My Billionaire Boss Who Loved Me

Maya “You have got to be kidding me!!” I was woken up by a loud banging noise at my front door. I hurried out to open the door but no one was there, just some documents that were slid carelessly under my door this morning. I’m sure it was the landlord’s bratty daughter who did this. I stared at the eviction notice in my hands then started laughing because if I kept crying, it would be utterly useless. “It’s way too early in the day for this.” My vision was still a bit foggy, but I managed to pick up the rest of the papers. Tiredly scratching my eyes, I walked towards the kitchen. “Ugghh!” I groaned, right before slamming the papers on the kitchen counter so hard that the flimsy wood cracked underneath. Six weeks overdue! The landlord had underlined the final deadline in red: ‘Friday or move out’. My phone buzzed against the table, I picked it up. ‘Three missed calls from Sofia” Dad also left message at 2:17 a.m: ‘Sweetheart, the doctor says I need another dose next week. The hospital keeps asking about the outstanding balance, we have a few days left” Sofia’s text came right after: ‘Maya, the school portal is showing I owe $1,840 for housing. If I don’t pay by next friday I’d be removed from the dorm’. Oh shit I replied her; ‘“But Sophia I sent some money to you last week, that’s all I have right now, I’d get the rest to you by next week” I pressed my face with both hands till it hurt, wiping tears with the sleeve of my shirt. I’m currently broke because the firm I worked for went bankrupt and I’m the only person keeping my family from falling apart while barely holding my life together. My father is dying of lung cancer. My little sister is trying to finish college. “I can’t let anything happen to them” I muttered I stayed up looking for job offers at the city library till almost 4 a.m that night and had barely gotten any sleep. Seventeen job applications this week. Sixteen rejections!. This was my last shot . I read through carefully, ‘Thorne Global Enterprises’. Scrolling through the company’s website I read that it is one of the largest real estate development and infrastructure corporations in the world, responsible for luxury skyscrapers, commercial districts and billion-dollar international investments. I was instantly drawn by the figures of salaries they pay, triple what any normal job would. The owners were a family and judging from their bio, they were scary people. I didn’t care what i had to do, I really needed the money. That morning, I pulled my one good slightly worn out black blazer out of a plastic bag, ran into the shower, got dressed and rushed to the subway. My day was a disaster from the first second. The train was delayed twenty-five minutes and when i finally got off and had to run six blocks in the pouring rain trying to keep my resume dry but water was soaking through everything. My hair was plastered to my face, my clothes stuck to my skin, and my shoes made weird squeaky sounds with every step. I burst into the Thorne Building at 9:03 a.m., three minutes late. “Hold the door!” I yelled desperately. I squeezed into the crowded elevator just as the doors were closing. I was soaking wet. People moved away from me like I had some disease. Except for one man. He stood right in the center like he owned the damn elevator. He didn’t move an inch to give me space. His eyes stayed glued to his phone. When I tried to shift sideways, my wet sleeve brushed his arm. Then, he finally looked up. He had icy blue eyes, ridiculously shiny black hair and sharp jawline. He stared at me like I was something disgusting that had ruined his perfect morning. “Excuse me” I said through gritted teeth. “Can you move?!” He didn’t. “You should apologize for ruining my suit” He said, voice low and cutting as his eyes dropped to my soaked blouse for a brief second before returning to my face. My blood instantly boiled. I was too irritated not to respond. “Courtesy demands you move out the damn way when someone says excuse me and not be such a jerk…If you wanted privacy you should have taken the stairs!”. The entire elevator went dead silent. Someone behind me gasped. The elevator dinged at the top floor. He stepped out without another word. I followed, my heart pounding as I headed to reception. “Miss Carroway?” Some nice lady in a pantsuit called “He’s ready for you” Every step toward the office felt heavier than the last. I looked up from my drenched portfolio. A man was sitting behind the huge desk inside a huge office “YOU?!!…” I closed my eyes tightly. Oh no