4. HEIR TO THE ARCHER EMPIRE.
“This is Amelia”
“She would be overseeing the interview with the Chicago Tribune, regarding Hank Archer” It was the first time Liv had seen Damien’s lips fold into something other than a frown. It was a smirk that could nearly pass for a smile, but it wasn’t to her.
It could never.
But rather the five foot three brunette in front of her. Damien’s veined hands grasped around her waist as Amelia chuckled—making it obvious that they were somewhat acquaintances before. Liv felt tense to her feet as they locked eyes. “Amelia, this is my assistant” He paused, pointing to Liv. And it took her a minute to realize he had actually forgotten her name.
“Olivia” She blurted out, as Amelia’s eyes went down on her, derogatorily. “She’s going to keep you company while i attend to the board. And when i’m done” He folded his hands, leaning in to place a kiss against her cheeks. She smiled, melting in his hands before he pulled away. “I’ll surely get back to you” He added.
Muffling was all she did as Amelia bit into her lower lip, and it took all within Liz to resist gauging her eyes out with her fingers. It was obvious how terribly smitten she was by Damien, who’d brushed past her shoulders as he walked out—
—leaving both women awkwardly staring at themselves. Amelia had gum in her mouth which she chewed on, her sinful red lips glossily clasping together with each bite. Her stilettos were a match with her eyeshadow and her Louis Vuitton bag. She wasn’t just a basic reporter, Liv could tell. She was classy, in love or whatever it was she felt for Damien. She was also posh, and exquisite and her cologne had an expensive scent.
She was who Olivia wanted to be.
“So you’re the person Damien has his eyes on now?” She finally said, her voice as sweet as a hummingbird’s. “You speak?” Liv sarcastically remarked. “Of course i do” They were in a boardroom and she watched over to the apex seat. Crossing her legs, she looked back at Liv. “And God no” She added.
“Cursed be the woman Damien has eyes for” She chuckled, seating opposite Amelia. “Why do you say so?” She teased, with an attractive smile. “Because he’s like the most arrogant person on this earth?” Liv said in a questioning tone and Amelia licked her lips. “I for one hand, genuinely think he’s nice” She continued.
“Well clearly, he hasn’t shown you his other side”
“I schooled with Damien back in Houston and there’s one thing i can tell you, if ever he shows you his arrogant side, he actually wants you—“ The smile died off Liz’s lips. And it took a second before she burst into laughter. “That’s a lie” She replied.
“He has an odd taste, so it really wouldn’t surprise me” She said and Liz scoffed. “Well that’s something” She replied. “That’s not what i meant” Amelia said. “I’m saying you’re exactly the type of girl he would go for. Naive, nerd glasses” She unconsciously reached for her frame. “Skirt. Office shirt. Innocent, but that’s all before he changes you. Tells you he loves you and makes you feel like the only person that matters in the world” Amelia whispered.
“And then he leaves you.”
Liv chuckled before realizing she was dead serious. “You’re just saying that because you love him, still. I saw the way you looked at him” Liv replied. “Who wouldn’t?” She scoffed. “I’m just saying if you expect too much, you’re going to get hurt. You just have to live in it. In the moment” She clenched her thighs, pushing a lump down her throat. Liv looked to the door and back.
“It doesn’t matter” Liv said dryly. “Nothing’s ever going to be happen between us. I’d be a fool to fall again” She added and Amelia locked eyes, gazing into her naive soul. “Right” She said.
-
The coffee was a swirl of chocolate and milk, and Alli’s hands frizzled beneath the cappuccino machine. The store was quiet, so much that he heard the echoes of his own humming. Once his cup was full, he heaved it to his nose—
—taking in the steam through his nose. Little things like these, actually made him ecstatic for whatever reason. But it was on turning around that the smile wiped off his face. He bumped into someone, spilling the dark liquid in the air before he backed away.
“I’m so sorry” His eyes drew from the ground to the man standing before him. There was a large stain across his shirt and Alli immediately put his mug away, grabbing a napkin from the very table. “I’m legit so sorry” He drew close to him, placing the napkin against what was a buff chest. Alli paused, before shaking his head. He pulled away, avoiding eye contact in what was already a very awkward situation.
