Chapter 3

“I should have woken up earlier!” I kept chanting that under my breath as I shoved my arms into a black blazer.

Of all days, my alarm decided not to work today. My first day at work, and I couldn’t afford to be late. Not now.

“Ease up, Celeste,” Eula said as she watched me frantically comb through my brown hair.

“You don’t know him, Eula. If I’m late, he’ll suck the soul right out of me,” I shot back, grabbing my car keys, wallet, and whatever else I needed.

“She can’t be that bad,” she teased.

I glared at her. “Not that bad? He’s a soul-sucking monster.”

One last look in the mirror, and I almost convinced myself I looked put together.

“You look hot,” Eula grinned, handing me a peanut butter sandwich.

I laughed, wolfed it down in three bites, and sprinted downstairs to the parking lot. Sliding into my car, I checked the time. Twenty-five minutes before 8. If traffic cooperated, I’d make it in fifteen.

I started the engine, but my optimism didn’t last long.

“No… no… no,” I muttered, staring at the sea of red brake lights on the main road. Traffic. Of course. “Why, God? Why me?” I tapped my foot like a maniac, already picturing Cedric Bettencourt breathing fire in my direction.

There was no way I was making it on time. Maybe he’d fire me. Maybe that wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. Plenty of jobs out there with bosses who weren’t literal vampires. Maybe this was a blessing in disguise.

After five long minutes of sitting in pure agony, the cars finally began to inch forward. I exhaled the breath I hadn’t realized I was holding and floored it the second I got free. By the time I pulled into Bettencourt Group of Industries, adrenaline was rushing through my veins.

I spotted the elevator doors just as they were about to close and bolted. I barely managed to shove my arms in to stop them from sealing shut.

“Oh God, thank you!” I groaned as I slipped inside. Safe. Not late. No excuses for the devil to chew me out.

“You’re late.”

My head whipped around. Standing in the corner with his head buried in a file was none other than Cedric Bettencourt.

“I…” I checked my watch. Five minutes before 8. “I’m not. I’m here exactly at 8.”

He snapped the file shut and turned to me. His face looked even angrier than it had yesterday, if that was even possible. A deep frown creased his forehead, his nose flushed.

“If I ask you to be here at 8, you should already be here at 7. If I ask you to be here at 7, you should be here by 6, Ms. Koch.”

I opened my mouth. “But—”

His eyebrow shot up, and I instantly folded. “Yes, I understand.”

The rest of the elevator ride was painfully awkward. Relief only came when the doors opened—until he called out.

“Follow me.”

I trailed behind him through the silent hallway. The air shifted with his presence. People straightened, hushed, practically worshipped the ground he walked on. He radiated confidence like it was his birthright.

My eyes, against my better judgment, drifted over him. Perfectly slicked-back dark hair, broad shoulders stretching his white shirt, sleeves clinging to strong arms. My gaze slid lower, catching on his big, rough-looking hands. Hands that—

He stopped abruptly, and I smacked right into him. My heart jumped into my throat. He spun around, face inches from mine, eyes blazing. I should’ve been terrified. Instead, all I could think was how insanely handsome he looked up close, like some fallen Greek god.

“Celeste,” he said sharply.

I blinked, shaking myself. “Y-Yes?”

“Did you forget to wake up this morning? First day, and you’re already making it hard for me to tolerate you.” His scowl could’ve cut glass.

“It won’t happen again,” I said, faking confidence I didn’t feel.

“It better not.”

He led me to an office door with my nameplate on it. “This is my office. That one’s yours. You’ll find my schedule and the last secretary’s planner in your drawers. Go through them.”

“Okay,” I said brightly. Sounded easy enough.

I started toward my office when his voice sliced through the air again. “Where are you going?”

“To… do the work?” I asked carefully. “Do you want coffee?”

His laugh was bone dry. “Do you actually think I’m paying you thousands of dollars just to do that?”

My stomach sank.

“After you review those, you’ll call Mr. Smith and confirm our meeting. Then you’ll gather reports on every project from the past month and prepare an analysis. You’ll set up the conference room for the monthly budget meeting. And you’ll go department to department to collect feedback on the new finance policy.”

My brain froze. That was all… today? On my first day?

He was Lucifer. Why had I expected him to go easy on me?

“Can… you repeat that?” I asked weakly, pulling a notebook from my bag. “I kinda forgot after the second thing.”

The muscle in his jaw flexed. I could practically hear him counting to ten.

“I have better things to do.” With that, he stormed into his office.

I raked my fingers through my hair. Great. Just great.

By lunchtime, I’d powered through almost everything. Scheduled Smith. Prepped the conference room. Met with every department head. My legs ached, my head throbbed, and the mountain of files left for analysis made me want to cry.

I dropped onto a bench outside the finance department, trying to catch my breath.

“Rough first day?”

I looked up. A guy with striking blue eyes sat at a nearby desk, still focused on his computer.

“Something like that,” I muttered.

“Gets easier,” he said, then smirked. “Actually, no, it doesn’t.”

I laughed. “Yeah, I figured.”

“Terrence Jonas,” he introduced.

“Celeste Koch.”

“Celeste,” he repeated. “Better head back. Mr. Bettencourt has eyes everywhere.”

I rolled mine but stood anyway. “Nice to meet you, Terrence. For a second, I thought only robots worked here.”

He chuckled. “Join us Friday for club night. I’ll introduce you to everyone.”

“Sure,” I agreed, exchanging numbers before heading back.

I was about to slip into my office when a familiar voice called out. “Are you done with all the work?”

I turned to Cedric’s office. “Not yet, sir. Still working on the analysis.”

“Oh… I assumed you were finished since you clearly had time to gossip.” His tone dripped with sarcasm.

Terrence’s warning echoed in my head. He really did have eyes everywhere.

Instead of rising to the bait, I smiled. Time for a little experiment.

“Do you know how much I hate tardiness?” Cedric snapped, then froze when he noticed my grin. “Why the hell are you smiling?”

“I’m not,” I said sweetly, forcing my lips to stay curled.

“Stop it. You look creepy.” His glare deepened. “What is wrong with you?”

“I read somewhere it’s hard to scold someone who’s smiling.” I flashed him another.

“Not true. I can rebuke a child. Try me.”

“You’re probably right,” I whispered, smiling wider.

He stared at me, fury blazing in his eyes, and for a second I thought he might explode. Then he barked, “Get out of my sight! Take a break or something. Don’t let me see your face for at least an hour.”

He stormed past me, leaving me in the hall with a tiny, victorious smirk.

If my day had started on the wrong foot, then Mr. Bettencourt better watch his step.