Utopia

Chapter-6

I didn’t know how long I was out but when I woke up, I felt cool and light-headed. I was resting on something soft and welcoming. It was definitely not my lumpy bed. Long fingers were running on my right arm, gently massaging it. There was only one man who would touch me like that. 

“Jason, stop it,” I said with a faint smile on my face although I wanted him to continue. Those fingers stilled on my arm. But in my mind, there was a beginning of the sense that something was wrong. Jason and I broke up six months ago while we were still in college. It had been six months since I felt a man’s hands on me. Where was I? Who was this man?

I opened my eyes at once. They focused on a white ceiling. I remembered where I was. I was in Adrian Scott’s office.

Holy f**k! I fainted.

I jerked my head to the side to see Adrian kneeling beside the couch I was lying on. I gently pulled my arm away from his grip and sat up straight. The first two buttons on my shirt were undone and I stared down at them in confusion.

“I undid them so you can breathe easily,” Adrian said, still kneeling in front of me. He looked so innocent at that moment like he had nothing to do with the dark things that had happened a few minutes ago. My cheeks flushed as I imagined Adrian undoing the buttons on my blouse. It didn’t help that he was kneeling in front of me. Everything about this interview was so inappropriate. And after going through this hell, I was not even sure I was hired. He said he wanted a strong girl as his secretary. Why would he select a girl who had fainted like a damsel in distress? I felt mortified. I stood up, followed by Adrian.

As we stood in front of each other, my eyes exactly reached to his lips. If that was not distracting, I didn’t know what was. He had beautiful lips. Like marble. What would they taste like? I peeled my eyes away from his lips and looked into his eyes. They seemed to suck me in. It was dangerous to look into his eyes. I was stuck. There was no safe spot with this man. I cast my eyes on the tiled floor as I spoke.

“I have not been as strong as you wanted me to be. I understand if you don’t hire me.” I said. My cheeks flared again, this time with embarrassment. I couldn’t stand in front of him after I let those words out. I wanted to sink into the ground. What was it about him that made me feel so vulnerable? I didn’t know and I didn’t intend to stay and find out. I circled around him to get out of the chamber before he could tell me what a scaredy-cat I was. But before I could go away, his hand caught mine, stopping me. His long fingers closed like a vice around my wrist.

“It’s not proper for a secretary to leave without her boss’s permission,” Adrian said coolly.

It took a moment for his words to sink in. I turned around looking at the tall and broody figure behind me.

“Does that mean I’m hired?” I asked. He left my hand, sauntered towards the desk, sat in his chair.

“Yes, you are hired, Ms. Wells.” He said and gestured towards the chair in front of him. Riding a wave of disbelief mixed with glee, I took the seat in front of Adrian.

“Thank you, Mr. Scott.” I couldn’t stop the smile creeping onto my lips despite my suspicions about this job and Adrian Scott.

“You have to sign this contract, Ms. Wells. Then you will be officially my secretary.”

The way he said my secretary made me feel chilly. I felt like I sold my soul to the devil for a month’s house rent. But I had come too far to go back now. I took the file he had handed to me and the same pen I had signed the NDA with.

It was a contract for two years- bonding me to Adrian Scott. I had to accompany him in all his travels and withhold all his secrets. The contract seemed like another NDA with its clauses of confidentiality. I signed the papers. I made a deal with the devil.

I handed the papers back to Adrian and waited for him to give me permission to leave.

“I have one more question for you, Ms. Wells.” He said. 

I nodded.

“Earlier you said you didn’t have anyone waiting for you. It should include your romantic partners too. Who is Jason?”

I felt breathless. Hearing Jason’s name from Adrian’s mouth was torture.

“He is an ex-boyfriend. Someone of no consequence.” I said.

Adrian must have noticed the tightness in my voice for he didn’t push the matter further.

“Welcome aboard, Ms. Wells. I bet we are going to have some memorable adventures.” Adrian said, extending his hand over the sleek desk.

“I hope so, Mr. Scott,” I said, shaking his hand.

*********

That was the last time I saw him. And here he was now, standing in front of me in a clothing store way below his range.

“What are you doing here, Mr. Scott?” I repeated my question as he was gazing at me seeming as shocked as I was.

“I own this mall.” He said calmly, restoring his composure. The look of surprise on his face might have been something I had imagined. I look behind him to see four smartly dressed men checking the racks, talking to the manager, and taking their feedback. Of course, he owned it. Why else would Adrian Scott, the CEO of Scott industries, step into a small store meant for mere mortals like us?

