Prologue

“Ahh! Shit! I got only twenty minutes left,” I blurted out after seeing the time on my phone.

I was pressing the button on the elevator while looking at my phone when the lift suddenly opened. I hurriedly got in while still looking at my phone. I was putting my phone in my bag when the door closed. I was about to walk towards the elevator button to press the ground floor when I saw a man standing in front of it. 

My eyes widened, and I froze where I was standing. 

In front of me was none other than Kristoff. 

I didn’t see him for the past five years, but I could still remember every inch of him. 

I looked at him in the glass door of the lift. He was busy typing on his phone. My eyes roamed to his face. Those piercing eyes and thick brows that I always love. His lips were the sweetest that I ever tasted. And his body. His body was to die for. 

It was still him, but the mature one. He was leaner and still oozing with hotness. No. He was way hotter right now!

I cursed myself silently and looked away. 

‘Damn, Belle! You were still the same Belle five years ago! You still had the hots for him! Stop ogling, bitch! I thought you already moved on from that freaking hot marine guy?!’

I cringed. It was as if I could already hear Kylie saying it to my face as if she was with me right now. 

I glanced at him again. Kylie was right. He was back. Damn!

Did he still remember me? Hmmm… I smiled when something came up on my mind. 

Let see if he could still remember me. 

I cleared my throat before I said, “Can you press the ground floor for me? Thank you!” A smile crept on my face but suddenly died down when he pressed the ground floor button without even looking at me. 

Damn! Same old, Kristoff. 

Does that also mean that he didn’t recognize me? I looked at myself in the mirror. Who would remember me? I was totally different from before. I even cut my hair short. Maybe that was why he didn’t recognize me. I bit my lower lip and glared at him in the mirror. Damn him! He just ruined my day. 

Why of all the places I would see him here? What was he doing here anyway? Tsk!

The elevator stopped on the ground floor. The moment the door of the lift opened, I went out right away. I noticed that he didn’t come out. I looked back, and before the door closed, I saw him smirk and said, “Nice seeing you again, Belle.” 

My eyes widened, and I was stunned. 

Holyshit! He recognized me! 

***

I was biting my lower lip while walking towards Seda Hotel. It was where I was applying. Just a couple of steps away from Avida Towers, where I was currently staying. 

I arrive at the Seda Hotel five minutes before nine. I was starstruck upon seeing the whole lobby. It was so beautiful. The combination of white, gray, black, brown, and light yellow color was beyond perfection. The wooden design was making it also more appealing to look at. It was simple yet elegant. 

I’d be seeing this every day once I got the job! Awesome!

I walked towards the front desk and gave my ID. The guy named Alex, which was on his nameplate instructed me to fill out a form. After I was done, they gave me an ID Pass and a temporary access card that I could use to get inside the office. 

“Go up to the 17th floor Miss Vasquez. The one who will interview you is waiting for you there,” Lily, one of the staff said with a smile on her face. 

I smiled at her and said thank you before I walked towards the entrance and swiped the access card. I went in and walked towards the elevator. I got inside the elevator the moment the door of the lift opened. I pressed the 17th floor and took my phone out of my back. 

‘Good luck with your interview, Anna Belle!’ My brows rose upon reading the text message from Kylie. Seriously? When did she start caring for my interview? She was weird. 

I put my phone back in my bag and noticed that the lift was already on the 16th floor. A couple of seconds later, I heard the elevator's ding sound telling me that the ride already arrived on the seventeenth floor. 

I went to the office's front desk when I saw a woman sitting while typing something on the computer. 

“Hi! I’m Belle. I’m here for an interview,” I said while smiling. The woman looked at me and smiled. 

“Get inside. Mr. Mendez is already waiting for you,” she said and then got back with her work.

“Thank you,” I said before walking towards the office and went inside. 

I didn’t know why I felt nervous. I walked towards the table when I saw a man sitting on the swivel chair. His back was facing me. 

I was about to say something when he suddenly turned and faced me. A gasp came out from my mouth upon seeing the man in front of me.

“We meet again, Belle.”