Cringe

Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

Daisy Bloom had always been small. Not just in stature, though she was exceedingly petite, but also in presence. Hovering at the edges of rooms, fading into walls. She had perfected the art of being unseen.

So, it didn’t surprise her at all when the door to the café swung shut right in her face after someone else entered. Shoving at the metal bar, Daisy made her way inside with her head hanging low, her sensible shoes clicking against the worn linoleum.

“Finally,” her best friend Claire called from across the space, the sharpness of her voice overshadowing the teasing tone.

Chin lifting a scant inch, Daisy let a trembling smile pull at her lips as she made her way over to the small table Claire had commandeered.

Leaning against the table with arms and ankles crossed, Claire was a vision of bold colors and chic lines.

Tall and thin with flowing locks of blonde hair and bright green eyes, she was the epitome of sexy.

It made Daisy feel even more awkward in comparison.

“You’re late,” Claire said, eyes scanning Daisy’s hunched form with a critical eye. “And you look ridiculous.”

Daisy bit her lower lip, looking at her outfit. The baggy sweater and shin-length skirt were professional enough for her job as Mr. Blackwell’s secretary. Tugging at the hem of her shirt, she ground the toe of her shoe into the floor.

“It’s comfortable,” Daisy murmured, heat suffusing her cheeks.

“You’re invisible, Daisy! No one’s going to pay you any attention if you keep dressing like that.”

Attention was the last thing Daisy wanted. Still… she hated never being noticed. Fingers clenching over the strap of her purse, she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. As much as she hated confrontation, there was nothing she could do about her outfit now.

“I don’t want—”

“Here, put this on,” Claire said, shoving a roll of bright red fabric into Daisy’s arms.

“What?” Blinking slowly at the silken cloth, Daisy let it unfurl from her fingers. It was so small that it took Daisy a long moment to realize it was a skirt. “I-I can’t wear…”

“You can. You are.”

A whimper slipped over her lips as she tried to fold the minuscule fabric up, to hide it away so that she didn’t have to do this.

“You’re barely existing in that outfit,” Claire snapped, plucking the sleeve of Daisy’s sweater. “No offense, but it’s like you’re wearing a blanket. Put the skirt on. It’ll be an improvement.”

“I don’t think I can.”

“Go put it on. I’ll wait.”

Daisy sucked in a huge breath, blinking back the tears trembling on her lashes.

Clutching the skirt tight to her chest, she shuffled her way into the bathroom.

Biting her lower lip hard, she worked her way free from her perfectly acceptable skirt and slid on the one Claire had given her.

It was tight. Short. It barely reached her mid-thigh, showing the length of her legs.

Swallowing hard, mincing steps brought her to the mirror above the sink.

Turning from side to side, Daisy’s blue eyes grew wide.

The red silk clung to her butt, leaving nothing to the imagination.

Smoothing her palms over the fabric, she tried to make it reach just a little lower to no avail. Sniffling back her tears, that Claire would make fun of her for, Daisy bundled up her skirt and stuffed it into her purse.

Back in the café, Claire’s wide smile met her.

“Much better,” Claire fairly purred. “Now own it. I don’t care how you feel in it, just act like you belong in it.”

Daisy gave a slow nod before raising her chin. Shoulders settling back, she stood up to her most unimpressive height.

“Now, off to work with you!”

Gasping through her nose, Daisy looked around in a panic. It was one thing for these strangers to see her wearing this thing, but work?

“I mean it, Daisy,” Claire snapped as she pulled her tote and purse over her shoulder. “Don’t embarrass me… or yourself.”

A small whimper escaped Daisy as she shrank down into herself. Still, she gave a small nod as she clutched her purse closer to her chest.

“And just to be sure,” Claire murmured, snatching Daisy’s purse away to riffle through the contents. Unearthing Daisy’s skirt, she pushed the wadded up fabric into her tote before handing the bag back to Daisy.

Daisy’s eyes squeezed shut for a brief moment. She had had every intention of changing again, and Claire had known it. It was why she was her best friend.

“Kiss, kiss,” Claire called over her shoulder as she waltzed out of the café, abandoning her half finish drink and muffin on the table.

Daisy’s lips flattened into a taut line as she gathered up the refuse and carried it to the trashcan before she, too, left.

The entire way to work was terrifying. Getting more than one glance, Daisy almost turned around to march straight home to change once more, but every time she could hear Claire in her thoughts. Telling her she was being a big baby, that she needed to put herself out there more.

Reaching the office unscathed, she entered the elevator up to the one hundred twenty-third floor. The ride felt longer than usual, each inch ticked off with the faint rattle of steel wire. Each mirrored surface reflected back her anxious fidgeting, ratcheting it higher with every floor.

On her way to her desk, heads turned. People whispered. Daisy was cognizant of the stretch of the brilliant red skirt, the way it pressed and pulled at her skin with each step. Heart slamming against the back of her ribs, she scurried past them all in the hopes of hiding at her desk.

She definitely wasn’t invisible anymore.

Seeing the open tablet on the surface organized to within an inch of its life, a whimper tumbled over her lips. Somehow she’d forgotten that she needed to see her boss first thing.

