Leah
"Where the heck are you?"
Mr. Scott's stern voice cut through the speaker.
"Uh…home?"
This man always made me nervous.
"Young lady, I'm trying my best not to unleash my fury, but if I don't see you in the next five minutes… I'll sue you! You hear me?!"
The phone went dead.
I stared wide-eyed into space.
Could he really sue me? I'd prepared my resignation letter last night, but I hadn't submitted it yet.
My phone lit up with new messages from Rachel. Apparently, she'd been calling and texting me since morning.
"What's going on?!"
I checked the time. Eight AM. I only worked bi-weekly at the hotel on Saturdays, and today wasn't one of them.
I quickly scrolled through the messages.
"Mr. Scott is furious! Where are you?!"
"Didn't you get the email?!"
"Leah, pick up your phone!"
I widened my eyes. What email?
I opened my inbox and there it was. I'd been told to come in today. The email had been sent at four AM, followed by a string of missed calls from Mr. Scott.
What is going on?
I flew out of bed.
An hour later, I was dressed and combing Jason's hair. Matt was parked outside, ready to pick him up.
"Mum, can I go with you?" Jason whined for the hundredth time since he'd found out I was going to work.
"No, Jason."
"But I want to meet him."
"I said no."
"Why not?!"
I threw an exasperated arm into the air. "He's a busy person. You probably won't see him."
"But today is Saturday…"
"Jason, please! Can we talk about this later? I can't take you with me. No one will look after you while I'm working."
That shut him up.
For now.
Downstairs, Matt helped me carry Jason's bag to his car.
He didn't look as happy as he had last night. Things had been left hanging after Jason dropped the bomb on us.
I found it strange Matt hadn't asked any follow-up questions. He'd just chuckled a bit, then decided to take Chloe home because she wouldn't stop crying.
Was he hurt by what Jason had said? I knew he'd always joked about Jason being his son and Chloe's older brother.
"Matt, are you okay?" I asked as he drove me to work.
I'd been throwing glances at him, even tried starting a conversation, but he only gave me single-word responses.
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine."
I wasn't convinced, but I couldn't probe further because we'd arrived at the hotel.
My heartbeat increased as I stared at the looming building.
"Leah?"
"Yeah." I turned to him.
"Let's talk over dinner tonight, okay?"
"Uh…okay," I replied, confused.
Something was definitely wrong. I couldn't dwell on it for long, though, because this hotel had somehow dominated my mind.
Because of a certain someone.
I kissed Jason, who was staring at the hotel longingly, and said goodbye before turning toward the entrance.
I inhaled long and deep, shook off the nerves, and walked inside.
I braced myself, expecting Mr. Scott to pop out of nowhere and tear into me.
He did pop up.
But strangely, he didn't yell. He was only in a hurry.
"Quickly, the boardroom!" He handed me everything that had been set up for whoever they'd assigned to take my place if I didn't show.
I saw Rachel by the corner and looked at her for answers, but she just shrugged. She was as confused as I was.
For the third time, what's going on?
"Uh… Mr. Scott…"
"Shh, shh, shh!" He waved me off, slightly pushing me forward. "Hurry now. They're waiting."
"Who's waiting, sir?"
"The higher-ups. Now go!"
I didn't dare ask more questions. Whenever he was like this, we just acted without questions.
I walked toward the boardroom with the trolley filled with different types of tea and snacks.
Deep down, I had a feeling I knew who'd orchestrated this.
At this point, he'd do anything to torture me.
Leave it to the rich to play their sick games on people they think are weak.
Oh, he has something coming for him.
"Concierge here with your tea," I announced.
"Come on in!"
I inhaled deeply, plastered on a cheesy smile, twisted the doorknob, and slid inside.
I was expecting to see his stoic face staring at me with disdain.
Instead, I saw a lady and a man sitting side by side at the long boardroom table.
"Hi!" The older lady with traces of gray in her brunette hair greeted me with a beautiful smile.
The man nodded.
I smiled and exchanged pleasantries.
I didn't understand. I'd been so sure it was Mr. Thorne who'd sent for me.
I don't know these people.
"Oh, please hold on," the lady said when I asked what they'd be having. "We're waiting for someone. Once he arrives, we'll…oh, there he is!"
I didn't have to see the person to know it was him.
His woody scent reached me first, sending me right back to that moment he'd had his lips on mine.
I slowly turned around and saw him strolling in casually, wearing a breathtaking smile that literally took my breath away.