“Why are you saying one thing and your body is saying otherwise?”His hands traced mine, going up slowly till it reached my shoulder. Then, with a finger, he lifted my chin and kissed me. I didn't stop him or try to pull away. I did not attempt to deepen the kiss either. Just stood there and let him do his thing, pretending it was not sending electric shocks down my body. “Petyr…” I half said, half moaned. “Do you know how it feels to watch you and not be able to talk to you or hold you?” A small smile played on my lips. He had been suffering. “Do you know how it feels to be wrongly accused?” His eyes met mine, serious now, “I'm really sorry about that, Sirena. It's not my intention to accuse you wrongly. I was just …” He paused. I shifted my weight to one foot. “Jealous? Unreasonable? Unnecessarily angry?” He smiled and pulled me into another kiss. My defences were weaker now. My arms itched to wrap around his shoulder.“All of that,” He said, after he pulled away. “Yeah, al
It was nearly midnight. The executive floor was usually quiet but now, there was pin drop silence. And here I was, still sitting behind my desk, a week's worth of work only halfway through. I was puzzled when Mrs. LeVaughn insisted that it all had to be turned in by tomorrow morning. A week's worth of work! That was crazy, I'd said, “By tomorrow? Impossible,” I argued. But she only raised an eyebrow as she said, “Mr. Sterling's orders. Get it done,”Well, fuck Mr. Sterling. What was he trying to do? Kill me? Was this punishment for what happened last time he was at my house?Unfair!My eyes burned as I stared at the laptop. My hair had even begun escaping from my bun. Why was he doing this to me? I thought, my fingers hovering over the keyboard. I was almost mad with frustration. Just yesterday, I had gotten a truckload of flowers. Today, a truckload of work. If I had known the flowers were a soft landing for this, I would have sent them back. I leaned back in my seat and loose
The air was heavy with the fallout of betrayal. I stood at the head of the conference table, scanning the room with my eyes. Erica sat to my right, tapping her pen under a notepad. The other chairs were occupied by the executives. The news had hit like a sledge hammer that morning. Deng Chol had pulled out. Apparently, he had been spooked by a leaked report in the Philadelphia Inquirer claiming that Sterling Enterprises was hemorrhaging reports.I knew it was fake – those figures made me sense – but the damage had been done. I gripped the table's edge as I addressed the room. “Ladies and gentlemen, let's cut to the chase,” My eyes flicked to each of their faces, “The Inquirers report is nonsense. Someone's playing games, leaking falsified data to spook the investors. I want to know who and I want this to stop. Now.”Margaret Chen leaned forward, “Lesjd don't just happen. The report had details. Specific figures, expense breakdowns. There's no doubt it came from within. How would
A Week Later On Saturday morning, a low rumble outside my bedroom window snapped me out the haze I was in, five minutes after I had awoken.The neighbourhood was usually quiet so the sound of the engine was quite unfamiliar. I frowned as I rolled out of bed and shuffled across my room to the window. My jaw dropped at the sight when I opened the curtains – a massive delivery truck was parked infront of the house, it's back overflowing with flowers. Roses spilled out like a floral tsunami. What the actual hell? My heart raced with a mix of suspicion and confusion. My mind screamed one name – Petyr. No way. He wouldn't…would he?The thought was as thrilling as it was infuriating. I pulled on a pair of leggings, fastened the loose buttons of my sleep shirt and hurried downstairs. The front door was already open and Mom was standing on the porch in her pink robe. Her hands moved animatedly as she conversed with the delivery guy in a navy cap. The scent of roses was heavy in the a
The rain had finally stopped and the smell of wet pavement hung in the air.I sat in the kitchen, with a cup of chamomile tea between my hands as I fought to push thoughts of Petyr as far away from my mind as I could. Welp! Ignoring him was definitely not an advisable thing to do. But I did not want him to feel it was okay speaking to me like that. The doorbell rang suddenly, breaking my train of thoughts and cutting through the soft hum of the TV in the living room, where my parents were watching some old sitcom.Mom called out, "Maria, can you get that? Probably Mrs. Torres with her empanadas again,"I hoped off the stool, smoothing my hair as I crossed to the door. When I pulled it open, my breath caught. It was Petyr standing at the door, not Mrs. Torres. What was he doing here? His gaze held mine, pinning me in place. "Sirena," He said, his voice smooth and low in a way that sent shivers down my spine, "I was in the neighborhood. Thought I’d stop by to see your parents.”I
Not only did I not get a new office, fate also has other surprises for me. Or should I say, Mrs Levaughn and her twisted humour. Brandon had taken a sudden leave - something about a family emergency - and Mrs LeVaughn had summoned me to her office about an hour ago. "You'll be accompanying Mr. Sterling to a meeting with a potential investor. As you know, Brandon's away and well, someone's gotta be his assistant," She'd said But why me? There were at least 200 other employees in the company but somehow, I had to be the one to go with him.But I could not say no. The last thing I wanted was to raise questions I could not give answers to.Now, I sat at the back of Petyr's black Mercedes in a navy pencil skirt and a cream crisp blouse, feeling the heat of his body next to mine. I kept my eyes fixed on the window, watching the city pass by, arms crossed, refusing to look at Petyr.The tension between us was like a living, breathing thing at this point. Petyr sat beside me in a suit th