Wanting to delay the inevitable, Daisy deposited her purse in its drawer.

Turning on her computer, she went through Mr. Blackwell’s schedule for the day.

Gasping, she realized his lunch was scheduled for when the restaurant was busiest, a thing he hated.

Grabbing the phone, she dialed their number to change his reservation.

As soon as she replaced the receiver in its cradle, her phone began ringing. Answering it, she murmured affirmatives as the client confirmed their appointment.

Unable to put it off any longer, Daisy gathered up the tablet and whatever remained of her courage and turned to face her boss’s office.

Steps slow, she made the simple trek in what felt like hours instead of minutes.

Anxiety bloomed in her chest, nerves fraying faster than Daisy could pull the ragged ends back together.

King Blackwell was beyond intimidating. A powerful man, he controlled the business as well as everyone around him with an iron fist. He towered over her, making her feel even smaller.

He was quite a bit older than Daisy’s twenty-two years, but he was as fit and well-muscled as any young man she had ever seen.

Inhaling deep, she tapped her knuckles against the door. Waited in breathless silence for his call to enter. When it came, she eased the door open just enough for her slim body to squeeze through.

Mr. Blackwell’s back was to her as she entered. His broad shoulders in his impeccable tailored suit of dark charcoal blocked the view of the city below. Hesitating on the threshold, she sucked her lower lip between her teeth and bit down hard on the tender flesh.

Then Mr. Blackwell turned, his startling blue eyes finding her at once.

The world stopped spinning on its axis for Daisy.

Her heart pounded against the back of her ribs, trying to break free of its cage.

She’d memorized that turn. The way his broad shoulders shifted beneath his expensive suits.

His jaw tightening when he was displeased.

The rare, fractional lift of his brows when he was impressed.

She watched him. Every meeting, each time she passed him in the hallways.

When his eyes found her, truly found her, something deep in her chest unfurled like it had been waiting for sunlight.

Raking a hand through his thick, lustrous black hair, the tousled waves settled back into place. Mr. Blackwell canted his chin, the impeccable arch of his eyebrows rising.

Daisy stood frozen, unable to move further into the room, or to run as she was so desperate to do, as Mr. Blackwell stared at her as if noticing her for the first time.

He scrutinized her from head to toe, taking it all in with an impassive expression on his sharp features.

Heat bloomed in her chest, travelling down her center to between her legs at the look on his face.

She didn’t understand what was happening to her.

Daisy let out a breath of a whimper as she inched forward with the tablet outstretched. Her toe caught on nothing, sending her stumbling forward. Catching herself on the edge of his desk at the last moment, tears pricked the back of her eyes from her mortification.

“I’m so sorry, sir,” she stammered out. “I’m not—I mean, sometimes, I…”

Mr. Blackwell leaned back against the floor to ceiling window, arms sliding across his chest as he crossed them. The muscles of his biceps rippled beneath expensive fabric, bulging at the seams. He let out a low chuckle, though his full lips remained unsmiling.

“Well, this is new,” he murmured, his intent gaze still centered upon her. His voice was dark, heady, filled with something she couldn’t name.

“I-I brought you the r-report, sir.” Daisy struggled to her feet, extending the tablet towards him. “Your ten o’clock confirmed, and I changed your lunch reservation to two, because I know you hate the noise—um—”

“You noticed.”

Of course she’d noticed. She knew everything about his life within this office. The way his shoulders tightened in crowds, how he rubbed his temples when meetings went on for too long.

Unaware of when she’d started keeping track, it’d been something she’d done early on.

Daisy gave a faint squeak as he took the tablet from her, fingers brushing hers in a barely there touch. It was so brief as to be almost nonexistent, yet Daisy’s stomach did a slow somersault all the same.

Mr. Blackwell said nothing. Didn’t smile, didn’t scold her. He just watched, as if measuring her against some standard she could never hope to achieve.

Legs wobbly, Daisy rose to her most unimpressive height, though her shoulders remained rounded, chin tipped down towards her chest. She whispered, “Thank you, sir.”

Wanting a giant hole to swallow her up, she shuffled backwards towards the door. Keeping her eyes pinned to the floor, she remained quiet and small.

“Daisy.”

Head snapping up, she turned terrified blue eyes to Mr. Blackwell.

He’d called her by name. She couldn’t remember him ever even acknowledging her in the years she’d worked for him.

Thousands of times she’d put that word, her name, at the bottom of documents until it didn’t even look like actual words anymore.

Yet the way his lips closed over it now was heady. Intentional. Precious.

Heart racing, she began to tremble. A fragile warmth bloomed within her. A foolish hope she’d been trying to strangle for two years.

Realizing she’d stayed silent this whole time, Daisy released the breath she didn’t know she was holding. “Yes…sir?”

“You’re going to be trouble today, aren’t you?” The corner of his lips twitched before they curled into a slow smirk.

Stomach twisting into violent knots, Daisy couldn’t think of anything to say. Not knowing what he meant, it somehow still made her tremble as she dashed for the door.

For the first time in her life, she didn’t feel invisible. It was outright terrifying.