Forget Me Mr. Casano!

Three

Vincenzo’s POV

New York, USA

She steps out slowly, her eyes widening in shock and anger as she takes in the scene.

“You’ve got to be kidding me, Vincenzo,” she hisses, seething.

Her voice, cold with fury.

“I thought you had left,” I try to explain, my eyes wide in genuine shock.

“To the bathroom, yeah,” she shoots back.

“And you thought it right to go down on some other b***h?” She scoffs.

“You messed with the wrong girl, Casano,” she says, nodding.

“Wait, let me explain,” I say, approaching slowly.

But she storms off into my room.

I go after her, my mind racing through a million possibilities. Lorenzo’s words from last night keep resounding in my ears.

“Honestly, I thought you’d left, and then she showed up at my door, and I thought why not?” I say, spreading my arms.

“I don’t f*****g care!” She shoves a finger in my chest at each word.

“You messed up, big time,” she repeats, grabs her stuff, and storms out.

I watch silently, unsure how to even react. The one time I try to be honest with a woman and everything goes to s**t.

My instincts start to kick in, and a feeling of trepidation starts to grow within me. I just can’t shake the feeling that I’m in a lot of trouble.

***

Cassie’s POV

Los Angeles, USA

The files load up, and I scan through them quickly. They seem okay.

“Thank God,” I shut my eyes, and mutter, under a deep exhale. Then I begin the presentation.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I hereby present our Venus collection for spring and early summer.”

…

By the end, their reception seems positive, at least from my perspective. Now it’s time to wait for their soul-eating critique.

“Thank you for your time,” I walk away from the table, addressing them as the last screen slides away.

“All the project requires now is your consideration and approval.”

However, it seems the reception is even more positive than I had thought. No arm is raised, and a few heads are nodding appreciatively. I can’t even stop the small smile that breaks across my face as I walk back to the table.

“In the absence of reservations, let me present the proposed budget-”

“Hold on,” a solitary voice speaks up, and I pause.

That is Marcus’ voice.

Why is he speaking up right now? I wonder. We had looked over this together. He had even been the one that advised me to go with these designs rather than my initial plans. He should be just as happy as I am.

I turn to face him, unsure what to expect.

“Yes?” I ask, trying to keep the multitude of feelings from my voice.

"I just have a couple of thoughts on these designs, if you don’t mind,” he says with a smile, but his eyes aren’t smiling along with his lips.

“Of course not,” I reply a bit too quickly. Something feels off about this. Horribly off, and the fact that I can’t tell what makes it feel a whole lot worse.

***

Vincenzo’s POV

New York, USA

“Who the hell was that chick, Vincenzo?” Rissa groans, getting to her feet.

“Huh?” I turn to face her.

Her slip is hanging off one shoulder, revealing her left breast.

Forget the Asian girl for now, we'll deal with her later, an impulsive thought advises me, and I heed it immediately, quickly pinning Rissa against the wall.

“Oh, Vincenzo,” she moans, her lips curling into a mischievous smile.

I just want to forget my worries for a while, and come up with solutions when my thoughts are less jumbled.

I slip a finger under the slip, and a devious smile turns up the edges of my lips,

“You’re already wet,” I whisper against her ear, nibbling on her lobe as I add another finger, drawing out a moan from her lips.

.

My fingers move skillfully, and with my thumb I excite her c**t, while drowning her sounds in kisses.

Her knees weaken, quivering against me, barely able to hold her up. By now she’s yelling and begging for me to take her.

I quickly spin her, and press her against the wall, pulling the waistband of my pants lower. My c**k sprang out, hard and ready for her.

But first, I rub the tip against her entrance, teasing her while she pleads for it before finally thrusting in, each movement eliciting more moans from her.

I take my hands off her long enough for her to discard the slip, then grab her exposed breasts from behind, slamming into her from behind.

She’s arching her hips towards me, pleading for more, and I oblige, pushing deeper, and making her tremble with each thrust.

“I’m coming!” She yells, shaking, and I pull her to myself as she explodes in an orgasm.

My c**k jerks again, and I pull out, finishing over her plump ass.

Then she turns and kisses me hungrily.

“Got any plans today?” she purrs mischievously.

However, post nut clarity has brought my worry back, and I know further rounds are of no use.

“Yes,” I reply coolly.

“Clean yourself up in the guest bathroom, and help yourself out,” I add on my way to my bathroom while she’s standing there, looking stunned, and wondering what just happened.

“Okay,” I hear her say, when she finally breaks from her reverie.

“Call? Later?”

But I pay no further heed to her.

In my hands, my phone is vibrating from an incoming call. And it’s Him.

I just know He’s calling about the Asian chick. I look up, and one of the mirrors on my bathroom wall reflects the fear in my wide eyes.

Lorenzo was right. This chick is going to cause my death.

***

Cassie’s POV

Los Angeles, USA

I watch as Marcus walks up to me and disconnects the laptop from the keyboard, turning it into a tablet.

Then he starts to go over each design, “suggesting” so many “improvements,” that the pieces don’t even look like mine anymore. I can’t even recognize my own work.

And the worst part? Everyone is nodding along with him.

I roll my lips on each other while watching silently. I hope the embarrassment coursing through me isn’t too obvious to everyone.

Then Marcus does something that catches my eye. A particular stroke he adds to an evening gown.

I gasp slightly… Wait a minute… I lean in, and examine the design better…

Then I start to recall the previous slides, and it painfully starts to become clear to me.

Marcus isn’t making corrections, no. He is simply implementing elements from the first catalog idea I had brought to him. The same idea he had advised me to abandon because it wasn’t good enough.

My chest tightens with this realization, and I stagger backward a bit.

Luckily, the table with the projector is not far behind, and my hands wrap around its edge while I struggle to catch my breath.

“No, no, no. Please don’t do this to me,” I beg in a whisper.

In my head, it all makes sense now; his interest in the design process, his insistence on reviewing everything, and, of course, his closeness to Emma. Of course, she hadn’t found my flash drive lying around, she had stolen it, and was returning it when she saw me.

My memory clicks, and I remember her words this morning.

“Oh, I’ll be expecting you,” she had said.

I nod slowly, and try to calm myself with deep breaths, but I can barely breathe. This was meant to be my big break because the company was putting a lot into this project.

I would have gotten so much exposure, I could finally move out of my studio apartment, and get a better place for Pumpkin and me.

I could finally achieve my dreams of being a top fashion designer.

Finally, I breathe deeply, and feel my body shiver with rage as I exhale. The pain is now subdued by a desire for revenge.

Oh no, I can’t let him get away with this. No way, I say to myself.

I take another deep breath, and get up from the table. I know what I must do

I walk to Marcus as he’s going off about how he came up with these designs, and tap him.

He turns, and in front of his father, and all the other board members, I land a resounding slap on his face.

“I quit!”