Elliot's POV
I stared at my best friend as he sat across from me in my office.
We grew up together. Our fathers were very good business partners.
I vividly remember spending holidays with his family.
They even threw me a surprise birthday party when I turned twelve. They are good people.
"You need your cock sucked," he randomly said. "You're way too grumpy."
Let me correct myself. His family are good people, not him.
"What do you want Blake?" I retreated from giving him any insults.
"Don't ya miss me?" he asked. "You have me workin' at these branch offices like you don't want me around here."
"Of course, I've missed you," I answered, relaxing a little bit. "Don't be ridiculous. I just need someone I can trust to handle what I can't."
"Fair," he agreed before he began to smile. "She is sexy."
I leaned back into my chair and raised my eyebrow. "Who? New girl?"
He nodded his head. "No wonder you've been keeping me away. You want her all to yourself."
I showed him my ring. "You can have her."
"Oh please," he said. "Your chemistry with Olivia is as good as your chemistry with a tree."
"I happen to have very good chemistry with trees," I felt the need to defend myself even though he knows how I feel about Olivia.
"Come on," he said. "At least agree she's hot."
"I can't," I said. "I don't see her like that."
He knows that too.
He frowned. "Your loss. I'm going to make a move on her."
I turned on my laptop. "By all means go ahead. Just not at the workplace."
"The romance has to start somewhere," he winked and I shook my head.
There was a soft knock on the door before Blake opened it.
A large smile instantly grew on his face when he saw her standing there.
I felt jealous.
Not because he liked her, but because he could like her.
I want to smile when I see Olivia. I want to smile when I see anyone.
It's just not there.
Why do others get that feeling so easily and I can't?
It makes me angry.
I just want to experience that. At least once.
She did that fake smile that I told her she was terrible at.
"So you do have a death wish?" she asked him.
"I'm still alive aren't I, cutie?" he asked. "No funeral planning for you."
She laughed.
Blake was such a flirt.
"Am I interrupting?" she asked him and Blake shook his head.
"No, I was just leavin'. I gotta head back to the office," he said before waving goodbye to me.
When he left, she closed the door behind her.
I watched her long legs stride to my desk and her short skirt rose each time.
Her clothes fit so tightly on her body that I'm sure they leave marks on her skin whenever she removes them.
She seemed to enjoy that style of fashion, just like every other high-society woman would.
Each day she would wear something with a different style.
It had Olivia fuming.
Last night she was screaming at her designer to make her new, 'exciting' outfits.
Even though we slept in separate bedrooms I could still hear her screams as she searched for a good outfit in her closet.
I've never seen her so riled up over something before, especially clothes.
"I'm so sorry for showing up to the meeting late sir," she apologized. "I didn't know, but I promise that I ran as soon as I found out."
"It's fine," I simply waived off, which was rare.
I would usually be angry at an employee who walks into a meeting late. Time is precious, they would miss out on important information which I rarely repeat.
However, this was her first meeting so I cut her some slack.
"What do you want, new girl?" I asked and she placed a file on my desk.
"An employee accidentally messed up the account for Lots Insurance," she said.
"Okay," I said as I lazily scanned through the file. "And what do you want me to do about that, new girl?"
"Could you waive the mistake?" she asked. "It was an honest accident."
I nodded when I found the mistake.
"Okay," I said as I closed the file and threw it on my desk.
She continued to stand in front of me as those hazel-green eyes pierced into me like a dagger.
I pointed to the door. "You may leave. Thank you."
"I'm waiting for you to do it, sir."
"I'll do it later," I told her as I returned my attention to my desktop.
Then she smiled.
Not this again.
"I promised her that she'll get it by the end of the day so I'll need you to do it now," she said politely.
I paused before turning to look at her.
"That's not how it works, new girl," I said. "I'll do it when I'm available."
"A promise is something that I can't break, sir."
"Then I'll break it for you," I answered as I started to get pissed. "Leave."
She didn't move a muscle and I was shocked at her sudden boldness.
Ignoring the fact that she walked into the meeting twenty minutes late was already gracious, but allowing her to act like this was asking for too much.
"Ms. Sinclair, I gave an order. I suggest you follow it," I warned.
"It'll only take a minute," she explained to me as if this was my first time handling a situation in which an employee messed up.
"It seems like you can't take orders from your superiors," I answered when I finally stopped being gracious.
"No, I can," she replied. "I can't take orders from rich, entitled assholes like yourself."
I watched her in shock as I tried to process what she said.
I stood up from my seat and I glared at her, making her tall frame seem like it was nothing compared to mine.
"Watch your words, new girl," I said making sure that my tone was filled with authority.
I could see the flash of fear in her eyes before it quickly disappeared.
She picked up the file and opened it in front of me. "It'll only take a minute, sir."
Is this woman serious right now?
"Please," she said. "Fulfilling promises is very important to me. Just place your signature by the mistake and I'll take care of the rest."
I narrowed my eyes as I tried to figure her out.
Why? Why was this such a big deal to the point where she had to insult her boss?
Why would she risk her job just to keep a promise to someone she barely knows?
She's only been here for a couple of days.
This was not a life-or-death situation.
This was just for a mere employee.
She picked up my pen and handed it to me. "Please."
"It will cost you," I told her and the fake smile on her face slowly faded.
"What is the payment?" she asked hesitantly and I felt satisfied.
I pointed at the box which had been sitting in the corner of my office for months. I didn't want to sort it out and feared that it would be a mistake to allow someone else to do it.
"Sort that," I said and her eyes widened at the stack of files.
"All-all of it?" she asked and I nodded before sitting down.
"Don't you have people for that?" she asked me.
"I need to know if those accounts should be closed or not. Use the skills I hired you for to sort it," I told her and she watched me as if she was upset that I gave her work to do.
As if she isn't getting paid six figures.
"So are you going to do it or not?" I asked her, ready to kick her out of my office.
"Okay," she muttered in defeat and I nodded.
"Don't make your earlier words come out of your mouth again or else there will be harsher consequences," I warned as I signed my signature.
"I'm sorry sir," she said as she picked up the file. "I don't know where those words came from."
Me neither.
I thought she was one of the sweet ones.
"You're dismissed," I said as I returned my gaze to the computer.
"Thank you, sir," her soft voice spoke before she rushed out of my office.
She is not who she appears to be.
I don't trust her.