I didn't have to look twice to recognize all the features similar to my father's features stamped on this woman's face, albeit without the pride that came with being a leader and in control of a power parallel to the state itself.
Without a doubt, it is she, my sister Lorena, standing right in front of me, staring at me with as much perplexity as I allowed my fingers to show in the first seconds of the impact of our reunion when our eyes met.
I had no way of guessing that this surprise party would be hers; I know her birthday by heart and it's not today. However, she made sure to give a fresh start to her life and her new identity, just as Daddy gave her a departure that was registered for us as the date of her death. So, Lorena Tatiane Calderone, my sister, is dead and of that I cannot forget....
One week laterDesiré noire, or black desire, is what I call my leisure space for the city's wealthiest people. It is not prepotent to say that I have managed to make it one of the best in Paris. All the furniture, equipment and drinks are of the best quality, not to mention the lights and velvets that guarantee a touch of luxury, and there is even a stage where dancing is done to serve up sensuality and make the clients salivate like hungry dogs waiting for a reward.I won't deny that it was a risky bet to invest all my hard-earned money on our opening night, however, for great achievements, great bets are needed. And what consoles me, is that this bet is minimal compared to the real risk I will take tonight...“ Has anyone ever told you that you are a crazy pe
It doesn't take long before a brunette woman enters the office in stride as a sign of urgency to my call.“ You called, ma'am?”, she asks with a worried look on her face. Surely, she is assuming that she did something wrong to be summoned to my office.“ Oh, relax!, “ I speak and she automatically releases herself from the weight that until then was killing her tense shoulders, “ I just want a small favor…”“ Whatever you want!”, she answers promptly.“Come closer!”,I ask her and her body moves to stand next to me in front of my view of the room provided by the mirrored glass, “ Do you see that blond man, wearing black, with a high bun and a te
Living downtown has its luxuries, as does getting to your home or any other place that is said to be important in the blink of an eye.Adam Arnault was the first to appear on the scene on my device's screen, pouring himself a shot of whiskey and then distracting himself by walking from one end of the living room to the other.Amelia ended up taking longer, beaten by the advantage of Adam having his own car and her not, which made her as deserving of cabs as any other mortal.After thirty minutes, finally her image appeared next to Adam and together they resemble to me like two perfect dolls, a couple without salt or pepper, who are not sure if they are brothers or lovers.Adam offered indifference as he welcom
After Larissa left, my hope of resuming my deep sleep definitely falls flat. Between the frustration of not having hit my target the first time last night and the anxiety of wondering if she would remain in a coma long enough for me to finish my service with Adam Arnault, an unexpected visitor appeared.A man in black and with an American mustache knocked three times on my door and silently delivered a letter which I now stare at without having the courage to open. Because I know who it is, just as I know the expectations it carries, the most important of which I have not yet been able to fulfill.“ I need more coffee!”, I excuse myself to the closed envelope that stares at me while disarming me, exposing the most conflicting doubts about my actions that have not yet been answered: why the hell haven't I killed Adam Arnau
I wonder what CEO Adam Arnault defines as imperfect?Well, coming from a mind as perfectionist as his, I venture to say that it is only what he has never dared to look beyond the limits of the world he has been taught to live in, where our casualness is seen as an excuse for those who cannot reach the extreme of the beautiful and the perfect. An ideal world where no competition is allowed, only a crowd, which despite being exhausted, is relentless when it comes to one day reaching the standards of beauty that belong to them.That is why, tonight, I choose to challenge everything he believes in by clinging to the theory that yes, aesthetic beauty is certainly attractive, but over time, one will need something more to keep the admiration burning like a flame. This may be intelligence, charismas, or a lost soul for those who love
Yesterday, as soon as I got home, I received a phone call from my boss whose version of the facts was so melodramatic as to leave no doubt that they could only have been reported by Amelia to destroy once and for all any chance of me making an excuse and staying at work.The only positive thing in all this is that she and Adam did not spend the night together. He came home alone, had his usual shot of whiskey, and went to bed after reviewing some papers. In other words, there is nothing to indicate that he is boiling with hatred for me, but there is also nothing to make me think that at the end of this tunnel a light would come on from there.I take a deep sigh and finish ironing my uniform, which after being washed is as good as new. I have to turn it in before nine o'clock and pick up my pay for yesterday's work. Not that I need th
