Ilena and the Mate that Nearly Broke Her

2

This was a weird part of town for the type of job Detra had talked about, even for an interview this was the strangest place I had ever been for anything ever now that I think of it. It was the warehouse district but I was told there was an office building down here on the right. My biggest problem with this was the fact that it was still light now but when I came out it would be dark and it was a fifteen-minute walk here from the subway and I don't see a lot of street lights around here. I walked past yet another warehouse and sure enough there was an office building there. It was old and looked like it needed a good bit of work but I guess it still stood up for now, I walked up to the front and opened the door. Inside were three more doors, one to each side of me and one in front of me.

The others had nothing written on them but the one in front of me said 'Donations' on the front of it. I shrugged and cautiously opened the door, inside was an empty waiting room, filled with chairs and magazines but no people. There was a window at the other side and I walked up to it, a woman who looked more like a model sat behind the desk but she wore no uniform.

"Hi, I was sent here by Detra Hollen, she said there was a job opening and that she set up an interview for me." I said questioningly.

"You're in the wrong place." She said coldly, barely looking up from her computer. "You need to go out and into the right door, go down three flights and someone will be down there to guide you the rest of the way."

"Thank you." I said and went out of the doors, to my right and followed the stairs down three flights, I guess I should have picked more comfortable shoes than my platform black heels, but they went so well with the black, long enough to be appropriate, cocktail dress I had decided to wear, with my red wool coat over top and my tough but beautiful leather satchel or briefcase as my dad called it, he had given it to me when I decide to move to the city. Figured I would get more use out of it now since he had retired.

I opened the door and found a large and mostly dark room. Confused I went back into the stairway and counted the floors, no this was the floor she had said, but it seemed like no one was here. Well s**t, I knew it had to be too good to be true but damn. Nothing at all, not even a desk. I turned to leave but heard a noise come from behind me and spun on my heels, a man stood there looking at me like he was appraising me or something.

"May I help you?" He asked, his voice was smooth and low. It sent a quiver through me but made me feel cold at the same time.

"Um, I think I may be in the wrong place. A friend of mine, Detra Hollen, set up an interview with her boss for me. But I fear I may be a little turned around." I said confidently, never show fear or confusion to someone you don't know, they can and most likely will take advantage of that fact.

"Interesting, well I don't know this Detra, but then again I'm not the boss. But we are holding interviews, please list your qualifications while I take you to him." He said and motioned for me to join him. I hesitated, this seemed off but I desperately needed a job, even if this isn't what Detra sent me here for at least I would be interviewing for a job, right? I moved to walk next to him.

"I have a Bachelors in business, I graduated top of my class..." I continued on until we reached another door, to another room, we stepped inside. There were a lot of people just standing in a line in the middle of the room, starting at one end and ending at the other. In front of them stood three men, all seeming to appraise the people. They didn't look like the normal group I was used to competing against for a job, these people looked like your everyday average workers just looking for a bit of side cash. A couple were even dressed like prostitutes and at least three had that sunken in cheeks look that said they were on way to many drugs. "Are you sure I'm supposed to be here?" I asked the guy that escorted me.

"Just wait over here, we'll figure out where you belong. Don't worry!" He said, assuredly but I did not feel assured as he walked past the line of people and down a hallway out of my sight. f**k I was totally in the wrong place, another job slips through my fingers just because I’m late. I am never late. That’s what sucks the most, you only have one chance to make a first impression and now this apparently awesome boss is forever going to think of me as the girl who showed up late. I popped a mint in my mouth and watch the people standing in the room, another, quite impressive man had walked into the room and was now reading paperwork in front of each of them. Maybe it was their resumes, interesting way to interview people. Obviously not what I was used to but to each his own.

"Excuse me." I was startled out of my thoughts as the man reading resumes called across the room, I looked up to see who he was calling to but he was looking at me and now he is walking towards me. "Do you have a resume?" He asked, with a slight accent, I’m thinking a little bit Aussie.

"Well yes but I’m fairly certain I’m not here for the same reason they are." I said trying not to sound cocky or offending.

