CHAPTER TWO : DAMAGE CONTROL

LUCIO ASHFORD

“I need you to stop this news from spreading any further,” I said, keeping my voice steady as I stared at the trending headlines on my tablet.

“My team’s tried everything, sir, but the rumors aren’t slowing down,” my PA Cal replied, fingers flying across his tablet.

“Any calls from Sophie yet?” I asked, my chest tightening at the thought.

“None, sir. But Mr Elliot has been trying to reach you.”

“I know,” I said, waving him off. “That’s all for now.” He left quietly, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

My phone rang again, probably for the twentieth time today. I swiped to answer.

“Come on, bro, you can’t ignore me forever,” Eli’s voice said from the other end.

“I can, and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing,” I replied, exhaustion weighing on every word.

“I can’t blame myself for pushing you that night,” Eli continued, almost too casually. “I mean, you liked her first, I just nudged you along and It’s not like what you and Sophie have is serious,”

“You were supposed to stop me, not encourage me,” I said with a heavy sigh. “I’m exhausted, Eli. I’m thinking of ways to explain all of this. The internet is in chaos. It’s affecting business. I don’t even know why I’m explaining myself to you.”

“Fair,” he said more sincerely. “What are your legal advisors saying?”

“Nothing that sounds good yet,” I admitted. “We’re still searching for solutions. Sophie hasn’t called me either.”

“Why do you keep acting like you care about her?” he asked bluntly. “You don’t. You never cared for Sophie like that.”

I frowned, rubbing my temple. “I don’t, but that doesn’t mean she deserves this. Our relationship might be based off on contract but I do owe her respect and also she’s the one person who seems to get me a little.”

Eli laughed. “You’re complicated, bro. But fine. I’ll sit back and watch this unfold and the statement you made about Sophie being the only one who gets you hurt my feelings, bro.”

I hung up before I could get dragged into another argument. My phone rang again, this time Dad.

“What’s all this I’m seeing online?” His voice boomed.

“It’s just a mishap,” I said, keeping calm, though tension coiled in my chest. “It’ll be handled.”

“‘Just a mishap’?” he scoffed. “Look at the sales! I mean, I always knew you weren’t up to the task, I wonder why that Old man gave everything to you. And poor Sophie… this is unacceptable. Fix it before it escalates.”

“I assure you, it won’t affect the company. Cal has reviewed everything,” I replied, loosening my tie, now getting irritated over this conversation.

Finally, the door burst open.

“Cal, I’ll call you if I need you. Right now, I need to cool off,” I said without looking up.

“I see,” said a familiar voice. I finally lifted my gaze to see Sophie Adele in a bright green dress, every inch composed and confident, sliding into the chair opposite me.

“Sophie,” I said, a mixture of relief and tension in my voice.

“And how’s your ‘cooling off’ going?” she asked, flipping her honey blonde hair over her shoulder.

“I’ve been trying to reach you all day.”

“You think I’d answer after what you did?” she snapped. “Who cheats on their girlfriend and expects her to act like it’s nothing? Of all people… you pick a nobody.”

“I won’t lie. I didn’t cheat out of malice, and I’m genuinely sorry,” I said calmly.

“Really? Not even a little pretend, lie, or excuse?” Her blue eyes pinned me down.

“I told you, I’m not going to. But that doesn’t mean you deserved any of it. You can break up, announce it however you want it’s on me me, not you. No one deserves a cheating partner.”

Her voice croaked. “I always knew you were heartless, but not to this extent… But I’m not breaking up. Not yet. I won’t jeopardize what I’ve worked for, so you better fix this mess. We’re pretending none of this happened. Let’s stick to our plan moving forward, if you want to fuck with a whore do it discreetly, just don’t ruin my image cause you don’t see me ruining yours.”

I watched her leave, the door clicking shut behind her. Our arrangement was purely transactional with mutual benefit but even so, the responsibility weighed heavily. I picked up the phone to call Cal.

“Cal, I need a full report on the girl. Her wellbeing, background, everything.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll report back to you in two hours time,” he said promptly.

Two Hours Later

A knock interrupted my work.

“Sir, this is everything on her,” Cal said, dropping a folder on my desk. “She’s a college student, recently applied to our company. She seems fine, though she’s dealing with backlash online.”

I scanned the file. Normal. Smart. Grounded. Innocent. And yet there was something about her presence, her quiet dignity, that made my chest tighten.

My phone buzzed again. Eli.

“Got anything new?” I asked.

“Nothing, man. Have you contacted her?”

“Not yet. Going through her background,” I replied. I paused at her photo, her honey-brown eyes staring back innocently. I had left her the morning after without much thought, and now damn. She had refused money and a car ride from my team. She seemed respectable but also stubborn, and real.

