Eriantha
Confirming our concerns, our company was no less of a defunct shit show. Not that I can complain when I have danced into buying a ticket to this very circus. So, instead I decided to move ahead with the attitude, 'My circus, my monkeys.'
But, it was easier said than done.
"Is the paper cup that aesthetic that you can't take your eyes off it?" Viv's comment brought me back from the load churning over my head, maybe it's a side effect of reading too much in too little time. But then again do I have a choice?
"I needed this more than anything..." I raised the cup and took a sip ,the coffee started working its magic on me. A little moan escaped my lips.
"You orgasm too perfectly for a virgin"
I chocked on my coffee, shocked at her comment, and spilling some drops on the paper during the process. Then there was Vivian glued to her laptop screen, the only one who can pass such a lewd comment absolutely deadpan.
"Damn!" I cursed at the mess and then glared at her, while she passed some paper tissues, I snatched it from her and gloated dramatically.
"Look who's talking! I totally regret thinking of you as an angel a little while ago."
"Well you might now regret, regretting about it. And, for your kind information, I am already betrothed to someone, my parents won't be happy hearing your thoughts. You know I am supposed to save my v card for that air headed jerk."
"Even when you know he has laid every woman in the circle and beyond. Why is it you who has to save your virginity?" I spoke exasperatedly, raising my hands in the air.
Vivian took a sip of her overly sweet coffee while still typing on the keyboard, "Because that's how it works in my world Eriantha. What he can, I cannot. Just like how your brother is the only one who can succeed your father, even though he doesn't know a shit about perfumes, while you literally hyperventilate when you have to live outside the world of perfumes."
She calls my full name whenever I made her mad.
"Touché '' I laughed, I wasn't hurt, because I know Viv said it all to make a fair point. Of course, I know about it, and also that bringing up her engagement with Leonel Karwitz always rubbed her the wrong way.
But this was my little amusement, watching how every time even the calm and collected Miss. Vivian Ambers could get all riled up.
Without budging Viv passed a file on my desk which had a caption written in commanding uppercase, 'Report on Debenture'.
How did she manage to prepare this within just a couple of days!
No wonder a top level B-school degree can come handy, and Vivian had an impressive GPA to make it perfect.
Viv had our back, and that was the only good thing about this chaos we had been going through.The first day we entered this little office, I could feel that we were in a stinky manhole with no one to pull us up. Half of our trustworthy old staff members were gone, thanks to my father's whims. Then from a little investigation we found out that father had fired half of them to give jobs to his favoured mistresses, and even they left because he was selling out company assets like garage sales and they figured out that it was better to leave a sinking ship than to be capsized. So the first task that Anders and I had to do was to save our dying company, which was left with one old secretary Mr.Hasen, Richard, our newly hired accountant who was a terrible case of migraine, and Jerome, our security person, and very little money.
Well, less staff meant less people on our payroll, and loads of work to be done by ourselves. Fortunately our production unit was still running decently.
I thank my stars everyday that Viv had volunteered to help us out, claiming that there was no better way to make use of her B-school degree, which she absolutely dreaded otherwise. So, while Anders was running around cleaning up Father's mess and tying loose ends with our most trusted clients and dealers. I was wrecking my brain with all the information one can get about our industry, and trying to find out anything that can save us. Vivian has been a real help in dealing with our asset and liability parts, guiding Richard, which is more of her doing the major works and him following her lead. After all, with loan sharks breathing on our neck we needed to know where we were standing.
As I was going through her impeccable report, I couldn't help but wonder if she really hated it, or if it was just her little rebellion against her family. At Least, my Alma mater aided my passion in a certain way, but for Viv there was no way a degree in business management had even an iota of link with her canvas and paint brushes. My best friend is quite a successful painter who has been keeping it a secret using an alias. Just like I was a perfumer who has been selling stuffs online with a little brand called 'sobriquet' which ironically fitted my situation. With the little money I made from my sale I pursued my passion secretly.
It was almost lunch time and Viv was wrapping up, it was Friday she had to attend one of those charity dinners with her fiance, organised by the Karwitz.
