CHAPTER ELEVEN
“I can do this,” she thought. Her phone hadn’t rung yet, but she was bracing herself for it. “I can do this. It will be over soon. I just have to play my part, and Enzo will take care of the rest.”
She was doing her best to convince herself his plan would work, although he hadn’t given her any details the night before.
He’d said he’d been thinking of something, but he wasn’t sure yet.
Whatever he was thinking of, it had to work, because she couldn’t live another day knowing that the twins were living under Richard Goldman’s roof.
Her heart jumped when the phone on her desk rung loudly. She dragged in a breath and answered it in the calmest, most normal voice she could muster.
“Penny, why aren’t you in my office? Do you need a written invitation?”
“I’ll be right there, sir.”
She stood up slowly, smoothed down her simple, casual dress, and put on the elegant jacket she had hung on the back of a chair.
For a woman who had gone through more scares than a sane person could take, she looked impeccable.
When she stepped into her boss’s office, she held her back straight and her chin high.
She even managed to greet him with a pleasant smile.
Goldman studied her from head to toe. He didn’t say a word for a full minute, then motioned for her to take a seat.
“You look great this morning, Penny. Did you sleep well?”
For a second, she wasn’t sure what he was expecting her to say. What was this game he was playing? Could she play it too?
“De verdad, senor Goldman, I didn’t get much sleep.” She smiled conspiratorially. “But I feel good. If you need me at the office today, there’s no problem.”
“Speaking Spanish now, are we?”
“I caught a word or two… here and there… It’s a beautiful language. I thought… since I’m your personal assistant and Goldman Corp is going to invest in Spain, I might as well learn Spanish, so I can help you in case you need a translator you can trust.”
He nodded thoughtfully. For a long while, he simply looked at her.
Penny would have given anything to know what was going through that sick mind of his.
She sat still, willed herself to breathe evenly, and waited for whatever he was going to say next.
Maybe, he was considering her proposal. Or, maybe, he could see right through her and he was wondering how he could get rid of her more easily.
Because, yes, Penny knew that if she refused to play his game, if she fought him, he wouldn’t just fire her.
Or… he wouldn’t fire her from her job. He would fire her from life.
There was no way Goldman would let her go now that she knew so much about him and his little club of freaks.
He hummed to himself as if he was agreeing with something that had just crossed his mind, then he stood up and started pacing the office, hands behind his back.
“You made the right choice, Penelope. You will not regret it. Your life is about to change. Soon, you will live in the house your parents have always wanted for you, you will drive the car they could never buy for you, and your financial situation will allow you to live as you’ve always desired and even help your father retire and get rid of that burden of a law firm that barely brings in any money.
Who knows? You might even visit Spain soon.
” He looked at her with an intensity that was meant to drive his next point across.
“Not as my personal assistant, but as my business partner.”
Penny forced a smile to her face when all she wanted to do was bend over and throw up right under Goldman’s desk.
“I don’t know, Mr. Goldman. I might lack the experience.”
He grinned. “My dear, now you have more experience than many of the members of my club. You’re tougher than them, too.” He stopped in front of her and stretched out his hand to her. “De verdad, I’m glad you’re on my team.”
She looked up at him in confusion, blinked as if she were at a loss, then finally realized he wanted her to shake his hand.
So, she did. When his cold, clammy fingers wrapped around hers, she thought it could be more fun to throw up all over his shoes instead of under his desk.
The thought brought a genuine smile to her lips, and she stood up to face him.
Asking her to shake his hand to seal the deal was way better than making her sign some fucked up contract.
“Listen, Penny… I know it’s Saturday, but I need you at the mansion this evening. Do you think you can come over?”
“Sure. Whatever you need.”
He released her hand and went to sit back down behind his desk.
“Good. Go home, sleep for a few hours, then be there at 8.”
Penny nodded. He was already pulling out some files and leafing through them, signaling their meeting was over.
She re-confirmed she would be there, then excused herself and stepped out of his office.
As she went to her own office to grab her bag and order an Uber, she held one hand over her stomach.
“You got this.”
***
When she arrived at the Goldman Mansion, the first thing Penelope wanted to do was run upstairs and see the twins.
Richard caught her in the hallway, though, and asked her to join him in his office for a drink.
