He was right.I've been working non-stop all day. I've been organizing meetings, answering calls, typing up letters. Penelope has her hands full today do I really had to step in. It's a good thing I left at six, a lot had to be done.When he has a meeting, I leave the building for an hour and a half or so. I go to the café nearby, where I used to meet up with Devon. I'm a regular customer now and everyone knows me by my name. I rarely think about Devon. He hasn't tried to communicate with me at all. The last time I saw him was the day I cut him out of my life, right under our apartment building. Sometimes I'm afraid I'll see him, but I never do. I don't know if he even lives in this city anymore and honestly, I don't care. I'm just glad that he's in the past.I have my coffee and my cream cheese and smoked salmon bagel and I read through a few documents. He wanted me to proofread them. Actually, he wanted Penelope to do that, but I intervened and told him I could take care of it. She'
Gillian Davis.Where do I begin? There's something about her smile that irks me. She's trying so hard to be this demure person and I feel it in my bones that she isn't like that. At all. Her almond-shaped green eyes are constantly searching and they're too curious. I don't like the way her full lips curve upwards at the end of every sentence. She's wearing dark jeans and a red loose top that matches the color of her hair. She constantly shifts from one foot to the other and why is she nervous? It reminds me of how I felt when I first met Damien and it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.It's been five minutes. We should've left by now, we should be talking about what I found out concerning Paco. Instead, he's asking this woman questions about her previous job and how many years of experience she has and he's being too nice. He wasn't as nice to me, but that's in the past. It's not like I'm going to bring it up. That doesn't necessarily mean that I'm not bothered. I am and I wish I wasn
Her back is turned to him.Damien knows she's angry, but there's not much he can do to placate her. She didn't like Gillian, at all. She tensed up as soon as she walked in with Penelope and her mood changed. He should've talked to her about it, but that wouldn't solve the issue. She'd be furious regardless. She wants to keep working there and the truth is that he doesn't want her involved in his business. End of story. It's not safe, he has a lot of enemies. It'd be much easier to get to her there.Why can't she see that?The truth is that he has no choice but to hire Gillian. She's Penelope's recommendation. Penelope is someone he trusts with his life and that woman is her friend. Saying no would cause unnecessary strain in their relationship and that's the last thing he wants. But agreeing to hiring her means he'll be at war with Amelia and he doesn't want that either.The solution should be simple; keep looking. It's clear that Amelia has a problem with her and he should probably f
Damien hasn't even bothered to give me a call.I didn't sleep last night and I know he didn't either. Neither of us moved an inch, though. I secretly hoped that he'd reach out for me, but he never did. When he got up this morning, I thought that maybe he'd wake me up. He didn't. He left without me.I know his point is valid, I know. We've talked about this countless times before. He's trying to protect me and keep my away from the men he deals with, I get that. The only problem is Gillian Davis and why he didn't discuss her with me. He doesn't seem to understand that. I hate that she isn't even part of the company and she's already causing problems, I didn't want to give her so much importance. But nothing he says will change my mind; I hated everything about her and I only met her for approximately fifteen minutes. I was his secretary too, so I would know when someone walks in there with second intentions.I don't know what her deal is, but she's looking for something. He can tell me
"I hired that woman," he says.I look up, but he doesn't meet my gaze. We've been holding each other in silence for the last thirty minutes and everything felt perfect until now. Despite how great he just made me feel, this news doesn't sit well with me. It's hard to swallow and it just sits in my mouth, making it bitter.He finally meets my gaze and his expression changes everything for me. It dispels my growing anger. He didn't want to tell me this, but I guess he didn't want to prolong the inevitable.I nod. "OK."I don't know what else to say to him. I told myself that nothing would ruin this moment and I'm going to make sure nothing does even though a small part of me has died upon hearing this. Am I being a little too dramatic? Maybe. But I can't change the way I feel about her. I can't shake off that first impression.I can't help but feel like she's taking my place."Penelope spoke to Ethan," he says, confirming what I already knew. "I couldn't say no."I touch his face. "I me
This place is insane.There must be at least five hundred people here. The party's being held in the lower level of the house, which I'm sure was designed solely for the purpose of hosting parties like this. I keep forgetting that I'm in a house; this place is a nightclub. The floors are black and shiny, the walls are dark and velvety. The music is loud and upbeat and everyone's wearing a costume. Everyone. When she mentioned a costume party, well, this is not what I was expecting at all. I thought we'd be overdressed, but I was mistaken. We're actually underdressed compared to everyone here. The Huntingtons are Batman and Catwoman this year, that's what she told me, and I'm blown away by how amazing they look."Theo," I say. "This is insane.""What did I tell you?"Even the waiters are dressed elegantly. I've had two glasses of champagne and I haven't been here for an hour. I've met even more people tonight and my head is spinning with new names and faces. Theo seems to know everyone
Damien pinches the bridge of his nose. "And there's no possibility of finding more on this guy?"Penelope shakes her head. "I've been looking for days. This is all I've found on him for now, which is close to nothing, I know. You're going to meet him in an hour and you can draw your conclusions. His record is clean and nothing is amiss."He doesn't like the sound of this. This has never happened before. Normally, Penelope has all the information he needs before he meets the person. He refuses to believe that there aren't enough records of Ash Rockford. It's like he's been living under a rock his entire life, which can't be the case at all. Everyone has a past. Everyone has something they're trying to keep a secret.Perhaps this man is just good at hiding it. Penelope has done her absolute best and he doesn't want to make it seem like he doesn't appreciate her efforts. He only wishes that Gary were still alive. He'd have all the answers by now. Then again, he'd been in the business muc
I haven't seen him yet.I'm beginning to wonder if perhaps I'm losing my mind, hallucinating or something. But I didn't have that much to drink and I saw him, I know I did. There's absolutely no way I wouldn't know it's him. I'd never forget his face, not in a million years. Unfortunately, it's stuck with me for life.By now everyone in Theo's group must think I'm crazy. I haven't been listening to what's being said, much less participating in the conversation, I'm just looking around in hopes of spotting him. Not because I want to see him, but because I have to confirm that I'm not delusional. He was staring at me and the second I met his gaze, he turned away. He disappeared around the corner and I have yet to see him. It's so frustrating. He's trying to mess with me. He knows what he's doing and I bet he's having a laugh and enjoying himself at my expense."Are you sure everything is alright?" Theo asks me in a low voice so her friends don't hear us. "You're distracted. Are you look