Chapter 49 UNINVITED 2
The moment the door opened, I was met with Troy standing there—looking like a man who had just been dragged out of the kitchen in the middle of planning a surprise breakfast for his girlfriend.
He had only his pants on, his well-built muscles fully exposed, and the only thing covering his bare chest was a pink apron that looked wildly out of place on him.
“Miss Carter,” he said, surprise clearly lacing his tone.
I didn’t wait for him to say another word before I pushed past him and let myself inside, my pulse racing as he followed closely behind.
“May I ask what brought you here?” he asked, quickly stepping in front of me to block my path.
“I want to see him. Now,” I demanded, irritation and urgency bleeding into my voice as I stared at him. I didn’t understand why he was standing in my way, and frankly, I didn’t care.
“I’m sorry, but can you come back—maybe on Thursday?” he said nervously. “Jaxon is very busy. He has an appointment, and you’re not scheduled to see him.”
“An appointment?” I repeated sharply. “Call him and tell him I have information about Ravyn Vale’s whereabouts—and that it’s urgent. Very urgent. As a matter of fact, he should treat this as the most important appointment he has today.”
I returned his nervous smile with one of my own and tried to move past him again, but he still wouldn’t budge. He shook his head helplessly, his unease growing more obvious by the second.
“Please, Miss Carter,” he said, his voice strained now. “This really isn’t a good time. Can’t you come back later this evening?”
“I am not leaving until I see Jaxon,” I replied firmly.
I knew it. I knew he was inside and deliberately avoiding me. The certainty only made my chest tighten further. Just then, the doorbell rang.
“Oh my God,” Troy muttered under his breath, panic creeping into his expression. “What am I supposed to do?”
He rushed toward the door to answer it, his distress increasing with every second—but I didn’t care. All I wanted was to see Jaxon. I needed answers now, before I completely lost whatever composure I had left.
As Troy pressed the button and responded through the intercom, a voice came through.
A familiar voice.
I didn’t register it immediately.
“Your name, please,” Troy asked quickly before rushing back inside. He returned almost immediately with a phone pad in his hand.
My eyes drifted lazily to the monitor, still trying to process everything—until I froze.
“It’s Arabella Carter. I’m here for the interview.”
Oh my God.
Oh my God.
What was she doing here?
Did she just say she was here for the interview?
A sharp realization slammed into me.
Wait—the interview she talked about this morning… was here?
“Miss Carter,” Troy whispered as he scrolled frantically through the phone pad. “Oh—there it is. Just give me a minute. I’ll let you in.”
My heart dropped straight into my stomach.
“Okay,” Arabella called back.
Troy turned to face me, desperation written all over his face.
“See why I said you can’t be here at this moment? Please, just come back—”
“She can’t see me.”
I cut him off, my voice shaky, my thoughts spiraling too fast for me to catch. I pointed at Arabella’s face on the monitor.
“She cannot see me here.”
I was already freaking out. I didn’t want her to know I was here—not here. I knew Arabella too well. She wouldn’t believe any excuse I came up with. She wouldn’t believe I was here for work. And sooner or later, she would tell Mum. Then Renna. Then everyone.
“I don’t understand,” Troy said slowly, confusion creasing his forehead. “Do you know her from somewhere?”
For a moment, I honestly felt like shaking him.
“Are you being serious?” I snapped. “You just called her Miss Carter and you still don’t get it?”
He only looked more confused, and my jaw nearly dropped at how long it was taking him to connect the dots.
“She’s my sister, you dumbass!” I yelled, the words ripping out of me before I could stop them.
His eyes widened instantly.
“Oh my God,” he breathed, staring from me to Arabella’s face on the monitor and back again.
“She can’t see me here,” I repeated, panic tightening my chest as I shoved past him and rushed into the sitting room, desperately scanning for somewhere—anywhere—to hide.
“Just give me a minute,” Troy said behind me. “Let me throw some clothes on and we’ll figure this out.”
But I couldn’t wait.
I was too restless, my nerves screaming as I paced the room. My heart was pounding so hard it felt like it might give me away. I needed to disappear. Now.
I immediately headed upstairs to the second floor of the apartment.
The moment I reached the balcony, I glanced down and saw Troy returning, now dressed in a black shirt. He looked around, searching for me, before heading straight to the door to let Arabella in.
I stayed still, watching carefully—waiting—until I saw him bring her inside, just to be sure I wasn’t imagining things.
The second Arabella stepped in, my chest tightened.
She looked… stunning.
Her dress was flawless, her makeup perfectly done, her hair styled like she was heading to a matchmaking event rather than an interview. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes before quickly stepping back from the balcony, making sure she couldn’t see me.
“Come this way, Miss Carter,” Troy said politely. “We’ll wait for Mr. Lennox in his office upstairs.”
And just like that, they started heading up.
Panic exploded in my chest all over again.
Not knowing what to do, I ran to the first door on the floor, begging for it to be unlocked. As soon as I turned the doorknob and the door gave way, I rushed inside. I slammed it shut and leaned my back against it, not even bothering to look at the room. I just kept my hand on the handle, bracing myself in case someone tried to push their way in.
Everything went quiet. Then, I heard the voices and footsteps of Troy and Arabella passing by. I couldn't help myself—I cracked the door open just enough to peep at them, watching until they disappeared into a room at the end of the hall.
My heart was pounding so hard against my ribs that I could barely catch my breath. I was so focused on them that I didn't even notice the figure standing right behind me.
“What are you doing here?”
I nearly jumped out of my skin. His voice came from nowhere, startling the life out of me. Wait a minute. Please don't tell me I'm in his room.
I turned around and nearly collided with him. He was standing right there, barely an inch away. My eyes traveled from his bare chest up to his face, which was twisted into a look of pure confusion.
As my eyes met his, we both got lost. I couldn't find my voice; I opened my mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Instead, I just found myself staring longer than I should have. I couldn't look away.