“ I didn't mean to scare you”, he apologized.“ Actually, that was very Joe from "You" style...", I replied between laughs, making reference to a sitcom in which the guy, in order to get with his wife, was capable of immeasurable craziness. Of course, hiding in the middle of garbage bags is no barbarity. However, this is CEO Adam Arnault and that means a lot to me.“ I don't know him, Joe, but it pleases me to know that you know my fragrance”,He doesn't miss this detail and I quickly have to make this confession trivial so as not to inflate his ego any further.“ Are you kidding? Everyone knows that your products are amazing, however they are things that most will only see in the window”, I make my false social status clear and obser
I use my day off from Affair to get back to my business and thus remember who I am, what I am doing here, and what the real plan is. While I wait for my allies, I reread Luigi's letter, and the question he asked again torments me, "What's the matter Francisca? "The truth is, it's more trouble than I expected to find after meeting CEO Adam Arnault. He plays on a side of the field that I am not used to venturing. With Jean or any man it was always much easier to deal with, because it's just satisfying the simple human being: attraction, hard-on, and most importantly an instant need for pleasure.Adam Arnault doesn't. It is not just attraction or horniness that he desires. It is a race, where the way is much more important than the finish. He is in no hurry, though he doesn't fail to show his intense interest. He puts me on
I burst out laughing at the scene. She barely knows how to hold a gun. “ Don't be stupid, Larissa. I'm sure your only mission here is to cause me the displeasure of your company during my return to my home. A home that doesn't belong to Anthony, and certainly not to you. You are a mere pawn in this game that Anthony revels in thinking he can strike me. Now put that fucking gun away that you don't even know how to use and let's get out of here.”, I retrace my steps to meet my luggage. “ Don't move, Chloe! Or I'll shoot.”, she threatens, “You won't come home. You won't see your daughter. I know that if you come back you will convince Anthony to forgive you and everything will be fine for you as always.” I stop, not because I owe her obedience. But, because I need to watch how far she is willing to go: “Hum and what do you intend to do? Murder me?” “Yes, I will murder you. Tell me how it feels to be about to die by the hand of stupid Lari?”, she wants to match a crazy woman in some m
It wasn't long before my aunt's suspicions were confirmed to be idiotic, so dismissed by my happiness when not even nausea could stop me from feeling so willing, at least emotionally.The CEO revealed himself to have a hidden joking side or just could not see himself missing the opportunity for the first time to be in charge of a situation that in no way would I know how to handle myself. The dispute would only end with both of us accepting rewards, me with his blazer and him holding me in his arms. The silence joined the night that came and we stopped to look at the sky and would have taken our time if it weren't for an icy breeze irritating my skin.“ I'm staying with him!”, I wrap myself even tighter in his blazer.“ Of course you can take it!”, he grants not only the garment but also a kiss.“ I'll be right back!”, he walks away, no need to ask why. I see land in sight, and soon we are on what resembles a beanstalk. I soon find that my vision has betrayed me, and it is only 15
The CEO bet even though he knew the game was a farce, he preferred fun to lucidity, the turmoil of the losers, and the vanity of him being the first even though, deep down, it wasn't true. Wouldn't it be the same with our relationship? Are we both lying, I to him and he to himself even though the signs are clear? And that before long, he will reveal that from the beginning it was a game, he knows who I am and he loves my demons just as I love his ocean eyes. No matter how crooked the path to this point has been, but he is willing to take all the risks. Not like a prince saving his beloved, but like a true mobster, a learning that is not born in a week, let alone a day. A day that confuses me with seconds as I watch Adam dress in his usual black, rejecting the simplicity of the disguise we agreed to have here. He easily sets himself up as a target, and running away is definitely not an option. That's what we did by coming here, but distance is only an obstacle for those who need an e
California, dawn“Am I still welcome in your house and in your life?”, It's Luigi, who has sneaked in. It's not a surprise to me. In fact, I've been waiting for you since I left the casino and came home. Me, sitting on the porch and him beside me, the dawn spreads in the sky right in front of us and the sea hardly imitates a sound so as not to break the peace that surrounds us all. Luigi, also surrendered, decides to sit down, waiting for me to give him his final sentence. However, my internal judgment is lengthy. My senses do not wish to miss a detail of the spectacle. It is sublime and unbelievably, there is nothing that nature asks in return to give it to us.“ If you fear that I am going to throw you out of my life, should I consider that you have done something wrong?”, my eyes are satisfied and my attention is offered to the man next to me.“ No, you know I haven't. I just don't know to what extent what we have matters more than how you feel about Adam.”“ I recognize how much
