Corporate Secrets

CHAPTER 10

ANNE

I can't get over his kisses. I've tried so hard not to think about them.

The first time, I told myself it was a fluke. Nothing could come out of this. I'm okay in the looks department, pretty average, nothing special.

A man like Cole attracts the prettiest of women all the time. I've seen pictures of him with supermodels and actresses in newspapers. He's obviously not attracted to me. Now we've kissed again, and it's hard not to start building castles in the air. Or in this case, in my mind.

He doesn't come in early on Monday morning, so it's a little slow. When my phone rings, I pick it up excitedly, hoping to hear his voice. Shaking my head at my own foolishness, I bring the phone to my ear.

The moment the person on the other side of the lone speaks though, my mood plummets. "Hi, mom."

"You haven't sent any money yet."

"I had to use most of my salary to take care of my rent, mom. I explained that in a text message."

"I told you I wanted to have that surgery. The least you could do is send me some money." Mom wants to have a job done on her nose. The last time I saw her, I was astounded.

I used to think that all the money I was sending home was used to take care of dad. Instead, I found out that mom was using a lot of it to get surgeries. I have no idea when she started doing those. She's gotten some work done on her breasts and her butt. Currently, she wants to get a nose job.

When I first saw her, I almost cried. I couldn't believe I had been living on so little and she was throwing most of the money away on plastic surgery and whatever else.

"Mom, don't you understand?" I say, sheer frustration making my voice sound harsher than it normally would. "Do you want me living on the streets just so that you can have your surgery?"

"Don't you dare talk to me like that!" The anger in her voice is palpable, and I have to move the phone away from my ear because her yell is deafening. "Don't you dare talk to me that way. Like all of this isn't your fault. Things should be different! You know that, you stupid girl."

I take in a deep breath because I know what's coming. "Mom, you can't-"

"Can't what? You killed Ariana! Do you remember? It was your fault that she died!" Her voice is full of so much venom, I feel like I've been poisoned. My throat burns, and hot tears begin to roll down my face, even though I try hard to stop them.

"Mom that's not true. You know it's not-"

"You killed my poor baby, and because of you, your father can't work. And you should be grateful that I let you take care of us, but all you can do is whine and whine and-"

My phone is suddenly yanked from my hand. I watched through tears as Cole says, "Whoever you are, fuck off!" And then he hangs up.

I never even heard him walk in. I try to clean my face, to get back to a semblance of decency, but the more I wipe my face, the more the tears pour down my face.

I let out a little squeak when he yanks me up by my hand and tugs me into his office. I hear, as if from a distance, the sound of the door being locked, the sound of something hitting the ground.

And then I'm in his arms.

At first, all I can do is cry as the memories rush through my mind. Even though I protested when mom told me it was my fault that Ari was dead, somewhere deep inside, I still feel so guilty about it.

Thinking about that night brings back the horrors and the pain of my childhood. I was fourteen, and I just got into freshman year at high school. I was still clumsy, still a nerd who barely knew how to make conversation with people.