The Arrangement

Episode 3

With Donovan out of the office, I was able to let go of the tensed breath I was holding. Laila had always made it clear that she didn’t like me, right from the start of my job but she’d never been so … hostile.

I relaxed back in my chair and tried to get some work done before Donovan returned. Considering the monthly Donovan family dinner was tonight, he would probably head out as soon as the board meeting was done. Which meant I would have to leave the office at the same time and rush to change before meeting him at the mansion.

If I didn’t arrange his schedule and get the report done for his meeting tomorrow before he came then I would have to come back here at midnight and stay for God knows how long.

My phone rang then, interrupting my flow. It was perfect timing because my fingers had started cramping up trying to finish the report as fast as possible.

As soon as I glanced at the caller ID, my heart sank, making me wish I had placed the phone on silent like I usually did. They would never call if it wasn’t something important and lately, all that meant was more bad news.

The obnoxious ringtone continued for a heartbeat longer and I grudgingly picked up before it ended. “Hello?”

“The loan shark’s sent another notice.” My sister’s calm voice said curtly, never one to waste time.

“What?!” I exclaimed as a different type of terror rushed through me. My anxiety from dealing with Donovan was nothing compared to what my family and I had gone through the last two years dealing with these people.

“You heard me.”

“But that doesn’t make any sense. We already paid them off. I made sure of it.”

“I know,” Alicia released a sigh and I didn’t need to see her to know that she was rubbing her temples now with one hand. “It’s not Diego this time, Lizzie. It’s a different guy.”

“Again?!” I gasped incredulously. “I thought we were done. I thought that after Diego, we only had to pay off the mortgage.”

“We all thought that. But it seems Dad wants to keep surprising us from beyond the grave.” She sounded exhausted then, beyond what her twenty years should’ve ever made her feel.

“I’m sorry Ally.” I whispered, wishing there was some way I could’ve shielded her from all of this.

“Don’t apologize, Lizzie. This isn’t your fault. None of us would’ve expected Dad to turn out to be such a scumbag.”

“Alicia!” I whisper-yelled, not wanting my voice to echo in the quiet of the floor.

“It’s true, Lizzie. You know that’s exactly what it is. Apparently, it must be a gene or something because Morgan’s acting like a scumbag now. Or maybe she was always a bitch.” Alicia spat, the venom in her voice almost seething.

“Alicia Miller!” I yelled this time, unable to hold myself back. “She’s our sister. No matter what happened last year, she’s still our sister.”

Alicia scoffed but didn’t respond to that. I knew why she said it. God knows I had thought it myself a lot but I also knew Morgan. Knew that she had her own reasons for her actions even though she had ended up hurting all of us. I still made excuses for her because at the end of the day, she was still family.

“Look, Lizzie,” Alicia said as she breathed out another heavy sigh. The sound of it broke my heart even more. “I just called to tell you because I knew you wouldn’t be back home till late and we probably wouldn’t see each other till tomorrow night when you get back.”

Our unending hectic schedules seemed to keep us at parallels most of the time. Alicia worked the night shift at a call center while I was always working early hours and overtime.

“Did you tell Mum?” Even before I asked, I knew what the answer would be.

“No.” She said curtly, back to the cold facade she pasted on every day for the past year acting as though nothing moved her. But I knew that it was just a front she put up so we didn’t see just how badly all this was affecting her.

“Alright, well, I’ll see you tomorrow then. I love you.”

“Bye.” She hung up before I could force her to reciprocate.

I let out another sigh as I realized I forgot to ask Alicia how much they wanted this time. It had only been two years but now felt like an endless cycle. As soon as we thought everything would be okay again, something happened to throw us even further down the hole.

The landline began to blink, indicating a call was coming in for Donovan. I blew out a breath and tried to summon my secretary extraordinaire persona, plastering on a fake smile and raising my voice a pitch higher as I picked up the phone and answered. “Hello. This is Donovan Development Company, Sebastian Donovan’s office.”

“Hey, Liz. How are you doing today?”

In spite of myself and the conversation I just had, I felt a small smile tug on my mouth. “Hi, Theo. I’m good, thank you. Mr Donovan’s not here at the moment though. Would you like to leave a message?”

Theodore Donovan, Donovan’s older brother and CEO to the Donovan Electronics Company. A formidable business man but unlike Donovan, Theo had an actual heart and it was made of gold. He was one of the nicest people I’d ever met and everyone in the company sang his praises.

When we first met, the first thing he did was learn my name and insist I call him Theo. He always made sure to keep me company during the family dinners even after Donovan iced me out like I was as insignificant as the paintings on the wall.

“Nah, it’s okay. I just wanted to remind Sebastian about dinner tonight but I’m sure you already have that covered.”

“He’ll be there, don’t worry.”

“How can I when he has you there? Still no chance I can steal you away from him and get you to come work for me?”

I laughed at the familiar offer. Theo practically oozed charm which he always used to his advantage and flirted all the time. Another thing that made him the most-liked Donovan. The offer was just as tempting as the first time he’d teased me with it but … “I’m afraid I’ll have to decline.”

“You need to stop breaking my heart, Liz. Just name your price, I’ll double it.”

The thing with Theo is it was very hard to know when he was joking and when he was being serious. Especially in times like this when I couldn’t see him. Even without the phone call from Alicia, that offer sounded too good to pass up.

But unfortunately, it was always too good to be true. “Sorry, Theo …” I had barely gotten the words out before Donovan appeared in front of me, seemingly out of nowhere. I got up quickly, eyes widening at the sight of him, phone still held against my ear.

“Miller, do you have that much free time that you choose to languish during office hours?” He said in that even baritone that made the hairs on my skin rise.

“No!” I pulled back the phone. “I was taking a call for you, Sir. It’s your brother.”

Those crystal blue eyes cast a wary glance at me and then the phone before taking it out of my outstretched hand. He brought it to his ear, that penetrating gaze not breaking from my eyes for even a split second and said, “Stop calling here.” With that, he slammed it back on the receiver.

“How much time until we leave?” He asked, not because he didn’t know but just so he could remind me. I had a strong suspicion that the man had gotten the watch surgically implanted on his brain.

I chanced a glance at my watch, thankful for the opportunity to escape his gaze. “Thirty.”

“Thirty minutes, Miller.” He emphasized and strolled back into his office.