Page 6

Despite the somewhat strange morning, I had with Damien after he practically made me accept the ride he offered, the rest of my day seemed to be panning out like normal. It was somewhat of a relief to me, even if I still ended up seeing him a few times after the fact.

It wasn’t too out of the ordinary, at least. He usually did several passes of each floor throughout the day, either watching as everyone worked or carrying a tablet that seemed to have some sort of surveillance feed on it. Regardless, it was becoming more normal to see him around, and it was easier to focus, even if there was something demanding about his presence.

As he blended in with the background of the office, I let myself continue to work as usual.

Like most days, I’d check in with the workers on my floor, jumping in to help wherever I could. I provided suggestions and worked with the others to solve any issues or questions that arose while they worked on articles. Some were more tame pieces, while others were a bit scalding in comparison as we reported on crimes in the city and anything that might be of public interest.

Of course, everything had to be run by Gemma before being published, but she tended to assign my floor with those assignments, given my knowledge, while limited, of her associations and what might be deemed compromising in some way. She took those matters seriously, and I couldn’t exactly blame her for that.

If my husband’s reputation was on the line and could be easily scrutinized by the public, I’d probably do the same thing.

Either way, I wrapped up helping someone else when Raf called me over, and I approached him with a smile.

He had some questions about the main objectives of his assignment, wondering what might be more compelling to highlight in the article, and I didn’t mind helping him sort it out.

He had been open and receptive to feedback ever since he started working with us, and seeing someone else as keen as him helped to make my job even easier. It inspired me just as watching Gemma’s enthusiasm for the field often did.

Plus, it helped that he was easy to talk to.

“Thanks for your input again, I really appreciate it,” Raf said, leaning back in his desk chair as he gave me a faint smile.

I mirrored the expression and nodded. “Of course. I don’t mind helping. Sometimes, all you need is a pair of fresh eyes to hit a breakthrough.”

“That’s right. It’s always a relief too. You always seem to know exactly what a story needs.”

With a polite and somewhat bashful hum, I murmured, “I’ve been doing this for quite some time…you eventually develop a knack for it along the way.”

Raf grinned. “I can only hope the same happens for me one day.”

“I’m sure it will with time. Just keep at it, and I’m sure you’ll be more confident with it,” I replied, hoping to sound encouraging. I found it often helped everyone around me to lend them that support when they needed it, as I never knew exactly when someone might need it. Those words always went farther than I ever expected them to.

As far as I knew, Raf had studied journalism, but it took him some time to join the field, so while he was good at what he did, there were still some hiccups he was working on. Luckily, I was there to help with that aspect.

It felt good to be able to provide that kind of support to my coworkers, and despite working with deadlines and being busy, the company Gemma created provided that kind of supportive environment.

Raf nodded, and then after a beat, he gave me a relaxed smile. “Have any plans for the weekend?”

I shrugged. “I’ll likely be finishing up some last-minute work, but other than that, I think a nice bottle of wine and some brainless television are calling me.”

He chuckled at that. “I know what you mean. Don’t forget to unwind and give yourself a break, you work hard, too, you know.”

“Of course…that’s something I’ve always struggled with, but I’m working on it.”

Before Raf could say anything else, a sudden rush of air moved by us, and I glanced over to find Damien standing over us both, glancing between us before his eyes settled on me.

“Is everything alright here?”

Blinking back at him, I couldn’t find the words at first. I was too startled and confused about what he was talking about.

At first, I wondered if he just meant it harmlessly, but the longer he looked at us, eyes straying to Raf occasionally, I knew he was being serious. He was genuinely wondering if there was a problem.

I had the feeling he was trying to insinuate something about Raf as if he was bothering me.

“We’re fine,” I managed to say, trying to maintain my polite demeanor despite how his question seemed so out of place and rubbed me the wrong way.

In all of my time working for Gemma, I never had any problem with my coworkers. I never felt cornered or like anything inappropriate was going on. Given how well we all worked together, it was hard for me to understand what stood out as concerning to Damien.

Everything Raf discussed with me had been harmless, and there was no reason for him to interfere.

“Nothing to report here,” Raf added with a somewhat nervous chuckle as if intimidated by Damien.

I couldn’t blame him. He was dressed head to toe in protective gear like he was security at some sort of event. It didn’t help how he was looming over us, almost like he was prepared to strike at any moment.

