by Long, A. L.
“Alex, I don’t feel very well. Do you mind if I leave and head back to the office?”
“No, not at all. Go, I’ll see you later.”
Dylan couldn’t get to the office building fast enough. All she wanted to do was cry. Walking as fast as she could, she saw she was within a block of her building. Upset with the news Alex just shared with her, she wasn’t watching where she was going. Her heel got caught in an air grate. She couldn’t stop herself from falling. Stretching her hands out in front of her, she tried to soften the impact of her fall. When she hit the pavement, she could feel the rough concrete dig into her hands and knees as she landed. Sitting on the concrete, unable to hold back her emotions, she began crying. Everything about the man she was falling for was a lie. She felt betrayed.
A tender hand gently touched her shoulder. “Ma’am, are you okay?”
Dylan looked up at the concerned voice and saw a middle-aged man, in a suit, standing beside her. “I’m fine.”
The man took her arm and helped Dylan to her feet. “Are you sure you’re okay?” he said with warm eyes.
“Yes, thank you.” Dylan’s hands and knees were stinging, but she managed to make it to her office building. As soon as she got inside, she headed to her floor and slipped inside the ladies room before anyone saw her. Locking herself in one of the bathroom stalls, she sat on the toilet seat and began wailing like she lost her whole world, which at that moment she felt as if she did.
Dylan was finally able to pull herself together and left the confines of the bathroom. She needed to make other sleeping arrangements for tonight and tomorrow night. After today, she couldn’t stay at the penthouse knowing what Rade did. How could she be so stupid in letting him in? She wasn’t going to cry one more tear for him. Taking a seat at her desk, she pulled her cell phone from her purse and dialed Lilly.
“Lilly. Hi, it’s Dylan. I need a favor,” she said with determination.
“What’s wrong, girlfriend? You don’t sound right,” Lilly asked.
“I’ll tell you about it later, but for now, can I stay with you for a couple of days? Just until my apartment is ready.”
“What happened, Dylan? Did he hurt you?” Lilly voice became louder with each sentence.
“I can’t talk about it right now, but I promise I’ll tell you everything. Can you come get me from work around 5:00?”
“Yeah, sure, Dylan.”
“Thanks, Lilly, you’re the best.”
Dylan hung up with Lilly and tried to focus on her work. Every time she tried focusing on a file, she thought about Rade. There were only a few more hours left before Lilly would be here to pick her up. She needed to get some work done. Picking up another file, she was finally able to focus. By the time it was five o’clock, she felt better. Even though she didn’t get much done, she decided she would come in early tomorrow and get caught up. The more she concentrated on work, the less she would think about Rade.
When Lilly pulled up to the building, Dylan quickly ran to her car. She was afraid that Richard would see her get in with Lilly and let Rade know. The last thing she wanted was to have a confrontation with him. Dylan opened the car door and gave Lilly a small gaze before she began letting go. Lilly pulled away from the curb as soon as she had a clear exit. Lilly asked Dylan what happened and Dylan explained every detail in between sobs.
“Oh, Dylan, I am so sorry.” Lilly didn’t know what to say to her friend. “I knew I shouldn’t have let you leave with that… that asshole.” Lilly knew she didn’t trust Rade, and Dylan’s confession confirmed her suspicions.
When they got to Lilly’s apartment, Lilly suggested Dylan take a long bath while she fixed them both something to eat. Dylan didn’t argue with her. Dylan walked to the bathroom and turned on the lights. When she saw her appearance in the mirror, she started crying again.“Why am I crying over this stupid man? I knew I should have walked away from him. I should’ve never trusted him with my heart. I should’ve known that he would break it. It’s my own fault.” Rubbing the tears away, Dylan reached over to the tub and began filling it with water. She saw that Lilly had some bath beads on the edge of the tub. Smelling the beads, Dylan poured them under the stream of water and watched as the bubbles began forming in the water. When she saw the water was high enough, she turned the water off and began stripping off her clothing. Once undressed, she slipped into the heat of the water and began soaking, relaxing in the comforts of the lavender scented water. Closing her eyes, she began seeing Rade. His face, his eyes, his perfect body, the way he touched her, the way he held her, the way he kissed her, the way he made love to her. Tears once again began to form in her eyes.
