Golden Temptation

Chapter 1

"Miss Stone, Mr. Woods will see you now."

Well, fuck, I thought.

I looked up from the floor, spotting the platinum blonde barbie doll rose with grace from behind her desk. The clip of her heels echoed around the pristinely clean foyer with each and every step toward me.

I wanted to shrink away.

Everyone in the bright waiting room stared at me, watching me stand.

I cringed, slipping forward in my wet, too-large pumps with each step I tried to muster forward. But the reflection at the corner of my eye made me stop.

Well, fuck.

My soul seemed to deflate as I mentally winced.

I had honestly tried to make an effort this morning to ensure I made an okay impression.

But girls like me don't make okay efforts.

Just sad attempts.

My clothes were all a couple of sizes too big.

The last time I had the money to go shopping for myself, I was bigger, more confident. And the clothes I had managed to obtain for the interview, my boyfriend and residential asshole, had sold on to fuel whatever addiction he had.

So the outfit I was left with was a blouse, once-white-now-ash-grey, after Mark had managed to colour by throwing his black socks into the running load of whites. The grey pencil skirt made my ass look like the rear end of an elephant. And it was all brought together with a black blazer which had lost all of the buttons.

My hair resembled something closer to a drowned brown-hair Silky Terrier. My curls were plastered to my face and skull from the London rain. For all of my attempts to dry it with the hand dryer in the ladies room , the only success I had was in making my hair look worse.

I looked at Barbie, with her impeccable hair and make-up, her tiny figure encased in a scarlet bodycon and nude heels that made her legs go on forever, and sighed.

There was no way I was getting this job.

I followed Barbie through the huge mahogany door into the sleek office and my jaw dropped.

The interior walls were black glass, with paintings from Monet lining them; the Champ d'avoine and the view of Vetheuil along with a few others I couldn't place.

The sight of them caused the thief in me to see pound signs.

I sucked in a deep breath.

I had turned over a new leaf.

That wasn't me anymore.

The ceiling in the office was 2 stories high, painted white, making it the only white in the room with charcoal carpet on the floor.

Beneath the paintings were glass cases filled with jewellery; diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, opals all cased in the most stunning gold and platinum, worked into earrings, stunning necklaces and extensive rings.

Once upon a time, I could have walked into rooms like this and owned them.

Until you were reminded of your place.

Now looking around the room, all I could think was it would have been a prime place for a pitiful thief like me to make her payday.

"You like what you see," came a voice from behind me.

The suddenness and closeness of the voice startled me. With an unprofessional squeal, I turned as fast as my legs would let me.

Only my shoes didn't follow and to my horror, I found myself cascading to the prime office floor.