Chapter 2 

- Ethan -

I started the car and zoomed off, still pondering about the little punk who dared speak to me the way she did. Obviously, she did not know who I was. But the nerve of her!

Father and Henry got me pissed off earlier and I had driven off from the family house with no destination in mind till I got to this little bar and decided to walk in to have a drink.

My phone kept buzzing by my sides. I had a couple of missed calls but I did not care. I wouldn't want to admit it, but that crazy lady made me forget for a moment the incident between Dad and my stepbrother.

She is quite lucky I just did not feel like giving her any attention, because if I did, she would have been packing out of that little shop this very night.

I finally got to my mansion and drove in. I packed my car at the garage with the many others in there and walked with long strides to the door. It was opened. I walked in and headed straight for the stairs.

"Babe?" I heard Rosa called and stopped with a sigh. She was seated in the dining. She walked up to me with a pout on her face.

"Babe, what happened? I have been calling but have not received a single response from you. Why? I was so worried," she stood before me and moved a few stubborn strands of hair from her face.

"Sorry about that. I had a few things to deal with," I told her.

"I called your brother, and he told me you guys...well, fought over something," she said uncertainly, and I frowned at her.

"You called Henry?"

"I had to," she stretched her hands emphatically. "You were not taking your calls and I was worried. Besides, Henry is your brother. For how long are you two going to keep up with this?"

"It's none of your business," I told her.

"Come on Ethan..."

"Hey!" I raised a finger to her face and she went quite immediately. "Keep out of this."

"Well, what would you like to eat?" She asked after a considerable moment had passed.

"I'm not hungry," I said and turned away from her.

"Babe, what do you mean by that... " she was saying, following after me, and I turned round sharply.

"I've got a lot of work to do tomorrow and I need some rest. Can you let me be?"

I was not in the mood for any of her naggings. She crossed her arms over her busty and half-exposed chest grudgingly, making them bounce, and walked away angrily.

As I lay to sleep, I had almost forgotten about the incident at the bar, but the face of that young lady flashed through my mind one more time.

- Ella -

I woke up very early in the morning and made breakfast for my mother. I took it to her room because I needed to make sure she had her medication before leaving home every day.

"Mother, how are you doing today?" I asked her with a small smile on my face.

"I'm fine and strong," she smiled back at me. She was not, I could tell. With every passing day, the illness got worse and her skin shrunk, reminding me that the surgery had to be done as urgent as possible.

The drugs prescribed to have sustained her were doing very little job, but those were what I could afford from my small bar. This is the reason why I need this job so badly. I cannot afford to lose my mother because she is all I have.

I dressed up and went to bid her goodbye. She said a few words of prayer for me, making tears well up in my eyes.

"It will all go in your favour," she said and I hoped so. My anxiety was eased a bit.

"How do I look?" I asked her in a bit to lighten the atmosphere.

"Very gorgeous and beautiful," she told me and I smiled. I kissed her on the forehead and left for my interview.

It was first a miracle that I had gotten an invitation from Leo's company, which was one of the biggest companies in the state, but my credentials merited me without any connection.

I got to the big building and it took me a while to locate the office I was to have the interview. I approached the secretary's desk but she did not look happy to see me.

"Good morning ma'am," I greeted respectfully.

"Please step back," she said, waving her hands like she was addressing a sheep. I swallowed it in.

"My name is Emmanuella Benson, and I am here for the interview," I told her without losing my cool.

She looked at her watch.

"You're a minute late," she eyed me.

"I'm so sorry. It took me a while to locate the office," I apologised earnestly.

"Whatever, just walk through that door while I inform the boss of your arrival," she pointed to a door.

"Thank you so much."

My palms felt sweaty and I rubbed them together in a bit to steady myself. I knocked on the door and did not get any response. I decided to walk in.

The office was quite large, almost the size of a living room. The boss, so it seemed, was sitting behind a large desk, busy with a laptop in front of him. But even with his head bowed, I could tell from the traces of his form that he was a very hot man.

Get it together, I chided myself off the distraction.

I walked carefully so my shoes wouldn't make so much noise.

"Good morning sir," I greeted and got no response. "Uhm, my name is Emmanuella Benson and I am here for the interview."

I sucked in a shaky breath when he ignored me for a couple more seconds before looking up. I felt my skin crawl out of my body as my heart jumped out of my mouth when he looked at me, and I recognised him as my ominous visitor from yesterday.