Chapter 2
Chapter Two
Riven
Oh God, oh God. I backed away so quickly, I almost dropped my tray. This wasn’t the first time I’d been stuck in a weird situation involving a male client, but this was the first time I was genuinely afraid for my life.
What the shit had I been thinking?
That just because all the orcs I knew were deep-down nice guys—even grumpy Cairo, who fixed my sedan last spring—this one would be too? That just because I was cool and professional, my client would be too?
Balancing my carefully arranged dessert platter on one palm, I scrabbled for the door handle behind my back with the other hand, my wary gaze never leaving his.
I needed to know which direction to jump if he came for me.
But to my surprise, Mr. Abydos whirled away from me, his palm slamming into the frame of one of the floor-to-ceiling windows. “Fuck,” he growled, and I could see his eyes scrunch closed in the reflection. “Get out of here.” This order was lower, less frightening.
Well, no, I mean the whole thing was pretty freaking frightening, but at least this time he wasn’t glaring at me.
It gave me the courage to inhale—and yes, up until then I was too shocked to inhale, don’t judge—and try to get my galloping heart under control. My knees were weak, I felt light-headed, and I was embarrassed how close to tears his roar had brought me.
If you walk out this door, you can kiss this job goodbye.
I needed this job. Dear God, I needed this job.
Two years ago, I hadn’t taken shit from anyone. I was small, yeah, but I could command respect and obedience in the kitchen. Had cancer really taken that from me too?
Fuck no.
I took a deep breath. “Mr. Abydos, if I’ve done something wrong—”
“You’re here. That’s wrong,” he bit out. “I’m going to fucking kill Sylvik, he knows better.”
That sweet guy who was his assistant? Frowning, I straightened, pushing away from the door, suddenly angry on Sylvik’s behalf.
“Knows better than to what? To dig through a bunch of applicants to find one who met all your requirements, was willing to jump through all your hoops, and who had a resume and menus you’d approve of?
The times I’ve spoken to him”—granted, only twice—“he seemed kind and capable and concerned about your needs.”
That big hand curled into a fist against the glass, and when the clouds lit with lightning, it outlined his large bulk.
“Sylvik knows better,” the orc growled, “than to hire you.”
Ouch.
Okay, by now I was too irritated to be scared. Both my hands gripped the tray, and I scowled as I stepped away from the door. He might not want me here, but I wasn’t going to leave without giving him a piece of my mind.
If you really want this job, you ought to consider begging.
Fuck that, this guy was an ass.
“Look, Mr. Abydos, you haven’t even tried any of the samples I brought—”
“I don’t want them.”
“I took yesterday and today off work to bake. For you.” I didn’t quite march indignantly toward his desk—it was more like a nervous sidle—but at least I wasn’t running away.
“That’s two days of pay I really need, and the least you could do is try what I made you.
Mr. Sylvik said you had a soft spot for chocolate? ”
The orc’s forehead clunked against the glass. “…rip his throat out and feed it to him,” he muttered.
His anger was beginning to sound almost impotent, and I found myself snorting. “That’s going to be difficult to do without a throat,” I quipped, only to swallow the last word on a gasp as Mr. Abydos whirled around to glare at me.
I don’t know why I was less scared of him now—maybe because I hadn’t run away originally? Maybe because I was desperate. All I knew was that now that I was really looking at him, I could appreciate how…uh…is intimidatingly hot a description? Intimihot?
He was big. He was scary. He was powerful—that suit must be worth more than my monthly salary from The Waterfront, the dive down on the beach where I’d been working for the last year.
But damn, Abydos was attractive too. He filled out that suit in all the best ways, and beneath his scars and permanent scowl, he wasn’t unattractive. I felt my brows raise in surprise.
“What?” he growled, and I had no idea if he was talking about my stupid joke, or the way I was looking at him.
So I dropped my gaze to the platter on his desk and pretended to fuss over rearranging it.
“Look, Mr. Abydos, Mr. Sylvik said you liked your desserts, and mine are really good. You saw my menus, right? Can you at least try the stuff I brought?”
I saw his gaze drop to the platter of desserts, so I tried to nudge them his way. But his dark eyes flicked away, and his hands curled into fists by his sides.
Damn.
He was tempted, I could tell. But he really wasn’t going to even try them?
What did this guy have against me in particular?
Sighing, I stepped back, my palms up in surrender. “I can see I make you uncomfortable, I’m sorry. Whatever the reason is, Mr. Sylvik—”
“Knows better than to hire someone like you.”