“Don't you ever lose the habit of asking questions you know the answer to?”, I close the door behind me so tightly that it is enough to hide the rapid beating of my heart. My nostrils need air on behalf of my lungs desperate to bail out, my mind one step away from hitching its anxiety.“Our argument hasn't even started, and already reason has gone your way”, he smiles cynically, keeping the gun pointed at Adam's head, opting for circular motions on his leather to test my lucidity, “ You were raised to have it all, to own it all. The Great Frances! I thought that by taking everything away from you, you would come back to me. But no! You found it!”, he pulls the gun away from the CEO and sits down next to Adam's body lying on a couch, “Is he the one stopping you from loving me, Francisca? The son-in-law of your father's dreams who should be dead?”Anthony again positions the gun in his direction, and I know that his life depends on my answer. It's logical that I need to remain indiff
“ I have never seen such a sexy and sophisticated manager.... “, Adam is dazzled, I can see him through his reflection in the mirror, which reminds me of Anthony's presence in scenes like this, although their looks and gestures are incomparable.“ My job is a bit peculiar. I won't be there to serve, just pretend I'm a stupid, silly, rich girl they can pass off as. Then they will be attracted to spend money. A sort of camouflaged manager”, I shrug, swiping my lipstick.“ That's dishonest”, he assesses. “And entering a casino expecting honesty is naïve, Monsieur Arnault…”, I do the final touches, making sure there is not a grain of sand left on my scalp. It was an endless struggle to get rid of them. A sacrifice that left no regrets when it was two hours well spent of the purest pleasure. And I would love to continue it through these white walls and huge glass windows that bring the sea closer even though it is a hundred meters away. The house in no way resembles Arnault's residence
California, presentEvery day millions of people travel. For many, just another ordinary day of time saved by one of the greatest inventions of all time; for others, the airplane is not just a machine. It is our genie in the lamp, where we lean back, close our eyes and imagine the dreams we yearn to come true. And if distance is the only obstacle, the dream is one step away from our hands as soon as the plane touches the runway to our point of arrival. But when distance is not the obstacle, how can that lamp help us if the problem lives in us and we simply cannot run away from who we are?“There will be a car waiting for us.”, Adam says, bringing me back to the present.We are waiting to choose our bags among so many others.“ Hopefully without a driver, I'll love to spend some time alone with you…”, my voice is sly, accompanied by a mischievous smile.“ You are so complicated, Chloé! “, he looks at me like I'm a riddle, “ One minute you wish I had security guards and chauffeurs, the
One day laterToday the Desiré noire did not open. The tables are empty and the silence is frightening for those who are used to seeing a full house. It is clear that I will lose a lot of money by having the doors closed. But our reunion could not be in a place other than one of CEO Adam Arnault's favorite spots. The atmosphere would stir up memories for him, and to erase the bad ones, you need an extra dose of what makes you feel at home. So tonight, no more pubs or wandering the streets like two inconsequential teenagers.It will be drinking from the best in the bar and loving like the first time.Yet, with every passing minute, it gives me anxiety not to see him walk through that door. I can't believe that Adam would be so proud as to not accept an invitation from me. After all it has been a long time since our fight. And before anyone accuses me that 24 hours is not much time, in my defense, I will say that an eternity can happen in seconds. So there is no point in waiting for hi
“ You were really serious about hurting him. That can't have been pretty…”, appreciates Luigi as he finds me picking up the shards of glass from the floor and throwing them into a bag.He arrived ten minutes after Adam left. That was the time for me to put on some clothes, wipe my tears and drink a cup of pure coffee that would make anyone awake from the feeling of still being sleepy.“ I always do what has to be done, Luigi. You gave Anthony your word, I wouldn't make you break it a second time. I have a lot to thank you for, my friend.”, I say it sincerely and I just can't stand up to hug you because our time is short.“ You will always have my loyalty and so will your descendants.”“ What descendants? I have decided to live as if my daughter doesn't exist, and a second child is not in the plans.”, I continue to pick up the shrapnel while trying to keep my attention on her reasoning.“ Francisca, that day Anthony said that having you back is a priority not just out of spite, he nee