Chapter 3
Chapter
Three
AVEN
I shifted in the sleek leather chair, crossing and uncrossing my legs for the third time in five minutes.
The reception area of Black Security dismissal was clear in the gesture as he tapped a few keys on his computer. “Tamika will show you where you’ll be working.”
As if on cue, there was a soft knock on the door before it opened, revealing Tamika with a tablet in hand and curiosity written all over her face.
“Tamika, Ms. Compton will be joining our team in data management. Get her set up with the standard paperwork and show her to the basement archives,” Langston explained, his voice neutral.
Tamika’s eyes widened slightly at “basement archives,” but she quickly schooled her expression back to professional indifference. “Of course, Mr. Black.”
I picked up my purse before turning to leave. Langston had already shifted his attention to his computer screen, dismissing me as efficiently as he’d once been able to charm me.
“Aven … Welcome back to town,” Langston’s voice stopped me at the door. I turned back, finding his eyes on me again, something unreadable in their depths.
The words may have been friendly, but the tone made it clear this was anything but a welcome.
Not only was it a warning, but a reminder that though I might have had the upper hand fifteen years ago, this was his turf, and I was playing by his rules.
I nodded, summoning every ounce of pride I had left.
“Good to be home,” I lied, following Tamika out of his office.
Tamika walked ahead of me with the kind of military precision that suggested she counted her steps between destinations.
Her heels clicked against the polished concrete floors like tiny hammers, each strike a reminder she belonged here, and I didn’t.
I followed a respectful distance behind, clutching the HR paperwork she’d thrust at me with barely concealed disdain.
The top form requested an emergency contact, and I resisted the urge to write “Google ‘rock’ and ‘hard place’” in the blank space.
Raina would kill me if I listed her, another family crisis courtesy of her screw-up little sister, and my contact list had shrunk considerably since I had returned to the States with my tail between my legs.