look presentable.

"You can do this, you can do this," I repeated the mantra out loud, my hand on my chest as I tried to calm down the palpitations.

I had no idea when he got to where I was. Or where he had even come from. i was pretty sure my brain had malfunctioned because surely, I was seeing a ghost.

"Well, you surely should be able to do this due to the fact that you're already working here" he said with a mocking tone, sarcasm practically oozing from each word.

Alexander's cologne was a subtle, spicy scent that filled the room as he walked closer to me. Until I was physically aware of how close he was.

Alexander Castor. In the flesh.

The dry, cottony feeling in my mouth was a reminder that I needed to speak. To do something to break the silence.

I squared my shoulders back and stared at him defiantly in the eyes, “I have no idea how what I do is any of your business.”

Alexander's eyes seemed to bore into mine. The piercing eyes that refused to pick a colour years back had suddenly decided on blue.

I had six years to forget about him.

And then the squeaky sound of the door opening interrupted what he wanted to say, drowning him to show who I was actually here for.

“Mr. Castor!” he exclaimed like a child that had been given his favourite toy. “I had no idea you had arrived.”

The tension between Alexander and I hung in the air like a badly drawn curtain. The barely curtained anger stained our clothing in a way that no one could contain.

Mr. Warner raised his eyebrow at us, his lips spread out in a thin, calculated smile.

“Did I interrupt something?” he asked. “Do you two know each other.”

"We..."

"We don't," Alexander interrupted, stepping away from my side to stand directly in front of Mr. Warner. “It is nice to officially meet you, sir.”