Chapter 4

Chapter 4

—Alessandro, we need to talk.

He was looking at his phone again, raised his eyes briefly, but quickly turned his attention back to the phone, ignoring me completely.

— Alessandro. — I tried again, my tone growing more insistent. —Please, listen to me.

But he kept typing frantically on his phone, as if I wasn't there. I felt a mix of pain and frustration growing inside me as I watched him, without even bothering to give me attention.

I slowly approached, he hadn't even noticed my presence, completely absorbed in whatever he was reading.

I took a deep breath, trying to contain the insecurity building up inside me. When I called him earlier, he just murmured something without taking his eyes off the device.

Now, already out of patience, I reached out and lightly touched the phone.

His eyes immediately lifted to me, his expression loaded with irritation. In a quick movement, he pulled the phone back, gripping it tightly between his fingers.

— What do you want? — His voice came out harsh, as if I had interrupted him at the wrong moment.

I swallowed dry, feeling a tightness in my chest. He never had patience for me lately. Even so, I needed to speak.

— We need to talk. — I sighed, gathering courage to continue. — But I want your full attention, Alessandro. Can you please put the phone aside for a moment?

 

He opened his mouth to answer, but before he could say anything, the phone vibrated in his hand. With a movement, he lowered his eyes to the screen and, in a second, opened the message.

I watched his face, and it was impossible to ignore the subtle glow that appeared in his eyes.

That kind of glow that I never saw when he looked at me. My stomach turned. Who had the power to provoke that reaction in him? Who was on the other side of that message? Was it Chiara?

He typed something quickly, putting the phone in his pocket.

— I need to go out. — He announced, without even looking at me. I held his arm, almost without realizing it.

— Alessandro, please… You can go later. We need to talk now. — My voice came out trembling, almost a plea.

He pulled his arm firmly, moving away from me.

— It's urgent. We'll talk later. — His answer was cold and cutting.

And then he left, without looking back, leaving only the sound of the door closing behind him.

I stood there, motionless, feeling the emptiness grow around me. My eyes burned, and tears began to form, but I blinked quickly, wiping them away before they fell.

I swallowed the cry, forcing myself to breathe deeply. I should already be used to this. But, for some reason, this pain only seemed to increase every day.

Two weeks passed and Alessandro spent more time traveling than at home or at the company.

Today, the two of us would meet for the first time in a long time and I confess I was a little nervous. My mind always insisted on reminding me that Chiara was now free and who knows if the two of them hadn't met during this time?

 

—Is everything ready? — Catherine asked, entering my office with her computer in hand.

— Yes, shall we go?

She nodded confirming and the two of us left my office. We met Rafael and his intern in the elevator.

— The boss comes back today, I wonder if he's in a good mood? — Cathe threw the question into the air.

— Most certainly. — Rafael said smiling and the two of us looked at him curiously.

— Why are you so sure? — I asked confused. Did he know something?

But he didn't have time to answer, soon the doors opened and Liliane, Alessandro's personal assistant, entered the elevator. She was always a gossip and would certainly love to know we were talking about him.

The silence remained until the door opened and we entered the hallway, I was distracted talking to Catherine when I heard a low curse coming from Rafael. The two of us looked at him and then followed his gaze, which was fixed right in front of us.

There, in front of the wooden door of the meeting room, was Alessandro with his striking presence and beside him, a very beautiful blonde. She was also tall, compared to his height.

— Wh..who is that? — I asked feeling my chest tighten.

— Chiara. — Rafael whispered beside us.

Catherine widened her eyes and went back to staring at the two. They were talking about something that strangely made Alessandro laugh. There were rare times I saw him laugh, but none came as close to the glow that this smile had now.

She touched his shoulder and nodded, before starting to come in our direction. My gaze met Alessandro's, who showed little emotion and entered the meeting room.

The blonde passed by us, but stopped when she recognized Rafael.

— I can't believe it! — She said in a strange excitement.

 

Rafael smiled and hugged her. The two began to talk and I watched them, actually, I watched her. She was beautiful, elegant and seemed to be very intelligent.

