Before dawn | Dark romance

Chapter 46 - Seeing stars

[2/3]
*warning: violence. Skip if you do not want to read.

As the car disappears around the corner, I take a deep breath and head inside. I press my employee pass against the scanner, and the back door clicks open. Stepping inside, I'm immediately greeted by the curious gazes of Josephine, Yvonne, and Maria, all of whom are standing nearby, eyes wide with curiosity.

"Maddie! Who was that hunk who dropped you off?" Josephine asks, her voice a blend of excitement and teasing.

I feel a blush creeping up my cheeks. "Oh, that's Luca. He's... a friend," I say, trying to sound casual, but the knowing glint in their eyes tells me I'm not fooling anyone.

"A friend, huh? Honey, men that look like him cannot be just friends," Maria says, raising her eyebrow skeptically.

Before I can respond, Yvonne joins in, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Yeah, Maddie. Spill the details! Is he your boyfriend?"

I laugh, shaking my head. "You guys are crazy. We're... just, umm, friends."

Maria, Yvonne, and Josephine exchange a glance, their smiles widening. "Just friends, huh? I don't believe it for one second," Yvonne says with a wink.

"Who were all those other guys? Were those bodyguards? And a police escort! Who is this guy?" Josephine bombards me with questions, her eyes wide with intrigue.

"He's... well, he's umm... wealthy," I admit, feeling a bit flustered as I try to find the right words to describe Luca.

"Girl, that is an understatement," Yvonne adds as they all eagerly close the distance, wanting to know everything. "Where do you even find a guy like that?"

"Well, remember that trip I took with Em and Bri to Italy?" I begin, hoping to deflect some of the attention.

Their eyes widen even more. "Italy? Oh my, he was in the store, wasn't he? The man who spend a 100k on clothing?" God, of course they remember him.

"O my God, yes, I remember him. Maddie, are you dating some sort of Italian prince or something?" Josephine asks, her voice a mix of awe and disbelief.

"Ladies, ladies," Taj's voice echoes through the room as the door behind me opens. I sigh in relief. "What is all the commotion?"

"Maddie just got dropped off by an Italian prince," Yvonne explains to him, but way too enthusiastically. I turn to Taj and mouth 'save me.'

He laughs and guides me slowly to the stairs. "Well, Cinderella has work to do, so Maddie," he says with a grin.

"Don't think Taj can save you, Maddie," Yvonne says with a teasing smirk.

"See you at the coffee break, Maddie," Josephine adds, and the three of them burst into laughter.

I hurry up the stairs, putting as much distance between myself and their prying questions as possible. "Thank you for saving me from the evil stepsisters," I say to Taj over my shoulder as we enter the office. I walk over to my desk and start to organize my things.

"What was that all about?" Taj asks, closing the door behind us.

I sigh and plop down in my chair, running a hand through my hair. "They saw Luca," I explain. "He dropped me off this morning, and now everyone's convinced he's some kind of Italian prince or something."

Taj raises an eyebrow. "Luca? He is here?"

"Yeah, well was. He flew in last night and is now on his way to the airport again," I say, nodding.

"He flew all the way to London for one night?." he asks, raising his eyebrow in surprise.

I nod my head.