Considerably Wicked: A Dark Romance

by Leigh Frankie

  “I…” Liezel paused, trying to choose her next words carefully, but she couldn’t manage to think of anything to say that would express how sorry she was and convince Sinclair to give her another chance.

  “Exactly,” Sinclair snarled, turning his head away.

  Liezel reached over and placed her fingers under her boss’ chin, tilting his head to face hers. She was suddenly aware of how close their faces were, and she blushed almost instantly. She leaned in slowly and closed the gap between them, kissing him slowly and sweetly.

  Sinclair reached for her hand and guided it down to his pants, slowly rubbing it against his erection. “I’m sorry to tell you, but I have already moved on…without you. But, if you’re still up for a quick fuck, then I can set my anger aside for a few minutes. For old time’s sake.”

  “I didn’t come here to—”

  “Let me tell you how I’m reading this situation right now, Ms. Blanco: you walking in here in your tight ass skirt and sheer white blouse simply translates to you offering me a good fuck.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “You see, you can go ahead and bend your knees and give me the best blowjob you ever can or leave my office because I didn’t call for you.”

  “Fuck you!”

  “No can do, Ms. Blanco. Let me be very brutally honest with you—I am no longer interested in buying things for you just so I could bend you over and fuck your brains out. You gotta look for another rich guy to—”

  “You asshole!” she spat and stormed out of the office before another harsh word would escape his mouth. She kept her head down, trying her best to act normal to avoid getting any curious looks from anyone. She quickly walked out of the floor and ran straight to the place where she knew she could unload the burst of emotions swirling inside her.

  As soon as she closed the door behind her, she collapsed on the staircase as she broke down crying because, in that very moment, she hated herself more than she hated Sinclair.

  Growing up, she was once a fan of the kind of romance she found from the movies she watched and the novels she read, but when her mom divorced her dad for not being able them with their needs anymore, her views changed tremendously. She had told herself countless times before that those chick-lit stories were boring and that there was nothing wrong with going after what you want—not necessarily what you need. Before she met Sinclair, she would always prefer to live in the now and never really wanted a fairytale ending—men who could give her the bests of the world had become her Mr. Right.

  Cinderella could suck it, she used to say—but, after meeting Sinclair, a part of her had wished to have the kind of ending Cinderella had at the end.

  Chapter 17

  Mistletoe

  When the rain started to fall steadily from the sunless sky, tapping a metrical rhythm on Will’s car, Una wished she hadn’t said yes to him when he invited her to his office party. Another party, she frowned at the image of people laughing, talking and having a blast in front of her while she stood as the observer and as an outsider. But, having to take on the role of a girlfriend, it was one of her many responsibilities to show up to whatever her boyfriend had invited her to. Or at least that was what she understood when she read those articles she googled Responsibilities of a girlfriend in a relationship and How to be a good girlfriend? during her spare time.

  “Are you alright—”

  She heard Will pause.

  “Miss—Una?”

  A small smile formed on her lips as she nodded.

  When she took on Liezel’s advice and told Will about it, it took quite a while—a day and a half to be exact—to stop calling each other by their last names. Surprisingly, when she heard her name rolling out of Will’s mouth, it didn’t sound weird or alien to her at all.

  When they arrived, the rain had slowed down to a soft sprinkle. Will got out first and opened the door for Una. He offered his hand, which she hesitantly took before they walked toward the MaxxTech building. Will pushed opened the door and let Una in before him.

  A tall Christmas tree was blinking in the middle of the lobby, and Una could hear soft Christmas tunes in the background. She walked towards the bank of elevators, taking in her surroundings as Will pushed the button for the 17th floor. She stared at the vibrant lights flashing around the Christmas tree and the collection of boxes wrapped in fancy papers that sat underneath it. She could still recall how she used to wake up to a similar setup when her parents were still alive. She was an only child, and even at such a young age, she could already feel her parents spoiling her by giving her almost everything on her Christmas wish list.

