Page 25 of Bastian

She grins, then turns and strides out of my office as if she’s on her very own runway.

Most women would kill to look like Quinne, and most men would kill to spend a night tangled in her sheets, but nobody knows the real her.

I do.

I know the burden she carries and the reason why she hides underneath the facade of a ruthless man-eating lawyer, and let me tell you, it’s not pretty.

Not pretty at all.

With the legal documents in hand that declare me the sole owner of the paper and all its areas, I walk towards my desk and take a seat. Placing the documents down, I take a deep breath, allowing myself a moment to breathe.

What Quinne doesn’t know, and what I try to deny, is that I love that man as much as I hate him, and it only angers me further.

Because nobody understands how painful it is to love someone who destroyed me so thoroughly, I am still picking up the pieces.

I love the son of a bitch, but not even that love can save him from what he created.

Whenever I feel myself becoming weak by the memory of his eyes, smile, laugh, and traitorous touch, I recite his last words to me aloud. “Betrayal hurts most when it comes from the person you trust most.” I whisper his cruel words while the words echo in my office, taunting me.

Then to drive the point home, I open the last drawer on my desk, reach inside and pull out a small black frame. A frame with a photo of the only good thing in my life, even if she’s out of reach from me.

My Ellaiza.

Smiling at the camera with a face full of pink frosting and her tiny hands holding two chocolate cupcakes.

“I miss you, my girl.” The heartbreak and pain that take over me whenever I think about her or see her is the push I need to carry on with what I’ll do next. Placing the frame back into the drawer, I close it, keeping her a secret just to myself.

Reaching for the office’s phone, I press a button and put it on speaker. “Yes, boss?” Nessa’s sweet voice sounds from the speaker.

“I need to speak with you. Please come to my office.”

A second passes before she replies. “I’ll be right there.”

Hanging up, I lean back in my white leather chair and wait.

A minute later, a knock sounds on the door.

“Come in.” Putting my phone down, I turn to see a nervous-looking Nessa step through the double doors of my office. “You did well today.” I never compliment my employees or my team. That is something I just don’t do, but I pay them well, and I am never rude. That’ll have to do. I motion for her to take a seat which she does, still nervous as hell.

“Thank you, boss.” Nessa is a young girl, a naive one, but efficient and brilliant. That is all I ask. Their personality traits or flaws are of no interest to me.

Grabbing a notepad and a pen, I jot down contact names and numbers for her before passing the white sticky note to her. “I need to contact each and every single one of these women and try to get an interview with them. Over the phone or in person, I do not care. Most of them signed NDAs, but if you’re as clever as I believe you are, you’ll find a way around it.” Nessa looks down and frowns, but there’s also something on her face. A challenge. Good girl. “Count on it, boss. Although messing with the President is one hell of a suicide mission.”

Inspecting my nails, I reply in a dry tone. “Nessa…men like Sebastian Kenton think too highly of themselves.” Looking at her once again, I smile. Fuck, it hurts to smile. It’s been hurting for three years now. Pushing past the pain, I concentrate on the hate. “Men like him are just that…men. Not immortals, and they all bleed the same.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why do you hate him so much? Yes, he is kind of a condescending ass and thinks he is God’s gift to man kind, but as far as his duty to the country, he has not fucked up yet and has done quite a job of it.”

That is true.

Nessa is all about the facts.

And on paper, Sebastian has done wonders for his people, but I know better.

I know him and how he plays.

Dirty.

Unfairly.

---