𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐙𝐄𝐃 | 𝟏𝟖+

fifty-three; intense

A U R O R A

"Tell me something, I need to know. Then take my breath and, never let it go. If you just let me, invade your space. I'll take the pleasure, take it with the pain."

. . .

I prepare myself for my first day. I'm supposed to be at his office at around ten in the morning.

I'm going to work there. And all I can do is hope that I'm not going to be working with Riccardo and will just be doing tasks with Alex or anyone else.

I decided to go with a pair of trousers and a button-up, feeling professional enough. I put my hair up in a bun and spritz some perfume on, before grabbing my heels and putting them on.

Alex didn't mention anything in particular that I needed to bring, so all I'm going to bring with me is my case for my laptop and phone, their chargers in the bag with me.

I go downstairs, into the basement, and greet the driver, sending him a little smile and thanking him for holding my car door open.

I'd prefer to have my own car so I can drive myself around town, and see what I can do about it. I don't want to put money into buying another car that I'll only use when I'm here, because it will be rarely used and just sit there, collecting dust.

The drive towards Riccardo's office isn't as long as I expected it to be, filled with only music that's playing from the radio.

I lean back on the leather seats and let out a sigh, trying to calm my pounding heart. Will I see familiar faces?

Will they be kind to me? Are they going to show me around first or just put me on the job already?

I hate to admit that I'm trembling a bit by the time the car parks itself outside the office. I inhale deeply and demand myself to get a grip, before grinning and thanking my driver, who gets out and opens my door.

"You can pick me up at five," I tell him. "I will be here, Ms. Amoretto," he smiles. He has been working for my dad ever since I was little. He's the one that travels with us and takes care of other things my dad wants him to.

Clearing my throat, I head for the entrance of the building, entering and feeling déjà-vu taken over me. The number of times I entered the building back in San Francisco come back to me, flooding my mind.

This office is very similar to that one, bringing back a lot of memories. I walk up to the unfamiliar receptionist who looks up once he sees me.

"Good morning, how may I help you?" he asks. "Good morning. I'm Aurora Amoretto and I'm here to see Alex Rodriguez," I answer with a little friendly smile, one he returns.

"Okay, let me check for a second," he replies and turns to his computer, typing in something and scrolling. "Ah, yes. Mr. Rodriquez is expecting you on the top floor," he says, "you can take the elevator up."

I thank him before making my way to the elevator and pressing the button, inhaling and exhaling every few seconds to calm myself.

I feel pathetic for being this nervous. I shouldn't be, and yet I am. To distract myself, I send Kim a little message, asking how she's doing.

It was a fun day yesterday. We went shopping, had lunch, and had a manicure. We then went back to my loft and watched some movies, gossiped about stupid shit. I had a good time and I can find myself talking to her about almost everything Laure and I talk about.

I didn't see Katherine since she left that morning, and I'm glad I didn't. Kim and I are meeting up tonight, just to sit around and cook together. It's so sad that Laure couldn't be here with us.