A Diary of Vampires

Chapter 3

The sound of heels echoed as Maria made her way to her office, responding to every greeting with soft smiles. The still new faces were a delight to see, different from the old ones back in the headquarters. She passed her secretary, who greeted her with a small smile as well. She dropped her bag on her desk and made her way over to the coffee machine. Her secretary, who had followed her, was informing her about issues that needed her attention and she was all ears. When that was all done, she began her daily duty of running the branch in her care. Her phone pinged minutes into her typing and she picked it up. Her lips twitched a little when she saw who it was from and she rolled her eyes at the dry humor in the messages.

It has been a month since Maria met Aridam Donahue and agreed to bring down her family. The two had agreed that she should move to a smaller branch far away from the headquarters, away from her step brother and father’s eyes. When she had informed her father of her plan to move to a smaller branch during a dinner two days after, he had not being pleased. He and her annoying step mother went on and on about how it would be best to stay behind, helping her brother. It got to the point that she reached the end of her patience and told her father point blank that if he wasn’t ready to reassign her, she’d pack up and look for another job in another company. Her step mother and brother called bluff on her words but her father saw that she was serious and shut them up with a look. Maria might be disposable to him but he wanted no other company to have her. The bastard.

Unknown to everyone, the reason she chose the branch which she did was because it was located in the same pace as the headquarters of Donahue Enterprises – where Aridam worked.

Her father had given her leave to move to that branch and she didn’t hesitate to do so. She became the Head of the branch, not at least concerned that the former one had been laid off to make room for her. She packed up her things after accepting the house Aridam bought for her, a place her family couldn’t find her, and left the state – not even looking back. The branch was a small one, so there wasn’t much to be done. It was a good place to steal the company’s information without much red flags to be raised. Information which she didn’t hesitate to share with Aridam.

Maria huffed at the image that had been sent to her, amused. In that image was the dress Aridam had picked up for her, along with the wig for her to wear for her introduction to the company.

Yes, Aridam was introducing her as a new partner to the company in the conference today, along with a project she was working on for him. It was amusing to Aridam how Maria began working out of spite immediately the documents were signed. With how fast everything was going, they won’t have to wait for months to reveal their engagement to the world.

Maria sent an exasperate emoji to Aridam before switching off her data and went back to work. The day went by fast and before she knew it, it was time for the conference in Aridam’s company. She packed up her things, said goodbye to her secretary and left for her car. Larisa, the bodyguard Aridam provided to her and who served as her shield and protection since she came to the city, was already waiting for her in the car. Being the smart woman that she was, Larisa drove over to a public parking building (which was frequently changed whenever they met) and there Calvin was waiting for them – parked at a blind spot from the cameras and Larisa too did the same. When Calvin opened the door for her, she greeted him with a small smile, which was returned by the man. He went over to his car after saying some few words to her and brought the mentioned items Aridam had informed her of. Maria grabbed the dress and wig that were provided to her and she wore them – Calvin having his back turned to her and Larisa helping her into them. Lastly, she wore the shoes and jewels, adding to her flare. She gave her other clothes to Larisa, who bagged them up and put them in the boot. With her set and ready, the two left for the company – Larisa driving away and being a decoy in case anyone had being following them.

It was a nice experience. Aridam didn’t try to overshadow during the presentation of the project. In fact, she was the one who gave the presentation whilst he was just in the crowd. He made himself available when jt was time to greet the guests. He wasn’t condensing and she found herself staring at him in contemplation. After the dinner with the high profiled guests, Aridam escorted her back home, the man kissing the back of her hand when he bid her goodnight. She just stood by the door, her hand pressed against her chest, as she watched his car leave.

Maria didn’t know how to feel about Aridam to be honest. The man was an enigma but something about him kept drawing her attention. It was as if she knew him from somewhere but couldn’t put her fingers on it. As she took her bath, relaxing in the tub, she wondered how marriage to him would be like. Would he treat her like her father treated her mother, or would he treat her like her father treated her step mother? She knew what the two had was strictly business but Maria knew that it was sooner or later before she fully falls for him.

Maria had never had a good relationship in her life. The last three were a disaster. Her first boyfriend had been a cunt who worked for her father to keep her in check and when she found out she had been livid. That was the first time she had went no contact with her father, but she had relented after many talks between the two of them. The second and third men had just wanted to use her for her money and after that she just gave up.

Aridam wanted to use her to destroy her family, that is true, but at the same time he was about to fulfil her long time dream of revenge – and that made him interesting even more. Aridam Donahue as a man among men and Maria wasn’t a robot to not develop feelings, be it lust or a crush, for him. Especially as seeing as he was her type, regardless of his age.

Maria groaned, the sound echoing in the bathroom. She was too old to be behaving like a teenager, she mused. With a huff, she got up from the bathtub, unplugged the plug and made her way to her bed room with a towel on. She collapsed onto her bed and in just mere minutes, she fell asleep.