Chapter 4: DON’T FALL FOR ME
1063 Words
Just three months?
The words slipped out before Aria could stop them.
She stared at Luca across the massive glass desk that separated them. The morning sunlight cut through the floor-to-ceiling windows behind him and turned him into a silhouette of expensive suits and sharp edges.
He didn’t blink.
Yes. Three months.
Aria’s gaze dropped to the stack of papers on his desk. The contract. Thick. Legal. Final.
Her hands stayed at her sides. If she touched it too soon, she’d look desperate. And she was. God, she was.
And how much is my salary?
One of Luca’s dark eyebrows lifted a fraction. The corner of his mouth twitched like he’d been waiting for that question.
That’s the spirit. Straight to business.
I need to know what I’m agreeing to.
Fair.
He leaned forward and slid the contract across the polished wood. It stopped perfectly in front of her, not an inch past the edge.
Your salary will be twenty thousand dollars a month.
Aria nearly choked.
Twenty thousand?
Yes.
For being your assistant?
His eyes locked on hers. Dark. Calculating. Like he could see straight through the blouse she’d borrowed and into every lie she’d told.
No. For doing exactly what I tell you to do.
The air in the room went heavy.
Twenty thousand. A month.
The number echoed in her head. That amount would clear her mother’s hospital bills. Wipe the debt collectors off her phone. Pay for the prenatal vitamins she’d been skipping. And there would still be enough left to start over. Somewhere far from Ndola. Somewhere Luca De Rossi could never find her.
She forced herself to breathe. To stay calm. To not look like a girl who’d just been offered a way out.
What are my working hours?
Eight in the morning until six in the evening.
Monday to Friday?
Monday to Saturday.
Her eyes widened. The pen in her bag suddenly felt heavier.
Saturday too?
You wanted details.
She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. It was a nervous habit. She needed to stop doing that around him.
Fine. What exactly will I be doing?
Luca leaned back in his chair. The leather creaked. He looked entirely too comfortable in this office that probably cost more than her entire apartment building.
You’ll manage my schedule. Organize meetings. Prepare documents. Accompany me when necessary. Handle personal appointments. And make sure I don’t miss anything important.
Aria blinked.
That’s a lot.
That’s why you’re being paid well.
She nodded slowly. Her mind was already making lists. Already calculating how many Saturdays that was. Already wondering if she could survive 90 days this close to him without him noticing her pregnancy.
And the rules?
Luca’s entire expression changed.
The amusement vanished. The casual CEO disappeared. In his place was something colder. Sharper.
There are rules.
He held up one finger.
Don’t enter my private residence without permission.
A second finger.
Don’t touch anything in my office that doesn’t belong to you.
Her stomach dropped.
A third finger.
Don’t discuss my business with anyone.
A fourth finger.
Don’t lie to me.
Aria’s heart skipped. Hard.
Luca noticed. She saw it in the way his gaze flickered to her throat, to the pulse she couldn’t control. But he said nothing. He just let the silence stretch until it hurt.
And don’t disappear without my notice.
She met his eyes. Held them.
Is that all?
For now.
For now?
He gave her a faint smile. It didn’t reach his eyes.
You’ll learn the rest.
The paper in front of her felt like it weighed a hundred pounds. Aria picked up the contract. The pages were crisp. The ink at the bottom was black and waiting.
Three months.
Twenty thousand dollars a month.
A job she desperately needed.
And a boss who already knew she was a thief.
It was a terrible idea.
The last time she’d been in a room with luca, she’d walked out with his things and panic in her chest. The last time he’d looked at her, it had been through security footage.
But she had run once.
And running hadn’t fixed anything.
She couldn’t run again.
Fine.
Her voice was steady. She was proud of that.
She reached for the pen on his desk. Her fingers didn’t shake. Much.
Luca watched her sign. He didn’t look away. Not when she wrote `Aria Bennett` in careful letters. Not when she dated it. Not when she pushed the contract back to him.
He took it from her and tucked it into a folder.
Good.
Aria stood. Her legs felt like jelly.
When do I start?
Tomorrow.
But it’s Sunday.
Exactly.
Luca stood too. He was tall. Taller than she remembered. The suit fit him like it had been made for him, and maybe it had. He walked toward the door with the kind of confidence that made people move out of the way.
You Agreed to the job.
He opened the door. The hallway outside was quiet. Too quiet.
Come prepared.
Aria followed him out, trying to hide the frustration bubbling in her chest. Sunday. She had one day to breathe. One day to pretend this wasn’t happening.
Then Luca suddenly stopped.
She nearly walked into him. His back was a wall of black fabric.
He turned around. Slowly.
One more rule.
Aria frowned.
What?
His eyes dropped. Just for a second. To her face. To her lips. To the place where her collarbone showed above her borrowed blouse.
Don’t fall for me.
Aria’s heart jumped into her throat.
She gave him a blank look. The kind she’d practiced in the mirror. The kind that said she didn’t care.
Don’t worry.
She walked past him before he could see her hands trembling.
I won’t.
The elevator doors closed behind her with a soft ding.
But neither of them knew that three months was long enough for secrets to become dangerous.
Three months was long enough to learn each other’s habits. To notice the way he drank his coffee black. To notice the way she flinched at loud noises.
Three months was long enough for Luca to start wondering why his new assistant always checked the exits.
And Luca had no idea that the woman he’d just hired was carrying the one thing that could change his entire life.
A secret.
A baby.
His baby.
TO BE CONTINUED
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