Chapter 7

• GABRIEL
• I find myself between a rock and a hard place. How is it possible that I'm now in the hands of my rival? Is there anything worse than that? Why the hell does all this have to happen to me? And it all started because of this guy who constantly harasses me, never missing an opportunity to get close to me. Now my life is a total chaos, a mess that I'm not used to. I used to have everything in order, but now... Damn! That makes me even more stressed out than I already am.
• Alex, my older brother, seems to get a kick out of my problems.
• —I can't believe what you're telling me, Gabriel," he chuckles when he hears what happened last night.
• —I don't think it's funny," I sigh. Now she knows too, Alex. —I ruffle my hair in frustration. Imagine that! If last night it was her, tomorrow it could be..." I hit my desk hard and then run my hand over my pissed off face. You don't know how stressful it is to be with the psychosis of....
• —I can't believe how unprecedented this is! Unbelievable that a woman has you trapped like this and not exactly in love.
• I don't find it very funny how he sees it, on the contrary, I want to pull every hair out of my head not knowing what to do since our family name is at stake and my reputation as a man as well. Now I have not only one problem, but two.
• —Relax now, Gabriel. —He gets up from his place. I'm sure he's already forgotten, because if he remembered, he would have called you by now.
• —You think so? —I raise an eyebrow and try to calm down. I don't know, brother. You can expect anything from that woman.
• —Listen to me. —He approaches me and pats me gently on the back. He waits for me to calm down. Besides, if you think about it, you'd remember that she went on a trip. What happened between you was three weeks ago and, look, she still hasn't called you.
• I sigh, tired.
• —I hope you're right, maybe she forgot about it. —I intertwine my fingers while I look at my computer. Let's change the subject, talking about the same thing always makes me tired.
• —If you prefer it that way, it's fine. —He moves away from me and adjusts his tie. Listen, Gabriel, now that we're changing the subject, I want to ask you something I overheard during lunch.
• —Oh, yeah? And what did you hear? —I'm curious, although I can already imagine what it's about.
• —Is it true that you're going out with your new assistant? —He holds up a mischievous smile.
• —Yes, why?
• —Can't you have a secretary without supervising her in bed?
• He turns and shows too much interest in the subject.
• —She's cute but clumsy. Anyway, it doesn't matter. I guess it's part of her charm. That's why I'm taking her out to dinner tonight.
• —You're right. —She flashes a smile. She's cute, very cute," she murmurs the last, fixing her gaze on the side of my office.
• A sweet smile forms on his lips, something very rare for him.
• I don't want to probe any further, I don't even want to make any comments about her with Alex. He's probably also attracted to the awkwardly cute secretary I hired a month ago.
• —Well, let's get home. I have a present for Estefania that she'll really love.
• —You spoil our sister too much, Alex," I reproach.
• —She's the only little sister we have and....
• My cell phone starts to vibrate.
• She lets me take the call, because it could be one of our clients.
• As I pick up the cell phone to find out who it is, the first thing I notice is that it's from an unknown number. My nerves kick in. Something inside me tells me not to answer, since it could be her, or it could also be a partner, or maybe it's the bear, so I tell my sister.
• —Hello?
• —Hello, Gabriel. So soon and you forget about me?
• —Mia... —My body freezes at the sound of his voice. It can't be.
• He laughs.
• —It seems I'm the devil incarnate for you.
• He controls his laughter.
• —What do you want? —I ask with annoyance at his irritating laughter.
• —Well, I'm calling to meet you today at 7:00 p.m. at the Roswort restaurant.
• —Today?
• I remember my dinner with my secretary.
• —What part was unclear to you?
• —Today I can't, I have a... —Today?
• —I'm not asking if you can or not. —His mocking tone disappears. I'll see you tonight.
• I hear his cold voice, then the beep of the call ending.
• Without reacting, I clench my hands angrily. My anger starts to grow even more, as I have to cancel my dinner with my secretary as I can't say no to this woman who is worse than a stone in my shoe.
• —Shit!
• After having messed up my plans with my clumsy secretary, I leave my family's CEO pissed off. The worst part is that I have an immense desire to hang the woman with my bare hands.
• —Where are you going all dressed up, Gabriel?
• Estefania enters my room.
• I notice her happiness. I raise an eyebrow when I hear her humming. Apparently, she's very happy, I guess it's because of the present Alex gave her as soon as she got home. My sister is sometimes adorable, but if you make her angry you won't want her around.
• —I have a...
• —Appointment? —she finishes for me. So that's it," he laughs.
• I sigh grumpily and turn my back on him.
• —Don't you have other things to do? —I take my keys and my jacket.
• —You said it, little brother," she replies, smiling.
• I kiss her goodbye on the head and ask her not to say anything to our mother. If she says anything to her, she'll stay up until I get there, and I don't like that.
• Arriving at the Roswort restaurant, I ask for a reservation for a table for two in the name of Mia Fermonsel. When they tell me where it is, I am confused and even more so when I am in front of the imperial suite.
• —Have a nice stay in the imperial suite, Mr. Hoffman. Here you go," he hands me a golden card, which is the key to the door. Miss Fermonsel is inside.