“It’s okay” A stoic whisper fell into his ears and he tossed the cloth away. Looking up, it was someone who he hadn’t even seen before. He had a broad physique with hair that fell across his face. Green eyes that could have been contacts, yet seeming so natural. And he was in a suit like everyone else around here.
Except for him.
Alli fluttered his lashes, abandoning his coffee as he walked away. “I should—“ He pointed to the door. “Yeah” He stuttered, hastily walking through the door. And the moment he closed it, he rested his back against it, letting out a deep sigh. “Fuck” He cussed because why did he have to be so awkward. Omar, the other man had seen his shadows still creeping from beneath.
And he scoffed lightly, looking to the smudge across his shirt. He wasn’t exactly infuriated, maybe he might have been just a little. But Alli was someone he hadn’t seen much around here, and he might have been intrigued—somewhat in a good way. Alli on the other hand searched the cubicles for Olivia.
Little did he know.
-
“Again?” Amelia’s shrill voice echoed through the room. “Does that mean you’ve fallen for Mr CEO before?” She teased and Liv had immediately turned pink.
“What? No.” She blurted out. “I just meant—“ She stuttered. “I just meant i’ve heard stories plus i know his type” She added. “I know exactly who he is”
“Is that what makes him such a bad person?” Amelia asked. “Because you realize this job comes with alot of responsibilities, responsibilities you only achieve when you’re that kind of person, his kind of person” Amelia replied and Liv’s head bowed. “I know” She whispered.
“But i think he’s always been this way. Hard, closed off to the entire world. Arrogant” She said. “Perhaps it was something that changed him?” Liv scoffed. “I don’t think so” She added.
“But maybe that’s just my opinion”
Amelia stroked her chin. “What is your opinion?” She asked. “You want the brutally honest one?” They both chuckled and she nodded in response. “I feel he’s an egoistical son of a bitch who can’t even mourn his own father the right way. I mean, i knew Hank” Her voice broke. “And he was such a kind soul, the exact opposite of whatever he described him as up on that stage. They’re just so different individuals” She said.
“Can you describe Hank in one word?”
“Maybe straightforward. Empathetic” Liv replied, facing her side to recall the exact day she got this job. Hank holding her hands with a grin across his face.
“It’s yours” He had said. “It had always been, i knew from the first moment you walked in” And even she had an arch in her brows. “I see so much of myself in you, Liv. And we’d make a great team” She smiled, realizing a nine to five under Hank wasn’t that terrible. But that only lasted a few months.
Before Damien showed up, and she remembered his first words as well— "You were my father's secretary" His voice went low in a coarse whisper as he held her chin to face him. "You're mine now" He added.
She rolled her eyes.
“How about Damien?” That same voice pierced her thoughts, jolting her back to reality. “What?
“What would you describe him as?” In that moment, Liv recalled years ago, hadn’t really moved on from her ten year old self, drenched in water and limping in her best friend’s arms.
“You think anyone would be interested in you?” He yelled as the tears dropped from her eyes. It almost did in the moment she looked back at Amelia who squinted her eyes.
“Terrible. Hurtful—“
“Did i say egoi…” The door suddenly barged open and Olivia sat up, wiping across her eyes. She turned back around, expecting to see the devil himself, but alas it was Alli.
“This is where you’ve been?” He exhaled, eying Amelia back and forth as she scribbled something on a paper. Liv stood, grabbing his arms as they headed towards the door. “Come on” She said.
“You wouldn’t believe what happened” She muttered once she was out of the boardroom. And Alli turned to her as they walked down the hallways. “Me too” He had a snarky glare in his eyes.
“I think i fell in love” He blurted out. “At first sight” His pupils were dilated, so much that Liv halted. “What?” She doubted she heard him right. “He— She, i mean she uhm bumped in me in the coffee room and it was this sort of weird electrical feeling that just erupted between us” Alli chuckled. “Is it weird?“ He asked.
