The Way He Said My Name

Chapter 2: The Interview

Ariana stared at the closed elevator doors for several seconds after Damien disappeared.

Then she shook herself.

"Get yourself together."

She looked down at her broken heel.

"Preferably before the other one breaks too."

The receptionist pointed her toward the waiting area.

"Mr. Laurent's office is on the top floor, but your interview will be conducted in Conference Room Three."

"Thank you."

Ariana walked toward the elevator.

Her heart was beating faster than it should have.

Not because of the interview.

Because of him.

Damien Laurent.

The CEO.

The man she'd just spilled coffee on.

The man who had looked at her as though he had seen a ghost.

And, most strangely, the man who had said her name as if he had been saying it for years.

She stepped into the elevator and pressed the button.

The doors closed.

Ariana exhaled.

"This is going to be the worst interview of my life."

---

The interview panel consisted of three people.

Ariana sat across from them, hands folded neatly in her lap.

Her broken heel was hidden beneath the table.

Her borrowed jacket was hanging over the back of her chair.

She had expected the interview to be intimidating.

She hadn't expected Damien to be sitting behind the glass wall in the adjoining office.

She could see him.

He was standing with his back toward her, speaking to someone on the phone.

Ariana quickly looked away.

Focus.

"You graduated with excellent results," one of the interviewers said.

"Thank you."

"And you've worked at two companies since graduation."

"Yes."

"Why did you leave your previous position?"

Ariana paused.

"Because I wanted more responsibility."

The interviewer studied her.

"Money wasn't the reason?"

"Money is important," Ariana replied honestly. "But I don't want to spend my life working somewhere I can't grow."

One of the interviewers smiled.

"Good answer."

Ariana relaxed slightly.

Then another question came.

"Why Laurent Holdings?"

She glanced toward the glass wall without meaning to.

Damien was still there.

Watching.

She immediately looked back at the panel.

"Because Laurent Holdings is one of the fastest-growing companies in the country, and I believe my skills would be useful here."

"Only that?"

Ariana hesitated.

Then smiled.

"And because I heard the CEO has very high standards."

The interviewers laughed.

Ariana smiled.

Behind the glass, Damien's expression remained unreadable.

But she could have sworn his mouth twitched.

The interview continued.

Questions became harder.

She answered confidently.

When she didn't know something, she admitted it.

When they challenged her, she defended her ideas.

By the time the interview ended, Ariana was exhausted.

"Thank you for coming," the woman across from her said. "We'll contact you."

Ariana stood.

"Thank you for the opportunity."

She picked up Damien's jacket.

Then stopped.

She couldn't exactly walk out wearing the CEO's jacket.

She turned toward the glass wall.

Damien was no longer there.

Good.

She left the room.

---

The moment Ariana stepped into the hallway, she nearly walked straight into him.

Damien.

Again.

She stepped backward.

"So you do enjoy appearing out of nowhere."

His gaze dropped to the jacket in her hands.

"You can keep it."

"I don't need it."

"You were soaked."

"I'm dry now."

"Then consider it a gift."

Ariana stared at him.

"I can't accept a designer jacket from a man I met less than an hour ago."

"You accepted it earlier."

"Because I was freezing."

"And now?"

"I'm still uncomfortable."

"Why?"

"Because you're my potential employer."

Something changed in his expression.

"Potential?"

Ariana smiled.

"Don't look so confident."

"I don't."

"You do."

He stepped closer.

Ariana immediately became aware of the small distance between them.

She caught the faint scent of his cologne.

Her heartbeat betrayed her.

Damien noticed.

His eyes lowered briefly to her lips.

Then returned to her eyes.

Neither spoke.

The hallway suddenly felt too quiet.

Finally, Damien stepped back.

"You're hired."

Ariana blinked.

"What?"

"You start Monday."

She stared at him.

"You're serious?"

"Yes."

"But you weren't even on the interview panel."

"I didn't need to be."

Ariana frowned.

"That's not how interviews work."

"It is here."

She folded her arms.

"And what exactly did I do to impress you?"

Damien looked at her for a long moment.

"You didn't pretend to be someone you're not."

His voice softened.

"That's rare."

Ariana didn't know what to say.

Then he said her name again.

"Ariana."

Her stomach tightened.

There it was.

That strange feeling.

That familiarity she couldn't explain.

She searched his face.

"Have we met before?"

Damien went completely still.

For one moment, Ariana saw something in his eyes.

Pain.

Then it vanished.

"No."

The answer came too quickly.

Ariana narrowed her eyes.

"You hesitated."

"I didn't."

"You did."

Damien's expression hardened.

"You're very observant."

"Occupational hazard."

He almost smiled.

Almost.

"Monday. Eight o'clock."

"Eight?"

"Do you have a problem with that?"

"No."

"Good."

He turned to leave.

Ariana watched him.

Then called after him.

"Damien."

He stopped.

She hadn't expected him to react so strongly.

His shoulders stiffened.

Slowly, he turned.

Ariana held out the jacket.

"You really don't want this back?"

His eyes moved from the jacket to her face.

"No."

"Why?"

His gaze lingered on her.

"Because it looks better on you."

Ariana's mouth opened.

But before she could answer, he walked away.

She stood there, stunned.

Then she whispered to herself,

"Definitely arrogant."

---

That evening, Damien stood alone in his office.

The city glittered below him.

His assistant had left hours ago.

The board meeting was finished.

The interview candidates were forgotten.

But he couldn't stop thinking about Ariana.

He opened the drawer of his desk.

Inside was an old photograph.

The edges had faded with time.

A younger Damien stood beside his father.

Beside them was another family.

And in the corner of the photograph stood a little girl.

Ariana.

Damien had been seventeen when the photograph was taken.

She had been barely twelve.

He remembered that day.

He remembered the argument.

He remembered the accident that followed.

He remembered her crying.

Most importantly, he remembered promising himself that he would never let anything happen to her again.

He had failed.

Years had passed.

She had grown into a woman who didn't remember him.

And somehow, that hurt more than he expected.

His phone rang.

Damien answered.

"Hello?"

A man's voice came through.

"Is she there?"

Damien's expression changed.

"Who?"

"You know who I'm talking about."

Damien looked at the photograph.

"Ariana."

A pause.

"Then you need to stay away from her."

Damien's jaw tightened.

"Why?"

"Because if she finds out what happened years ago, everything will come apart."

The call ended.

Damien stared at the phone.

For the first time in years, something he had buried began to rise again.

Fear.

Not for himself.

For Ariana.

---

Across the city, Ariana sat on her bed staring at the jacket Damien had given her.

She had planned to return it.

She hadn't.

She couldn't explain why.

She lifted it and caught the faint scent of his cologne.

Then she remembered his voice.

Ariana.

She closed her eyes.

Why did it sound so familiar?

Her phone buzzed.

She looked at the screen.

An email.

Congratulations. We are pleased to offer you the position...

Ariana smiled.

She had gotten the job.

She jumped off the bed and danced around her room.

Then she stopped.

Her smile slowly faded.

Monday.

She would have to see Damien again.

For some reason, that thought made her heart beat faster.

She had no idea that Damien was sitting in his office at that very moment, staring at the same name.

Her name.

And wondering how long he could keep the truth from her.