Chapter one – Was she desperate?
Green shorts hung over the ropes besides the building. She walked to the door. No door bell? She knocked. Twice.
No one popped up from the door. She knocked again, this time even harder. No one still. The building didn’t look commercial. Rather like an orphanage.
She looked at her wristwatch and then at her phone. The time and address tallied. She looked around for a place to sit.
A little chair, a stool to be precise, leaned over at the wall. Stephanie tried making herself comfortable on the chair and tried calling Nathan. It rang twice but he didn’t answer.
She put on her cellular data and went online immediately. On Facebook, she checked his last message.
From Nathan Squeal: “My number is 81089XXXX. The number he gave and the one she dialed had tallied. She looked around the building again. It looked abandoned, not an ideal business center.
Her phone beeped. A message from Nathan: “GO IN”. She read it again.
“Go into the house?” she asked herself aloud. She left the stool, it fell immediately, she then noticed it had only three legs and if not she had rested it on the wall, it would have spilled her.
A short gasp escaped her lips as she headed for the door. It didn’t even have a common doorknob. The place was beginning to creep her.
Inside the house was almost empty. Except for a table and a big red chair that had a… a skull, maybe not a human's.
She felt her spine creak and it didn’t feel right. How could she have her interview there? Of all places. Where was her interviewer?
What was the name of the company she was supposing to be having an interview for? And she never talked on the position she wanted.
Nathan just gave her an address. What if the address was for something else?
Stephanie decided to dash through the door but turning towards it, her heart jumped into her mouth. Her body shuddered.
He was standing there having the aura of a…well, not something she could handle.
It felt like an energy was swimming in the room. Her knees were almost bending till she caught sight of his shoes.
Her normal shitty self, she would yell 'bad fashion' but she couldn’t.
Nathan Squeal, though she had seen him in a mere picture, seemed more than just a 'common businessman' as he had told her in their earlier conversations.
He was handsome, baby-skinned, dark curly haired which blended with his wine-colored tunic.
Though his green shoes made the outfit odd but he would certainly pass for some girl's ideal man. He definitely had an easy life.
Stephanie stopped herself from thinking about his looks, she began thinking on how he had come into the house.
Had he appeared? She didn’t hear the door open, it freaks so she must have heard if he used it. So far, he hadn’t spoken.
He had a scar at his neck, a knife scar. It must have stayed for long years. He was looking down at nothing exactly.
She tried making a slight move towards the door but he looked up. His eyes dived into hers, they were deep blue. “Whoa” she gasped.
“Stephanie, is it?” his voice was chilly.
She nodded severally, still trying to ‘unhear’ the rhythm of his voice.
“I’m Nathan, Nathan Squeal, remember?” he was now moving towards the red chair.
“What was that?” she blurted, she shouldn’t have. She was here for her interview, and only her interview.
“My dead dog”. She was surprised he answered, well after few seconds. She made an “oh” sound but she doubted he heard it.
He should proceed with her interview. He sat down comfortably on the red chair, with the skull on his thighs.
“Sit down, please” he beckoned.
“Where?” Stephanie’s eyes searched the room, only the table was left. And it had a dirty red cloth on it.
“There!” he pointed at the table. A smirk rested in his lips. She didn’t ask more and moved towards the table. As long as her interview held.
“Or sit here” he continued, now pointing at his…thighs? She twisted her face.
At their previous chats, Nathan usually went to 'flirt mode' but he was never this bold and never went this far. She stared at where he pointed. His thighs?
“Excuse me?” She blurted, this time not regretting. The smirk on his face was wiped out and he looked like he also regretted what he did.
“Isn’t this an interview, Nathan?” she asked harshly, shutting him up.
“The fact that I’m unemployed doesn’t give you credits to call me out of my house for these games” she snapped.
He attempted talking but she just moved to the door without thinking of him. She noticed he stood up to stop her to, presumably, apologize but she hurriedly slammed the door at him.
What nonsense! The fact that she wanted a job didn’t mean she had no self-respect or useful time. Did she sound desperate when she shared her problems with him?
How did she accept the interview without asking what it was all about? Why did she trust him so easily? Very unlike her.
She shook off Nathan from her head and left to an eatery. The sandwich tasted watery as she was still in a bad mood.
Getting home, she didn’t receive the warm and noisy welcome she was used to. Her little siblings had gone for holidays. They’ll be back by Sunday asking her if she got the job or not.
“How did I get entangled with that freak of a Nathan, anyway?” she yelled to herself. Well, it's done, she decided to shove it like a bad dream.
~~~
Nathan stood in front of the door. What was he thinking? He had overdone it when he should have known better. This was past his mission. He went really past it this time.
Stephanie hasn’t always been the easy type but he would get her finally. He had to win the bet or he’d be giving a ten million dollars to the twins.
What made her worth a ten million dollars even? Why did he show them her picture? He quietly went back to his chair and slumped in it.
Feelings of rejection filled his heart. What if she never spoke to him again?
Why did he try flirting when he was so bad at it! And she wasn’t the girl who smiled to such either. He'd known her for few months already.
He brought out his phone to check a message that had buzzed in earlier. It was from Capricorn, a spy he had on Stephanie.
“I found her home, boss. Eagle eye’s estate. The estate is up for sale, owned by your dog, Chess”.
Nathan smiled at the message. He bet Stephanie would be doubting that he was really a business man, she’d never believe he was a CEO.
He jumped from the chair and arranged his hair backwards. Time to go sly on some measly human.
