Chapter 3- The question he never forgave

"Are your claims about your track record hold true?" I read a random question only to realize it too late.

Too-fucking late!

I regret asking him this question, just like I regret what I did to him three years ago.

Like a horror movie, I watch his face harden like granite. He lifts a long finger and presses the pause button on the recorder. The green light blinks orange and my heart loses a beat.

"Are you fucking kidding with me, Evan?"

Dakota inhales sharply and I watch the glint in his eyes turn dark, animalistically.

Adrenaline rushes through my bones as I hear my name spoken in a threatening way, indicating I have stepped into a danger zone.

"I-I-no. It's not my question. It's written here."

Blood drains from my head and I panic breathlessly.

He presses the button and the green light blinks again as he straightens his spine.

"I am not going to answer the baseless rumours my legal team deals with. That is not something I would waste my time on.”

Dakota says it in a flat, emotionless voice, but his eyes say otherwise.

His green eyes sharpen like glass as he stares at me with an intensity that could slit through skin.

"Yeah, sorry."

I immediately shuffle through the pages, looking for a better question that will save my ass from his chainsaw gaze.

I gulp nervously, avoiding the sweat building in my chest.

Dakota leans forward and my nose catches an earthy, woodsy scent mixed with expensive cologne.

The way his fingers make circles on the glass, something churns inside my stomach

Everything about him is alluring and intimidating.

Like a danger sign glowing green.

His lips curve arrogantly.

But his expression remains stony.

As if every emotion dried up long ago.

I just want this interview over so I can disappear from his life.

Fast and furiously.

Suddenly I'm glad we met in a professional setting.

"Which is the turning point day of your life that you owe your success to..."

Suddenly the recorder emits a tiny beeping sound.

Its green light flickers like a heartbeat.

I tap it desperately, giving it chest compressions.

But it breathes its final beep and dies.

The green light turns black.

Dead.

Dead like a dodo.

I swallow hard and slowly lift my gaze.

Dakota stares at me with a blank expression.

As if he's fighting a battle not to frown.

Or roll his eyes.

I bite my lip nervously and blink innocently.

Dakota sighs deeply and pulls a pen from his breast pocket.

I shyly take the black steel pen from him.

"Thank you."

The pen feels pleasantly warm in my fingers.

His warmth.

Something shifts inside my stomach as my mind immediately supplies images of the hard body hidden beneath those expensive clothes.

"25th September 2019."

My eyes shoot up.

That awful night.

The last night I saw him.

The ni."

He pauses.

His green eyes pin me in place.

"I broke my arm and three ribs. I spent two weeks in critical care. During that time, many things went through my head. But one thought stayed on repeat. If I had known even seconds before that a car was about to crash into mine, I could have saved a few bones."

The world slows around me.

Colours fade.

Melancholy settles in.

"Since then I have been working on augmented reality integrated with autopilot and radar to track road activity in a full 360-degree field and prevent such disasters. I sold that technology to Tesla and built my company with that money in 2020."

Only then do I realize he is answering my earlier question.

I swallow painfully.

"So I owe my success to that one blue moon night of my life."

And I know he isn't talking about the accident.

He's talking about me.

I open a fresh page.

Black ink flows across paper like blood from a fresh wound.

Each word feels like another cut.

No amount of apologies will ever repair his past.

Ever.

I look up and find him checking notifications on his Apple Watch.

A frown decorates his forehead.

Yet somehow it only makes him look more attractive.

More dangerous.

Someone who won't stop until he owns the world.

"Mr. Black, are you busy?"

I ask hopefully.

"No."

He answers immediately.

Giving me his full predatory attention.

As if this interview matters more than a billion-dollar deal.

"Dakota Black. A high achiever, millionaire in his twenties and a hot-shot bachelor who has women drooling over him..."

I almost cringe reading it aloud.

"Is your heart surrendering to settle down?"

I finally look up.

I hear him take a deep breath of frustration and I find myself sinking more into his expensive couch. He looks irritated and, most of all, ignited.

"Didn't meet any eye-catching woman yet." He says, directly looking into my eyes.

MINUTES LATER ⏰

I gather my belongings and stand.

Dakota rises effortlessly.

His fingers automatically fasten his suit button.

"Thank you for your time, Mr. Black. It was nice seeing you."

He gives me a respectful nod and gestures toward the door.

Freedom.

I can finally escape.

"You look different."

My eyes snap back to him.

Adrenaline floods my veins.

"Yeah. I don't colour my hair now."

I tuck an escaped strand behind my ear.

"Not your hair. You gained weight."

He glances briefly over my body.

My confidence drops straight into my stomach, which I thought I had nicely hidden beneath the fitted black trousers I was wearing.

"You look better."

A smile hints at the corner of his lips.

He says it casually, as if he remembers exactly how I looked years ago.

Oh boy.

Was that a compliment?

My heart flutters and, for some weird reason, my cheeks warm as I realize he just gave me a compliment.

Something I never expected from him.

Something I have no idea how to take.

A strange heat spreads up my neck and I feel myself shrinking by the second, as if I am sinking into the white sandstone floor beneath my feet under the growing weight of embarrassment.

"Thank you."

Dakota pays no attention to my gratitude and takes a long, impatient stride toward the door. He has an incredibly toned back that forms an inverted triangle from his broad shoulders down to his narrow waist, perfectly outlined beneath his tailored suit.

I follow him, trying to hide the blush he caused only seconds ago.

As I walk toward the exit, my eyes catch a striking artwork hanging on the plain white wall beside the door.

It is a painting of a vicious beast.

Painted in black and crimson tones, a massive animalistic figure stands with sharpened horns rising from its head, staring ahead with hollow, deathly eyes.

It's a brooding yet mesmerizing piece, but that isn't what captures my attention.

A woman who looks like a glamorous version of Ed Sheeran approaches with a smile I could never replicate.

"This way, please."

She leads me toward the elevators.

I glance back one last time.

Those green eyes are still fixed on me.

Dakota stands in the doorway of his office, watching me with a frown.

Like a predator watching its prey leave the safety of its den.

I quickly look away and step into the elevator.

Just before the doors close, I catch the faintest hint of a smirk on his lips.

My heartbeat shoots into my throat.

Why was he staring at me like that?

I won't be returning here again.