Caden's POV
I left for work earlier than I usually did. Today I had papers to sort out. I was going to meet some artists to talk about collaboration deals and I needed to buy art pieces, to add to what we had and I was going to add some of my work.
I had to plan to avoid paying extra due to some of them working on commission.
As I tried to park properly in the parking lot, that feisty red-haired passed by, I noticed how long her hair was and her clothes were fitting, giving the perfect trace of a pair of firm hips and perfect derrière I didn’t know she had. Her legs were long and slim. Her waist was narrow enough to make me lose my breath and I couldn't help but curse myself.
What was I doing checking out an annoying bitch when I had so much to do?
I got out of the car and walked inside, walked right past her, and I don't think she noticed because she had her head buried in the files in front of her, mumbling incoherent words to herself.
What surprised me was the other worker, Trevor, who was also looking at her with so much longing like a teenage boy, things seemed to be getting interesting.
Once I got to my office, I began to work on the papers. Some hours went by and there was a knock on the door.
“Come in” I groaned.
The red-haired entered and as funny as it was, I didn't even know her name.
I raised a questioning brow at her after noticing that she was carrying some files.
“These are the files you had asked me to sort out sir. They have been arranged alphabetically and I also made a little note carrying the dates they all arrived here...” She explained quietly while handing me the files but trailed off as if she was talking too much.
I took them from her, but not before noticing how slouched her shoulders were and for the first time she wasn't glaring at me, there was no aura of confidence she always carried and she seemed defeated.
Something was definitely off about her, and it made me curious.
“Thank you,” I said politely and gestured for her to leave.
Once the door closed and she was gone, I opened the files and scanned through each page slowly. I didn't realize how long the files were nor did I notice how tired I was but she had made my job easier by her thoughtful arrangements.
I was so focused on the documents that I didn't notice the time passing by.
I was startled when I heard someone clearing their throat. I looked up and saw Rosey Claire. She was wearing a well-tailored crepe suit, her hair was neatly combed and tied in a bun, and her makeup flawless as usual, making her already perfect complexion appear even better. She smiled at me warmly.
“Surprise!” she announced with enthusiasm, making me roll my eyes.
“What are you doing here and who let you in?” I groaned.
Rosey shrugged nonchalantly, sitting beside me on the table, “I have my ways and hello to you too” She had an annoyed expression as she closed off imaginary dirt from her nails.
I frowned at her, looking down at the files in my hands. Rosey followed my gaze and chuckled.
“So you're done with your work?” she questioned me and I just shrugged.
“Yes and no” I replied vaguely. “I have more to do,” I informed her.
“Why haven't you been taking my calls,” Rosey asked, raising a perfect eyebrow at me and pressing her lips together while crossing her arms across her chest.
“Because I have been busy” I retorted curtly.
“Busy” She repeated mockingly. “You think that I'm stupid enough to believe that?” she scoffed and gave me another disapproving look.
I shrugged. “I don't give a shit whether or not you are stupid or not. So stop trying to distract me from my work. Why do I have to take your calls?”
I asked irritatedly.
Rosey ignored my question and crossed her arms tighter across her chest, clearly upset.
I huffed, closing the file and placing it back on the desk then looked back at her with a raised eyebrow. She was frowning at me and she seemed frustrated. I narrowed my eyebrows at her.
“What?” I growled.
“You know what!” she snapped angrily.
“You can leave now if you have nothing to say” I suggested coldly.
She shook her head “Not until you tell me why you are acting like this?”
“I always act like this Rosey Claire”
“We are in a relationship, Caden. Act like it!” she snapped and crossed her arms again, still tapping her foot on the floor in annoyance.
I rolled my eyes and sighed deeply, closing my eyes briefly. How many times did I have to tell her this? I should have stopped after we fucked the first time to avoid all of this but this woman was blessed and did blissful things to my cock with her mouth.
My horny ass got me here.
