I should have expected this.
From the moment I boarded the plane to London with Aldrich, I knew the next several hours were going to be miserable. I had barely taken my seat beside him in first class when he shoved a thick folder into my hands.
"Go through these letters, summarize the important ones, and draft responses," he ordered, adjusting his seat like he didn't just ruin my entire flight.
I swallowed my irritation and opened the folder, scanning the first page. There had to be at least twenty letters in here.
I started working immediately, scribbling notes as fast as I could. Every few minutes, Aldrich would drop another task—marking sections in a document, fixing his schedule, checking last-minute reports. It was endless.
At some point, I reached for my cup of water, my fingers aching from writing non-stop. The second I took a sip, Aldrich's voice cut through.
"Are you on a vacation, Miss Walsh?"
I nearly choked.
I turned my head, and sure enough, he was watching me with that infuriatingly blank expression, as if daring me to waste another second.
I forced the water down and straightened. "No, sir."
"Good. Because you still have sixteen letters left, and the last time I checked, this flight wasn't fourteen hours long."
I bit down on my tongue and kept working.
This wasn't a trip. This was punishment.
By the time the plane landed, my wrists hurt, my back ached, and I was one more sarcastic remark away from stabbing him with a pen. Aldrich stood, adjusted his suit, and walked ahead without looking back, while I scrambled to gather my things like a personal assistant he wasn't paying enough.
I followed him through the grand lobby of a five-star hotel, my legs dragging from exhaustion. Aldrich approached the front desk, barely glancing at the receptionist as he placed his black card down.
As we neared the reception, the woman beamed happily. "A room for the couple?" she asked casually. Something knotted in my stomach as Aldrich turned to me and sized me from up to down and for a second, I thought it meant something but he turned back to the receptionist and…
"One presidential suite, and—" He paused, tilting his head toward me with a mocking smirk. "And for her, anything with a door should do."
I stiffened.
The receptionist, clearly uncomfortable as the smile vanished, typed on her computer. "Would you like adjoining rooms, sir?"
Aldrich let out a short laugh. "You think I could survive a night next to that?"
I clenched my fists.
The receptionist gave me a nervous glance before handing us our keys.
"Your suite is on the top floor, Mr. Maximus. And—" She hesitated before looking at me. "Miss Walsh, yours is down the hall."
I snatched the key and walked off before I could hear another word.
Filthy woman?
He was lucky I had nowhere else to stay. Nowhere else to go! Damn… I would leave without looking back at this.
The moment I got to my room, I threw my bag onto the bed and opened my laptop.
I was done.
I wasn't going to work under Aldrich for another second longer than I had to. I scrolled through job listings, looking for anything—anything—that would get me out of here. I didn't care if I had to work at a small coffee shop in a dingy alley; I just needed a way out.
Then my eyes caught a headline.
"The De Mor Family Enjoys an Exclusive Vacation in London."
I froze.
My stomach twisted as I clicked on the article, my breath catching when the image loaded.
Emiliano.
Standing in a luxury resort, dressed in a white shirt, his piercing green eyes staring directly through the screen. A fresh wave of fear washed over me. How come Emiliano was in London? Was it just a coincidence? It had been almost a year since I took off and definitely, De Mors were looking everywhere for me but for some reason, they were not making it public notice… yet…
If Emiliano was here… if he found me…
I slammed the laptop shut, my pulse racing.
I had risked too much by coming here.
I had to get out.
The next morning, I forced myself to dress, forced myself to pretend I wasn't falling apart inside and then, like a skittering mouse, I followed Aldrich to work again. This time, it was a meeting, the first since we arrived. The boardroom was cold and intimidating, filled with men in tailored suits. I sat beside Aldrich, my notebook open, pen in hand.
The meeting began, a long talk of boring business matters I was pretending to listen to when in reality, I had drifted into my wishful dreams of a better life. Then I began distracting myself, paying close attention to the men around the round table… how they were poised, how their mouths moved… the world seemed to slow down around me.
There was something about these men, the way they exchanged looks, the way their smiles didn't quite reach their eyes…
"Kahlan."
I didn't hear him.
"Kahlan."
I snapped out of it just as Aldrich's icy voice cut through the room. I turned, every eye suddenly on me. Aldrich's stare was sharp enough to slice me in half.
"Did you enjoy your daydream?" he said smoothly.
Heat crawled up my neck. "I—I'm sorry, I—"
"Save it," he interrupted, tapping the table. "Maybe try paying attention to the person who signs your paycheck."
A few chuckles echoed around the table. I swallowed the humiliation and quickly jotted down notes, my hands shaking.
As soon as we left the room, Aldrich turned to me in the hallway.
"If I ever have to call your name twice again," he said lowly, "I won't be as forgiving."
I forced myself to nod.
"The only reason you still have this job," he continued, "is because you pleaded for it."
I clenched my fists, anger bubbling under my skin.
"Understood?"
"Yes, sir," I muttered.
He walked away without another word.
I exhaled slowly.
I had never hated anyone more in my entire life.
***
Afterward, I and Aldrich made plans to return to the hotel again. I was ready to get out of this building and forget today ever happened, but just as I reached the exit, I realized I had left my jotter in the boardroom. I sighed, turned back, and hurried inside—only to freeze just outside the door.
Two men were still inside, standing near the window, speaking in hushed tones. I was about to step in when one sentence stopped me cold.
"...Once Aldrich signs the papers, he'll be finished."
My heart nearly stopped.
I pressed myself against the wall, my breath caught in my throat.
"Are you sure he hasn't caught on?" one of them asked.
The other man chuckled. "Aldrich Maximus might be ruthless, but he's predictable. He'll never see it coming."
I covered my mouth, my heartbeat slamming against my ribs and then slowly, I turned away…
Like I never heard a thing.