"No, you've actually put in effort. Now let’s see it." He said and I pulled my resume carefully out of my briefcase, as to not wrinkle it. "Impressive." He said and passed my resume to one of his colleagues, "And you are in need of a job, yes?" He asked.

"Well yes, I am." I said trying not to sound desperate.

"Any medical problems?" He asked folding his arms across his chest.

"Well yes, but I didn't realize I should be putting that on my resume." I said sounding a little offended but trying to keep it out of my tone.

"No my boss is just careful is all, anything contagious or deadly?" He asked.

"Of course not, I’m sorry do I look sickly to you?" I try to say calmly.

"No, of course not. Please come over here with me, I believe my boss would love to meet you." He states and holds out his arm for me to go first. Hesitantly I move my feet in the direction my brain is telling me to run from, how bad could it really be anyway, especially if they wanted a girl that looked like me. I'm not saying I appear ugly or anything, I actually think I’m quite fetching but the type of guys that are in this room, not in the row, well let’s just say I’m not their usual type...they’re the kind you find on the arm of models and what not. Not me. I moved past the line to stand next to Mister Aussie, I felt a little strange standing there with all their eyes on me, waiting for something that I did not know. I felt more than saw another man walk in behind me and the Aussie left my side to go to his.

"Anything interesting?" The new man said, he was a new kind of sexy all by himself and his voice was like honey, smooth and rich.

"Out of these no, but this woman here came in after. Probably in the wrong place but her credentials are...impressive." He said handing him my resume, I had been looking out of the corner of my eye but turned to my side to see them fully. He looked it over for a moment and sighed looking up to meet my eyes. Most would have shied away, just because he has money or a position of importance. But in real life these things mean nothing, honor, respect, these are the things men like this value. He was so focused on me like I was the only person in the room, no man has ever looked at me like that before. But as soon as it started it was gone as he turned his head to look at the lineup.

"Fine, send these down for donation, get them fed and paid. I would like to talk to her." He said with a motion towards me.

"Alright, let’s move it out people, follow the hallway down to the donation rooms, where you will be paid and fed for your time and effort. Thank you." The Aussie guy said and started filling them down the hallway, I stared in amazement as they seemed to move more like zombies than actual people.

"Hello Miss..." He started and I spun around to meet his extended hand.

"Ilena, Ilena Lyken." I said confidently.

"Miss Ilena, I am Kent Masters and I understand you are looking for employment?" He said in a deeper gruff voice than before that said he was completely serious and seemed like he most likely would be all of the time.

"Yes, but I'm afraid your colleague is right, I may be in the wrong place." I said looking around the now empty room, it was just a large room with white walls and old linoleum floors, nothing special in the least.

"Well, I don't think it matters now, your here and I think your perfect for what I'm looking for and certainly qualified, come we'll talk about your employment over a drink." He said and even smiled as he ushered me down the hallway he had emerged from, we stepped into an elevator and it took us down four more floors, now I am seven floors underground. I am totally screwed if this doesn't go as it should.

When the elevator stopped, we walked down a long hallway and then finally into a large office, with lush and beautiful furnishings.

“Please make yourself comfortable, what would you like to drink?" He asked as he walked over to a wet bar behind his large desk near the far wall.

"I'll have whatever you're having." I said as I slipped off my jacket and placed it on the back of a nearby chair with my briefcase. I was looking at a painting on the wall. It was very old, I was trying to place it, but it had certain technique I hadn't seen in a while.

"It’s an undiscovered van Gogh, now please sit and we will discuss the perimeters of the job." He said and handed me a glass half full with a dark liquid and ice. "The job is for my personal assistant, but make no mistake this is not the job of a normal secretary or personal assistant nor is it for the faint of heart. You will have to travel with me, you will be given a place to live and a monthly allowance on top of your pay, for bills or clothing, because you must look professional at all times. When you travel with me there may be events that I will have to attend, you will be required to attend them with me and dress accordingly. Any problems that arise medical or otherwise will be taken care of and I mean no offence when I say that we will help you become the size you would rather be. Now you will be given a company car, if it becomes damaged, we will pay for it. You will be my eyes and ears; I will rely on you for everything and you will have to be on top of every situation. I cannot afford to hire anyone who cannot work within these guidelines. Now do you have any questions?" He asked sounding all business, now this is sounding more like what Detra had described.