— Let's go. — Cathe nudged my arm and I turned to her, confirming and leaving from near them.

My mouth had a bitter taste, which I tried to ignore as we entered the meeting room.

He was sitting in his usual place, at the head of the table. Together with Catherine, we went to the other head of the long polished mahogany table, I sat down nervously organizing my notes while waiting for his team to arrive.

I could feel Alessandro's gaze on me, but I ignored it so he wouldn't disturb my mind. Mr. Oliveira entered the room with a confident smile, followed by the team members, each carrying their folders and tablets. Finally, Rafael entered the room with his intern and came to sit beside me.

I took a deep breath, trying to ignore the tension that always hovered in the air in Alessandro's presence. Focused, I turned on the projector to display my work and ideas for the new product line.

— Thank you for being here today. — I started, keeping my voice firm and professional.

— I'm excited to share my vision for the packaging of our new skincare line.

I began to explain my ideas, sliding through the slides with fluidity while describing each element of the design. But then, I noticed that while I spoke, Alessandro looked at his phone, clearly disinterested.

His dismissive behavior caused me some irritation, but I kept my composure, determined not to let my emotions interfere with the presentation.

When I finished, Mr. Oliveira applauded, praising my creativity and vision.

— Excellent work, Larissa. I'm sure this line will be a great success. — He said excitedly, looking at Alessandro to see if he had approved too. But the man kept his serious expression on his face.

 

I sat down again and Catherine took the presentation spot. The next hour and a half were with the other members giving their ideas and showing their progress on the project.

The meeting finally came to an end and I was about to leave the room when Alessandro's voice made me stop. Catherine gave me a "Good luck" and left with the others, leaving me alone with him.

— Yes, Mr. Moratti?

I turned to find him standing, staring at me as if he were angry. But then, Alessandro took a step and raised his hand, touching my face with a gentleness that I knew very well.

— What…

— Don't say anything. — He said and the next moment his mouth was glued to mine.

Totally caught by surprise, without understanding why he was doing this here and now, I rested my hands on his chest and tried to push him away.

— What are you doing? Someone might come in here!

He took a deep breath and then passed by me.

— Let's go to my office.

He left through the door and I stared at it for a moment before following him. As soon as I entered his office, his arms wrapped around me and lifted me off the floor. His lips crashed against mine once more, only now the kiss was more needy.

He led us to the sofa, laying me down and hovering over me.

His large hands groped my ass and thigh while his kisses spread across the skin exposed on my lap.

— Alessandro, someone…

— I told you to stay quiet.

I bit my lip when I felt his fingers press my clitoris. My panties were pulled to the side and in seconds I felt him penetrate me. Alessandro went back to kissing me fervently, while working with his fingers down there.

 

At some point, he had unbuckled his belt and then I felt him fill me completely.

A muffled sound left my lips and I covered them, afraid that someone would hear us. His thrusts were slow, but deep enough to make me reach the limit.

— Like this it doesn't work, I need movement… — He grumbled and after giving another kiss, he sat on the sofa pulling me onto his lap.

Pulling my skirt up to my waist, he positioned me on top of his member and I went down, feeling him even deeper because of the position. I started with the movements, knowing the rhythm he liked when we were like this.

His eyes met mine, the lust and desire in them was clear. And it was there where I got lost, where my heart always created a little more hope that maybe he felt something for me.

His hand grabbed my ass, increasing my rhythm while the other came to my nape and pulled me, so that another kiss would begin. Amid the sound of low moans and our skin rubbing, I came undone on his lap, reaching the peak and with me, Alessandro pouring his liquid inside me.

He sighed, resting his forehead on my shoulder while trying to control his breathing.

—You can go. — He said when he looked at me again.

His gaze had changed, everything changed. And knowing that he wouldn't come back so soon, I nodded, getting off his lap and going to the bathroom in his office to clean myself.

The feeling of humiliation made a knot form in my throat. I looked at myself in the bathroom mirror, feeling my eyes shining with tears. I held them back, wiping a little with the paper towel and then I left the bathroom, grabbed my computer and left his office, without even looking. I didn't want him to see my sadness wide open.