Despite Raf’s attempt to diffuse that hint of tension between the three of us, Damien didn’t seem to find it very amusing as his gaze slid to him for a beat before returning to me, and he gave a small, dismissive hum in response.

“You’re sure about that?”

In any situation, I’d be the first person to admit that the way he looked at me then was more appealing than anything else. It struck a chord with me, but given the circumstances, and how insistent he was being just like that morning, I couldn’t shake the vague irritation that moved through me.

He seemed so sure. So confident that Raf was being a nuisance and that I needed saving.

I couldn’t understand why.

My brows furrowed by a fraction as I looked at Damien pointedly. “Yes, I’m sure. We’re fine.”

While he didn’t press the matter further, the way his eyes tracked over my face told me he wasn’t fully over it yet. He seemed to be searching for any hidden deception in me…almost like I was trying to lie and purposely hide some deep-seated fear of Raf or something.

Regardless, I wasn’t going to back down. He was being strange, and it made me want to know why.

As attractive as he was, I could feel myself slowly getting more and more irritated by his constant hovering, as if waiting for the perfect moment to pop in and disrupt the steady flow of things.

I couldn’t pin down his behavior, or the reasons for it, and it was confusing me beyond belief.

Eventually, Raf forced out an uneasy breath and pushed his chair back before he stood, glancing between us. “I think I’m going to grab some coffee…do either of you want some—”

“—no,” Damien said without hesitation, tone flat as he spared him an uninterested glance.

Raf blinked back at him, but unwilling to get into it, he nodded and left the cubicle.

The moment he was gone, I looked at Damien again with slight disbelief.

He cocked a brow at me. “What?”

I scoffed and shook my head, wearing my irritation. I didn’t bother trying to be polite. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Either he was genuinely clueless, or he had an excellent poker face, but either way, Damien gave me an innocent expression in return. “I’m just doing my job.”

“Your job…is scaring my coworkers now?”

He forced out a vaguely annoyed breath at that, arms crossed over his chest. “You know that’s not what I was doing…not intentionally, at least.”

It took incredible self-restraint to not outright roll my eyes at him. “It’s not your job to insert yourself whenever you please.”

Damien’s next look was somewhat of a challenge. “You seem to know quite a bit about my job.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Gemma said you’d be here to keep an eye on the place…and we wouldn’t even know you were here. But I’m more than aware, and you need to tone it down.”

His brow lifted again at that as he looked me over, and the faintest grin settled on his lips. “Oh, so I’m taking orders from you now, hm?”

Biting my tongue, I casted him a disapproving glare. “Look…just don’t get in the way, alright? Everyone’s uneasy enough with you here. There’s no need to make it worse.”

As if my words finally got to him, looking like his pride was somewhat wounded, Damien pulled back slightly and seemed like he had something else to say, but he reined it in. His brows pinched together slightly as he absently shook his head.

Without anything else to say to him, I sighed, then pulled away from him and the cubicle and kept walking.

My shoulders tensed as I walked back to my office, I pulled in a breath and reminded myself to relax. I didn’t need to let him get the better of me. He was aggravating, but that didn’t mean I had to give him that power over me.

Finally alone, I took the chance to recenter myself. Despite trying to get my mind away from the Novikov posted in the office, I just couldn’t.

Before, I told myself that he had been doing sweeps of all the floors throughout the day, and it wasn’t out of the ordinary for him to do that. But the more I considered it, the more obvious it seemed.

There was no way he was spending the same amount of time on each floor.

It hadn’t crossed my mind before, but upon mulling it over, there was no denying just how often I caught glimpses of him nearby. Even if I wasn’t paying all that much attention, he seemed to be there constantly.

I felt paranoid for even assuming it, but without a shadow of a doubt, he was around my floor a lot more than necessary.

The thought only made me feel more irritated for some reason, even if I didn’t entirely mind the idea. It was just his audacity. The way he kept acting so strangely, and how those instances were stacking up against him.

Damien was a living, breathing dream, and I should’ve been only ecstatic at the thought of seeing him more often, but the weirdness surrounding everything was more than I was willing to take on.

As far as I could tell, he was overstepping, and I wasn’t sure how much more I could put up with before I’d inevitably snap at him.