I Hate That I Loved You!

9- Stubborn Face

After 3 years.

In Bennetti Group Office:

It's a rainy morning, Sky turns a bit darker.
Heavy winds blows.

The new day started with tiny droplets of rain.
Sound of chattering, high heels clicking, employees greeting & gossiping, errand boy running for morning chores, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee spread across the office floor.

Zain Bennetti, clad in tight navy blue Armani suit with white shirt and red tie, Givenchy's patent leather oxford shoes;  neatly gelled hair, wearing Patek Phillip limited edition watch; entered his office like a king.

A ruthless, tyrannical, and dominating king.

Suddenly there was pin drop silence. Only noise coming was from the printer machine.

Zain looked around and made his way towards his office.
His green eyes squinted at the sight of his secretary.

His overly dressed secretary blushed and stood up from her desk to bow respectfully.

"Buongiorno Signor" Secretary Anna greeted him with a bow giving him a nice view of her cleavage.

What a bunch of clouds headed jokers! Zain muttered inwardly.

Anna was dressed up with an extremely tight and short black skirt with satin white sleeveless top highlighting her curves.
She adjusted her clothes and breast, deliberately trying to catch Zain's attention.

Anna became Zain's secretary after Rizi was sent to prison. From day 1, Anna was deeply infatuated by Zain.
His looks, his green eyes, his manly physique, his chiseled jawline, his cleft chin, and sexy Italian accent can make any woman squirm.

She tried hard to capture his attention directly and indirectly many times, but Zain's lack of interest at every occasion stopped her from making any more obvious advances.

Placing a cup of hot black coffee on his white contemporary designed desk. She smiled coquettishly at him and winked. "Your black coffee without sugar."

"Sì. Schedule a meeting with Mr. Lohan on Friday. I want to discuss further collaborations. Make sure all my appointments for that day are cleared."

"Si Signor." She nodded cheerfully.

"What's my schedule for today?" asked Zain.
He unbuttoned his suit and sat on his custom made brown Italian leather chair.

Anna gulped at the sight of his tight muscles and biceps. She cleared her throat.

"You have a meeting with the Board of directors at 10. Then you have a meeting with COO of LRD Security Technologies at 11 and one more meetings with Grey Technosoft at 3 pm. And Signor,  Ms. Sussana Cruz called to inform that you have a lunch date with her at La Gustoso at 1 pm. She already made reservation."

Disappointment in her tone while informing about the lunch date was very evident. Zain felt it.

He was aware of her thought but he use to ignore it considering she will soon learn her lesson and give up. Moreover she was hardworking employee. Now he realized, to avoid any further misunderstanding and keep romantic flies at bay, it's better to nip things in the bud.

"Grazie. You may leave now." He gestured her to go out.

"Si.." Anna turned and walked towards the door.

"Anna..?" Zain called in a raspy sexy voice.

Anna held her breath. Her brain running fast forward. She felt giddy. Finally, he noticed something. She considered herself better looking than his so-called fiancé Sussana Cruz.
She turned and smiled widely.
She blushed profusely.

"Yes Sir".

Seeing her act like a teenager, Zain sighed and rolled his eyes.
"Wear appropriate professional clothes. Your skirt is too short to be called formal wear. Please change before joining the meeting. I expect more professionalism from you." complained Zain in irritated voice.

Anna's face twisted with embarrassment. She quickly collected herself. "Si. I will ensure it. This won't happen next time."

"Good. Now please leave and don't forget to close the door." Zain motioned her to leave.

Anna quickly left the office with hurried footsteps. She felt so awkward and embarrassed.

Stretching himself he stood up straight from his chair, walked towards the french style floor to the ceiling glass window.

The sky was a bit more darker now.

Tiny droplets of rain were pattering on the window glass creating a musical rhythm.

A layer of fog spread across the sky blurring the beautiful view of the city.

It reminds him, his life feels the same; blurred and covered in darkness.

Zain closed his eyes.

That beautiful pale face.

Trembling helpless figure.

Brown eyes

Red Lips

Jet black hair

Her final last words "we are over".
Still ringing in his ear.

Rizi Goddamn D'Souza.! Zain gritted his teeth.

Even after all these years. Everything about her was deeply imprinted on his mind as if those were events of yesterday. He took a sip of coffee. His thoughts drifted to the past when he was wooing Rizi and the harmonious relationship they shared after she agreed to his dating proposal.
Unknowingly, his lips curled up and a hint of a smile spread across his handsome face thinking about those times.

But it didn't last long. Devil's side of him reminded him how he broke her, destroyed her, and threw her into prison.

He pursed his lips and pinched space between his brows.
"grh. This damn tasteless coffee. Bunch of idiots. Cannot do the easiest job.!"

Venting his frustration on coffee, he pushed open washroom's door and pour it in the sink.

These many years, He never tried to gather any information about Rizi. He wanted to remove her from his thoughts completely. He was afraid that he might feel sympathy for her if he will be notified of her current circumstances.

No!. This cannot happen.

He din't want that. His emotions are all over the place!

No.. definitely a big No...

He cannot feel anything for his enemy's daughter.

He strictly instructed his assistant and secretaries to never speak of her and never mention any news or information related to her.

She must stay vanish from his life. Then only, he will be able to try to pull her out from his mind and  thoughts!

Every time he wants to forget about her or try to get involved with other women.

That face stubbornly pops up in his mind.

Her beautiful smile flashes across his eyes occupying most of his thoughts every fucking day.! His last resort to avoid thinking about her is sleeping pills.

Frustrated with his inner conflicted emotions, he took a deep breath to calm himself.

He quickly composed himself, went back to his desk, and opened the first file.

His company lost an investor and now his firm is facing several other issues at once. He needs focus to resolve this problem.
Diverting his attention, He started making a few calls.