Chapter 1 - “Document what?”
She stared at him.
“My… falling asleep on you.”
“You completed the agreements?”
“Yes.”
“They’re saved?”
“Yes.”
“Then your work was complete.”
Caitlyn blinked.
Damian picked up his tablet.
“When we land, a car is taking you home.”
Her heart fell.
There it was.
Dismissal.
“And you are not coming into the office tomorrow.”
“Sir, please.”
Her voice cracked before she could stop it.
Damian looked at her.
“I need this job,” she whispered. “Whatever reprimand you believe is appropriate, I’ll accept it. But please don’t fire me. My brother’s care payment is due next week and—”
“Caitlyn.”
She stopped.
“I am not firing you.”
She stared.
“You’re taking a paid day off.”
“But—”
“That was not an invitation to negotiate.”
Relief hit so fast that tears almost reached her eyes.
She blinked them away.
“Thank you.”
“It’s practical. An unconscious executive assistant is inefficient.”
Vincent turned toward the window to hide a grin.
Damian continued reading.
Then, without looking at her, he added, “Next time you are forty-six hours into a workday, tell me before your body shuts down.”
Caitlyn swallowed.
“Yes, sir.”
“I prefer to know when my people are falling.”
The word followed her all the way home.
My people.
She slept fourteen hours.
The following afternoon she drove to Pennsylvania to see Noah.
He looked thin beneath his blankets, but when Caitlyn sat beside him and placed her palm under his fingers, they moved.
Once.
Twice.
Her throat tightened.
“Hey, little brother.”
His eyelids fluttered.
“You would not believe what I did yesterday.”
She laughed quietly.
“I fell asleep on my boss.”
Noah’s fingers moved.
“I know. Horrifying.”
A nurse passing the doorway smiled.
Caitlyn leaned closer.
“And apparently I still have a job.”
Noah squeezed again.
For one full day, Caitlyn allowed herself to believe the strange incident on the plane had meant nothing.
Then she returned to work Friday morning.
Vincent was waiting at her desk.
He leaned against it with both hands.
Caitlyn stopped.
“Good morning, Mr. Russo.”
“You’ve got nerve, Elmore.”
Her stomach tightened.
“I’m sorry?”
“I’ve known Damian eleven years.”
Caitlyn opened her laptop.
“That sounds exhausting.”
Vincent laughed.
Actually laughed.
“I’ve seen men lose teeth for entering his office without knocking.”
“How encouraging.”
“I’ve watched him end business relationships because someone touched his watch.”
Caitlyn looked up.
Vincent pointed at her.
“You used him as a pillow.”
“I suffered an exhaustion-related loss of consciousness.”
“And he gave you a vacation.”
“A paid recovery day.”
“Same thing.”
“Mr. Hamilton is practical.”
Vincent stared at her.
Then his laughter filled the reception area.
“You keep telling yourself that.”
Damian’s office door opened.
Vincent immediately stopped laughing.
Damian’s gaze moved from him to Caitlyn.
“Coffee.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And the Marrow file.”
She entered his office five minutes later carrying both.
Damian stood at the windows overlooking Manhattan.
He turned.
His gaze stayed on her longer than necessary.
“You slept?”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“Fourteen hours.”
“Better.”
Caitlyn set down the coffee.
“The harbor representatives arrive at ten.”
“Cancel them.”
She paused.
“Sir?”
“Victor Marrow escalated last night. One of our storage buildings was attacked. Two employees were injured.”
The warmth left the room.
Caitlyn immediately shifted into professional mode.
“I’ll notify legal and prepare emergency compensation.”
“Vincent is handling the business response.”
“What do you need from me?”
Damian came around the desk.
“The Marrows are looking for leverage.”
“Financial?”
“Human.”
Caitlyn’s mouth went dry.
“They know they cannot reach me directly, so they will look at people near me.”
“The executive team?”
“Anyone they believe matters.”
Silence.
Caitlyn lowered her voice.
“I don’t matter.”
Something changed in Damian’s face.
Very small.
Very dangerous.
She quickly added, “To them. I mean, strategically. I’m an assistant.”
“You know my schedule. You control access to my office. You know which meetings are real and which exist only on paper.”
“So this is an information issue.”
“Yes.”
It was the answer she expected.
Why, then, did disappointment sting?
Damian turned away.
“A driver will collect you each morning. Security will be placed in your apartment building.”
“That’s unnecessary.”
“It wasn’t a question.”
She almost argued.
Then remembered the two injured men.
“All right.”
For four days, nothing happened.
That was almost worse.
Security became routine. A quiet man named Frank waited in Caitlyn’s lobby. A black sedan brought her to work. Vincent appeared at strange times, checking hallways.
Damian spoke less.
But Caitlyn noticed him watching her.
Not constantly.
Never obviously.
Just enough.
Tuesday afternoon, Damian and Vincent were scheduled to leave for a private negotiation downtown.
At 2:15, the executive elevator opened.
A man stepped out.
Caitlyn did not recognize him.
Cheap suit.
Broad neck.
Cold eyes.
Every instinct she had acquired during two years around dangerous people screamed at once.
Her hand moved beneath the desk toward the silent security switch.
“Can I help you?”
The man smiled.
“You Caitlyn?”
“This floor is restricted.”
He walked closer.
“I have a message for Hamilton.”
“Mr. Hamilton is unavailable.”
The man planted his hands on her desk.
“Victor Marrow says your boss is getting careless.”
Caitlyn pressed the button.
Nothing visible happened.
The man leaned nearer.
“He leaves his favorite people where anybody can reach them.”
Her pulse stumbled.
“I think you should leave.”
His hand shot across the desk.
He grabbed her wrist.
Pain exploded up her arm.
Caitlyn gasped as he hauled her partly from the chair.
“You’re coming with me.”
“No.”
She kicked hard.
Her heel struck his shin.
He cursed, released one hand, and reached inside his jacket.
Caitlyn saw enough metal to understand.
Terror locked her body.
The man smiled.
“Now we understand each other.”
Behind him, Damian’s office doors opened.
The stranger turned.
Damian stood there.
He was supposed to be downtown.
Later Caitlyn would learn he had returned through a private service elevator after realizing he had forgotten a handwritten ledger.
At that moment, all she knew was that he saw the man gripping her wrist.
And Damian changed.
The sophisticated executive disappeared.
No shouting.
No threat.
He simply walked forward.
“Let her go.”
The stranger dragged Caitlyn closer.
“Back up.”
Damian did not stop.
“I said back up!”
Damian’s eyes stayed on Caitlyn.
Not the weapon.
Not the man.
Her.
“Caitlyn.”
She could barely breathe.
“When I say move,” he said calmly, “move left.”
The stranger tightened his grip.
“You think you’re in control here?”
Damian’s gaze finally shifted to him.
“I know I am.”
The man hesitated.
May you like
That was enough.
“Now.”
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