“Dylan, you okay, girlfriend? Dinner’s ready whenever you are.” She heard Lilly’s voice at the bathroom door.
Dylan wiped her tears away. “I’ll be right out.”
Dylan dried herself and put on a soft plush robe Lilly gave her. Wiping the steam from the mirror, Dylan looked at herself. All she could see were her red puffy eyes and swollen lips, remnants of her recent breakdown. When she opened the door, she could smell something wonderful as she headed to the kitchen.
“Dylan, you look awful,” her friend said.
That was the last thing Dylan wanted to hear. “Thanks, Lilly.”
“Here take this; it will make you feel better.” Lilly handed Dylan a glass of wine, which Dylan took with no hesitation.
The two of them sat at Lilly’s small breakfast bar and ate dinner. Lilly ate while Dylan drank most of her dinner.
“Dylan, you’ve hardly touched anything. I hope it’s not my cooking.”
Dylan looked up at Lilly with a half smile. “No, my friend. I guess I’m really not that hungry, but I would love another glass of wine.”
Lilly looked at Dylan with concern. “I think you’ve had enough to drink, Dylan. Why don’t you let me tuck you into bed? You can sleep in my room and I’ll take the couch.” Lilly helped Dylan to her bedroom, got her in some warm pajamas, and tucked her into bed.
“You’re a really good friend, Lilly. I love you. Thank you for the charm.” Lilly wasn’t sure what Dylan was talking about.
“What charm?” Dylan looked up at Lilly with glazed over eyes.
“The one you sent me, silly.” Lilly was confused by Dylan’s comment.
“I didn’t send you a charm, Dylan. Maybe you have a secret admirer.”
“Yeah, maybe, night, Lilly.” Before Lilly could respond, Dylan was out cold.
Lilly went back to her tiny study to remove the cushions from her pullout couch. Getting ready to get some blankets, she heard Dylan’s phone ring. Digging through Dylan’s purse, she pulled out her cell phone. She saw Rade’s picture as the caller.
“What the hell do you want? Haven’t you done enough?” Lilly blasted at him.
Rade knew it wasn’t Dylan talking to him. “I would like to speak to Dylan.”
Lilly clinched her jaw at his request. “Yeah, well, she doesn’t want to talk to you.”
The more Rade listened to the voice, the more he knew it was Lilly. “Lilly, please let me talk to Dylan.”
Lilly tried to stay calm. “Like that’s going to happen. Besides, she’s sleeping.”
Rade was now pleading with Lilly. “Lilly, please, I need to know that she’s okay. When Richard called me and said Dylan didn’t come out of her office building, I got worried.”
“Yeah, well, serves you right. She found out you own Northgate Financial. She’s done with you.” With those last words, Lilly hung up on Rade and turned off Dylan’s phone. The last thing she wanted was to hear the phone ringing all night.
Rade couldn’t believe Lilly just hung up on him without allowing him to explain. He tried several times to call back, but it went straight to voicemail. He even sent her several texts. If he couldn’t talk to Dylan on the phone, he was going to talk to her in person, but he needed to cool off first. He would wait until morning when his head was clearer. The only way to do this was to explain this to her
face to face, and without Lilly there.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Dylan woke up with her head pounding like a MAG truck throttling every inch of her head. Stumbling out of bed, she was on a mission to find relief. Walking to the bathroom and opening the medicine cabinet, she spotted some pain reliever and popped two in her mouth. She cupped her hand under the bathroom faucet drinking a handful of water to wash it down. What was she thinking? She knew she needed to go to work today and let Veronica know she would need to resign. Taking in a breath, she exhaled with defeat. “Oh God, I can’t quit. I have nowhere to go.” Looking in the mirror, Dylan knew she had to suck up what Rade did. She needed this job. She had nothing without it. It would take too long to find another job equivalent to what she had.
