What Lies Inside

Chapter 4: Errand

Sam

Sam brushed a thumb over his knuckles as he stepped onto the marble foyer of Damian's penthouse. The morning light shone brightly through the windows, the floors reflecting the light. Damian, the vampire he was, would likely need to be woken.

His paramour of the evening, however, was already awake, draped in one of Damian's shirts, and helping herself to a glass of sparkling water in the kitchen. Her eyes immediately dropped to the black shopping bag Sam placed on the counter.

She wordlessly snatched the bag up and stalked to one of the guest rooms to change, likely assuming Damian had instructed Sam to fetch new clothes. It was not his place to inform the woman that Damian has never been that thoughtful.

Sam surveyed the torn fabric strewn on the floor and promptly texted the building's cleaning service.

Damian had been in a strange mood for the past few weeks, and he had a feeling it had something to do with the interior designer. Though Sam acted as Damian's secretary, he was primarily his legal counsel and he'd had his hands full for the past year untangling Damian from his past.

And last night he'd been... further distracted.

Nadya stepped back out in the neatly fitting black coat and sunglasses Sam had bought for her with Damian's card.

She frowned in distaste, likely finding the pieces not to her liking, and left without a word.

Sam adjusted his tie and headed up the floating stairs, opening the grand doors to the master suite and unceremoniously pressed the button to the blackout curtains blocking the daylight.

Damian groaned, the light revealing the night owl naked and tangled in his luxe sheets.

"Sammmm," groaned Damian in protest.

"First thing in the morning," Sam reminded him, crossing his arms and leaning onto the wall behind him. Sam sniffed, "you reek of cigarettes."

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Damian dropped into his desk chair with another pointed groan. He'd been a crybaby about mornings ever since they were 16. It wasn't changing anytime soon. He supposed waking him up before noon was Sam's version of mild revenge after Damian had tried summoning him well past 3 in the morning.

Sam unbuttoned his coat and neatly sat on the white modern couch across from Damian's desk. "Where would you like to begin?"

Damian rubbed at his brows, then held up a hand, a finger going down for each item on his list, "Financial performance, current project status with the new venue, revenue from The Labyrinth last night, staff performance and customer feedback from our other locations, legal process with my... history."

Sam nodded.

"Keep it short and sweet, pretty please," Damian added, sipping at his espresso.

With a sigh, Sam proceeded. "Notable increase in overall revenue, with a solid cash flow. Growth is on track. The work on the new venue is progressing smoothly, I've scheduled Miss Woodsen for a site visit later this week. Anticipated completion remains on track for the projected date."

Sam sighed, looking up at Damian who was still nodding even though Sam had stopped. As suspected, he was somewhere else, gazing out the window.

"What exactly, are you planning with Serena Woodsen."

Her name got his attention. Damian's eyes slid to Sam warily. "She's an interior designer. I plan on having her design the interior."

Sam pinched the bridge of his nose. "Damian, do you expect me to believe that that is all you plan for her."