Page 42 of F*ckboys

"Fallon," he repeats, his voice shaky and filled with awe. "Fallon fucking Dempsey. I'll remember you forever." I smile, satisfied with the night's events. The control I've sought is mine, and with that, I throw myself into the darkness.

Chapter 20

Aksel

The sharp sting of cold air slaps my face as I step outside, clutching my phone. I can't shake the urge to talk to Fallon, but I know there's only a small chance she'll answer when she sees it’s me calling. With a deep breath, I select her name in my contacts and wait for her voice to fill my ear.

"Hello?" she answers, sounding distracted. But that's better than nothing. At least I get to hear her voice.

"Hey, Fallon, it's Aksel." I try to hide the desperation in my tone but fail miserably.

"Yeah, I can see that. Your name came up on my phone even though I really should have you blocked. What do you want? Make it quick, Aksel. I'm busy," she snaps, her tone void of any warmth.

"Is everything okay? Things left off kind of..."

"Of course," she snaps. "Everything's fine. I've just got a lot on my plate right now with my clients. Can't chat." The line goes dead before I can even respond.

"Fuck!" I scream, letting the phone slip from my fingers onto the frozen pavement. My chest tightens with every heartbeat, and an overwhelming sense of hurt consumes me. She seemed so cold, so distant. Like I was nothing to her, when she is everything to me.

"Get your shit together, Aksel," I mutter under my breath, forcing back the tears that threaten to spill over. "You're living on memories." I scoop up my phone, wiping away the dirt and snow, then shove it into my pocket. What was lost back then is long gone. It's time to drag myself into the present.

I march back inside, slamming the door shut behind me. My office, typically meticulously organized, is a mess, papers strewn across the desk, a testament to my scattered mind. I didn't think I'd be this affected by Fallon's dismissiveness. But here I am, consumed by the thought of her, and she doesn't even give a damn.

"Enough," I growl to myself, plonking myself heavily into my chair. I need to focus on work, not her. "Don't let her get to you, Aksel."

My fingers fly across the keyboard, typing furiously as I lose myself in my work. I crush my way through my extensive to-do list, even crossing off items that I've been putting off for a while. Hours pass like minutes, the glow of the computer screen casting eerie shadows on the walls. I can't keep letting Fallon control my emotions. She's volatile, she's clearly pissed at me even though I'm not sure why, and I need to protect myself.

"Fuck her," I whisper, trying to convince myself that I don't care. But deep down, I know I'm lying. The ache in my heart persists, no matter how hard I try to ignore it.

"Focus, Aksel. Focus on what matters." I take a deep breath and throw myself back into my work, letting the darkness of my thoughts fuel my determination.

The Next Day

The large conference room outside my office is swarming with people here for a key meeting, but all I hear is the pounding of my heart in my ears. My eyes remain fixated on the stack of accounting books and financial statements on the large desk in front of me, as if they're a code waiting to be deciphered.

"King Enterprises has its fingers in a lot of pies," I mumble to myself, flipping through the pages. "Where is the truth hidden?"

"Is everything alright, Mr. King?" Darren, my assistant, asks as he pops his head into my office and notices the concerned look on my face. As always, he's dressed in an immaculately pressed collared shirt and khaki trousers. He raises an eyebrow at me, his icy blue eyes piercing into mine. "The meeting's about to start and just about everyone else is there."

"Everything's fine, Darren. Just reviewing some numbers. I'll be there in ten minutes. They can start without me." I force a smile, though it feels like sandpaper against my skin.

"Very well, sir. If you need any assistance, I'm here for you."

I trust Darren implicitly. And wish I could say the same about everyone in the adjacent conference room. But I can't let any of them know exactly what I'm looking into, at least not until I find out more.

Kent Farrington knocks on my door frame and pokes his head in. "Hey Aksel. See you in the meeting. You need anything before we go in?" He scans his eyes over my desk and I discreetly shuffle a pile of papers that are none of his business. He can't know what I'm looking into just yet.

"No thanks, Kent. See you in there." I force a smile, although it pains me to extend even a minor courtesy to someone who islikely plotting to take my family's entire company down from the inside.

"Okay, well, see you in there." Kent jerks his head toward the boardroom and returns my smile with a sinister smirk before walking away, leaving a trail of unease behind him.

I continue to pore over the documents, searching for any discrepancies that would point to foul play. As much as I want to believe that my family is innocent, I can't shake the feeling that there's more going on than meets the eye.

Twenty minutes or so later, I glance over to where Kent is chatting with our Chief Marketing Officer. His eyes flick over to me, but he quickly looks away when he sees me returning his gaze.

"Perhaps it's Isabella?" I think out loud, my gaze moving towards our Chief Operating Officer, who is busy conversing with another group of executives. Her dark hair is pulled back into a tight bun, her eyes calculating and cunning. Could she really be part of this too?

My phone beeps.

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