"What's the catch, I'm sorry but it sounds a little too good to be true?" I said again trying to bite the hand wanting to feed me, what is wrong with me.

"The catch is you have to give up all that you are to become all that you will be, want to be. Are you willing to do that?" He asked pivoting forward in his chair, leaning on the desk. I took a sip of my drink as I thought, it was bourbon, actually one of my favorites though I didn't drink very often. But it's not as if I would be giving up a whole hell of a lot, I didn't even have any real personal items at my apartment, so if I never went back there it wouldn't be a tragedy. The rest of my life was really nonexistent, I had nearly no friends in the city, no romantic opportunities save for that guy who gave me his number but where was that going really. I had no other job, and my parents lived outside the city as well.

"Yes, I am." I said smiling like a committed employee should.

"Good, Charles will take you to your new home, there will be clothes arriving in the morning for you. You will start work in a couple of days once you become acclimated with all the information that you will be receiving tomorrow. Sleep well Ilena, I look forward to working with you." He said as he shook my hand and took my glass from me. Charles was standing in the doorway waiting for me as I grabbed my coat and briefcase. Charles was the Aussie from earlier and I could swear he was checking me out right now.

"That's a beautiful briefcase." Kent said observing it. "May I?" He asked motioning to it, asking if he could take a closer look.

"Of course." I said handing it to him, I really used it like more of a purse than any woman should but I never carried any makeup or anything like that. It had my wallet, mints, phone and keys, and then my usual paperwork of course, but I guess I would be carrying an all new kind of paperwork now. He was studying it carefully as if he was looking for something. "It was a graduation present from my father, he made it himself." I said just in case he wanted to invite himself to it, he might stop himself if he knew it had sentimental attachment. I was all to use to people trying to take advantage of me.

"Ah, I was looking for a label but it may not have one. Thank you." He said handing it back. "See you soon, Ilena." He said as we exited the room, suddenly I felt like Alice had, I had fallen down the rabbit hole and now I was in some far away land I knew nothing about. Maybe things would look more normal in the morning, but maybe not with how Mister Charles was looking at me. He was smiling at me from his six foot down to my five foot two inches, I think he likes me, either that or I'm going insane. That could be an all too real possibility.

"They’re going to have your apartment cleaned out and everything brought over for you." He said informatively.

I scoffed but laughed, "They can clean it out but I don't need anything from there, all it is, is some cheap food and clothes, that I probably won't wear again. The furnishings were provided." I smiled up at him as we entered the elevator.

"They will be provided here as well but I'm thinking the quality will be a bit nicer than your old place." He said and reached over, brushing a lock of my brown hair off of my shoulder.

"I can imagine." I said softly, I felt like if I spoke any louder it might provoke something I wasn't entirely sure I didn't want.

"Are you ok?" He asked in a tone that said he actually cared.

"Yeah, it’s just that I’m putting a lot of trust in you and Kent and for all I know you could be taking me somewhere to r**e and murder me." I said with a nervous chuckle.

He laughed, "No, no r**e or murder, trust me when I say if anything happens between us it will be consensual." He looked down at me intensely but as quickly as it had come it was gone.

The whole group of them were pretty intense, but maybe that's just because of what they do. "What exactly does Kent do?" I asked suddenly wondering why I hadn't asked anyone the question earlier.

"Oh, he runs several companies, on the board of a couple others. He is a very important man and therefore everyone wants his attention, so he gets invited to everything from presidential dinners, to balls for the rich in England, club openings and the list goes on, everyone wants him on their arm or to bend his ear for something or other. I’m just part of his security detail as were all the other men you saw tonight besides Mr. Masters. Other than that, he's just as lonely as the rest of us." He said as we stepped out of the elevator into a covered parking lot, I hadn't known there was one of these up here.

He led me over to what I assumed was his car, a black SUV type and held the door open for me. He went around and got in on the driver's side, as he did, I noticed he was carrying a gun in the back of his pants. He seemed to notice me looking at it and smiled.

