Chapter twelve
MICHAEL
With a gentle push of my finger, the pen rolled across the desk until it stopped at my other hand. Then I pushed it back again, making it go from one side to the other—just like my mind, repeating the same motion as it tried to find a solution to my situation.
That boring image was probably not what anyone would expect to find in the CEO's office of the most famous architecture firm in the country, but I was already doing a lot of work there pretending to be productive, when all I could do was mentally search for some solution for my life.
And the worst part was that I had no one to talk to about it. Janet had been very clear: no one could know about the video until we found a solution. Not even my mother or my brothers.
Well, Sebastian, my older brother, was going through a rough patch in his personal life, and the last thing I wanted was to burden him with any of this.
As for Logan, our middle brother... well, he had completely strayed from the family traditions.
He wasn’t an architect like our father, nor did he have any talent or interest in an artistic career like our mother.
His choice was Medicine — a profession to which he devoted himself with a level of dedication that could hardly be considered human.
In short, he was too focused on becoming the most renowned neurosurgeon in the world to even bother with the rest of the family’s problems.
Janet could call me at any moment. That day was the final deadline given by the Harris’ lawyers for my defense to respond whether or not we would accept a deal.
A deal that would only allow me to see my daughter for two hours every other week, under constant supervision by her grandparents.
And that was simply inconceivable to me.
I wanted to take Alice home. I wanted to prepare a room to welcome her, take her for walks, watch her grow, take her to and from school.
I wanted to see her play with Apollo, my dog.
I had never found those videos that circulate on the internet showing dogs and babies playing together very funny, but now, every time I saw one, I lost myself in the desire to have that in my home.
Damn, I wish I could’ve learned how to change her diapers while she was still wearing them. She was already eleven months old, and I had already missed so much of her life. I couldn't stand to lose anything else.
On the other hand, refusing the deal would mean allowing those damn videos to be attached to the lawsuit and, with them, I might definitively lose any chance of seeing my daughter again.
The phone on my desk rang and I answered it without any excitement.
It was my secretary.
“Mr. Turner, a representative from the Falcon Company is on the line to speak with you.”
“Tell him to call next week," I snapped, clearly out of patience.
"I've already said it, Emma, cancel absolutely everything and turn away anyone who calls this week.
I'm only available to my lawyers. Or to Collins.
If a woman named Camila Collins calls, put her through immediately.
Other than that, I'm not available to anyone else. "
“But, sir...”
I didn't let her finish and hung up the call.
Yes, I knew it... Running away from the obligations of my role as CEO went completely against what Janet had insisted I should do, which was to become an exemplary man.
But my conduct during the company party had already completely destroyed any good image I could have built, so, honestly, nothing else mattered to me now.
The sound of my elevator door opening at the far end of the room caught my attention, making me look up from the pen, suddenly tense.
No one ever reached my floor unless they were with me or had been cleared by my secretary, who worked on the floor below mine, where my reception was located.
To reach the penthouse, the elevator required a security code—one that only my secretary and I had.
And I hadn’t authorized her to let anyone in.
But when I saw who it was, I was overcome by an immense wave of relief.
She could come in.
She was, in fact, the person I most wanted to meet at that moment.
Because only she could save me from the mess I got myself into.
I stood up, resting my hands on the table, waiting for her to approach. Which seemed like an eternity, since not only was the distance from my table to the elevator a good few feet, but she also walked slowly, as if she wanted to create suspense about the reason for her visit.
Until she stopped, on the other side of the table, and stared at me in silence for a few moments.
“Five hundred thousand dollars, right?” that was the first thing she said.
Wow… Straight to the point.
Whoever came up with that story about money not being able to buy everything?
“Five hundred thousand,” I reinforced. “But I can increase the offer if you...”
“Five hundred thousand is enough,” she cut me off.
I found that strange. At the very least, it was unusual that she herself didn't want me to increase the offer.
But I wouldn't argue. I wouldn't argue with anything.
“Five hundred thousand, then. Do you mean to say that you will accept to pose as my fiancée?”
“Not so fast. Tell me, has Smith taken over as chief?”
The position, of course! It would be another more than fair payment.
“No. He did indeed return to his previous position. The position remains vacant. But it is rightfully yours, and we will do it right this time. I have not yet accepted your resignation.”
"You're right: the position is rightfully mine. The selected project was mine, and I worked hard on it. But that's not what I want. I can't take the new role. At least not while I'm your... fiancée ."
“What do you mean? Why not?”
“Because everyone will say that I was promoted because I'm sleeping with the boss.”
I liked her honesty and direct choice of words. I had thought it was something that was unique to her when she was drunk, but apparently, she was like that when she was emotionally upset too.
She continued. “I want the job, but only when our charade is over, and then I can take it. Not as payment for something, but because it is rightfully mine.”
“Okay. Deal.” For Christ’s sake, I would accept any condition she imposed. “But I’ll need to put someone in charge temporarily, I can't leave it vacant for three months.”
“I've thought about that too. I want you to put Layla in.”
“Layla?”
“Layla East.”
“Layla East... Right...” I obviously didn't recognize the name. There were too many people working in that office for me to know them all. Well, actually, I don't think I even knew a tenth of them. “Is she an architect in your department?”
“More or less. Almost. Actually, Layla is an intern.”
“What? You want me to put an intern in charge?”
“It's temporary, isn't it? It'll only be for a few months. Besides having to pay for college, her mother is sick, so this better salary for this time will help her a lot.”
“But she's an intern! Still a college student. How can she have a management position?”
“Well... I googled and found out that the current CEO of Turner Architecture, who happens to be you, dropped out of college with less than a year to go before graduating.”
Sure, that was a low blow, but it was still a valid argument.
I fell silent again. I was in no position to deny any negotiation idea she had.
“Okay, we'll put the intern in charge until you can take over. With that, do you accept the proposal?”
“Just one more condition. I want to make it very clear that our involvement will be purely a facade. Which means there will never be any intimacy between us.”
Memories of my tongue invading her mouth flooded my mind.
Too late for her to demand that of me.
“You mean from now on, right?”
Her face turned red. I thought her reaction was a bit disproportionate. Well, we had exchanged a few kisses, a few snogs, a hand here, another there, we had seen each other naked and everything, but... nothing more than that. Was she really going to be embarrassed every time she remembered that?
This seemed to embarrass her even more than calling her boss an asshole .
“Yes, from now on,” she finally answered. “Any advances, jokes or attempts on your part to cross the line, and I will announce to God and the world that our engagement is a sham. Deal?”
“Deal. Oh, and I promise I'll give you a real ring too. With a huge diamond, just the way you women like it.”
“I don't give a damn about this jewelry nonsense.”
Oh my... I swore every woman was crazy about those rings with big diamonds.
“Well... We have a deal, then?” I extended my hand towards her, trying not to show how much I was shaking at that moment.
Her agreement with that was fundamental to me. So much so that when she shook my hand, I even wanted to hug her.
I just didn't do it because the unfriendly way she looked at me made it clear that she wasn't very open to such demonstrations.
“So...” she said as soon as she let go of my hand. “How exactly is this going to work?”
Actually, I had no idea. But I knew someone who did.
I asked Collins to wait a minute and grabbed an iPad from the table, using it to make a video call. Janet answered with a very discouraged expression, but that completely changed in seconds when I positioned myself next to Camila Collins, putting her in the camera's focus as well.