  “Let’s go?”

  She suddenly felt Will’s gentle hands on the small of her back as the elevator door opened, drawing her out of her brief trip to her childhood.

  “Merry Christmas,” a blonde woman greeted her as soon as their eyes met when she craned her neck to her right.

  She only smiled in return. Looking around, she saw that three more people were standing behind them.

  They heard a ding sound, and the door opened, and the three stepped out, leaving her and Will alone inside. But before her mind could take her somewhere, the door opened again, and suddenly, Frank Sinatra’s ‘White Christmas’ started crooning as they stepped out and walked down the hallway to the function room.

  “Let me take your coat.” Will slowly took off her coat and handed it to a waiting staff member at the door.

  Immediately, Una felt self-conscious and wrapped her arms across her chest

  “Una, you look beautiful,” Will assured, picking up on the uneasiness that was written all over her.

  The small, red satin tank dress wasn’t her first choice to wear that night because of the v-neckline that slightly showed off cleavage. But, it was the only dress she could find that covered the scars on her thighs.

  She and Will entered the room and made their way across the floor and to a table that was already occupied by a familiar face.

  Glen caught them walking and waved at them like he was drowning. “Will! Finally.” Una stared at him as he breathed in and out loudly. “Una! Wow! You look hot!”

  Una frowned and took a seat next to Will.

  “Dude, you look nice too.”

  “Thanks, buddy.”

  Una turned to Will and wondered why she hadn’t noticed that her boyfriend indeed looked nice in his white shirt and navy blue blazer. When Will met her gaze, they were suddenly staring at each other for seconds too long that Glen had to clear his throat and mumble inappropriate comments before loudly saying, “Hey, let’s go get some drinks, William.”

  Will smiled and stood from his chair. “I’ll be back.” He smiled down at Una before making his way to the bar with Glen.

  Una stared at them, counting the seconds while they’re gone. It wasn’t like it was her first time to go to a party with Will, but thinking over the fact that it was the first party they had gone out to as a couple, it kind of made her feel odd. Like she was worried about what Will’s officemates would think about her. Thanks to Liezel, she was fully aware of the other women in the office who was crushing on her boyfriend.

  Boyfriend. No matter how many times Una tried to think about it, the word still felt foreign for her. Like the whole concept of him being her boyfriend was still as strange as having coffee with a complete stranger on a rainy day.

  “Now, you look a little sluttish tonight…” Her thought broke once again as soon as she heard Liezel’s familiar voice.

  She turned in her seat—at little upset with the word her friend had described her—and saw Liezel sitting next to her, clad in a black slinky bodycon, showing off he ample cleavage and slender legs. But it wasn’t her provocative look that bothered Una more, it was the strong smell of alcohol that clung to Liezel.

  “Are you already drunk?” she asked, her nose wrinkled in distaste at the sharp smell.

  Liezel grinned. “Nope! You’re an hour late, by the way. You and your boyfriend over there.” She pointed at
Will approaching their table with Glen walking beside him. “You’re one lucky girl, Una,” she said softly.

  “Hey, Liz,” Will greeted, placing a glass of wine in front of Una.

  As Glen’s interest in Liezel’s decision to wear black sparked a conversation between the three of them, Una sat in her own thoughts, wondering how she could avoid running into Sinclair that night. She knew something was up between him and Liezel, and she didn’t want her to think she had anything to do with it.

  She suddenly felt a tap on her shoulder, and when she turned to her right, she saw Will’s blue eyes looking at her. He was so close he might as well just brush his nose against her bare shoulder.

  “Oh, get a room, both of you!” She heard Glen exclaimed mockingly.

  “Are you okay?” Will asked, ignoring Glen.

  Una nodded. “Yeah.”

  ***

  Just over two hours into the party and Liezel was already sipping her third glass of Cuban mojito after Maddy had told the bartender to stop serving her whiskey and tequila.

