When You Became My Home

Chapter Five-Cairo

I hated Xander.

Not in the way people hated someone they had argued with.

Not in the way you hated an annoying colleague or an arrogant businessman.

No.

I hated the way Xander made me feel.

Like I couldn’t breathe properly.

Like every room became smaller whenever he entered it.

Yesterday had been enough to remind me exactly why I had been so relieved to spend four years in Milan.

Because Xander had somehow become worse.

Much worse.

Since the moment he had walked into that boardroom, his eyes had barely left me.

I could feel them.

Even when I wasn’t looking at him.

Especially when I wasn’t looking at him.

And then he had walked into my office and fired my secretary.

My secretary.

Who does that?

Who walked into somebody else’s office and simply fired their employee?

And when I asked him why, his answer had been—

He’s a man.

That was it.

That was his reason.

He didn’t want another man close to me.

Crazy.

Absolutely crazy.

It was exactly like high school.

Only worse.

Back then, Xander had been a teenager.

He was three years older than me, but even then, he had been intimidating.

He was always bigger.

Always stronger.

Always silent.

Always watching.

And somehow, even as teenagers, he had managed to make people afraid of him.

Now?

He was a grown man.

A powerful CEO.

A man who could walk into a room and make everyone straighten their backs.

And apparently, he had decided that his obsession with controlling my life had matured along with him.

Caleb had been right.

Xander was terrifying.

⸻

I spent most of the morning trying to convince myself that things would get better.

They didn’t.

I arrived at Harris Holdings early.

I wanted to focus on work.

That was why I had come home.

I wanted to learn.

Understand the company.

Meet the executives.

Get comfortable with my new position.

I wasn’t interested in spending my first week worrying about Xander Carrington.

So I dressed carefully.

A satin shirt beneath my suit.

The fabric was light, soft against my skin, with a slightly feminine cut that I liked.

I had always liked clothes like that.

Not necessarily masculine.

Not necessarily feminine.

Just elegant.

The shirt was pale, almost champagne-colored.

I paired it with a dark suit.

Simple.

Professional.

Beautiful.

At least, I thought so.

The morning went surprisingly well.

Meetings.

Briefings.

Reports.

Introductions.

I met several department heads and started getting familiar with the systems I would eventually be overseeing.

For the first few hours, I almost forgot about Xander.

Almost.

Then my office door opened.

I didn’t even need to look up.

I knew.

That presence.

That silence.

That unmistakable scent.

Xander.

I looked up.

His eyes moved over me.

Slowly.

From my face to my shirt.

Then back to my face.

His expression hardened.

“What are you wearing?”

I blinked.

I looked down at myself.

“What do you mean, what am I wearing?”

“I don’t like it.”

I stared at him.

“My clothes?”

“That shirt.”

I looked down again.

“It’s a shirt.”

“It’s too light.”

I frowned.

“What?”

“I can see your skin.”

I stared at him.

“Xander—”

“I don’t want you wearing shirts like this.”

My mouth fell open.

“Excuse me?”

He stepped farther into the office.

“You shouldn’t wear anything that revealing.”

I looked at him in disbelief.

“Revealing?”

“Yes.”

“My shirt isn’t revealing.”

“It is.”

“No, it isn’t.”

His expression didn’t change.

“We’re going to the mall.”

I actually laughed.

“You can’t be serious.”

“We’re getting you another shirt.”

“Xander, I’m working.”

“So am I.”

“I have meetings.”

“You can have them after.”

I stared at him.

His voice had changed.

It had that tone.

That final tone.

The one I remembered from high school.

The one that meant he wasn’t asking.

He was telling.

“We’re going.”

I should have argued.

I should have told him no.

I should have reminded him that I was an adult.

Instead…

I grabbed my phone.

Because Xander was scary.

And I hated admitting that.

⸻

I had absolutely no idea where he was taking me.

I sat silently in the passenger seat of his car, watching the city pass by.

Xander drove with one hand on the steering wheel.

His other hand rested near the gear shift.

Neither of us spoke.

I was too irritated.

He was too calm.

His cologne filled the car.

That same deep scent from yesterday.

I wanted to open the window.

I didn’t.