“Oh,” I said. “I’m here shopping.”

“I can see that,” He said, eyeing the bundle of clothes in my hand. “I take it you are shopping for work.”

He took the dresses from my hand and looked at each one of them. I stood there awkwardly as he sifted through my clothes. We were standing in the middle of the store and I could see the eyes of customers and employees on us. Adrian seemed to be unaware of these glances. He placed the dresses back in my hands.

“Wait for me at the bill counter,” He said and went away. With confusion etched on my face, I walked towards the bill counter. I turned my head once to see what Adrian was doing but he disappeared behind a clothes rack. Shaking my head at my strange new boss, I placed the new dresses on the counter.

“Bill them,” I said, throwing glances behind my back. The counter was manned by a girl who looked like she was still in high school. She had an excited light in her eyes like she was watching the best movie of the year for free.

“Do you know, Mr. Scott?” She asked. “He is so dreamy.”

She was practically gushing. 

“I do,” I said, not without a twinge of pride. I was enjoying this little exposure to fame. “I am his secretary.”

“You lucky duck,” She said while scanning the price tags. “You must have the most interesting work experience. All I have here to ogle at was the potbelly of our manager.”

We giggled at her comment.

“That’s hundred dollars,” She said.

“Ooshh..” I let out a breath before digging in my purse for my card. There went the meager savings I had. My only hope was the paycheck I was going to get at the end of this month. I had to get by somehow until then. Before I could hand the card to the girl, a hand gripped mine, stopping it in midway. I didn’t have to look up to see to whom the hand belonged. The look on the counter girl’s face told it all. It was Adrian.

He dumped a bundle of sundresses, tank tops, cargo pants, and bikinis on the counter.

“Take these dresses too. My personal shopper, Andy is there, you see.” He pointed at a woman wearing a grey dress whom I didn’t notice before. She was about Adrian’s age. She waved at me from the other end of the shop. “She said these will fit you. If the bikinis don’t fit, tell me tomorrow. We’ll take some more pairs of the correct size.”

“Can I talk to you once?” I took Adrian by the arm without waiting for his answer and pulled him aside behind a rack where no one could see us. I could see the girl at the counter tiptoeing to get a view of us. I didn’t know where I found the courage to act so rashly with my new boss. But his strange behavior was overwhelming. It was different when I was in office. It felt like a different world. A world where whatever Adrian did seemed fine. But this area, this shopping mall, this was my world. A place where I hung out with my friend. Having Adrian here and having him buy me bikinis, snapped something in me. It made me see for the first time how bizarre the relationship between Adrian and me was.

“Mr. Scott, why did you buy me those dresses? Do you realize how inappropriate it is for a boss to buy swimwear for his secretary?” I asked, crossing my arms against my chest. He looked surprised like he didn’t really realize how inappropriate it was until now.

“Technically, Andy bought those. I just dropped them at the counter,” He said raising a finger.

“Still, why bikinis? And in front of all the staff. I come here often with my friend you know. Today onwards, I’ll be the girl whose boss bought her bikinis.” I said. I didn’t know why I was rambling in front of him. What if he got irritated by me and fire me on spot? Whatever would happen, I needed an explanation of why he was doing this.

Adrian gripped my shoulders and fixed me with his dark blue eyes.

“Hannah,” He said. “When you signed the agreement to obey me, you agreed to obey me in everything. If I buy you something, you’ll just take it. It doesn’t matter if it’s appropriate or not or what people think. If I do something there will be a reason behind it. I know you need them, not now immediately, but in the near future. And I also know you can’t afford them. Now, we are gonna go back there and I’m gonna pay for the dresses you took too. Don’t argue with me.”

He gave my shoulders a final squeeze and let go. Then he took my arm and lead me towards the counter while I was still processing his words. He took his platinum card out of his wallet and swiped it to pay for me. It was comical how the girl at the counter fumbled with everything as Adrian stood in front of her, staring down at her.

In a minute, the clothes are packed in two bags and the bags were in my hands.

“Do you want a ride home?” Adrian asked as we moved away from the counter.

“No thanks, Mr. Scott. My friend is in the pet store. We’ll go together.”

“Until tomorrow, Hannah,” He said. I nodded. Swinging the bags on either side of me, I got out of the store as quickly as possible to find Millie. There was a lot of explaining to do when she would see me with two bags full of clothes.