The CEO'S Favorite

I blink once, twice, repeatedly just to make sure I am seeing right. I am. I lift my head and when I do, I lock eyes with the one person I simultaneously want to see the most and not see at all. My boss.I'm a hundred percent sure my face portrays my disbelief as I push open the doors and walk into the building. Does he despise me that much? Firing me when he could see that I was only outside the glass doors.I'm pretty sure he did it just because he's trying to get rid of me. That, or it was just a power play. I can't tell with him.Shawn, my boss—ex-boss actually, what a fucking joke—expels a sigh at my arrival and speaks before I even get the chance to get a word out. "You got my text, didn't you? Why are you in here?"I don't know whether to scream at him or plead with him, but then I think about Lucas and how hard it'll be to find a new job in record time. It's not like we'll suddenly go broke if I don't get my paycheck this month, but I don't want to have to start chirping at my

This day can't get any worse.I decide to get a drink. I don't go with any of my friends because they're not as miserable as I am at the moment and because it's a weekday. Every normal adult has a job.For the first night in a long while, I leave Lucas in the care of a babysitter and I go to a club. I'm still putting on my attire from earlier, the black and white outfit. But immediately after I step into the club, I bump into an intoxicated girl who spills her drink all over my white shirt.As if that's not bad enough, she gets frantic trying to clean off the stain. I end up pleading with her to stop apologizing since she's not helping.That should deter me, but it doesn't. I really need that drink. I need to drown out my situation in alcohol. I need to forget about everything for a night, so it doesn't come crashing on me full force later on.So, I just swallow all I'm feeling, visit the ladies' room, remove my shirt and try to wash out the drink stain from it. Since I have no way to

I wake up the next morning with a bad case of hangover. I'd forgotten how annoying hangovers were.Luckily for me, the babysitter is still present and she helps prepare Lucas for school.I don't get up until I hear a knock on the door. I groan. "Don't come in."The person comes in anyway and I open my eyes slowly when I hear the light footsteps coming toward me. It's Lucas. "Hi, mommy."I sigh internally, hoping he doesn't ask questions that I can't give the answer to. "Hi, baby.""I picked out my outfit myself." He grins proudly. He's putting on a grey undershirt, grey shorts, and a blue striped flannel shirt, complemented with his blue converse. I chuckle. He does have an eye for good things."You did, didn't you?"Lucas frowns at my lack of enthusiasm and peers down at me. "Are you sick?""Something like that. Don't worry, I'll be okay."He looks at me like he doesn't believe me and leans down to place a kiss on my forehead. "Feel better."I can't help but smile at the gesture. Eve

"Me." He replies unblinking. I don't know what to say. I look at him from head to toe. He's dressed in a three-piece suit and his tie is in place, unlike the last time I saw him. His hair is jelled backward and his eyes are a perfect mix of blue and green. He has a tattoo on his left middle finger that I didn't notice the night before. It's the drawing of a crown. I wonder what it means.Gabriel hums, the sound bringing my eyes back to his face. I watch as his eyes trail appreciatively across my body. "At least, you're not wearing a half-wet shirt this time.""What the fuck?" I ask, standing up from the chair. He watches me, amused, and arches an eyebrow. "I asked you if we would see again!"I don't know why that exits my mouth, but it already has and I can do anything to change it. "It depends." He repeats what he told me."Well, I didn't plan to see you again like this.""How would you rather see me?""I don't know, but definitely not with you handing over a job on a fucking silver

"I'm fucking tired."Gabriel looks up at my entrance, somehow not seeming surprised to see me. "Aria," he muses, dropping his pen on the document before him. "What did I say about your foul mouth?""Fuck that and fuck this.""Fuck what exactly?""This!" I snap, waving my arms wound to emphasize my point. "All of this. I can't work where I'm not welcome. I'd like to terminate my contract, please."My dilemma seems like entertainment to him. He stands up from his chair, making me take a step back involuntarily. He expels a chuckle, but doesn't stop as he rounds his table, coming to a stop in front of it, and leaning back against it. "It's your first day.""And my last."He arches a sharp eyebrow that has me momentarily pausing to admire his perfectly shaped brow. My eyes run across his face, his almond-shaped eyes, his slightly pointed nose, his pretty ass lips, his angular face, and his sharp jawline, and I marvel at how someone can be so perfect. God really has a favorite. I'm about t