"No need to worry, just part of the job. They issued it to me after two weeks of being on the job, guess I had to prove I was competent first." He chuckled as he pulled out of the carport.

"So where will I be staying?" I asked looking at my phone to check the time. It was nearly eight, I thought it was later, I guess this means I might be able to celebrate a little.

"You'll see, it’s where all of Mr. Master's upper employees live. I believe you will be pleasantly surprised." He said smiling as he swerved around traffic.

Five minutes later we were pulling up in front of a very tall apartment building, if I remember correctly, from when I was looking for places, the apartments in this building got more expensive the higher the floor and the apartments themselves were immaculate and expensive.

A valet came and took Charles's keys and opened the car door for me, when we got into the elevator, I expected it to stop maybe half way up but it kept going and going. When it finally stopped, I looked at the floor, we were only five from the top. As we got out, I noticed there were only two doors on this floor, curious, one of them had the door open and people were bustling around.

"I don't think there done yet, why don't you come in and have a drink while they finish up. He said walking over to the far door and using his keys to open it.

"I’m going to be living across the hall from you?" I said slightly shocked.

"Oh no, I live one floor up but this is still vacant and we keep every apartment stocked in case it is needed and the maids come twice a week to keep everything clean. Anyways but I thought you might like a drink to celebrate." He said and walked inside, I followed him in and to the right to a small bar, where he was already pouring some bourbon into a tumbler with ice. I took off my jacket and bag placing them on a nearby chair and sat down on a stool at the bar as he passed me the drink.

I take a sip as I turn to look around the room, "Are they all like this?" I asked finding a little weird that the bed is at the far end of the room when there is clearly at least one bedroom down the hallway.

"Oh no, the last person that lived here. She loved the view so much that she wanted to be able to see it from the moment she woke up to the moment she fell asleep. I found it interesting too because she has a comparable view from the master bedroom but she insisted. It actually is quite spectacular if you want to..." He said motioning towards the bed and far end of the room. As we walked toward this supposed fantastic view, I wondered if this was an innocent gesture or if he was trying to get me closer to the bed for a reason, usually I would never consider such a thing but he has been looking at me strangely.

"So, is this one of those naturally wonderful views or do we need to shut off the lights and roll around in the sheets to see its flourishing elegance?" I ask smiling, Charles laughed but gave me that intense look once again even though his smile.

"I guess you'll have to let me know which way it looks better." He said with a wicked grin as he leaned back against the tall wooden bedpost at the head of the bed. I took a big gulp of my bourbon and leaned on the opposite bedpost, I was blushing widely and I didn't have to guess what he meant by that it was clear to see that he wanted me in this bed with him. It had been a while since I had been with anyone, I had been so busy with earning my degrees that I rarely ever went looking for any bit of fun unless it was right under my nose. Literally, my last boyfriend, if you could call him that, was one of the guys in my study group and he had nothing on Mc. Stud muffin over here.

I decided to play it safe and let him come to me, it would be easier that way since I had no idea how to play this otherwise.

"I guess I will." I said playfully, smiling as I walked over to look out of the windows, the view really was amazing. I could see nearly the whole city from here, I wonder what the view from my apartment is and if I will like it as much as this one.

I heard him come up behind me, he was very close and I could feel the heat from his body against my back. His hands lightly grazing the skin up and down my arms, a shiver runs down my spine, his lips graze the bare skin on the back of my neck and tingles spread across my skin. I sigh softly as lean into him; it has been far too long.

He spins me around and stuns me with a bruising kiss, but becomes gentler as he guides us back to the bed. His hands roam of their own free will and before I know it my dress is slipping off towards the floor. My back touches the bed and his body covers mine, suddenly he is naked and I am looking up at the magnificent definitions of him. He truly is the sexiest man I have ever seen naked. Light kisses placed where my bra had so recently been, brought me back to the passion of it. I arch into him and he rips my panties away and settles himself between my legs as he kisses my neck again. I moan softly as he moves towards my center, looking up for only a moment for my approval before gently sliding forward into my wetness.

I moan and he pulls me aggressively to him, I feel a sharp pinch at the side of my neck where his lips kissed and then a pop, I scream in ecstasy as my world goes dark.