The Billionaire's Claim

ARIA The day I left the only man I’d ever loved at the altar, I promised myself to never do three things again: return to Boston, see Leo Hallway, and beg. Today, I did all three. The rain had turned to a light mist by the time I stepped out onto the marble floor of BlackWall's lobby. The lobby was the kind that made you feel tiny, no matter how high your heels were or how straight you stood. Glass walls from floor to ceiling, steel columns, and a reception desk modeled after a sci-fi film command center. Everyone here moved quickly in their sharp suits and sharper scowls. I wrapped my mother's scarf tighter around my neck. It was a soft wool scarf, a dull rose colour that had faded from too many washings. It didn't belong in a place like this and neither did I. The receptionist didn’t look up when I said my name. "Interview for executive assistant position," I said to her. I tried my best to sound as calm as I can definitely didn’t feel, but even I could hear the tremble in it. "Fifth floor. You'll be called," she said without looking up. I nodded, my fingers clutched around the strap of my worn leather bag. Fifth floor. One elevator ride and I’d be face to face with my worst mistake. That’s if he’d even bother to show up.It had been five years. Five years since I stood Leo Hallway up at the altar. Five years since I left without a word. Five years of silence, remorse, and quietly drowning in the heaviness of decisions I couldn't undo. Sometimes, I regret those decisions. But what has been done cannot be undone and I’ve learnt to live with that fact over the years. I shouldn’t have come here though, yet, here I was. Not because I wanted to. But because my mother's hospital bills had gone from high to disastrous. And the job market sincerely didn’t give a s**t that I used to paint gallery pieces in New York. Art didn’t pay for blood transfusions and end-stage renal treatments. CEOs and a good salary did. I didn’t come here for closure. I came here for survival. The fifth floor was colder than the rest of the building. Modern and too quiet. I sat in a cream- colored leather chair that probably cost more than the entire closet, legs crossed, pretending like I wasn’t about to throw up. My nails tapped a nervous rhythm on my knee. A tall grey-suited man stepped from the glass office up front. "Miss Quinn?" he asked, looking down at a tablet. I stood. "Yes." He frowned slightly. "This way, please." We walked down the corridor, my heels sinking into the deep carpet. I was expecting an interview room when he flung open the door. What I didn’t expect was to see him. Leo leaned back against his desk, taller and more imposing than I remember. Jet black hair, black suit that fit his body to perfection, hands joined before him like a man preparing for war. His eyes, those dark browns that always seemed to see right through me, didn’t falter when they met mine. The person that stood before me now was only a shadow of the man I’d once loved. "You may leave," he said to the man that brought me here, his voice slicing through the air. The man left, and the door shut with an audible click. Silence. I swallowed hard. "I'm sorry, I didn't think—" He held up a hand. "Don't speak." I froze. He walked around the desk slowly, never taking his eyes from mine. "You came for an interview. At my firm." "Yes." I took another huge gulp. "Why?" Because I was desperate. Because I had no other choice. Because my mother was dying. But I said, "Because I believe I'm qualified." He let out a bitter and humorless laugh. "You think I'll hire you because of your résumé?" I didn't answer. He stopped a foot in front of me. "You've got some nerve, Aria." "I didn't come here for a reunion,"I said between my teeth. "No, of course not. You came for a paycheck." He came closer. "What happened, princess? Did the man you ran off with dump you? Did the real world chew you up?" I winced. "I didn't leave with anyone." "Don't insult me," he said, his voice cutting something already frayed in me. He walked away from me, heading toward the windows. The skyline loomed behind him like a crown of steel. "I should have had you escorted out." "Then why didn't you?" I said, the words leaving my lips before I could stop them. He turned back around, like a wolf that had scented blood. "Because I'm curious." "Curious about what?" What the hell was he talking about? "How far you'll grovel." I bristled. "You don't have to hire me, you know. I didn't come here expecting anything from you." "No," he responded coldly. "You came here expecting me to be stupid enough to take you back in." "I didn't come for you, Leo. I came for the job." I was starting to get annoyed. As much as I still loved the man, I had better things to worry about than him. "Same thing." I looked down at my clenched fists, trying to center myself. My nails dug into my palm. I couldn't cry. Not here. Not in front of him. When I looked up, his expression had shifted. But just barely. It wasn’t soft. At least not how it used to be. But for a moment, something flickered behind his eyes. Something almost... human. He walked back to his desk, and pressed a button. "This is Hallway. Set the contract package for the EA position to be delivered to my office. Have it ready in five minutes." I looked at him warily. "You're giving me a job?" He didn't look my way. "You asked for a job and now you've got it." "Why?" He lifted his gaze to mine. "Control." The air between us became heavy with tension. "You report tomorrow," he said. "Directly to me. 7:00 a.m." I nodded, stunned and got up, headed to the door. "Oh, and Aria?" I turned to face him, my hand hovering over the handle. "If you think working for me is going to be easy, think again." He leaned back in his chair, his eyes burning holes through mine. "This time, I'm going to make you regret leaving me at the altar." I let out a soft, humorless laugh. ‘’Regret? You assume you mattered enough to haunt me. You didn't'.