An Impossible Offer
773 Words
Three days later, Aria was standing inside the Cross Tower trying not to stare at the marble floors.
She had been summoned for an interview.
For a job she hadn’t applied for.
That alone should have terrified her.
What terrified her more was the name at the bottom of the email.
Damian Cross.
“Mr. Cross will see you now.”
Aria swallowed.
The office doors opened.
Damian stood beside the windows overlooking Manhattan.
He wasn’t wearing a tie.
His white shirt was rolled at the sleeves, revealing strong forearms.
He turned.
Their eyes met.
Something shifted inside her.
It was ridiculous.
She barely knew him.
Yet her body remembered the moment she’d collided with him in the rain.
“Ms. Vale.”
“Mr. Cross.”
His gaze lingered on her.
“You came.”
“You invited me.”
“I wasn’t certain you would.”
“Why?”
“Pride.”
She stiffened.
He knew nothing about her.
“You don’t know me.”
“I know you turned down my driver’s offer to take you home.”
Aria stared.
“You had your driver follow me?”
“He made sure you got home safely."
“That isn’t better.”
“No,” Damian admitted. “It isn’t.”
She folded her arms.
“Why am I here?”
He gestured toward a chair.
“Sit.”
“No.”
His eyebrows rose.
Aria immediately regretted the word.
But she remained standing.
Damian studied her for several seconds.
Then, unexpectedly, he smiled.
It was small.
Rare.
And devastating.
“I like you.”
Aria’s heart stumbled.
“You don’t know me.”
“I know enough.”
He walked toward his desk.
“I need someone to manage my private residence in the Hamptons for the next three months.”
“You need a housekeeper.”
“I need someone trustworthy.”
“And you think that’s me?”
“I know it is.”
She laughed softly.
“You’ve known me for three days.”
“I had you investigated.”
Her smile vanished.
“You did what?”
“Basic background check.”
“That is incredibly creepy.”
“I own a company that handles sensitive information. I prefer knowing who enters my home.”
Aria reached for her bag.
“This conversation is over.”
“Your apartment lease expires next week.”
She froze.
Damian continued calmly.
“You’re working two jobs. Your medical debt is still outstanding. Your landlord has already increased the rent.”
Her throat tightened.
“You really did investigate me.”
“Yes.”
“That was private.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
He paused.
“Because I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”
Silence.
Aria stared at him.
Damian’s expression had changed.
The icy business man was gone.
For a moment, there was something vulnerable in his eyes.
Something that frightened her more than his power ever could.
“I need someone at the estate,” he said quietly. “You need somewhere to stay.”
“I don’t need rescuing.”
“I didn’t say you did."
“That’s what this is.”
“No.”
His gaze held hers.
“It’s an offer.”
She shook her head.
“I can’t work for you.”
“You’d be paid generously.”
“No.”
“You’d have your own suite.”
“No.”
“You’d have weekends off.”
“No.”
“You’d have your medical debt cleared.”
Her breath caught.
“No.”
His expression hardened.
“Why?”
“Because I don’t want to owe you.”
“You wouldn’t.”
“I would.”
Damian stepped closer.
Close enough that she could smell his cologne.
Clean. Warm. Subtle.
“Then don’t think of it as a debt.”
“What should I think of it as?”
His eyes dropped briefly to her mouth.
“A beginning.”
Her pulse jumped.
She hated that he could do that.
She hated that one look from him could make her forget every reason she should walk away.
“I’ll think about it.”
He nodded.
“Good.”
Aria turned toward the door.
“Aria.”
She looked back.
Damian’s voice was softer now.
“You don’t have to fight every battle alone.”
She stared at him.
Then left.
But his words followed her all the way home.
And that night, for the first time in years, Aria allowed herself to wonder what it might feel like to let someone take care of her.
Just for a little while.
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