Clara blushed, but as the elevator door opened, they had to separate and pretend they were not there together. But with the number of people riding the lift, Clara got backed into the corner, and he took that opportunity to hold her hand. He laced their fingers together and hid their hands behind him. There was a need deep inside him to constantly touch her, kiss her, or just be with her. For the first time in his life, he wanted to defy all conventions and follow her around like a lost puppy all day so he could protect her. After that incident in New York, he felt uneasy whenever she was out of reach. When they got to his office, she told him what had transpired with her father. Clara told Sebastian how guilty she felt and how she did not know how to approach the problem of revealing her identity to her family. Apprehension filled her whole being because it scared her to think they would reject her and c

Lunch had been an enjoyable event. That morning, Clara received a few calls from Lana about the New York bid. Rowan was still insistent on having SST install their security system in his office. But she had to talk to her brothers about it. After that, another company wanted to schedule a demonstration, so she set that up too. Having her appointment, one after another, all in the morning, freed the rest of her day. So she could have lunch with her father and then spend more time with Baz after. She was looking forward to dinner so she could spend time with her team, find out what they’ve been up to, and then head over to Baz’s house. She hadn’t seen her brothers in a while, so she headed to their makeshift office.  Jeremy had been busy since yesterday, connecting all the hardware with the software. Making sure that both systems were in sync. If there was

‘Sebastian!’ ‘Ms. Johnson!’ ‘Sebastian!’ ‘He’s on an important call!’ I need to talk to you right now. ‘I told her you can’t... she barged right in,’ Clara and Lexi shouted over each other as they walked into his office. ‘Let me call you back,’ Sebastian says to the person on the phone when he sees Clara coming to see him. He had a big smile on his face. ‘Here’s my love,’ he thought.  ‘It’s okay, Lexi. I’ll take care of Clara.’ Lexi grumbled on his way out. ‘You look furious right now. What happened?’ He asked as he stood up. ‘How many sleazebags do you employ in your office? Was the one harassing me not enough? Do you have one in every department I should know about?’ she ask

Max wiped a hand across his eyes, wiping the anguish away. He did not want to argue with Clara, but he had to bring his point across. His future was on the line.  ‘Do you know why I never have long-lasting relationships? Because the minute I tell them I’m an orphan, their attitudes change. Even though we have our own company and we are rich, they don’t care about that,’ he looks away, ‘I have no family, so I am not good enough for them. Ask Jere why he doesn’t have a relationship. It’s because people see us as rejects.’ Clara wanted to hug Max right now, her brother did not deserve this treatment from people. It made her mad. Then he went after her to get his point across, ‘Why did you wait ‘til you met Sebastian Clara? Have you met his parents? Did you tell them you’re an orphan? Oh yeah, how convenient, yo

After the company dinner, Clara had Jeremy caught up on what happened. They talked about the stigma of being an orphan and how they had avoided talking about it for the longest time. How they all knew, but nobody wanted to acknowledge that they didn’t have love lives because of that.  ‘Jere, I like Heather a lot, and I know you do, too. Please don’t let this hold you back. She’s known you since you were teens. Her family likes you already, so there should be nothing holding you back,’ she says. ‘Give it a try, and if it doesn’t work, then it doesn’t. I don’t want you losing out on something that’s within your reach.’ She touches his face. ‘Don’t hesitate. You have a lot to offer. Any woman will be fortunate to have you in her life.’ Jere nods. He doesn’t know what to do. This was all new to him. Clara was ri