“You look better, girlfriend,” Lilly said, sitting at the breakfast bar with a cup of coffee in her hands.
“Except for my massive headache, I’m good.” Dylan went to the counter and poured herself a cup of coffee and sat next to Lilly as she continued. “I don’t have any clothes here, Lilly. Can I borrow some from you?”
Lilly looked at Dylan sympathetically. “Of course you can. Pick whatever you want.”
Dylan was thankful that she and Lilly were the same size. Dylan gave Lilly a small hug.
“Dylan, I wasn’t going to say anything, but Rade called for you. He wanted to know how you were. I told him you were done with him.”
Dylan wasn’t surprised he called. She knew once he found out she didn’t leave with Richard, he would know something was up. “Thanks, Lilly.”
Lilly grabbed Dylan’s hand and squeezed it. “Everything will be okay, Dylan. It might take some time, but it will, I promise.”
Dylan smiled at her friend and headed back to Lilly’s room to take a shower and get ready for work.
After her shower, Dylan got dressed. She picked out a turquoise blue sheath dress, black heels, a bra and panties set that Lilly had just purchased, but had not yet worn. Even though Dylan was more endowed in the bust area, she was still able to fit into the lacy bra without falling out. Dylan went to the bathroom to look at her appearance. She could still see that her eyes were puffy from her emotional episode. With a little make-up, she was able to cover her meltdown. She thought she looked pretty good considering what she went through less than 24 hours ago.
The cab driver pulled up to Northgate. Taking a deep breath, Dylan leaned forward and paid the driver twenty dollars and exited the cab. She wasn’t sure what today would bring, but she wasn’t going to think about Rade. She was going to concentrate on her work, show them that she was a valued employee even though she got the job under false pretenses.
“Hi, Sam,” Dylan said politely.
“Hey, Dylan. Hope you have a good day,” he responded with a bright smile.
After greeting Sam, Dylan sauntered over to the elevator and punched her floor. When the doors opened to her floor, she saw Alex sitting at his desk. He was wearing a pink shirt, a black checkered tie with a gray button up vest over it. If anything else, his wardrobe always made her smile.
“Hi, Alex.” Alex cocked his head and smiled up at Dylan.
“Hey, Chica. Veronica left these for you to work on.” Alex handed her a stack of files.
Dylan took them from him. “Thanks.”
Dylan crossed the room to the frosted double doors and headed to her office at the end of the long hallway. She knew the files Veronica left, plus the ones she didn’t finish yesterday, would keep her busy all day, which was exactly what she needed.
Dylan had been working diligently on her files with no interruptions. When she looked down at her watch, she saw the hour. She worked all morning without a break. She was just about to sign off her computer and grab something to eat when the door to her office opened. Entering her office without knocking, she saw Rade standing in the doorway. He met her eyes and saw the hurt in them. He also saw a trace of red in her eyes, evidence that she had been crying. Dylan tried to talk, but the words wouldn’t come out.
She cleared her throat. “I have nothing to say to you, Rade.”
Rade walked to Dylan, stopping in front of her as she rounded her desk with her things.
Lifting her chin, Rade looked into her eyes, regretting not telling her the truth. “I’m sorry Dylan.”
“What are you sorry for, Rade? Let me see. Which is it… for not telling me you own this company, or for getting caught?” Dylan moved past him, unable to look at him. She knew if she did, she would fall apart again.
“Dylan, please hear me out.” Dylan slowly turned around. “Say what you came here to say, then you can leave.”
Brushing his hands through his hair, Rade began telling her the truth. “I didn’t know you had an interview at Northgate until you told me. When I spoke to Veronica, she told me that she was already planning on hiring you. She was very impressed by your academic achievements.”
Dylan was listening to Rade still unsure about his confession. “What about the apartment and the pay?”
“I may have gone overboard with the apartment, but I knew you needed a place to live and I had to be sure you would be safe. The salary may have been a little over the top as well, but I wanted to make sure you were taken care of,” he confessed to her.
