Page 13 of His Little Angel

When the meeting winds down, Bill leans back with a grin.

“Heard about Mila leaving,” he says casually.

He keeps going—oblivious to my rising urge to commit homicide. “Shame. Best assistant this place has seen. She was my favorite. Maybe I’ll swoop in after her resignation is over,” he adds. “Hire her myself. God knows I’d kill to have someone that good on my team—”

My hand fists his collar, dragging him halfway across my desk so fast his chair screeches against the floor.

His eyes go wide. “E–Enzo—”

“Never.” The word vibrates from my teeth.

“You hear me?” I snarl inches from his face. “Don’t. Ever. Say. That. Again.”

“Hey—okay—joking,” he stammers. “Damn, I knew you were possessive, but this is excessive.”

And that’s the problem.

I shouldn’t be possessive over my employees. Or ex-employees.

I’m unraveling—thread by thread—and every missing second of Mila’s presence makes it worse.

I release him abruptly. He stumbles back, straightening his tie with shaking fingers.

“Forget it,” I mutter, turning away.

“It’s already forgotten,” he says. “Sorry if I hit a soft spot.”

Soft spot?

He leaves. He won’t take it personally. He instigated it.

Seconds.

Minutes.

Hours.

Not one glimpse of her. Why isn’t she coming in? Why didn’t she check the schedule like she always does?

She never goes this long without checking in.

Did she take the day off? No. She made the coffee for Veronica to bring in. So she’s here—just ignoring me.

By 1:12 p.m., I’ve stopped pretending to work.

Three years of Mila orbiting me from the second she walks in until the second she leaves. And now—nothing.

Meanwhile, Veronica keeps appearing with her perfect posture, her perfect notes, her perfect everything-that-isn’t-Mila.

1:19 p.m.

Is she pulling away because of someone else? A boyfriend? She’s never dated anyone in three years. What if she found someone?

Someone who wants her to quit. Someone whose moods she’ll manage. Someone whose needs she’ll anticipate.

Oh.

Hell.