Drenched

5

I woke up to the warm early sun, seeping in through my window. The sheer curtain was rippling as the cool autumn breeze drifted through the open window. As I rose from bed and got ready for the day, I felt a pit of anxiety threatening to form within me.

Why have I been so anxious? I'm always certain of every situation I go into, but suddenly when it involved Santiago, it was like my body intuitively knew something that my mind did not. I pulled on a tight black skirt that came to my mid-thigh, hoping it wouldn't be too short. I neatly tucked a flowy button-up long-sleeve into my shirt and looked at myself in the mirror. I hesitated for a minute. It was so unusual seeing myself dressed in such professional attire, almost as though I was a kid playing dress up.

I reluctantly opened the door, preparing myself to go to my new job. The house was peaceful. It was unusual for my house to be this quiet, but I savored the peace that was hardly ever present in my life.

While making my way to the office, I prepared myself for battle. I knew I had to be careful about my typical mannerisms and how I spoke. I was no longer Al, the daughter of a feared gangster. I was Aletha, a young college student with a future in finance.

The commute to the office building was surprisingly short. For whatever reason today, everything seemed at peace. Once again, as I entered the building, it was empty. The only other person in the lobby was Richard, who didn't bother to look up from his desk.

"Good morning Richard."

I flashed him a friendly smile as I passed by. He said nothing in return but I noticed just as he left my view, he grabbed his phone and began quickly typing.

Everything in the building was exactly how it was when I first arrived. Not a single detail was changed and just like yesterday, as I reached the long hallway at the top of the building, light flooded into it.

I carefully moved down the hall, slowing my strides and taking in every detail about my environment. When I reached the open office, I saw Santiago on the phone, muttering something in Spanish that I couldn't quite make out. Not wanting to interrupt him, I cautiously entered the room. Santiago hung up the phone and turned around. Just like yesterday, seeing him in person brings out a certain feeling inside of me that I can't exactly pinpoint. The sun around him illuminates his figure and brings out subtle golden hues from his curly locks which were once neatly combed, now softly framing his face.

"Good morning Miss. Tompson."

His unrelenting cold expression seeps into me.

"Good morning Mr. Rodriguez."

Not knowing what to do with myself, I stand in the middle of the room, waiting for what this day will hold.

Santiago slowly saunters over towards me. The only sound that can be heard is his leather oxfords sweeping across the floor. The harsh clicks almost startled me. Our eyes meet and the magnetizing aura about him keeps my eyes locked on him. He finally reaches me but doesn't stop in front of me. Instead, he makes his way around me examining every aspect of my being. I can feel his gaze up and down my body as he stops in front of me, almost a little too close for comfort.

When his deep emerald stare reaches me once more, I feel the need to break the long silence, but I cannot bring myself to speak. The familiar and intoxicating scent of his cologne once again fills the air around me.

"I have a meeting at 8:30. I left paperwork on your desk. If you need any help."

He paused for a moment, building the tension between us. His tone suddenly shifted and cadence became dark.

"Just ask."

I made my way over to the desk, that wasn't there yesterday. I looked down and examined the extreme organization of the mahogany desk. Everything had a place, and nothing was out of order. I felt too nervous to speak, that if I did, I would have been scolded. Never had a person had this much of an effect on me.

I began to go through the papers on the desk, all mundane typical office work. I glanced across the room to see Santiago casually flipping through files.

"Mr. Rodriguez?"

My voice came out frail and barely traveled across the large room. He looked up over the file, waiting for me to continue.

"I don't mean to be too nosy, but why have so many offices if they are all empty?"

One thing I had noticed from the moment that I had walked in here is he owned the whole building, filled with offices. But this was the only office that was occupied. Without missing a beat, his strong voice answered me.

"I like my privacy."

His eyes appeared to be an even deeper shade of emerald than before. Without questioning him, I returned to my work. I quickly checked my phone to see a text from Sosa. I wanted to get as much information about Rodiguez Interprises as I could.

*We couldn't find much. No social media presence, no publicity photos. Damn near nothing.*

This left me completely puzzled. How was it that there was nothing to know about him? His father, Hugo, was always in the public eye, holding charity events and such. But Santiago? Absolutely nothing. If he wasn't sitting across the room from me, I would have guessed that he didn't exist.

Not too long later, Santiago rose from his desk. I kept my eyes on my work. I wasn't sure if it was fear, but something kept me from looking up to see where he was going. I felt him walk over to my desk and stand behind me. Not talking, just quietly standing.

I timidly turned my head and looked up to see him gazing down at me. Something about his expression was different. Hunger? Lust? Anger? I couldn't exactly pinpoint it. Typically, I was good at reading people, but he seemed to stump me. He leaned down and planted his hand on my desk next to me. Although his arms weren't exposed, I could make out the defined muscles through the sleeve, and the thick veins running up his hands. When I turned my view to reach his face once again, I noticed his chiseled features, each with a definitive beginning and end point.

"I'll be back. Here's my number if you need anything."

He gently placed a post-it note with his phone number written on it on my desk, then swiftly exited the room. I took a deep breath and went back to the work I was doing. Even if my intention wasn't to work, I still had to make it seem like it was.

I saw my phone vibrate and the sound of it startled me a little bit. I picked it up and saw that it was Sosa again.

*Everything is packed. We'll leave when you get back.*

I thought to myself for a minute. I needed to stay here. Even though Kay's house was only 30 minutes from the city, I had to make sure everything was going according to plan as well as protect my house. I couldn't leave. I hesitated, knowing that Sosa would object, but reluctantly responded.

*I can't leave, I have to stay here and keep an eye on the house. I'll come up on the weekend and fill you in on everything going on.*

Not wanting to argue with him, I turned off my phone and sat back in the comfy chair. I sat for a minute, leaving myself alone with my thoughts. Santiago being out of the building gave me a perfect opportunity to try to find some information about him.

I carefully got out of my desk and headed towards the other side of the room. When I reached his desk, I noticed everything was in order, just like he had set my desk up, everything had a place. I paused for a minute, before reaching toward the drawers that lined either side of the desk. All of them were locked. Whatever is in there must be important, but there was no sign of a key anywhere. I checked under the desk, and through the papers, but nothing of interest was there.

I made my way into the hallway, trying to be careful of how I stepped, knowing that my heels hitting the floor made a sharp, distinct sound. I tried opening each of the doors that lined the hall, but all of them were locked. I reached a recessed door that I had made a note of before. To my surprise, the knob turned. I pushed the door, which was heavier than it looked.

I entered the room and felt around for a light switch. When my hands finally felt it on the wall, I flipped it and the light flickered on throughout the large room that seemed a lot smaller from the outside. An audible gasp escaped me as I inspected the contents of the room around me.

What else is he hiding in this building?