Page 8 of Dirty Little Secrets
“Briefly,” Drazen replies, indifferent.
She barrels on. “But did you know who’s been behind identifying Emma’s glitches before QA? Nori. Emma is insane tech. A complex ai.”
“Emma is,” he agrees, finally acknowledging me with a glance. “I designed it.”
Of course he did. Xaiden Drazen isn’t just dangerously attractive, he’s a certified tech god. Emma, our flagship Ai, filters job candidates with nearly flawless precision. It’s schedules, analyzes, and shortlists with zero human error. It’s brilliant. Revolutionary. And he created it. Trained it himself.
I want the floor to open and swallow me. I know she’s trying to help after the disaster the other night. Coming from a small town and a bad upbringing, I want to make an impression and fit in. Be more than a name and employee number but not here. Not like this.
Kristina. Oblivious to my embarrassment, adds, “Well, Nori’s amazing.”
“Glad to hear it,” he replies, facing forward.
The elevator dings.
I want to die. Why did she say that?
I step out on shaky legs, aware of his gaze on my back.
Kristina looks over and flashes a grin. “Have a nice day, gentlemen.”
“Goodbye, Ms. Henry. Nori,” he says.
I turn, instinctively. He’s still watching. His tongue brushes his lower lip like he’s holding something back. Like his eyes are daring me to follow.
The doors close and it’s like he took a piece of my soul with him to torment me.
“What the fuck was that?” I mutter.
Kristina is already smirking. “He called you by your first name?”
I blink. “So?”
“From what I’ve heard, he never calls employees by their first name. Ever. It’s a thing.”
I wave her off. “He was being polite. I’m sure he wasn’t aware I worked for him.”
She arches a brow. “Keep telling yourself that. I know what I saw.”
Yeah, him acting like I don’t exist.
Back at our desks, she peers over the cubicle wall. “He’s hot though, isn’t he?”
“I wasn’t looking,” I lie. And…I have a boyfriend,” I remind her.
“Not for long,” she says, each word slowly.
I ignore the heat rising in my cheeks thinking how my nipples ached and the way my heart sped up but I push the attraction out of my mind. He’s rich, smart, and good-looking. What woman wouldn’t crush on him.
“It doesn’t matter. He’s our boss,” I whisper. “It’s wrong.”
Kristian shrugs. “Wrong has never looked that good.”
At lunch, I linger in the breakroom, nursing my coffee. Doubts gnaw at me. Was walking out of dinner the right call? Should I have stayed and learned what the meeting was about? Landon doesn’t know where I’ve been since Friday night. I stayed in a cheap motel not wanting to face him. I’ve ignored his calls.
Even this morning when Kristian brought me a fresh pair of work clothes from her closet, all I could think about was the way I felt walking out of there with my head held high. After I passed the tattoo shop and saw the sign––FREE PIERCING WITH JEWELRY PURCHASE––something in me snapped. I walked in. I let go.
Kristian interrupts my thoughts. “You free on your birthday?”
