12. Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Camila Flores
“ W hat do you mean, you know him?” Mr. Godoy asks.
The door to his office opens wide, and the man himself materializes in front of me.
“Hey mate, I didn’t see your assistant in her desk and decided to come in,” Owen says as he closes the door.
The moment he turns around and sees me, his face transforms with a wicked grin.
Ugh .
I was hoping he had forgotten about me.
“Well, well, well. Look who we have here,” he says, his smirk still in place as he walks over to me.
“Can someone explain what the fuck is going on?” Mr. Godoy cuts through the tension.
Before I can explain, Owen beats me to it.
“Camie and I used to be a thing,” he says with a wink just to be an arse. “If you know what I mean.”
Ugh.
“What?”
Vicente shoots up from his chair so fast, I’m surprised he doesn’t get whiplash. His eyes dart between me and Owen, his whole stance shifting into full protector mode.
“It was a short fling, boss. Nothing serious,” I say, avoiding his eyes.
“So that’s how you remember things? Interesting,” Owen drawls, already heading to the mini bar—the one I had just restocked for Mr. Godoy.
He pours himself a glass of scotch, completely unfazed.
I don’t have anything else to say to him, but I don’t want to look unprofessional in front of Mr. Godoy.
“If you excuse me, I have something to work on,” I say as I finally make eye contact with my boss. I’m pleasantly surprised when, instead of seeing judgment or disgust, I find a worried gaze trained on me. I offer him a small smile and make my way out.
“Nice seeing you again, Camie. Can’t wait to catch up,” Owen says.
I close the door a little harder than I needed to.
Instead of sitting down at my desk and pretending to work, I go to the restroom. Turning on the hand dryer, I yell as loud as I can. Why did he have to come back into my life? Owen is the only man I’ve had a relationship with that ended badly. It’s not like I’m best friends with any other of my exes, but Owen was just a nasty, abusive prick. I never wanted to see him again.
I use the restroom, and after washing my hands and fixing my hair, I head back to my desk.
“Oh, Ms. Flores, there you are,” Vicente says when he sees me. “I was just leaving you a note. I’m heading out for the day, so I wanted you to know you can take the afternoon off.”
My mood lifts instantly. I haven’t spent an afternoon with Ava during the work week in a while. She’s going to be ecstatic.
“Thank you so much, Mr. Godoy. I’ll see you in the morning,” I say, quickly shutting off my computer and gathering my things.
I don’t know why I glance once last time at the men heading out, but of course—Owen is looking at me.
When we make eye contact he blows me a kiss.
I don’t care if I look unprofessional, I gag.
The arsehole cackles, clearly entertained.
I feel Vicente's gaze on me. When I look up, his brows lift slightly.
But—thankfully—he doesn’t say a word.
“Mummy, you’re early,” Ava shouts from the sofa as I open the flat’s door.
“Yes, my little duckling. Mr. Godoy left early and told me I could leave as well,” I say as I remove my heels and breathe a deep sigh of relief.
“So he’s not a dicktator anymore?” Ava says, repeating the word I use whenever I’m mad at him.
My eyes go wide in shock.
Mrs. Evans barks out a laugh, completely unbothered, while I quickly cover my face with my hands to hide my own laughter.
“Baby, remember you can’t say bad words,” I say.
Her lower lip starts to quiver, and I immediately hug her, lifting her into my arms.
“I’m sorry, Mummy.”
“It’s okay, baby. Just don’t ever repeat that word. Okay?”
Being the curious and smart girl she is, she asks, “What does it mean, anyway?”
I sit down on the sofa, and Ava squeezes between me and Mrs. Evans.
“It’s when someone is super bossy and super rude,” I say.
She seems to think about my answer, and after a couple of seconds, she nods. “But Mummy, you can’t blame him for being bossy. He’s your boss.”
She lifts her eyebrows, emphasizing her point, and I bite my lip to avoid laughing.
“She got you there, dear,” Mrs. Evans says with mirth.
“Okay, baby. Why don’t we let Mrs. Evans go and rest, and you and I can go to the park for a little while.”
“And feed the swans?” Her pleading eyes melt me every time.
“Yes, we can feed the swans.”
“Yay!” Ava shouts as she darts off to her room. I love seeing her full of happiness.
“Thank you so much, Mrs. Evans, as always,” I say, giving her a side hug.
“Oh, dear, don’t mention it. I love spending time with that girl.”
We sit in comfortable silence for a moment before Mrs. Evans breaks it with a smirk.
“So, he’s a dicktator , huh?”
I laugh, and she joins me.
“He has moments when I want to strangle him, I’m not going to lie,” I say.
She gives me a knowing look.
“But ever since he came back, we’ve had a pretty good rapport. I think we make a good team,” I say, my tone oozing with pride.
“You’re a smart lass. And you’re strong enough to put him in his place if need be. I have no doubt you’ll do great things working together.”
I smile at her. This lady took my hand when we barely knew each other and has been by my side every step of the way. She’s like a mother to me, and her vote of confidence brings me a deep sense of joy and gratitude.
“Thank you, Mrs. Evans,” I say.
She gets up from the sofa and starts for the door, throwing me a quick wave before disappearing into the hallway.
“Are you ready, mi amor ?” I say as I head to my bedroom to change.
I can’t wait to ditch this skirt from hell for jeans and a tee. Who would have thought wearing a pencil skirt would turn walking into a power workout?
As Ava and I make our way to the park, my mind wanders back to Owen. What are the chances of me seeing him again after all this time?
And why did he have to mention we were a thing? He’s a married man now, for Christ’s sake.
A cold shiver runs through me.
He can be a vindictive man, I just hope he doesn’t do anything to get back at me for dumping him all those years ago.