  Stupid, she thought as she sat by the bar, looking at the people on the dance floor, laughing, talking, flirting while dancing. After the humiliation and hurt Sinclair had caused her, she had decided to just quit and forget all about it—and just like what she did into her previous relationships—move on. She had planned not to show on the next day, but when her bills started coming in, and her landlady started knocking on her door, she knew she couldn’t quit just yet. So she decided to stay, and for the past three days, she made every effort to avoid talking to Sinclair as much as she could by making sure everything he needed on that day was already on his desk before he came in. Although it didn’t prove to be very difficult as well because Sinclair almost never left his office.

  There were times, of course, that he would call her, but he was always brief with his instructions, and the calls were never a minute long. This hurt her more, but she somehow learned to suck it all in and pretend like they never happened.

  Sinclair came half an hour late to the party, and right as soon as he made his little speech in front of everyone, he disappeared into the crowd. Liezel never bothered to follow him or even talk to him. She had reminded herself over and over again to never stoop low like she did. She made a mistake, and Sinclair wasn’t a forgiving man. She had to accept that and never try to win him back by offering herself to him again.

  Liezel took a sip of her drink and decided to re-join Una and Will until Maddy took the seat next to her.

  “What a boring night, huh?” Maddy sighed, crossing her leg over the other in a tired manner.

  Liezel gave her a once-over and smiled at how covered she was in her red sweater dress, green leggings, and leather boots. “Is the heater not working?” She had been meaning to snap at her for telling the bartender she could only have a mojito and some mocktails until the end of the party.

  “Ha-ha!” Maddy sneered then called the bartender for a rum and coke.

  “Wow. I thought you were going to ask for a tall glass of milk and a cookie.” Liezel laughed.

  “Liezel, just because I don’t want you to get drunk—and start acting stupid like more people do when they get sloshed in parties—doesn’t mean I’m a bitch.”

  Instantly, Liezel’s face softened. She never liked people minding her business, but she could see the sentiment was real, and she, somehow, appreciated it.

  “Unlike those two foolish women from finance, fawning over Mr. Godfrey, I don’t want you to embarrass yourself.”

  “What?”

  “Giselle and Monica from finance. I saw them laughing and flirting with him. Well, too bad for them, though…” Maddy trailed off.

  “What do you mean?” Liezel asked when she didn’t finish what she was saying and started sipping on her drink when the bartender handed it to her.

  “I mean, no matter how much skin they display for him, he’s not gonna bite. Not after that scandal.” Maddy giggled, finding it surprisingly amusing.

  “Scandal?” It wasn’t like Liezel hadn’t heard of it, she had, but she never really had gotten to listen to the complete story. Aside from the fact that it happened long ago, she never really had time for office gossip when she was still working for Belinda. And she still never got the time to mingle with the people in the office, aside from Will and Glen, when she started working for Sinclair.

  Maddy’s eyes widened in surprise. “You hadn’t heard about it? That was a time long ago. Some college girl named Rose. The rumor was that she was from a bad crowd. Sinclair was so in love with her, though. Belinda, as expected, didn’t approve of her younger brother’s relationship with a junkie. To cut the story short, Rose OD’d. It became a bit controversial since Rose’s mom insisted that her daughter had been clean for three months. But the story about it just shut down, and nothing’s been heard from Rose’s mom after that. Some said Belinda paid her to shut up.”

  “Wow. How long have you been working here?”

  “My god! Six years.”

  “I heard about it when I was in college, but the news never got around for long,” Liezel muttered, her eyes finally looking for Sinclair.

  “Well, of course! They got the money to shut everyone up.”

  ***

  Three hours into the party and Una felt worn-out and was ready to go home. She could no longer push aside all the discomfort brought on by the dress she wore and the feeling of how much she couldn’t relate with the people all around her. She had looked for Liezel twice, but when she saw her talking with someone by the bar, she retraced her steps and sat back to their table. She looked around, and suddenly she wanted to finally leave. She didn’t feel like being social, although she never really liked to in the first place. She was only there because of Will.