"Do you really have to go? Didn't you attend dinner with him a couple of days back?" I tried to make my most adorable puppy face, my sole intention was to push a few buttons, knowing fully well it would make her smart.
Viv rolled her eyes,it was rare to capture such vivid expressions from my poker faced beauty, but it was gone the very next moment.
"Of course, I did. That was his aunt's birthday dinner, family affair." She frowned as if recalling something momentarily, and then continued, "This is about networking and smiling for the cameras. Not that it makes any difference to me, for no matter what the occasion is I am just like a brooch on his lapel."
Viv smiled, but I could feel the lump in her throat which she concealed just in the moment. I hated myself for playing the prank.
"Don't go. Tell him you aren't well." I suggested knowing fully well that wasn't a choice she could make.
Even though we are best friends there's a part of Vivian which she never shows to anyone, not even to me, like why she wears full sleeved long dresses even in the middle of summer. I would give everything to get access to that closed door, as a voice in me tells me that someone locked inside that room needs help. Everytime I try to take a step forward Viv draws a line, and I feel terrible each time she does that. Maybe I haven't proven to be a trustworthy friend.
Just like how right now she turned to her heels, completely ignoring what I said earlier, "See you tomorrow dummy, don't try to survive on caffeine."
As if seizing the moment, Anders barged inside the office,he was disheveled and all the blood from his face had left him, ever since father's demise I get worked up whenever he acts unpredictably.
"Thank god you are here Vivian, we badly need you." My brother has never been so relieved seeing my best friend the way he sighed just now. In fact, I feel he is competitive when she is around, because he feels I lean on her more than I do on my brother lately, this was the very reason why I had to let in my little secret to him. He blinked at me a couple of times, his agitation showing up in his clenched knuckles, and lips pressed into a thin line, "Drop everything that you are doing. We have a problem."
Eriantha"Anders, do you even know that you are scaring us?" Vivan was the first one to speak, as I was hardly breathing, it has been like this ever since we have learnt about the loan sharks. Whenever Anders goes out I am worried that they might do something to him, or whenever he says things like this, or when looks riled up I feel as if we are in danger.We have deliberately kept the loan shark issue a secret from Vivian, that's because we both know if she learns about it, she will try to help us, using her family's money or her connections.Its already a problem for her that she has been coming here everyday hiding from her family. We don't wish to pile up on her problems. There was no point in tarnishing her with this dirt."That's because it's a bit of a situation here" Anders quipped while grinding his teeth, he was trying to subdue his pent up frustration. My brother doesn't like my best friend and I am the reason behind it."Are you going to sit like an snow man? Didn't I tell
Darcel'CognoScenti' is a person who 'Loves' perfume.That's definitely not me, for even though I am heading the Karwitz chain of perfumes, I don't care about the stuff, I only care about the business it makes.'A pervert'Of course not how I would like to describe myself even in all the years that I have lived so far, and yet when this five feet something, slip of a woman stepped inside this ridiculous hole they call meeting room, I found my dick throbbing. And the next thing I wanted was to bend her over this apology of a table and fuck her, until this whole office echoed with her screams of my name.What's wrong with you Dar?It was quite a little shock when I got to know that she was the Daughter of Fredrik Reux, the previous Head of the Reux Perfumes, who had hung himself, and even though on papers his depression was stated as the reason behind his actions. But, it was as clear as daylight that, he harmed himself because things had gone out of hand in the company.Reux perfume
Eriantha"I... I... Don't understand what you are talking about Mr.Karwitz."I spoke after clearing my throat, I couldn't believe my voice sounded this coy. My nervousness was palpable, and my breathing was hitched.He was leaning too close... Hot and cold, I have never experienced those two sensations together. But that's exactly how I was feeling at this moment.How does he know? Why does he know? Those two questions were making me lose my mind. There was no way anybody else other than Viv and Anders, would ever know my little secret. It's impossible for him to remember me from that competition, I even used a pseudonym. Sorbiquet is a small online business that operates through social media, it's only popular among students. A third party b grade company manages it. He shouldn't even know about its existence.When I had seen emails I considered ignoring them as spam. Yet, here is Mr. Darcel Karwitz himself offering me a position at Karwitz Perfume's creative team. I already had