My head jerked back as if he’d slapped me. “Like me?” I hissed. So it wasn’t just me, it was…what? “You think I can’t handle working for you, just because I’m a woman? Well newsflash, buddy, I’ve worked for plenty of jerks—”
“I don’t care that you’re a female.” He was glaring at me now, and I saw his nostrils flare in what looked like disgust. “It’s because you’re a human.”
Ah.
My anger skidded to a stop, then bounced back just as hard. “You don’t want to hire me because I’m a human?” I repeated.
He looked away. Maybe it was coincidence his gaze landed on the platter of desserts. “I don’t even want you in my space, Ms. Starr.”
Double-ouch. Maybe I smelled or something, but I didn’t have time to be hurt because I was too pissed off. “Look, Mr. Abydos—”
“It’s just Abydos,” he muttered without looking at me, and I saw his fists tighten.
Was that supposed to intimidate me? I folded my arms. “Look, Abydos, we have laws that say you can’t discriminate against me based on the color of my skin. Pretty sure that applies to species too.”
“Yeah, well…” To my surprise, the big male moved toward his desk.
I couldn’t believe he hadn’t kicked me out yet, and I really couldn’t believe it when he carefully picked up the chocolate macaron with the wicked-looking claws of his thumb and forefinger.
As if speaking to the cookie, he murmured, “The history of your country has taught me that laws don’t apply to billionaires. ”
Huh.
Frowning, I watched him pop the macaron into his mouth. He only had one whole tusk—that wasn’t normal, was it? He did have beautiful lips though, and I had to force myself to look away, especially when I swear he made a little humming noise as he chewed.
What were we talking about? Oh yeah, him being an asshole. And doing illegal shit just because he could.
“Maybe,” I muttered, “but laws should apply to everyone.”
“You’re right.” His gaze met mine again. “They should. So I guess I’ll have to find some other reason not to hire you. Your cookies are dry.”
The balls on this guy! I couldn’t decide if Abydos was still trying to intimidate me, or if this was him just being…
him. “That’s a lie.” Why was I having to fight to keep my scowl in place?
I was ready to laugh at this ridiculousness.
“My macarons are magnificent. If you’re going to be one of those asshats who comes up with lies to fire me because I’m inconvenient, then at least come up with a believable lie. ”
His brows drew in—the left one crisscrossed with scars so heavily it was almost nonexistent—and I winced at the realization not only I’d stood up to him, but I’d cursed as well. Cursed at him.
But he honestly didn’t seem to be shocked as he reached down almost absentmindedly and scooped up the maple pecan macaron. “You said that as if you’ve seen it happen before.”
I gaped.
Was he…asking? For my history? After trying to kick me out of his home because I was human?
But…he hadn’t kicked me out, not yet. And he was eating my samples. And he was still watching me, his expression neutral as he chewed.
You need this job, or you’re going to be stuck as a junior chef at The Waterfront, drowning in debt.
I took a deep breath, prepared to share the same story I told my current boss.
“Twenty months ago, one of my routine scans discovered cancer.” The words were sing-songy, rushed.
“The treatment was expensive—really expensive—and my employers at the time decided I was a liability, especially with the fact I was struggling with my energy levels.” I rolled my eyes, remembering how much that time had sucked.
I’d thought I could do it all, and without anyone to lean on, I’d fallen hard.
“One day I had radiation in the morning, slept through dinner prep, and they informed me it was the last straw.”
His dark eyes had widened slightly as I spoke, and now tugged down into a scowl as he turned back to the tray. “They fired you in the middle of medical treatments.” He didn’t wait for an answer, but plucked up one of the apple tarts. “Heartless.”
I didn’t snort, but it was close, because wasn’t that what he’d just threatened to do?
“Yeah, well, it means I have a shit-ton of medical debt, and that’s why I was so excited to apply for this job.
Mr. Abydos,” I tacked on, trying to remain respectful, despite the angry tone I’d been using.
Oh well, I only cursed at him after he’d cursed at me.
Real professional, Riven.
A muscle in his jaw worked, and I didn’t think he was still chewing. “You can…” He glanced down, grabbed the red macaron, and said to it, “You don’t need this job. You could work anywhere. These aren’t dry.”
Then, as if to cover up saying the not-completely-horrible thing, he shoved the cookie into his mouth. His eyes widened, and his gaze snapped back to mine. “What the hell is this?”