Dylan thought about what to say to him. Compromise. “Okay, here’s the deal. I’ll stay in the apartment until I can find a place of my own, but I’ll be paying the rent. I also want my salary adjusted to something more realistic to my qualifications. What you did hurt me, Rade, but I love my job here.”
Rade could see the hurt he caused her. “I will compromise with you. I’ll agree about the rent, but it will be renegotiated for two-thousand a month instead of five. Your salary stays where it is. You deserve it, Dylan. I have seen your work since you’ve started here.”
Rade moved closer to her, reaching to hold her in his arms. She backed away, saying, “This doesn’t mean things are good between us, Rade. I don’t think I can trust you again. I think it’s best if our relationship remained professional.”
Taking Dylan by her hand, he slowly walked to her side and whispered in her ear. “I know I hurt you, Dylan, but I will not let go of what we have. I’ll do whatever it takes to get your trust back.” Moving his mouth from her ear, he gently kissed her temple as he left her office.
Overcome by his words, Dylan grabbed the arm of the chair behind her and lowered herself to sit. Every nerve in her body quivered. How was Rade able to have this effect on her? She took a deep breath and pulled herself together. Giving herself a few moments, she picked up her purse and coat and headed out of her office to grab something to eat. If she was going to put in a long day, she needed the fuel to make it through. Letting Alex know she was going to grab a quick bite, she entered the elevator.
Returning to her office, she saw another package waiting for her on her desk. Dylan took off her coat and draped it across one of the chairs in front of her desk and picked up the package. She inspected the box to see if she could tell who might have sent it. Just like the other package, there was no labeling indicating the sender. Rounding her desk, she called Alex to see if he knew who dropped it off. Alex told Dylan it was dropped off by a courier. Opening her drawer, she pulled out a pair of scissors and began opening the package. Once again, there was a small white box wrapped with a black ribbon. Dylan untied the ribbon and lifted the lid. Another gold Japanese charm was displayed in front of her. She didn’t know what this all meant. She picked up the box and dumped out all of the packaging foam to see if there was anything else in the box she may have missed, but there was nothing.
Setting the charm back in its box, Dylan brushed it away as she called Lilly. She wanted to let her best friend know about Rade and her decision to stay with the company.
“Hey, Lilly.” As Dylan explained what her plan was, she could tell Lilly wasn’t happy. “Lilly, I have to do this. Even though what he did was wrong, this could be a chance of a lifetime for me. I really want to prove to m
yself and to this company it wasn’t a mistake.”
“Okay, Dylan, I hope you know what you’re doing,” Lilly replied with frustration.
“I have to do this. Anyway, I got another charm from my secret admirer. I wish I knew who it was from.”
Lilly was getting concerned from the gifts showing up at her office. “Dylan, don’t you think this is getting strange?”
Lilly could hear the hesitation in Dylan’s voice. “No, there has to be an explanation. Maybe my dad sent them. I’ll give him a call.”
After Dylan finished her call with her dad, she started getting worried. Her dad didn’t know anything about the charms. Maybe she did have a secret admirer. She couldn’t worry about it now, she needed to concentrate on getting through her work load, otherwise she would be staying longer than she wanted.
*****
Rade left Dylan’s office feeling guilty for not letting her know he owned Northgate. He had to make amends with her and try to get her to understand why he did it. His initial motive to get her hired was to keep an eye on her. Even though that had changed, he would never be able to tell her the real truth.
Rade’s phone pinged, letting him know that Dylan was making a call to Lilly. He was just about ready to ignore it when he decided maybe it would give him the opportunity to find out what she was really feeling. Listening to her conversation didn’t help his situation with her. Dylan pretty much told Lilly that she was done with him and her work was now her top priority. She also mentioned to Lilly that she got another charm. This disturbed Rade. He still had no idea who was sending them and why. When Dylan described the second charm to Lilly, Rade knew there was a message behind it. He knew from their conversation that Lilly didn’t send it, and if her dad didn’t either, that only meant someone else sent it. He needed to find out who and he needed to find out what it meant.
Rade was going to go back to Northgate and at least make sure Dylan would arrive at Lilly’s safely. He didn’t care if she refused to let him drive her or not.