Eli chuckled through the phone. “First time a girl’s stared down a billionaire, huh?”

I rolled my eyes, but smiled faintly. “Seems she applied as an editor. Her CV looks good, but lacks experience.”

“Perfect!” Eli shouted.

“What’s perfect?”

“You could hire her as your secretary. Claim she came over to grab something, paparazzi got it wrong, then offer her a job, control the narrative, and end this mess.”

I considered it. The plan was clever, clean, and practical. “You’re right. I’ll let the legal team handle it.

“Cal, call off any public speculation and fix a meeting with the legal team.”

RAELYNN

Reading the comments online made my stomach churn, I couldn’t bear stomaching it all. The mean-spirited speculation, and invasion of my privacy, it wasn’t fair. Who in their right mind stalked people and dragged their lives through the mud?

Then my phone rang.

“Hello?”

“Good day, ma’am. Is this Miss Brooks?”

“Yes. Who is this?” I asked nervously.

“I’m calling from Lozano’s Companies. We received your application. After reviewing it, we’d like to offer you a position not as an editor, but a role more suited to your current experience. Details have been emailed.”

“Thank you!” I said, my heart racing. One job offer… but in a place I never imagined.

Claire peeked over my shoulder. “Wait… isn’t Lucio Ashford the CEO?”

I froze. “Oh. Right. It’s complicated.”

“Complicated?, well isn’t it suspicious?” she asked, skeptical.

“I have a final interview tomorrow. That’s when I’ll figure out everything,” I said, trying to calm my nerves.

THE NEXT DAY: LUCIO

“Sir, she’s here,” Cal announced.

“Five minutes,” I said, straightening in my chair. My chest tightened; I was unusually nervous. I looked at her file one last time.

The knock came. She entered looking stunning. Hair in a neat bun, a blue blouse tucked into a tailored skirt, honey-brown eyes that made me forget to breathe for a second. She was gorgeous, had a commanding aura.

RAELYNN

I couldn’t believe I was standing in front of him. The infamous Lucio Ashford. My heart raced. He looked calm and composed, yet terrifyingly handsome, like he just came out of a fashion show with his black her styled perfectly backwards. My palms sweated, and I reminded myself to breathe.

“Hi… good morning,” I stammered.

His pretty green eyes were piercing into me like he could read my entire mind.

“Please, take a seat, Miss…”

“Brooks,” I replied.

“I’m sorry we haven’t contacted you sooner. We’ve been trying to control the situation,” he said, eyes flicking to his computer.

“So… the job?” I asked cautiously.

“Yes, secretary. Not editor,” he said. “You’ll need to sign this contract. Terms are non-negotiable, and you may hire a lawyer if you wish. It’s the safest way to navigate the scandal for both of us.”

I frowned. “Contract?”

“Yes. We were both caught in a situation neither of us can fix alone. This is a professional arrangement. Nothing personal.”

I felt heat rush to my face. “And you’re offering me a job cause of this?”

“I believe what I said was self-explanatory,” he replied evenly. “I’m offering you security, employment, and protection or were you expecting more, maybe a plot of your favorite fantasy like ‘fake dating me’,.”

I slammed the document on the desk. “Wow, just wow, I mean the articles calling you rude and cold wasn’t a lie after all. Well I won’t be signing this and I’m not your pawn!” I stormed out.

LUCIO

First time someone dared speak to me like that. No groveling. No flattery. Instead she was mixed with anger and righteousness. Which was respectable but also frustrating. I rubbed my temple. Legal would handle it. I’d find another way.

“Sir I just saw Miss Brooks leave just now,” Cal said barging into my office.

“Yes. She refused to agree to our terms, just inform the legal team and let them handle it another way. And please Cal clear my schedule for today, I’m going home.”

“Okay Sir”.

I was exhausted at this point. The ringing of my phone brought back my awareness.

“So how did it go?,” He asked the minute I picked his call.

“She rejected the offer,”

Eli’s voice rang. “She… what? Thats messed up, bro. Did you do anything that might have ticked her off?”

“Of course not, why would you think so?”. I asked rubbing my brows.

“Dude you and I know how intolerable you can be, are you sure you didn’t say something wild?”

“Okay… I might have said something along the lines of she being disappointed it was a job and not a fake dating arrangement, I mean you and I know how some girls die for this sort of fairytale. Cause she looked shocked I was offering her a job,” I replied.

“Lucio that’s fucked up, find a way to clean this mess dude,”

“I’m approaching her differently next time,” I replied.

“You’re impossible,” he laughed.

I didn’t care. She wasn’t just any girl. She was a problem I needed to handle carefully and, unknowingly, someone I couldn’t ignore.