ErianthaPeople seek shelter at their homes when it rains outside, but how does one protect themselves in a home which has no roof?You get wet in the rain either way, for you have nowhere to hide.My situation was somewhat similar, Darcel Karwitz came like a thunderstorm and I had nowhere to hide. I found Anders approaching the meeting room right after Mr. Karwitz left. I would have done the same thing, obviously he was curious, he definitely wanted to know why the mighty CEO of Karwitz perfumes of all people wanted to meet his sister.But instead I avoided him and made a run for the elevator, because I needed to think before I could tell him anything, my lungs needed some fresh oxygen and my nerves definitely needed to relax a bit, before I could speak with Anders.'Fuck Eri, you also need to think, what to tell him and how much to tell him. Anders already had too much on his plate, don't make it even worse for him.'I was overwhelmed by the situation, and by that sinfully gorgeous
DarcelEriantha Reux was the biggest anomaly I have ever come across, and I can swear I hated anomalies until I found her.I had half expected her to decline my offer by tomorrow and the other half of my irrational hope said that it would need some more manipulation, some more sacrifices of my immaculate schedule to get her on board.Yet, she was sitting right here in my living room, wearing an impeccably formal attire for a Friday evening, along with a pair of neck breaking red heels which definitely encouraged some extra attention. Her legs were slim and my fingers itched to trace them, and my lips craved to feel her flesh along her ankle to her lean and tender calf and beyond that.'Since when did you develop a foot fetish Dar?'I am getting an appointment with my therapist the first thing on Monday.I tore off my gaze from her legs to her face, she was trying hard to suppress her nervousness, and I could see she had put on a lot of effort concealing her bare face behind a layer o
Eriantha"Why are you here Miss Reux?" My words from this morning were copied and pasted to the tone, back to me.I had rehearsed this conversation throughout my drive to his apartment, and I was just lucky that I found him here, because, he had mentioned in many of his interviews that he doesn't like to stay in his city apartment, unless he has some business at the headquarters.Play it cool Eri.I reminded myself,.Don't reveal your angst in front of him. I tried hard to imagine Vivian, how she would be relaxed and put together,with her plastic smile, even when she was under pressure, she would never reveal her insecurities. I relaxed and smiled back at him, as if his pinning gaze hasn't affected me at all, like him in white t-shirt and grey sweatpants isn't a sight to behold at all, or the veins running in his arms doesn't distract my thoughts in anyway."You have a lovely apartment Mr.Karwitz." I gestured at the neatly arranged living room with black and grey walls, and finest i
Darcel'Fuck'I couldn't believe my own words. Was it me? Did I really say it! Eriantha's large eyes grew larger, than they already were out of sheer shock and disbelief . The last bit of waning sanity in me was pleading to my reason, which had already bit the dust.I knew I was vicious, and I grabbed the first opportunity presented to me to capture her, the sinister darkness caged inside me lurked at my prey. I couldn't let go off this opportunity of keeping her by my side, and indulge into that scent which has ensnared me like an addiction.'You are a selfish opportunist Darcel, the moment you felt unsure about her intentions for asking to fake date you, you turned the tables and made it into something beneficial for you.'Always looking for a win-win, I decided that, I would throw Maximilian Karwitz's cards right at his face. I will gain a greater leverage on my perfumer, so that she can't back out. "What?" she finally let those words out.Among the many things that I excel
Eriantha"Trust me you are enough," I was under his sweltering gaze, which immediately sent electric shocks right down to my nether area, I couldn't take my eyes off his fingers, which were languishing his lower lips."However," he continued "in order to make it appear more convincing, you shall mortgage Reux Perfumes to me." He stated as a matter of fact.That's it, nothing comes for free in this world, he must have had his eyes on our company just like Vivian had said, i should be my cue, I should leave, in fact it was a naive move to come here on the very first place.My heels hurt, but I didn't smart and stood on my feet."That's impossible, I would never do that, I can't betray Anders, I would never sell out our company..."Darcel gritted his teeth, I could see his jaws clenching, his composure was replaced by anger.Can't I even speak my mind? What did he imagine I won't be able to see through his intentions?"You aren't helping yourself, with this habit of reacting before you