Chapter 7

Sia had a huge headache. That was the first thing she thought when she woke up. The next thing was that she wasn’t in her bedroom.

Events from the previous night came back to her mind, intensifying the headache she was already having. Groaning, she sat up, surprised to find a blanket draped over her body and herself lying not in the bean bag anymore but on the comfortable sofa in one corner of her work station.

Her face heated up when she remembered how Julian had held her in his strong arms as she cried,how he had made her feel comfortable. She could still feel a tingle in her earlobes from when his warm breath had fanned her face. But the good memories stopped there. She wrapped her arms around herself as she felt the past whisper in her ears, trying to haul her back into the darkness that she couldn’t seem to leave behind. But she shook her head, refusing to feed the demons, and stood up from the sofa.

The clock on the wall read 11:23 AM. She sighed and made her way back to her room and went straight to the bathroom for a quick shower. But when she looked at the mirror, she was horrified. Her eyes were red and swollen, and her face was blotchy from crying. How Julian could stand to look at her was beyond her. She looked like nightmare personified. So, without wasting any more time, she hopped into the shower.

Feeling refreshed after her shower, she didn’t feel like going to her office anymore. She had worked overtime yesterday, and all her paperwork had been sorted; if she was needed for anything, Millan would give her a call. She decided to spend the day with her son . . . and maybe her bodyguardtoo. Oh, who was she kidding? Julian was bound to come along with her anywhere she went anyway, it was his duty.

The sound of laughter interrupted her train of thought, and she walked curiously towards the window, following the sound of the voices. What she saw outside surprised her.

Leo was playing basketball with Julian. The ball was in Leo’s hand, and he was dribbling and trying to reach the basket while Julian chased him. The huge manfinally reached for the ball and stole it right out of Leo’s hand and scored. Leo whined about it being “not fair”, saying that Julian was older and faster than him, but he was smiling. It was the happiest Sia had seen him since the incident.

She got out of her bathrobe and put on white denim shorts and a blue top with small white flowers on the collar line. She never wore that much makeup on the daily, but today, she had to apply some concealer under her eyes to patch up the redness around them and her dark spots. She paired her dress with small white rose-shaped earrings and a watch. She gathered her cell phone from her work station and put them in a white clutch and put on a pair of blue stilettos to match her dress. It was almost 1 PM. by the time she made reservations at a nearby diner, but since it was a diner she frequented, the owner, who was an old friend,was able to do the reservations despite the rush hour. Checking herself in the mirror one last time, she made her way downstairs and towards the basketball court in the backyard.

“Boys!” she yelled when she spotted them still wrestling to get the ball into the basket.

Both their heads snapped in her direction, and Julian’s eyes widened a bit, making her blush. She just realized that this was the first time she had so much of her legs exposed in front of him, and knowing his reputation, Sia shook her head. He was her employee, not her boyfriend. Julian wouldn’t risk making a move on her if he wanted to keep his job.

“You’re going to your office?” Leo’s whiny voice brought her attention back to him.

She smiled at her beloved son.It delighted her that after such a long time, Leo was warming up to another adult who was a man. “No,” she answered and smirked when she saw both of them with confused expressions.

“We’re going out for lunch at Paradiso,” she said, smiling.

“Really?” Leo yelled in excitement while Julian frowned.

“Yes, really. Now, go get changed, and don’t forget to wash up first,” Sia told Leo, but he was already halfway towards the house. Her son was a huge fan of Italian food.

“Paradiso?” Julian asked with a raised eyebrow after he saw Leo enter the house safely.

Sia blushed. “It’s an Italian restaurant nearby. Leo and I have been going there since he was five. He loves it. I’m sorry I didn’t ask you. Are you okay with Italian?” she asked.

“Are you serious? I love pasta!” Julian smiled, and it transformed his face from hot to catastrophic.

“Aren’t you going to change?” she asked instead, pointing to his surprisingly dry V-neck white shirt and black denims. It was never a good idea to mix business with leisure.

“Nah! I’m good.” He smiled at her.

“Okay, then.” Sia smiled back.

“Mom! Julian! Let’s go!” Leo yelled at them from the backdoor, now dressed in a black T-shirt and blue denims. She smiled; she’d never seen him change so fast.

“Shall we?” Sia asked Julian.

“Lead the way.”

*           *           *

When Julian had woken up that morning, Sia was still fast asleep . . . and wrapped tightly in his arms.

He felt a smile forming, but then, the previous night’s events came rushing back, and his smile disappeared. He clenched his jaw as he went through all the information he had gathered about Arthur Stone and then came up with a plan.

Gently, he brushed back the dark hair from Sia’s beautiful face, tracing two fingers down her pale cheeks. He could see that her eyes were a bit swollen, but it was nothing that a little ice pack couldn’t mend. At that moment, he thought that he could stay right there all day, staring at her innocent beauty, but he had work to do, so he carefully untangled himself from her. Once he was able to regain his composure, he took her into his arms and got off the floor with her. Sia was surprisingly lighter than he had expected her to be, and he carefully carried her over to the sofa a few feet away and laid her down comfortably before covering her up with a blanket he found folded at the foot of the sofa.

After one last look at her, he went straight to his room and took a quick hot shower before getting dressed in a white V-neck shirt and black jeans. Then he picked up his phone and dialed a number he had been trying to avoid for the past few months. Desperate times. He sighed to himself.

“So, you finally realized you can’t live without me, and now you must go down on your knees ready to beg for me to come back,” said the bored voice on the other end as soon as she picked up.

“Hello, Selena.” He kept his voice professional. “I need you to find what you can about Arthur Stone,” he said, going straight to the point.

“How about I hear an apology first?” she asked, annoyed.

