The Undercover Billionaire (18+)

Chapter Six - Amira

ADRIAN

Adrian sighed as he stepped into the elevator. He leaned against the back of it and rested his head against the cold metal that sat there. He wasn't hungry but he'd grown bored after finishing all the work that Natasha had sent over that morning.

She had a very different concept of what an assistant was. He was used to them going to their employer's house before coming to the office. And here he was. At the office. Awaiting her. His mind should've been focused on getting back up to the office after coming down to the restaurant on the ground floor for something to eat. Instead, it drifted to the possible reason for her late arrival. Was it possible that she'd been caught up with Mitch?

He shook his head. It wasn't his business either way. After what happened the last time and the way his usually suppressed anger rose to the surface on her account, he promised himself that he wouldn't throw that much investment into her life again. Well, not any more than he was supposed to at least. 

The door dinged open on the second floor, making him roll his eyes and exhale heavily. There were some days that he really wished other people didn't exist. 

Until he saw Rick walking toward him, her other guard, Michael beside him, and Natasha right behind them.

She offered him a small smile. One he didn't return. He might've been inclined to talk to her, had she not been so late.

"Who pissed in your breakfast?" She asked as she entered the elevator before her guards. She went to stand in the corner beside him, filling the small space with the scent of her sweet but subtle perfume.

He didn't reply, only kept his eyes on the sign that read the floor numbers.

Rick and Michael looked at each other then back forward. They were usually very chatty with each other and with her. The only sounds that could be heard were the small pings as they passed various floors.

"What's on the agenda for the day?" She asked into the silence.

He still didn't answer.

"I have some things to check on, on the maintenance floor," Rick said after a while. "Michael and I'll go check it out."

"Why're you dragging me into that?" The dark-skinned boy replied. When Rick glared at him, he nodded in understanding. "Okay, yeah, I'm going with him."

They got to the eighth floor and the two men looked like they couldn't get out of the elevator fast enough.

Subtle, Rick. Very subtle.

"They must think you're invincible if they left you as my only protection," she said once the doors closed once more.

When he didn't reply yet again, she stepped forward to where the panel with the buttons was and leaned against it.

"Adrian." She folded her arms and squinted her eyes at him. "I don't usually pull this card but you'd do well to remember who works for who here." Her hand reached out and pressed a button, stopping the elevator.

He scoffed with a small, humorless smile and folded his arms too. Again, he didn't reply. Just stared back at her. She wore a grey dress that buttoned down to where it ended just above her knees. The sleeves were short and, though it highlighted her curves well, it was one of the more conservative things that he'd seen her wear in a while. Her hair was in the usual two-strand twists but the front twists were pulled away from her face while the rest cascaded down her back to stop just below her waist.

He checked her face for any hints of a blush or a bit of a glow. Instead, he just found her serious features staring back at him. As much as he wanted to continue being stubborn, it wouldn't do him any good if he intended to keep this job. He supposed that he would have to speak sooner or later.

He took two steps toward her, almost eliminating the space between them. She stood slightly shorter than him in her heels. He wondered why she bothered wearing them at all. When he was closer to her than he should've been, he spoke. "You can have your boyfriend wave a gun in front of you and your staff every single day of the week if you like," he began. "But when your activities with him start affecting the time you get to work, thereby affecting my time, that's when the problem begins." He leaned closer to her and slammed his hand on the button to make the elevator start moving again. Then, he went back to leaning against the back wall with folded arms.

So much for not letting his anger get the better of him.

To her credit, her face hadn't moved while he spoke. Or when he was that close to her. Which was something that very few women could say.

She looked at the panel then back at him. Then hit it to stop again. He resisted the urge to breathe out heavily at the action. "What makes you think that I was with him this morning?"

He glared at her. "You're an hour late."

"Did I miss any meetings?" She cocked her head to the side.

He almost gritted his teeth as the answer came through them. "No."

"Then, I don't see the problem. A lot of people would be glad that their boss ran late."

"A lot of people like wasting time. I don't."

She gave him a small smile. "Evidently." She pushed the button again and the elevator began moving once more. "I'm sorry, Adrian. I'll be sure to text next time."

"Oh, don't push yourself. Wouldn't want your boyfriend to think you have obligations other than his temper tantrums."

She huffed a laugh and came to stand beside him. "He's not my boyfriend, by the way. And he wasn't the reason that I was late this morning."

Oh? Not her boyf--fuck it. He didn't care. 

"Well, he's definitely not your friend."

He didn't need to turn to her to see her snap her head to look at him. "How would you know what my friends--"

"Friends," he turned to her with lazy eyes and a smirk, "don't get jealous when they see me being close to their women friends." 

She furrowed her brows at him. Good, he wanted her to get as angry as he was. "He wasn't jealo--what does it matter to you?"

He turned to face forward. "It doesn't." 

She paused for a moment. Then, "You don't like him very much either I take it."

"Don't know him well enough to care about liking him." 

Another pause. "You don't like me very much then ...?"

He looked at the numbers on the panel above the doors. "I don't get paid to like you, Amira." 

"Don't call me that."

"Don't behave like one." He folded his arms and waited. Her perfume was filling the space. It had been since the moment she stepped in the elevator. It was both intoxicating and infuriating now that she was so close to him.

"I do not behave like a princess."

"You behave like everyone is supposed to like you."

"I only expect the same treatment I give to others."

"And that would explain why your boyfriend had a gun to your face?" He swung his head to look at her. "Because he's treating you the way you treat him?" 

"Oh, you're bold saying something like that to your boss."

"You can fire me for the truth if you like but given that you had the position open for three entire weeks, I'm guessing you don't have many options. Even if you did, it's doubtful that they'd be better suited for the job than me."

She opened her mouth to reply but closed it quickly. Jackpot.

He almost smiled victoriously. But the doors opened and she looked at them like she hadn't expected them to. 

"After you." He gestured the way out with an open palm. "Amira." 

She exhaled hard and walked out without saying another word. 

Not that anyone was counting, but the score was now Amira-0 Adrian-1.