One Last Time
1404 Words
Blackwell Enterprise had a pulse of its own, cold, electric, and precise. The twenty story glass tower glittered like a blade slicing into the New York sky, and every employee who walked through its lobby carried the same energy: sharp, professional, and ready to kick ass.
Today was one of those days, where everyone was on their toes. Richard Blackwell was in the building.
The news hit the entire building like a lightning strike. Assistants whispered, managers stiffened, department heads panicked and straightened their ties. It wasn’t that Richard disliked coming to the headquarters, it was simply that he rarely needed to. The company ran like a well oiled machine, and the man trusted no one except himself to operate it.
When he walked into the lobby, the marble floors seemed to echo louder. Conversations died. Eyes darted away. Even the security guards stood straighter.
Richard Blackwell didn’t just carry power. He carried fear. And the one person who hated that feeling the most was his son.
Julian had just settled into his office chair, taking a moment to breathe before his morning workload swallowed him whole, when his secretary burst in.
“Sir,” she whispered, almost breathless. “Your father is here.”
Julian froze, hands hovering above his keyboard. Of all days and everything he already had to deal with. Now this?
He leaned back, exhaling sharply. “Where is he?”
“In his office. He… sent for you.”
Of course he did.
Julian adjusted his suit jacket, straightened his cufflinks, and forced his expression into calm neutrality before walking toward the private elevator. But inside, a knot was tightening in his stomach.
Why was his father here?Richard never visited the office unless something major was happening. A project was at stake or someone had made a mistake.
The elevator chimed at the executive floor. The air was colder here, quieter like the building itself was holding its breath. Julian walked toward his father’s office and knocked.
“Come in,” Richard’s stern voice replied.
Julian pushed the door open.
Richard Blackwell sat behind his massive black desk, hands clasped, posture straight, white hair perfectly combed back, suit flawless. Even as he aged, he remained intimidating. Stern. Unshakable.
He didn’t look up when Julian entered.
He was the kind of man people feared even when he was silent.
“Sit down,” Richard said.
Julian obeyed.
For a moment, the room was quiet except for the soft ticking of the grandfather clock near the window.
Richard finally looked up. “How are you?”
His tone was calm, controlled, and unreadable.
“I’m fine,” Julian replied. Why was he asking him how he was? His father never really cared.
Richard nodded slowly, studying him like a man assessing a stock he wasn’t sure he wanted to buy.
“And how is Sienna?”
Julian blinked.
His heart thudded. Why was he asking about his fiancé, fake fiancé?
“She’s fine,” he said carefully.
But Richard’s eyes narrowed.
“Good. You mentioned she works at a non-governmental organization, correct? Assistant general or something close to it.”
Julian froze.
His mind blanked.
He hadn’t expected this.
Richard continued, “What is the name of the NGO? I may have come across it before.”
Julian swallowed. “The… name?”
“Yes, Julian.”Richard leaned forward slightly. “I bet wherever she works, have a name, boy.?”
His father’s gaze was sharp too sharp.
Julian felt sweat forming at the back of his neck.
“I just thought,” Richard added calmly, “since she's marrying into our family, we as generous people could give a donation. Help her organization thrive.”
“I don't think that would be necessary.” He answered, trying not to sound tense.
Richard exhaled loudly and waved a hand.
“Forget it. Clearly it’s not important.”
Julian’s cheeks heated with embarrassment.
Richard sat back. “Let’s move to the reason I’m here.”
Julian’s stomach twisted.
“We have a new project,” Richard said. “A major one. And we are going to be partnering with Kingsworth Oil.”
Julian sat up straight. “What? We’re partnering with them?”
Kingsworth Oil was one of their fiercest rivals. The companies had fought, competed, and undermined each other for years.
“I thought you hated them,” Julian said.
Richard’s expression hardened. “To defeat your enemy, you bring him closer.” Richard continued, “Your competitors are meant to be close to you. That way, you watch them. Learn from them. And when you learn enough, you use what you’ve learned to crush them.”
Cold. Calculated. Classic Richard Blackwell.
Julian nodded slowly. “That’s… one way to look at it.”
“It’s the only way if you want to stay at the top,” Richard said sharply. “You will understand this someday, if you ever rise to my level.”
Julian clenched his jaw.
There it was, the reminder that he wasn't good enough.
Richard stood from his chair. “Arrange a board meeting. 11 a.m. I want everyone present. This partnership is delicate, and if one thing goes wrong…”
His gaze locked onto Julian like a threat.
“We lose leverage.”
Julian stood as well. “I’ll handle it.”
“You’d better,” Richard replied before walking past him toward the window.
Julian left the office with a storm raging inside him.
The man would never see him, never acknowledge his worth, never believe in him. And Julian hated that more than anything.
But he forced himself to straighten up. He had a job to do.
And he would do it flawlessly because failure wasn’t an option. Not when Richard was watching.
………
Sienna was sprawled across the couch in her small living room, flipping through channels but not really watching any of them. Lola had rushed off to work early, leaving Sienna alone with the quiet hum of the refrigerator and her own thoughts.
Her gaze drifted toward her bag, the contract still inside it. She hadn’t signed.
She kept telling herself she would. She would eventually.
But this morning, she didn’t want to think about contracts or fake marriages or billionaires. She wanted a normal day.
As she settled to watch a cooking show she enjoyed, her phone buzzed.
She reached for it lazily until she saw the caller ID.
Her heartbeat quickened with familiarity.
It was one of her long-term clients. A wealthy man in his fifties, soft spoken, amazingly generous, emotionally fragile, despite his money and large business empire.
He was more like a friend than a client. Most times they were together, they ended up not having s*x. He just needed someone to listen to him talk. Someone that wasn't his wife, someone who won't judge him.
Sienna was that someone.
He paid her just to sit with him, listen, encourage him, and sometimes hold his hand. Surprisingly he was one of her most paying clients.
She answered the call.
“Johnny?”
His voice trembled slightly. “Sienna, I’m in the city today. I was wondering, are you free to meet?”
She sat up straighter, instantly alert.
“I…yeah. Yes, I’m free.”
He exhaled, relieved. “I would really like to see you.”
Sienna smiled softly. “Of course. Same place?”
“Yes. Same place.”
They hung up.
She sat there for a moment, staring at the wall. Julian’s contract flashed through her mind.
Technically she wasn’t his wife yet, she wasn’t even his fiancée in any legal sense.
Everything was still just paper waiting for ink. Good thing she hasn't signed the contract yet.
So seeing Johnny wasn’t breaking any rules.
It's not like she needed the money, she enjoyed her job, she smiled. She went into her room, opened her closet, and rifled through clothes that suddenly looked too cheap.
She sighed. “You’re seeing him for the last time,” she reminded herself. “After this everything changes.”
She selected a fitted pink dress, simple, clean, decent. She fixed her hair, applied soft makeup, grabbed her purse, and looked in the mirror one last time.
She looked like herself.
Not some trophy, unambitious wife of a proud and arrogant wife of a billionaire.
She took a deep breath.
She had an appointment with an old friend.
- Writer