Selena Fraser was one of the top informers of their company and a skilled agent. In fact, she was one of the best that he himself had trained. And she was also extremely gorgeous. It wasn’t a surprise when a junior recruit had fallen head over heels in love with her. Julian had taken pity on the fellow and set up a date with her. What he didn’t realize was that the guy was a jerk and had tried to get into her pants as soon as Selena arrived on the date. After Selena rejected the guy, he went out to his friends and made up a false story about how he had fucked the hot senior. He eventually had to confess his sins while lying in a pool of his own blood while Selena cleaned her hands on his shirt, and ever since then, she’d held a grudge against Julian for setting up the date. But it wasn’t his fault that the guy turned out to be an idiot and like he said, these were desperate times.

“I already said sorry a thousand times! How long are you going to hold it against me? Now, are you going to do your job or do I need to call Christian?” If there was one person Selena both feared and respected, it would be his brother.

“Fine, you jerk! Is it the same Arthur Stone who got arrested for marrying a minor and abusing his wife?” she asked, switching instantly from annoyed bitch to professional informer.

“Yes,” Julian answered, his jaw clenched.

“Fine. Give me a few hours,” she said and hung up instantly.

Rude, he thought, but he knew that Selena will help him out no matter how grumpy she got. But he also knew that ithardly takes her an hour at most to gather all information, but she’ll hold back for longer just so she can get back at him.

So, while waiting, he went to the kitchen for a late breakfast but couldn’t find the maid anywhere. Instead, he walked to the table and grabbed an apple and walked out into the backyard where he found Leo playing basketball alone.

He had felt a little awkward in front of Leo before, wondering about the relationship between Sia and Leo’s father, but now that he knew the truth, he felt proud that the kid had been there for Sia when she needed him most. He was a very sensible boy, which wasn’t usual for a boy his age.

“Need help?” he asked, finishing off the apple and throwing the core in a trash can.

Leo’s head snapped in his direction, causing him to drop the ball which came rolling towards Julian’s feet. “Sure,” Leo answered with a smile, a smile that was exactly like his mother’s.

“Okay then,” Julian said, picking up the ball. “Get ready to be defeated by the almighty!” he said, then took off, running.

“Not a chance!” Leo laughed and ran after him.

They played for some time, and Julian realized he was having more fun here with Leo than he had with his brother. Christian had always been the scholar, the nerdy one, so he liked spending more time with his books than with Julian. It’s not that Christian didn’t care; he did care a great deal about Julian. He just rarely showed it.

They were so engrossed in the game that a yell from Sia startled them both. Julian turned to look at her, and his breath was caught in his throat. His eyes widened. Holy shit, he thought. She looked hot. He had never seen this much of her legs exposed before, and he was in awe of the creamy white complexion of her skin. He noticed her blush, and he couldn’t help but imagine those sexy legs wrapped around his hips. But he controlled his emotions through clenched teeth. He was here for work, not for his cock.

Sia and Leo were talking about going to someplace named “Paradiso” and he saw Leo practically dash towards the house. He soon learned that it was an Italian restaurant which was Leo’s favorite. After Leo was done changing, they were well on their way to their lunch destination.

The restaurant was pretty simple. Pink and blue walls made a nice contrast and the atmosphere was perfect for a family outing. Lunch was delicious. And it wasn’t just because the food was good. No, it was also because he was having lunch with people he really enjoyed being with. Sia, Julian noticed, loved to eat—a trait he loved in a woman. But mostly he enjoyed how mother and son bickered over the menu and then watched them quietly steal food from each other’s plates when the other didn’t notice. He watched in amusement as Leo stole a piece of chicken right from under Sia’s nose while she was busy on a phone call from her office.

After lunch, however, it was time for a fight between him and Sia.

“Stop right there! I brought you here, so I’ll pay! It’s my treat.”

“No, no! You already pay me for my services, but I think it would be rude to make you pay. So I’m paying!”

“Come on! I should pay.This was my idea.”

“Maybe next time. I’m paying now.”

“But—”

“Mom! Julian! You guys are acting like little kids!” Leo interrupted. “Seriously? If you guys want to pay so badly, then just pay half each. See? It’s that easy!”

“Oh, really? And what about you?” An amused Sia asked her son.

“Oh, no! I’m a minor with no job. You pay for me, Mommy!” Leo told his mother slyly while batting his long lashes for added effect.

“You’re not getting any pocket money this week, mister!” Sia mock glared at her son, but they both took his advice and split the bill.

Walking out of the restaurant together, Julian couldn’t help but think that they felt like a family—Sia and Leo holding hands and walking slightly behind him while he kept an eye out for trouble.

His phone rang in his pocket, and Julian immediately took it out, relieved to see who was calling. Finally, he thought.

“You guys go ahead. I’ll be right back. Okay?” he told Sia.

“Sure,” Sia said, smiling, and walked ahead with her son.

“Yes?” he answered as soon as they were out of earshot.

“Arthur Stone, forty-four, semi-good looking, took over Milton Co., probably by cheating, and then married their daughter. Sentenced to lifetimeimprisonment for fraud, abuse, child abuse, and rape. Was in the prison for the last ten years and eleven months—”

“Wait! What do you mean ‘was in prison’?” Julian asked, a sudden chill going down his spine.

“Would have known earlier if you’d let me finish, jerk!” Selena snapped and then continued in her no-nonsense tone. “As I was saying, was in prison for nearly eleven years, but he ran away three months ago, and the police haven’t found him since. I’m working on the details of how he ran off, but it’ll take time to hack into the cop’s top secret classified shit.” Selena hung up once again, extracting her revenge for the hundredth time.

“Fuck!” Julian angrily ran a hand through his hair.

And that’s when he heard the screech of the tires.