3. Chapter ThreeFiona
Chapter Three
Fiona
T he weather had merely bragged. It didn’t actually rain throughout the day; however, a cold chill hung in the air as Christian’s gloomy mood pervaded the atmosphere. I noticed he was not doing too well, but I couldn’t think of a way of asking what was bothering him without making it too obvious.
Allison’s call came in when Liam, Christian’s driver, drove inside Christian’s front yard. I waved Christian goodbye and hurried down the road, putting a distance between me and Christian before picking up the call.
“You sound out of breath,” Allison said as soon as I said hello. “I hope Christian is not giving you a hard time.”
“No. Not at all,” I said as I made my way through the gates and finally into the house. I kicked my shoes off and lay down on my sofa.
This corporate girl has managed to keep her job today. Brownie point for me.
“Good. He can be very rude sometimes,” Allison said about her brother, whom I’ve realized I still have a crush on.
“He’s not rude to me,” I said, and looked around the house, specifically towards the kitchen. Pizza sounded like a dream right now. “But he’s not doing too well, I think. I know I just joined the company, and I’ve not been in contact with him for over a decade now, but…” I paused and briefly recollected his unpleasant mood earlier that day. “Could I be overthinking it?”
“You are not overthinking anything, Fiona.” Allison began, “ Christian is naturally never like that. He’s just having issues with Aurora, his ex-girlfriend. She’s shameless; she won’t stop disturbing him with calls. I don’t know. I have long since advised Christian to change his number, but he hasn’t listened to me. I have let it go for now; I won’t press it further.”
Well, that wasn’t the information I thought I’d get that easily, but crumbs about Christian were like Easter eggs at this point.
“His ex-girlfriend is giving him trouble?”
“I haven’t mentioned it? It’s the worst thing, Fiona. It’s been like that for a while now. I’m afraid our parents will soon intervene, and it’s not gonna be good.”
I nodded and cleared my throat. “Why did they break up?”
I tried to sound nonchalant, and if Allison noticed that I was genuinely curious, she didn’t mention it. And I was only asking because Christian was my boss, and a happy boss meant I had a lower chance of losing my job.
I’m basically protecting my interests.
“I don’t truly know myself, but from what I know, Aurora is not too good for Christian. She’s demanding like crazy!”
This made me even more curious about who she was. I subconsciously admitted that I wanted to know the kind of woman Christian had fallen for.
“I don’t think she’s actually Christian’s type of woman. They were more or less matched by our parents. You know, business-oriented relationships and the like. It’s just so annoying that she’s not relenting on trying to win him back.”
“Who are her parents, if I may ask?”
“You should know them; they are close business buddies of the company. Kelvin and Quinn Williams of K and Q Enterprise.”
“Oh! The same K and Q Enterprise?” I was absolutely astounded.
“Yes. The same K and Q Enterprise.”
“That’s… wow.”
“I know that, but that doesn’t give Christian the right to be rude to you.”
“He’s not rude to me.”
“You say that now.”
“I do mean it. He’s been really patient. And have I mentioned how much I love you for getting me this job? I finally get what it’s like to have friends with connections.”
Allison laughed at this, and I grinned at the sound. I had no idea if she knew how grateful I was that she did this for me, but I was going to keep bringing it up until she got it into her head.
When the call ended, I decided to go down the rabbit hole, which was my curiosity about Aurora, her parents, and K and Q Enterprise.
And boy, were they influential.
K and Q Enterprise was named after her proprietors, Kevin and Quinn Williams. The company was in its twentieth year and was still as influential as it can be. Especially after it developed the first fully functioning robot. Well, the only one since no re-creation has managed to come close.
It made sense that there was a relationship between both families. K and Q Enterprise needed to improve their robot, and in the long run, Robust Technology would need a body to put Susan, the self-learning AI, into. K and Q could build that body, and Susan could be the consciousness that brought it to life.
Aurora Williams was the only heir to the empire. She was pretty, but I could say her fashion sense enhanced her beauty by a hundred percent. It wasn’t more than that.
She had a smooth forehead, a thin nose bridge, thin pinkish lips, and a sharp, angular face. Her red lipstick, a staple in her everyday look, made her pale skin stand out. And her blonde hair made her into something right out of a fashion magazine.
As I stared down at her picture, I felt a tinge of jealousy in me. I had a lot of questions regarding her relationship with Christian.
How had their relationship been before their breakup? Did he love her? Was that why he was unsettled? Why was he bothered by her calls?
I swallowed.
Could it be that he was still heartbroken?
Oh, Fiona! I held my head. Why was I thinking so much? It was normal to be heartbroken after a break-up, wasn’t it?
I had forgotten to ask when they separated. However, that didn’t matter so much now. What mattered now was helping Christian through this phase. I was determined to try my best to relieve him of every burden his past relationship had put on him.
For no reason other than my boss needed to be happy to ensure that I kept this job.
*****
It was my first time present at a board meeting. The boardroom was a pretty large space, and the members sat around a long, polished table in their finest suits and ties.
Christian was at the head of the table, and I stood behind him. Initially, the focus was on genially discussing the items on the set agenda and decision-making; however, it soon segued to a clash of ideas.
I could not say the meeting went well, though Christian whispered something of the sort to the President, a tall, lanky man who always looked at me suspiciously.
“It’s almost lunch,” I mentioned as we headed back to his office. “What would you like to have?”
Christian thought about it for a while. “You could order something for the both of us. What do you usually eat?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Burgers, pizzas, fries. You know, lunch.”