“We are not in a relationship Rosey Claire”
“We are,” she retorted defiantly. She didn't care that she was being childish anymore.
“And why should I listen to you, Rosey Claire?” I asked her in annoyance.
“Why shouldn’t you?” Rosey responded, her voice rising slightly.
“I don't want to Rosey” I snorted, rolling my eyes.
Rosey scowled at me. “Well, you should,” She said and stormed away.
I felt relieved when she was gone and relaxed slightly before I stood up and left the office.
It was time for the meeting with the artists and when the redhead brought printed copies of the agreement for each of the artists, I could feel their eyes on her as she moved across the room.
The artist sitting beside me could barely suppress a whistle and while others seemed to get it and were grinning from ear to ear, the girl seemed oblivious to the attention she was getting from our group of artists, completely unaware.
That only irritated me further as I tried to ignore everyone staring at her.
When she turned to leave the room, their eyes followed like they were looking at a tasty piece of chicken waiting impatiently for it to come out of the oven until she disappeared behind the door.
When they finally turned to me, the glare on my face was enough message as I watched them squirm on their chairs waiting for my wrath.
Caden's POVThey sat there speechless, their eyes widening as they observed the glare on my face. The room fell silent, with only the faint sound of their breaths breaking the tension. Their expressions oscillated between confusion, concern, and a hint of fear. It was evident that my reaction had caught them completely off guard.They didn't expect me to be watching.As seconds turned into an uncomfortable time, they exchanged perplexed glances, silently seeking answers from each other. I remained stoic, my face, an inscrutable mask, giving away nothing of what was transpiring within.Eventually, one of the artists mustered the courage to break the silence, his voice trembling slightly. "Is something wrong?" He cautiously asked, his words barely audible. The vulnerability in his tone hinted at the extent of his concern and it irritated me greatly.His words hung in the air, waiting for a response that seemed reluctant to come. I took a deep breath, slowly exhaling, allowing the tensi
Anna's POV“Can you stop looking at me like that?” Erica was driving us home and I could feel her glancing over at me regularly. She is supposed to be focused on driving.“Like what? Are you guilty of something?”She turned to me again.“Your eyes should be on the road Erica, I don’t want to die, squashed in a car like a bug” I wasn't lying, I didn't want to end that way and I couldn't understand why I was being unnecessarily accused tonight.First Him and now Erica?“What were you guys talking about?” I should have known that was where she was driving.“Nothing” I wasn't entirely lying… I wasn't even lying.“It looked like something, you guys were standing pretty close” There was a glint of mischief in her eyes as she demonstrated with her hands.“Hands on the wheel Erica!” I yelled.“Fine. You don’t have to be so mean” She grumbled.My eyes were back to looking out of the window, they moved around random things from the couple that was holding hands while they kissed, a group of teen
Anna's POV“Hello? Who is there?” It was pathetic how my voice shook. No response.The only response I got was the sound of my voice echoing through the ominous street making it look like a scene from a horror movie and scaring the shit out of me.The figure wearing the hoodie didn't move, I could only tell he or she was standing straight with hands in the pocket of the hoodie but it couldn’t possibly be a she, the shoulders were too broad, way too broad to belong to a female, the arms looked muscular too.It couldn't be that… Could it be that it was him? At the thought of that, I could suddenly see a similar physique between them.The stranger was standing still.I did what any sensible person would do, I ran back into the house and locked the door. My heart was beating so fast as if it was threatening to fall out of my chest, my pulse quickened and beads of sweat had begun to form on my forehead and tears welled up in my eyes.I closed my eyes, pressing myself against the door whi
