Chapter 6 : The Warning
342 Words
The next morning, Elena sat at her desk in the outer office, sorting through a pile of correspondence Adrian had left for her. She focused on the papers, though her thoughts kept slipping back to the way he had said her name yesterday. The memory still sent a shiver through her.
“New girl.”
The voice startled her. She looked up to find Clara, one of the senior assistants from the finance department, leaning casually against her desk. Clara’s lipstick was bold, her heels sharp, her expression sharpest of all.
“You’re Blackwell’s new secretary, right?” Clara asked, her tone laced with something between curiosity and pity.
Elena nodded. “Yes. Elena Carter.”
Clara smirked faintly, lowering her voice as if sharing a secret. “Then let me give you some advice, Elena. Don’t get too comfortable.”
Her brows knitted. “What do you mean?”
Clara tilted her head, studying her carefully. “Adrian Blackwell chews people up and spits them out. He doesn’t keep his assistants for long. Some can’t handle his temper. Others… can’t handle him.”
Elena swallowed, heat creeping up her neck. She knew what Clara was implying.
Clara leaned closer, her perfume sweet but her words sharp. “Don’t mistake that man’s attention for kindness. He doesn’t give kindness. He takes. Always.”
Elena shifted uneasily. “I’m just here to do my job.”
Clara chuckled, a sound that carried a hint of warning. “So were the others. And yet…” She straightened, smoothing her blouse. “Let’s just say you’ll learn soon enough why everyone in this office is either afraid of him, or… drawn to him.”
With that, Clara walked away, her heels clicking down the corridor, leaving Elena frozen in her seat.
Her heart pounded, her mind a whirl of thoughts.
She should have felt relieved grateful for the warning. Instead, an unsettling truth twisted inside her: Clara wasn’t wrong. Adrian Blackwell was dangerous.
But the bigger danger… was how much she already felt the pull.
- Writer
