Chapter 2

• “Ah Mr Yoshimada” he shook the man’s hand.
• The ride here had been so awkward. Normally he liked the silence, but he didn’t like the type of silence he went through. There was nothing off, he just didn’t know how to explain it.
• “Please sit” the man gestured to the already set table in the boot he picked out for them. He had already ordered. Nice of him. The man and the person he came with sat down. Nathan sat down as did Darlene.
• It wasn’t her first time on a meeting like this with her boss. And when they served food she would eat. If she ate here all she would have to think of was dinner.
• Yoshimada smiled at Darlene who wasn’t looking at him and then turned back to Nathan. The man had wanted a meeting for a very long time and now that time had come. A business collaboration because he wanted to sell his tyres. Well he had a good team. The tyres were durable and good in any kind of environment. From the sandy, to the muddy and the city road. They didn’t pack much dirt and they didn’t give off that burnt rubber smell no matter how new it was.
• The man had told him that he wanted to sell his tyres back home in his own company. But the price he had called had been ridiculous the first time they had met. He really hoped that this man was ready to do business and not just waste his time when he could have been doing something important. Like actual work.
• “Hope you don’t mind that we ordered without you. But I’m sure that you’ll like it” the man who followed Mr Yoshimada spoke.
• “No we don’t” Darlene replied. She had to because her boss was getting that tick in the side of his eyebrow that always appeared before he turned into a very loud sort of narcissist asshole.
• “Can we start?” Nathan asked.
• XXXXX
• She had to commend his effort. Mr Cross was a good business man and a bargain master. She was this close to begging on the behalf of Yoshimada, but it was all about him making profit. That was business. But Yoshimada would reap the benefits. She had read most of the company reviews in her free time.
• Nathan Cross was a revolutionary. Too bad that his character wasn’t revolutionary also. And Yoshimada was so nice to order again when they went further with their little meeting that was dragging on. She had asked for hers to go. She had dinner and breakfast tomorrow.
• Nathan just walked behind her. Just that meeting which just lasted three hours, he had gotten twelve hours of texts from Stella. He wouldn’t call her his girlfriend. She was also a past secretary who was really eager to please. He wouldn’t fight her off no matter how hard he tried. She just kept coming back and she was really generous.
• How could he refuse?
• There were others, but Stella was constant. She wanted to be the one so bad. Too bad he wasn’t in the dating game. He had to pocket his phone because they were at the steps that would lead down to the parking lot.
• He had wondered how Darlene had made it up here with her heels. The steps had holes and her heels were quite thin. They could go through the holes. He wanted to say be careful, but he was sure she would turn and give him that sarcastic smile. So he kept quiet.
• They were walking and what he had dreaded happened. Her hell past through a hole. Her footwear left her foot and she was falling forward. His hands shot out catching her before she could fall. She turned quickly to him and hugged him.
• She was shaking in his hands and she couldn’t breathe normally. What would have happened if she fell on her face? Would she have died?
• “Please don’t let me fall” she was able to get out.
• ‘Oh joy’ he thought dryly. She just had to have a near death experience for her to talk to him normally. She stood just like that in his arms for a while before she finally let go. She brought her heel out from the hole and put it on her foot.
• Then they continued to walk down the stairs. Good to know that things were back to normal between them. They sat in the car and it was back to that awkward silence. Her head was down, her curly hair was shielding her face. He brought his phone out and thought of replying Stella when he heard something.
• He raised his head up thinking it was just his imagination. He was looking down again when he heard her audibly release a shaky breath before positioning her head up.
• “Thank you” she said looking at him.
• “It was no problem” he noticed that she didn’t sound so sarcastic right now. Now wasn’t the time for her to be so stuck up. Everyone will somehow be humble. It only takes time. In her case almost falling off a flight of steps.
• “If you weren’t there…” she looked away. Saying those things would be oversharing. Her boss already got praises from most of the population. She wouldn’t add to it. “Just thank you”.
• He smiled a little and she cleared her throat. “Well there is nothing else for today. And there is also no way I’ll be able to squeeze anyone in. This is the only day that you’re aren’t overbooked. You’re actually free”.
• They went back to the office and went about their duties. Him in his office and her outside the door. Just reading and forwarding emails. Scheduling appointments and everything else. The usual jam for a secretary. There was no excitement for her. The only time that he had excitement was when he had girls come over. Well she could imagine what went on in there. It was just like porn. Only live.
• The day came to an end and it was coming down. It didn’t say that in the weather report earlier and she didn’t have an umbrella. She really wondered how she was going to get home. She stood leaning against her desk, looking outside the window when she heard Mr Cross’ door close.
• He looked to her in question. She was always gone before him. She wasn’t in the mood to grace him with one of her smiles. She quirked her brow in confusion. She was too tired to care what he thought. He was probably laughing at her in his mind. Today was really pathetic.
• “I can give you a lift if you don’t mind”.
• He would be nice about it. She had almost died and he could see the visible effects. She was not shaking, but she was still visibly shaken. This was now the time in her life she would go home and revaluate her life choices, then probably see that she was wasting her time as his secretary.
• She mulled it over as she packed her things. It wouldn’t hurt and he was a billionaire. Nathan Cross was a multibillionaire so there was no way he would think of remembering she owed him something. She could at least show her gratitude. “Thank you”.
• It was again silence. There was nothing to talk about between them. Where would they begin? How does it feel to be my secretary? How does it feel like to be a boss? When he looked through her papers she was quite young. Twenty-three maybe twenty-four. They were on different planes in life so he couldn’t relate at all.
• “I’ll stop here” she said softly and the car slowed to a halt. “Thank you” and she opened the door.
• “See you tomorrow Darlene”.
• She smiled this time, but it wasn’t as sarcastic as it always was. She closed the door and walked all the way to her apartment building. She really couldn’t think of anything worse than him seeing her apartment. She had seen pictures of his mansion. So she was sure the simple life was something alien to him.
• She opened the door to her apartment and when closing it she had to jam it shut with the help of her shoulder. She used all her locks and dragged her feet all the way to her couch. She still had her takeout from the meeting, but she wasn’t so hungry.
• She had almost died today. That brought tears to her eye but she didn’t let them flow. She would have died if Nathan hadn’t been there. And what would have happened after she broke her neck and destroyed her face? Her dad would never know. Her mum was still in the hospital and her mental health got worse every day.
• She would just be gone. And what had she done? What had she accomplished? Nothing. She was just a secretary for a billionaire. Now her eyes was opened to the divide between them. She needed to get her life in order. How did they do it these days?
• She was too old to start posting her talent on social media. So she would become a ghost-writer. With her mind made up she was ready to eat. She would work as a secretary and also do what she loved doing. She didn’t waste her time in college studying music.
• She went to sleep with a plan and a new attitude. Tomorrow would be a better day.