  Having felt like she had paid the girlfriend duty enough—met his coworkers, smiled, and shook their hands—she asked Will if they could go home. Now, all she wanted to do was hug her pillows and maybe have a couple of scoops of ice cream.

  Will smiled and agreed to ditch the party more willingly so than she had expected. Maybe he was not enjoying it as much as the people who had gathered on the dance floor, flushed with joy as they break some moves to the Christmas dance medley in the background.

  Once outside in the hallway, Una stopped. “I have to go back, I forgot my coat.”

  “I’ll go get it,” Will offered and was on his way back in seconds.

  Standing alone in the lobby while people around merrily take pictures of themselves, Una walked over to the entrance door. As the light breeze from the open door swept in, she shivered when she felt the night breeze on her skin.

  “Una?”

  She turned around and saw Sinclair. Looking tall and handsome in his suit, she instantly noticed how his mere presence had created such as sudden buzz from the people who, seconds ago, were too absorbed in taking pictures of themselves.

  “What are you doing here?” She heard Sinclair ask when she didn’t say anything to him.

  “I forgot my coat. I’m waiting for Will.”

  Sinclair frowned. “You’re already leaving?” He casually walked to her, hands in his side pockets, his expression turned light, and a smirk formed on his lips. “Well, I can’t blame you, to be honest. I never really liked office parties.”

  Una nodded, folding her arms in front of her chest.

  “Do you want to go back inside and wait for him there, though?” he asked her, ignoring the fact that she just told him she was waiting for Will.

  She shook her head. “He just went back to get my coat.”

  He tapped his lip with the tip of his finger as though he was thinking of another way to make her go back inside. But before he could open his mouth to try and persuade her again, he saw Una’s face lit up, and when he turned around, he saw Will walking towards them.

  “My coat.” Una reached for her coat, but Will wrapped his arms the small of her back. “Will?”

  And then he kissed her. In front of Sinclair.
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  He pulled her close to him, and she hesitated at first. But soon enough, when she could no longer hold off the sensation in the pit of her stomach, she kissed her back.

  When they heard the soft aww around then, they pulled back from the kiss.

  “Why?” Una softly asked, heat flooding her cheeks from their unexpected display of affection.

  Sinclair looked up. “Mistletoe, of course,” he answered for Una and sauntered away.

  True enough, when Una looked up at a little higher, she saw a sprig of mistletoe above their heads.

  “The only way we can leave this spot is with a kiss,” Will explained to her, smiling.

  “Oh.”

  He helped her put on the coat and took her hand as they walked out of the building and on to the parking lot.

  The rain may have stopped an hour ago, but the night had only gotten colder that Una tightened her coat around her. They made it to Will’s car when he suddenly told her, “Can you just wait for me inside, Una. I just need to ask Mr. Godfrey about something.”

  She followed his gaze and saw Sinclair walking over to a car. “Okay,” she said and got inside the passenger seat.

  Will jogged across the parking lot. “Mr. Godfrey.”

  “Will.” Sinclair turned around to face him, slightly surprised but not looking a bit pleased to see him.

  “Has someone parked in your space in the basement car park?”

  “You came all the way across here to ask me that?” he asked. “But to answer your question, I left my other car parked there. I got a little drunk last night and couldn’t drive.”

  The shivered as the wind blew through the parking lot.

  “Mr. Godfrey,” Will started, sniffing as his nose began to clog from the cold. “I’m not really sure if you already know…”

  Sinclair’s eyebrows furrowed. “Know what, Will?”

  Will smiled. “That Una and I… well, we’re seeing each other and…I guess what I’m trying to say is I’d really appreciate it if you’d stop with whatever it is that you’re planning.”