72

72
Kendall had finished eating.

She’d tried to get up and wash the dishes, but Lucien had ordered her to stay seated while he took the dishes and placed them in the sink.

Now, she’d turned on her counter stool to face the dining room, while he paced in front of her.

She sat in tense silence, waiting.

With a sigh, he finally stopped directly in front of her and then turned to face her.
Her spine straightened, and she looked up at him like a little soldier standing at attention.

Lucien stared at her, startled to feel his heart pound unexpectedly at the eye contact. He cleared his throat, looking away.

“If we’re, uh… going to start over… we should start on a clean slate.”

She blinked at him. He glanced at her, raising a brow. “Understand?”

Kendall shook her head.

He sighed. “I mean that we need to address it, Kendall. What… happened back at home.”

Her eyes widened, a blush slowly spreading across her cheeks. She dropped her gaze but kept her posture straight. “Oh.”

He shoved his hands into the pockets of his black sweatpants. “First of all—”

“I’m sorry,” she quickly interjected. “Before you say anything else. I’m really sorry about everything. I crossed the line. You know that I’ve always admired you, ever since you took me into your family. At some point… that admiration turned into a serious crush.”

She glanced nervously at him, looking away again when she saw how intensely he was staring at her.

“But I understand that it makes you uncomfortable,” she continued. “So, I’m going to stop. When… that happened, I was just as upset as you because… I mean, who wants the person they like to be disgusted with them, right?”

His eyes closed on a sigh. “I wasn’t disgusted with you—”

“Please, Sir, if we’re going to move on, let me finish.”

He pursed his lips, nodding.

“So, I really didn’t think it would go that far,” she continued. “I didn’t even mean it when I said I wanted to blackmail you; I was just upset that you accused me of that. I would never do that to you.”

His gaze softened.

She sighed. “If I told Sabrina, she’d hate me, and I don’t want that. So, I’m going to learn my place and stay in it.”

He slowly nodded. “I appreciate that, Kendall. And… I’d also like to apologize for…” He looked at her, watching her blush deepen as the memories flooded both their minds. He swallowed hard, looking away. “Everything I did.”

With a deep breath, she nodded. “Forgiven! There, a clean slate.”

“Exactly,” he agreed. “So, I’m thinking about your post at work. Would you consider returning?”

She blinked. “You… you want me back at work?”

“Yes,” he agreed. “It’s been hell adjusting to work without you, but also it makes sense for you to be there until your permanent role in the finance department.”

She looked even more fascinated. “You still want me in your finance department?”

“I’ll be damned if any of the competitors get you,” he passionately stated. “You’re working for me, no one else. But of course, we… we can’t be alone in the office anymore.”

She bit her lower lip, looking away. “Oh.”

“Yeah, just as a precaution, to avoid any…”

“Accidents,” she quietly offered when he started searching for the right word.

“Right.” He nodded, feeling his face burn. He hoped to heaven he wasn’t blushing. How horrific would that be? He turned away, just in case, looking for his phone. “I’ll hire one more secretary. You two work together, and then you accompany me when I leave the office, and she stays in. That way, you’re not answering calls while we’re out. And we’re not alone when we’re in the office.”

She silently nodded, agreeing.

“Also,” He held up a finger, turning to look at her. “I’m sorry, but I’ve already checked you out of the hotel room.”

“What?” Her expression fell. “But, I can’t just check out. I need to find somewhere to live first.”

He scoffed. “Kendall, sweetheart—”

“Don’t call—” She closed her eyes, sighing. “I get insane butterflies when you call me sweetheart.”

Lucien froze, staring at her. “W… what?”

She looked embarrassed for a moment, but forced herself to carry on. “I’m serious. You seem to lack a lot of self-awareness, so you don’t realize the effect you can have on m… on people. If we’re going to go back to normal, I’m asking politely, please don’t call me sweetheart. I just cannot handle it.”

He swallowed hard. Was she saying that he drove her insane, just by calling her sweetheart?

Gosh, she was under his skin. She was way under there, and he was struggling to keep acting unaffected.
“Okay,” he rasped, shrugging. “I understand. I’ll refrain from… saying that word.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. As I was saying…” He trailed off. His mind was blank; Lucien couldn’t remember what he wanted to say.

With a heavy exhale, he turned away to compose himself. Goddamn it.

Kendall silently watched him, silently glad she’d gotten that off her chest. And without crumbling too, she was getting good at honestly expressing herself!
When he didn’t turn back around, she blinked, tilting her head. “Mr Sinclair?”

He spun around, brows raised. “Yeah?”

“You okay?”

“Of course.” He cleared his throat, looking down at his phone. “As I was saying, we’re going to hire a second secretary, and you can start working more as my personal assistant. That way I can teach you more important things…” What was he even saying?

Lucien gave up, turning for the stairs. “Just make sure you’re ready to leave in the next hour.”



“She’s really his secretary?” Eliott said, fingers gripping the arm of his office chair as he leaned forward in surprise.

“Yes, Sir,” said Gilmore, his loyal assistant. “She attended Yale under a scholarship funded by Ashcroft Capital and is preparing to join their Finance department. In the meantime, Lucien Sinclair seems to be personally training her to join the company.”

A snarl of rage curled Eliott’s lip as he sat in charged silence. His fist snapped out, slamming onto his table.

Gilmore didn’t even flinch, well accustomed to his employer’s wrath.

“That son of a bitch,” he growled. His golden eyes, usually light with friendliness, were now dark with fury. “How did he get her? Lucien having Kendall in his grasp is a ticking time bomb. If she tells him anything…”

Gilmore sighed. “She’s his daughter’s best friend, Sir. Apparently, she’s been a part of his family for the past eight years.”

“And I didn’t know? Do your fucking job!”

“I’m sorry, Sir.”

“Forget it! Fix this. Get me someone in Lucien’s circle immediately.”

Gilmore looked at him. “We’re in luck, Sir. I hear Mr Sinclair is currently looking to hire a new secretary.”

“Is he?” Panting, Eliott smirked. “Well… what are you thinking?”

His assistant smiled. “Your daughter, Sir. The one you’ve never acknowledged. She’s still on the streets, long criminal record. She’d do a lot for money. And anything for your approval.”

“Well…” Eliott’s smile grew. “Maybe it’s time I became a present father.”