Eventually, the car stopped outside an expensive boutique.

I stared at the building.

“You brought me here?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because I called ahead.”

He got out.

I followed.

Inside, several women immediately approached us.

“Mr. Carrington.”

Xander nodded.

“I called about some outfits.”

“Yes, sir. They’re already prepared.”

He looked at me.

“Go change.”

I frowned.

“What?”

He glanced at my shirt.

“I don’t like that.”

I stared at him.

“Xander.”

“Go.”

I looked at the sales associate.

She smiled awkwardly.

I sighed.

Fine.

I went into the dressing room.

I changed into the outfit they had prepared.

The replacement shirt was similar.

Silk.

Soft.

Elegant.

But without the delicate lace detailing on my original shirt.

I stepped outside.

Xander looked at me.

His eyes moved over the outfit.

Then he nodded.

“Better.”

I clenched my jaw.

Better?

I was standing there like a mannequin.

He turned toward the sales associate.

“Send more outfits.”

She nodded.

“How many, sir?”

“Enough for his wardrobe.”

I looked at him.

“Xander—”

“Send them to the Harris residence.”

The woman nodded.

“Of course.”

“And make sure they’re appropriate for an office environment.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

I was twenty-seven years old.

I had an MBA.

Two master’s degrees.

A position as COO.

And Xander was shopping for my clothes.

I followed him outside because apparently my life had become a strange nightmare.

⸻

The drive back was silent.

Until Xander spoke.

“I don’t want you wearing revealing clothes.”

I looked at him.

“Xander, that shirt wasn’t—”

“I don’t want you wearing revealing clothes.”

He repeated it.

Quietly.

Firmly.

I stared at him.

There was something about his voice that made arguing feel useless.

So I stopped.

I looked out the window.

I wasn’t going to fight him.

Not today.

Not in his car.

Not when he was already making me uncomfortable.

We eventually returned to the office.

Xander walked me to my office.

“I already ordered lunch.”

I looked at him.

“It’s on your desk.”

“I didn’t ask you to—”

“Eat something.”

I stared at him.

He was already walking away.

I watched him disappear down the corridor.

Then I closed my office door.

Finally.

Silence.

I leaned against it and exhaled.

“Unbelievable.”

I walked toward my desk.

The food was there.

I hadn’t realized how hungry I was until I opened it.

I ate.

Every bite.

I hated that he had been right about one thing.

I needed lunch.

Afterward, I returned to work.

But I couldn’t focus properly.

Every time I heard footsteps outside my office, I looked up.

Every time someone passed my door, I wondered if it was him.

Every time I smelled his cologne somewhere down the hallway, my shoulders tightened.

This wasn’t normal.

It couldn’t be normal.

Xander wasn’t my boss.

He wasn’t my father.

He wasn’t my guardian.

He had no right to control what I wore.

Who worked for me.

Who I spoke to.

Where I went.

Yet somehow, he had already started doing all of it.

And the worst part?

He didn’t even seem to realize there was anything wrong with it.

He genuinely believed he had the right.

That scared me more than anything.

⸻

By five o’clock, I couldn’t take it anymore.

I packed my things.

I was leaving.

I had intended to stay longer.

I had more work to finish.

But I needed to get away from this building.

Away from Xander.

Away from his eyes.

Away from that suffocating presence.

I walked out quickly.

I didn’t say goodbye.

I didn’t tell anyone.

I simply left.

My driver was waiting outside.

The moment I got into the car, I exhaled.

Finally.

I leaned my head against the seat.

I closed my eyes.

Tomorrow was another day.

I would deal with Xander tomorrow.

But tonight?

I wanted nothing to do with him.

Nothing.

I wanted my quiet bedroom.

My books.

My music.

My peace.

Because if Xander continued behaving like this, I didn’t know how long I could survive working in the same building with him.

I had come home to build my career.

To learn my family’s business.

To become independent.

Not to have Xander Carrington decide what I wore, who worked for me, and which men were allowed to stand near me.

I stared out the window as the city lights passed.

One thing was certain.

I needed boundaries.

And tomorrow, I was going to start putting them in place.

Even if the man standing on the other side of those boundaries was the most intimidating person I had ever known.