Chapter Six

The phone rang out. It was mom. Esther immediately wanted to pick up, but her phone went off. 

"Shit!" 

 "Hope mom is okay."

Meanwhile, at home, Miss Parker was still disturbed.

"Hi, Miss Linda," Esther said.

"Good morning, Esther. The boss is calling for you," Linda said.

In Esther's mind, she wondered why the boss would come in so early and also request to see her. 

"I'm done for," Esther said, opening the elevator.

The elevator opened. She came out, fixed her dark hair properly and straightened her yellow gown. Then she opened the door and entered.

"Good morning, Sir," she greeted.

Smith was standing by the window, looking out at the view below — cars passing on the road, people walking, the traffic light changing.

 "Good morning," he responded and turned to her and said.

 "You're late."

"Why?" 

"Hm…Sir, apologies, Sir. It won't happen again."

"You're sorry?"

 He said, moving closer to her. Noticing his move, she stepped back slowly without looking at him.

Esther had always admired her boss Smith for a very long time and always tried to avoid looking into his eyes whenever he talked. But this day, she couldn't run away from what she had always been scared of.

"Si…Sir, please, you're too close." 

"Am I?" He asked.

"Yes, you are, Sir," she replied.

She moved slowly, her face facing the floor, until her back hit the wall of the office. Smith moved closer until his hand rested on the wall where she stood.

She couldn't move. Her breath sat trapped high in her chest, tight and painful. She could feel the warmth radiating from his body. His hand bypassed her waist completely. A startled sound slipped from her lips before she could stop it. The touch felt electric, too intimate.

"Sir," she whispered, her voice cracking.

She tried to put distance between them but couldn't. "Sir, you're too close," she said softly.

"Why did you come into my office yesterday like that without knocking?" He asked.

Still looking at the floor, refusing to look into his eyes, she said, "I…I…knocked, Sir, but you didn't respond, so I decided to come check if you were alright," she said, shaking.

"Look at me," he said to her.

"Sir, no, I can't."

"Are you scared?" He asked.

"No, I'm not, Sir. It's inappropriate for me to look into my boss's eyes," she said.

Smith smiled softly and raised his hand to her jaw, lifting her face up. 

She couldn't hold herself together because she wasn't the one standing there anymore — it was as if her spirit had left her body, drawn close to his grey blue eyes. Then she snapped out of it.

A knock at the door. She heard it and immediately pushed him away. 

"You look beautiful," he said, smiling.

She immediately walked out of the office and saw Chloe at the door. She walked past her and entered Smith's office.

"I've been knocking at your door, Smith. What took you so long to answer?" she said.

"I was busy," he answered.

"You were busy?" She asked.

"Please, stop, Chloe. Not now," he said in a cold tone.

"You like her. I can see it in your eyes, Smith," she said.

"She's my staff," Smith said, looking at his laptop and typing.

Chloe just stood there watching him.

At the Wolf penthouse, Alex came in and said, "Boss, we found out where she stays by following her there."

"And then?" Pears asked, sitting in a dark room smoking, his shadow reflecting on the wall in the dim room.

"We also went to find out if she was in the house. She wasn't, but we saw a woman who claimed to be her mother," Alex said.

"What's her name?" Pears asked.

"Elizabeth Parker," Alex said.

Immediately, he stopped smoking. "Get her here immediately," he said in a cold voice.

"Okay, Boss," Alex said and walked out.

"Elizabeth Parker…" Pears called softly. 

"You," he said to himself.