Forbidden Night with the CEO

Chapter Eight.

Ava glanced at the time on her computer.

She had spent almost an hour going through the documents Damien gave her.

She checked each page carefully, making sure nothing was missing.

When she reached the meeting schedule, something caught her attention.

One of the meetings had been placed at the same time as another important appointment.

She frowned.

"That can't be right."

She checked the information again and realized there was a mistake in the schedule. She quickly corrected it and then went through everything one more time before printing the documents.

A few minutes later, she knocked on Damien's door.

"Come in."

Ava stepped inside and placed the documents on his desk.

"I have finished the assignment."

Damien looked up from his computer.

"Already?"

"Yes."

He picked up the documents and went through them. Then he noticed the corrected schedule.

"You caught this?"

Ava nodded. "The two meetings were scheduled for the same time, so I changed one of them."

Damien looked at her for a moment.

"Good catch."

Ava smiled slightly.

"Thank you."

"You pay attention to details."

"I try to."

Damien nodded and returned his attention to the documents.

Ava turned to leave, and then she heard him speak again.

"Miss Carter."

She stopped and looked back.

"Yes?"

"Good work."

A small smile appeared on her face.

"Thank you, sir."

And then she walked out, feeling a little more confident than she had when she arrived that morning.

Ava returned to her desk and sat down, feeling a little better about herself.

She opened her computer and started going through the emails waiting for her. There were several messages from different departments, along with reminders about meetings.

Damien had scheduled for the week.

Ava carefully organized everything, making notes beside the important ones.

And then her phone rang.

She picked it up.

"Mr. Blackwood's office. Ava speaking."

"Miss Carter, I need you to prepare something for me."

Ava straightened in her chair.

"Of course, sir. What do you need?"

"I have an important meeting tomorrow afternoon. I want the reports from the last three months arranged and summarized."

Ava quickly reached for a notebook.

"Alright. I'll have them ready."

"And you'll be attending the meeting with me."

Her pen stopped moving.

"Me?"

"Yes. You'll be taking notes and handling anything I need."

Ava swallowed.

"Okay, sir."

There was a short pause.

"Is there a problem?"

"No. Not at all."

"Good. I'll see you later."

The call ended.

Ava slowly lowered the phone.

She had expected the job to keep her busy, but she hadn't expected to be sitting beside Damien during an important meeting.

By noon, Ava had finished most of the work Damien had given her.

She was checking the reports when her phone rang.

"Miss Carter, come to my office."

Ava saved her work and stood up.

"Yes, sir."

When she entered his office, Damien was already gathering some papers from his desk.

"I want to go over tomorrow's meeting with you," he said.

Ava nodded. "Alright."

"And then we can have lunch while we discuss it."

Ava hesitated.

"Lunch?"

Damien looked at her.

"Yes. Is that a problem?"

"No, sir."

A few minutes later, they left the office and went to a quiet restaurant nearby.

Ava sat across from Damien, trying to relax.

They talked about the meeting first. Damien explained what he expected from her, and she listened carefully.

And then he leaned back in his chair.

"I've been wondering about something."

Ava looked up.

"What?"

"You received a call from my company before you came here, right?"

"Yes."

"You weren't looking for a job with us?"

Ava shook her head.

"No. I wasn't."

Damien frowned slightly.

"Then you must have been surprised when we contacted you."

"I was," Ava admitted. "I didn't even know your company was looking for someone."

"Neither did I," Damien said.

Ava looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

Damien gave a small smile.

"I mean, I don't usually choose my staff personally. Someone recommended you, and your qualifications caught my attention."

Ava nodded slowly.

"I understand."

And then Damien looked at her more closely.

"Still, there's something about you that feels strangely familiar."

Her heart skipped.

"Familiar?" she repeated, trying to sound calm.

Damien nodded.

"I can't explain it."

Ava looked down at her plate.

"Maybe I just remind you of someone."

"Maybe," Damien said.

And then he leaned back in his chair, studying her face.

"Have you ever been to any of my company's events before?"

Ava shook her head quickly.

"No."

"Are you sure?"

She forced a small smile.

"Yes. I'm sure."

Damien remained quiet for a moment.

Ava could feel his eyes on her, and it made her uncomfortable.

She took a sip of water and tried to hide how nervous she was.

"Why are you asking me all these questions?"

Damien looked away for a second.

"I don't know. Something about you bothers me."

Ava's eyes widened slightly.

"Bothers you?"

"Not in a bad way," he explained. "It's just..."

He paused.

"And then he looked back at her."

"I feel like I have seen you somewhere before."

Ava's fingers tightened around her glass.

"You probably haven't."

Damien raised an eyebrow.

"Probably?"

Ava realized her mistake.

"I mean... I'm sure you haven't."

He studied her for another moment before finally nodding.

"Alright."

Ava released the breath she had been holding.

But she knew he was not completely convinced.

And then Damien changed the subject, leaving her wondering how long she could keep the truth from him.

Then after lunch, they returned to the office.

Ava thought the conversation was over, but as she turned toward her desk, Damien called her name.

"Miss Carter."

She stopped and looked back.

"Yes, sir?"

"There's something else."

Ava walked back to him.

"I have a business dinner tomorrow evening," Damien said. "You'll be coming with me."

Ava's eyes widened.

"Me?"

"Yes. You'll be representing my office, so I need you there."

Ava nodded slowly.

"Alright."

Damien picked up a document from his desk.

"The event will be attended by several important clients. I want you to take notes and make sure everything runs smoothly."

"I understand."

And then Ava turned to leave, but Damien spoke again.

"Don't worry. It's only business."

Ava gave him a small smile.

"I wasn't worried."

Damien raised an eyebrow.

"Really?"

"Really."

She walked out before he could say anything else.

When she reached her desk, she let out a quiet breath.

A business dinner meant spending another evening around Damien.

She didn't know what worried her more, the possibility of being close to him or the fact that part of her didn't completely dislike the idea.

Inside his office, Damien looked through the glass wall at her.

He couldn't explain why, but something about Ava continued to pull at his thoughts.

And then he remembered what he had said earlier.

For some reason, he felt like he had known her long before she walked into his office.