Two

Lucien wasn't the only one who was shocked, James Gilmore was also shocked to see that the person he was inspiring was the same man that he had just nearly fought.

Ha! How ironic!

It wasn't long before James' shock turned into a gleam of amusement.

Well, well…

Lucien didn't know whether to just walk out of this office and kiss his new job goodbye or stay. He wanted to choose the first one but what the hell will Allison think?

She'll want to use this opportunity to travel to LA.

But how can this evil man be James Gilmore?! He wondered. The James Gilmore he's read about in the papers was inspiring and modest, not this evil vile of a human!

James linked his fingers together and placed his elbows on his desk, resting his chin on his laced fingers, and directing his piercing gaze to Lucien's shocked eyes.

Lucien averted his eyes, unable to maintain eye contact.

It's better to kiss this job goodbye, he thought.

“Welcome to Gilmore Enterprises, people,” James said aloud, his gaze still on Lucien, “I'll be quick. You must know by now that I have zero tolerance for clumsiness and incompetence in my company. One mistake, and you're thrown out. No second chances. There are no two ways about it. Read the company's policy well before deciding whether you still want to stay or not. You may leave.”

Lucien instantly turned, thanking the universe.

“Ah, Lucien Hayes, you stay back.” James’s voice halted Lucien on his tracks.

He cursed under his breath as he waited until the recruits left.

“Have a seat, Lucien.” James drawled.

Damn it! Lucien cursed under his breath again, then slowly turned and threw James a look of disdain.

“What?” He demanded. He wouldn't mind if he got fired now. There are thousands of jobs out there anyway.

James smirked. “Sit.” He simply commanded.

“And what if I don't?” Lucien demanded again, “What you gonna do, fire me?”

“Now, now, there's no need to get hostile Lucien.”

Lucien had never liked the way someone said his name as much as he did now. He suddenly wanted the man to say his name again, and he found himself suddenly nervous.

Like… why on earth was he nervous?

“I thought we became friends again,” James continued, raising his eyebrows “You apologized, remember?”

Lucien gulped again, noticing how sweaty his hands were, he wiped it on his pants.

“You'll fire me, won't you?” He finally found his voice, “Or you'll make my time here miserable, so I prefer you fire me right now.”

Lucien unconsciously found himself staring into James's pair of blue eyes… they were so… mesmerizingly beautiful... and yet chilling... and deadly.

“I understand we got off on the wrong foot, Lucien,” James said and Lucien's heart fluttered on hearing his name from James's mouth again. What the hell? “We can be friends. I think you're a brave young man and I'd like to have you as my secretary.”

Lucien's mouth couldn't help but fly open on its own. His secretary?

“What happened to your old security?” He blurted out before he could stop himself.

“I fired him… for his clumsiness,” James answered simply.

Lucien nodded.

It would be a dream for him to work as the secretary of the CEO of this legendary company… but taking the job of a secretary was stressful.

No job was easy, but he found the secretary job to be harder.

“The pay is good,” James added, noticing Lucien's hesitation.

“How much?” Lucien asked.

James told him and his eyes popped out of its socket. That much? Just for a secretary? Hell yeah!

He wanted to agree to the deal, but it was suspicious. Why on earth would he offer him a secretary position?

He didn't hesitate to ask.

“Like I said Lucien,” James replied and Lucien's heart fluttered once more.

Fuck! Why is my fluttering like this?! He wondered in anger. It's not the first time I've heard my name, but why do I weirdly like it when he calls it? What the fuck is wrong with me?

“... I think you're a brave young man, and I like people like you.” James was saying, “Be my secretary and I'll make it worth your while.”

Lucien pondered on it for a while before nodding his head, “Alright then.”

“Great.” James chirped. “Brenda will fill you in on the things you need to know.”

“Okay,”

“Let's shake on it,” James extended his hand and Lucien stared at it suspiciously.

Even though James was all friendly and polite right now, there was something off about him that made Lucien uneasy.

Lucien shook James's hand. He felt a tingling sensation run down his spine the moment they made physical contact, and for some strange reason, he liked the feel of James's hand on his.

Lucien spent the whole day learning his job as a secretary and Brenda was kind enough to let him know all he was to know about James Gilmore, professionally.

But from the looks of it, he suspected that everyone feared him gravely.

“Hey, Brenda, I didn't wanna ask, but is it just me or is everyone scared of Mr Gilmore?” He asked when he couldn't hold it in any longer.

Brenda quickly snapped her head towards him as though he had just said something against the rules.

“We don't don't talk about that, Mr Hayes.” She replied firmly, which only just added to his suspicion. “Now, let back to what I saying…” She continued her training.

He was finally glad when office hours were over. He was a fast learner, so it was easy for him.

He expected to meet with James but to his surprise, he had already gone home.

He thought it was weird for a CEO to leave office before the employees.

When he got home, Allison was still giving him the cold shoulder and he wasn't ready for any argument.

Normally, she would have enquired about his first day at work but she didn't.

As they ate dinner, she just scrolled through her phone disinterestedly while Grace chattered about her day in school.

He carried his plate to the sink and went into the bathroom to shower. As he showered, he found himself thinking of James.

There was something off about him, almost like he had an entirely different personality. Lucien couldn't place his fingers on it. But he knew he weirdly liked it when James called his name, and he knew he liked staring into the man's eyes.

“I must be out of mind.” He muttered, sweeping his hair backward and facing up the shower.

After his time in the bathroom, he put on his robe and stepped out. To his surprise, Allison wasn't in bed.

“Allison?” He called as he stepped out of the room, walking down the passage. He halted just in front of Grace's door. “Allison, are you there?”

“I'm sleeping in Grace's room tonight.” She replied from the room, dryly.

Lucien sighed helplessly, walking down the stairs to ensure that everywhere was locked. He decided to step outside for some fresh air.

The moment he stepped outside, a car parked just before their house started up and quickly drove away.

Lucien stared at the moving car with a sinking feeling. Was someone watching his house? He wondered, or was it just his silly imagination? It better be the latter.

He stepped back inside, feeling like he was still being watched. He checked and locked every corner of the house, turning off the lights, he retired to his room.

For the first time since his marriage to Allison, this was the first time he was laying on the king-sized bed alone.

He should be thinking about how to resolve this issue with Allison but why was he thinking about his boss?

Fuck! He muttered under his breath, knowing for a fact that he would have a hard time going to sleep.

And he did.