Caden's POVI was in one of those moods where everything made me angry.I pushed Rosey Claire away when she tried to kiss me the next morning and she left after a dramatic exchange of words.I left too early for the gallery to work on the papers which was a wrong idea because I ended up disorganizing everything Anna had arranged the previous day.Nothing seemed to be working and I didn't want to take the pills that were laying helplessly in the drawer beside my table, waiting for me to use them but I couldn’t, I didn’t want to.The buzzing of my phone wouldn’t let me be. Different people were asking about the opening and for the first time I thought of canceling the whole process.Wouldn't that be a slap on my face? On Mama's face? That I failed to keep my dream and hers, the one thing she always held with high esteem- after me, the one thing that made her happy when she was not caressing my face or when she was not tugging gently at the roots of my hair when she was not spending time
Anna's POV“Are you okay? Do you want water?” Erica asked me, the worry laced on her face.I shook my head. I didn’t want water and most importantly, I didn’t want to be left alone.I used the back of my palms to wipe off the tears.“Do you want to talk about the nightmare?” She asked me again.I shook my head.I didn’t want to talk about it. I wasn’t even sure what it was about. All I knew is that the nightmare made me cry and that was all I wanted to do. Erica waited for a few more minutes before she gave up on wanting my answers.She pulled me into a hug.“You’ll be fine baby, it was just one nightmare”.I knew it wasn't.But I couldn't tell her about the man I had seen outside - or I thought I had seen. I didn't want to terrify her. No, I didn't want to terrify myself.I drifted off to sleep in Erica's arms, hoping that everything would be alright. The next day I woke up feeling almost human again. I thanked Erica for being there for me and even managed a small smile.She told
Anna's POVTrevor asked me out on a date. Yes, you heard right. It was a funny sight because he was a blushing and stuttering mess and I was gaping at him like a fish that had been brought out of water.My mind was empty, my brain was fried. It didn't make any sense. I couldn't understand why Trevor would ask me out on a date, he was insanely good looking and I was… Well, plain Jane. They were so many people he could have noticed like Tricia with the gorgeous caramel skin who was always eye fucking him, Lois who seemed to glow when she was talking to him and he could have easily chosen anyone.I couldn't believe Erica was right.“Are you going to say something?” Trevor was looking at me expectantly. I even forgot that he was still in front of me.“Um… Er… Yes,” I stuttered.“Yes?” he looked so excited that I couldn't help but tell him that wasn't what I meant.“Yes,” I tried to catch my breath.“Great! I’ll pick you up by seven” And he hopped off, leaving me standing there.It was alm
Anna's POVMother always said art was in and for everyone, it didn’t matter what you were doing and how you were doing it, she could swear it was lying deep within you.She always said this when she was brushing the red hair I inherited from her, only that hers was a bit more startling and wild. It was a furious shade of red that reminded you of the beauty of fire and the danger around it.It used to warm my heart that I took over her and it warmed my heart even more when people said it.She was always a dreamer, she made me one and it took me a while to realize the world wasn't a place for my unrealistic dreams.It wasn't a place for people like me.It wasn't a place for people like her either.That was why she drowned in alcohol. She died from her unrealistic dreams of thinking my father would change, thinking he would love her again and they'll be back to that childhood sweetheart they once were.But it never happened.On the night he left, his voice ran around the house like a vio
Caden's POVWhat could be worse than Father blowing up my phone and Rosey Claire?Today, I got an invitation to a hotel opening in Brooklyn, it was scheduled for tomorrow evening. It wasn't necessarily a new opening, it was an opening of another branch since Mike Taylor had one in California already. The Taylors was a first-class hotel with first-class services and I had an extra invitation card to come with my assistant which was a waste because I didn't have one…Wait a minute. I didn't have one true but I had a receptionist who played the role of a receptionist and a personal assistant.A particular redhead…I could give it to her but would she want to come? I knew the answer to that, I'd like to see her argue and I'll break it to her that I was the boss and it was mandatory.I wasn't lying, Mike Taylor was a big name, and honoring his invitation simply meant he'll honor mine. It was how the system worked, it was how the wealthy and affluent stayed up.Jimmy was going to be in town