“I know it is but. Worth a shot”
Olivia’s eyes stared in the distance as she sighted Damien walking from the corridors. She instinctively ruffled her hair as she turned away. “Are you even listening to me?” Alli clasped her arms as she diverted her eyes back to him. “I’m so sorry, i’m supposed to be watching Amelia but when i get back, we will talk about your insane crush and my devastating ordeal” She airkissed back at him before heading back into the boardroom, behind her boss.
And Alli just stood there, rolling his eyes to the back. “Of course” He muttered, turning around. Liv on the other hand, had her fingers wrapped around the knob of the door which Damien had walked through and opening it slightly, her jaw dropped at what she saw.
There was Damien with a smile across his face, and Amelia who walked towards him. His hands slipped down Amelia's waist, drawing her in. And this time, it wasn’t a kiss on the cheeks. He hefted her in her arms as their lips grazed each other. Her hands pulled against his hair as he wedged her against the table, his eyes feasting on her insatiably. And the moment Amelia pulled him down on her, Liv immediately closed the door, afraid to witness the forbidden with her eyes. Her heart was instantly polluted with a mixture of anger and jealousy.
“Son of a bitch” She cussed.
-
“It was a stressful day” Liv said, slipping the phone beneath her ears as she walked past the stacks of unpacked boxes that leaned against the wall. Agatha sighed. “You could have come home for me to take care of you” She suggested, like she always did and Olivia just rolled her eyes. Grabbing the saucepan from the shelves, she rinsed it beneath the taps.
“I’ll come home soon, ma. Right now, i’m between working as a personal assistant and also the funeral for my boss i told you died. And i have my fashion by the side for now” She looked to the boxes that contained all of her old designs and she scoffed.
“It’s going to be alright, Liv. Soon”
She grabbed her plate as she walked over to her gray couch. Sitting into it, her eyes went to the photo of her father that was across the wall. “I’ll call you tomorrow, ma” Her voice went low, and so did her heart as she remembered what happened earlier. It was just a kiss, from the one man she detested in the entire world—
—yet somehow the thought of it and Amelia’s conversation struck a chord within her. That and thought of her father, all of which, unbeknownst to her were connected. After a while, she fell asleep. Only to woken up a few hours later by her alarm.
She jolted forward, eyes set to her windows before an exhausting sigh escaped her lips. She looked to her clock. 6:30AM. “Not again” She rolled her eyes. It was the same, days were a routine.
Wake up.
Brush. Wash her face. Deodorant. Hair. Gloss. Skirt—Shirt. And pacing through her front door with a growling stomach. She was heading down the streets, muttering to her neighbors that stood at each individual stand. Not that she knew them, but just a gesture. Her eyes set on the bus as she picked up her pace. But it was then she noticed a protruding crowd nearing the roads.
And her phone buzzed for the millionth time in her pockets. She halted, finally slipping it out to see a text from an unknown number.
UNKNOWN: Get to my office now.
She only assumed of someone that would have such a tone over text and she rolled her piece. A piece of the newspaper flew beneath her feet and her eyes caught the headlines—the front page of the Chicago Tribune and her lips fell open. Her head was ravaged with a migraine as she leaned to pick it up.
THE REAL DAMIEN ALEXANDER ARCHER: HEIR TO THE ARCHER EMPIRE.
Her eyes went down to the name beside it, next to the whispers and mutterings that came from behind her. “By Amelia Javonson” Her voice was shrill as her phone buzzed yet again, just in time for her bus to finally pull away from the stop. It was in that moment that she knew she was screwed.
Because next to the headline was her name in quote, next to the words describing her boss. “Terrible” Her heart sank as she realized Amelia had revealed their whole conversation. And if everyone around her had seen it, if she hadn’t judged the text, it was obvious Damien would have as well. She heaved a sigh, realizing the last thing she wanted was his attention.
“We need to have a long conversation.”
She might as well pen in her resignation letter, she thought as the paper slipped from her fingers. Because there was no surviving this.
To be continued…