Christian nodded. “Burgers are fine. I could have a cheat day today and work out extra hard tomorrow.”
When someone mentioned their defined body offhandedly, it’s only courtesy that you spare said body a look. And in this case, I looked at his biceps as subtly as I could manage it. Even in the suit, it was still visible.
“I’ll bring in yours when it arrives,” I said as we got into my office. I stood smiling as he went into his. I picked up the phone and ordered the burgers. When they arrived a few minutes later, I took his burger into his office.
“Ah, that was quick,” Christian said, and I nodded even though I thought the delivery took forever. “Where’s yours?”
I jerked a finger behind me.
“We should eat together, get to know each other.”
I blinked once and then nodded rapidly. Not only do I have a lot of questions to ask, and observations to make, but I’d also like to sit up front to see how he’d go about munching the burger.
I walked out and returned immediately with my burger and took the seat before him.
“I have sports drinks,” he informed me, taking two can drinks from the drawer in his desk. I accepted it graciously and thanked him.
“Do you always have burgers for lunch?” He asked.
“Do I always have burgers for lunch?” I echoed back to him, unaware of what I was even saying because I was completely taken in by the big bite he took of the burger. Mustard and ketchup sat at the corner of his mouth, a testament to his effort.
“Fiona?”
I blinked back into the present, and pointed to the side of his lips. “I don’t always have burgers. Pizza here, chicken nuggets there. I like to diversify my food choices.”
“It does sound like you’ve been eating all the delicious food.”
I nodded in agreement. He’s always eating things that would build up his muscles. The efforts were paying off, but I couldn’t imagine this life for me.
“I feel absolutely jealous of you.”
“Well,” I said and shrugged, “people whose staple dishes consist of grass and smoothies made of more fruits and grasses tend to feel that way around me.”
Christian laughed, raising his hand to cover his mouth. I beamed with pride and took another bite of my burger. It was tasty, and I loved it. And I loved it even better that I was the reason he’s smiling.
“But you’ve not really changed since we were kids. You are still the Fiona I have always known.”
The blush sat comfortably on my cheeks, and I wondered if he had ever thought of me during the years we were apart.
“I spoke with Allison last night,” I said in a desperate attempt to change the subject.
“Oh, we’ve not talked in a week.”
“Yes, she said she’s usually caught up with work and hardly has time for herself these days.”
“I seriously warned her not to accept the offer, but she didn’t listen.” He shrugged. “She doesn’t think she’s worth more. She should have stayed back in Laketown; she was a queen here.”
“Why did she leave?” I inquired. Allison never truly told me her reason anyway. Or it was more like I didn’t find her reason consequential.
“She wanted to get away from our parents.” Christian gulped down his drink.
“I had always known Allison to be adventurous, but I never thought she was running away.” At that moment, I felt low.
“Yeah. Did you tell her you accompanied me to golf?” He switched the topic.
“Yes,” I chortled. “She promised to play a game when she’s in town.”
“Cool.” He twitched a small smile just as his phone began to ring. He stared at the screen of his phone and quietly tucked the phone away.
“Aren’t you going to pick the call?” I asked.
“No,” he looked up at me. “ It’s not important.”
I suspected Aurora was the caller, so he didn’t answer.
“What do you do in your free time, if I may ask?”
He chuckled softly.
“I play games.”
“Cool, perhaps we could play a game one of these days.”
“Hm.”
I could spot warmth in his eyes. His eyes were the kind that made you want to sit down and talk for hours. I felt light-hearted talking to him and hoped to lighten up his mood, too.
“I think we might have exceeded lunch hour.” He cleared his throat.
“Oh,” I sprang back to life. “I’m sorry about that.” I immediately stood up, cleared the table, and prepared to leave.
“Thank you,” his voice came low and gentle before I could exit his office.
“I’m honored to have had lunch with you.” I knew I was definitely grinning from ear to ear.
He smiled.
I was totally going to make partner at this point.
*****
An idea crossed my mind as I rounded off for the day. I could really help Christian by getting to know the things he liked and the things he disliked.
I would also get to know him better. So, I interrogated Liam after he parked the car in the driveway. In a cool, concerned as a PA type of way.
“Well, I’ve been working with the CEO for over five years now, and I know that he takes yoga sessions and goes to the gym frequently.”
He wouldn’t have those crazy biceps had he been sedentary.
“Also, he loves a good book. He sometimes reads in the car, on his way to business meetings,” Liam added, gently rubbing his blond stubble.
I knew all this already. The urge to roll my eyes made its way up, but I shoved it down. I liked Liam, but I would like him more if he said more exciting stuff.
“And?” I said, taking note of what he had said.
“He likes old movies?”
“Now we’re talking. Give me more.”
“We haven’t gone there in a while now, even before you were hired, but he visits a resort, to get away from things,” he mentioned. “Not just any resort; it’s a particular one at the outskirts of town.”
I thanked Liam and kept him company as he wiped the car down for the night. A waste of effort, especially since he was going to repeat the task tomorrow. But routine and whatnot.
I intentionally ambled into the house when Liam left to check up on him. When I entered, he was not in the living room. However, a yell erupted from an inner room. It was so loud and frightening that I staggered back.
“I’m done with you, and I’m done with this relationship. Do you really intend on driving me crazy?” His voice was soaked in anger and frustration. “Listen, let this be the last time you’d spew this trash. I’m no longer going to waste my time on this. We’re through.”
As soon as I heard his feet stomping, I escaped through the door.
It never happened, I told myself. I was never there.