She didn’t like it, but she had to take a deep breath and do as he said.
At this point, she couldn’t show any compassion for Nina and Kosta anymore.
“We’re waiting for Enzo,” he said as he handed her a glass of wine. “He’s late.”
“I’m sure he has his reasons,” she whispered. She sat down in the armchair that was farthest from his desk.
Goldman nodded and took a sip of his own wine.
“You never told me about last night.” He made it sound like a normal, casual conversation. “If you want to talk about it, or if you have any questions, I’m here.”
Penny cocked an eyebrow and shook her head.
“I… I don’t know what to tell you. You never asked. What do you want to know?”
This was more than odd. It was scary. What did he want? Details? She knew what he thought had happened between her and Enzo. But… what did he think had happened with Nina? She and Enzo should have seen this coming and gotten their stories straight. Alas, she was on her own.
Goldman was silent for a minute, then he shrugged.
“What the buyer does with the merchandise, so to speak, is none of my business. However, I do want you to know that I care about you and Juniper. And Thorn, of course. So, just answer me this: are you feeling alright? Was everything okay?”
Penny felt her blood starting to boil in her veins, and her heart beating a tad faster. She had to hold her anger down at all cost.
“Everything was fine. Enzo and I… well, it wasn’t like we were strangers. Don’t worry about me.”
“Good, good. I saw Juniper earlier and she seems fine, too. I’m glad it all worked out and Enzo is satisfied. I asked you to be here tonight because it was his request, actually. He said he wanted to show me something, and he also wanted to see you again.”
“Oh. How nice of him. I wonder what sort of surprise he has in store for us.”
“Me too, to tell you the truth.” He grinned. “I like him. He’s young, strong, motivated… He’s like a breath of fresh air for the club. I’m glad he reached out to Goldman Corp and pitched his business to us.”
Well, the conversation was finally taking an interesting turn…
“So, he found you? Not the other way around?”
“No. Do you really think I’d ever be interested in sheep farms? Cheese? Come on, Penny. You know I’m vegan.”
He laughed, and she laughed as well. She thought what a ridiculous man he was. Calling himself vegan when he was using sheep-shifters for fun… But, oh no! At least he wasn’t using sheep for wool, cheese, or milk. That would have been preposterous!
After a few seconds of fake laughing, she could feel her jaw hurt.
Her smile was frozen on her face, and she could swear her boss would eventually see through her act.
A knock on the door interrupted them, and she sighed in relief.
When Enzo entered the office, she could physically feel the tension dissipating.
It didn’t mean she was safe and all was good, but it meant she wasn’t alone with Goldman anymore, so she could relax a bit.
When she noticed a dark-haired, 40-year-old woman following him in the room, she stood up, a million questions dancing in her blue eyes.
The night before, he hadn’t mentioned anything about anyone.
Could she be…? Penny remembered a conversation between Enzo and Goldman back when she didn’t know what was going on.
In trying to impress Goldman, he had mentioned owning a shifter himself.
“I’m sorry I’m late,” said Enzo with a bright, boyish smile. “This is Theresa. Theresa, say ‘hi’ to Mr. Goldman and Ms. Walton.”
The woman whispered a timid “hello”, never looking up from the floor.
Her whole demeanor and body posture signaled she wasn’t a free woman.
When Enzo spoke to her, she didn’t dare look him in the eyes.
If Penny hadn’t known what Enzo’s play was, the scene unfolding before her would have made her even more sick to her stomach.
Lately, she hadn’t been able to eat much because of everything that was going down.
“Let me guess. This is your bear-shifter.” Goldman beamed and raised his glass.
“You’ve just made my day, Enzo. I’ve been waiting for this moment since I found out about shapeshifters.
I’ve never seen anything bigger than a wolf, and that was back in college, when one of Marcia’s friends was dating one.
I never understood how a girl who came from a good, wealthy family could stoop to dating a shifter. ”
“Ugh! Sounds awful,” Penny said. She was being sarcastic, but she knew only Enzo would catch on to that. And, maybe, the lady who was obviously there to help him.
“I don’t even want to think about it,” Enzo added. “Anyway, so… are you ready to have your minds blown?”
Involuntarily, Goldman took a step back. All of a sudden, he didn’t seem as confident as before.