Falling

11 | Dante

Dante

"I look forward to celebrating with you tonight, your friend Tatum is quite convincing."

I watched as her face grew red with anger and frustration, but before she could get a word out I was gone. Turning towards the direction of my office, with a smirk on my face I left her there.

At the night of the club just a week prior, I had gone for business. That night was supposed to be an in and out kind of night. I didn't necessarily hate clubs, but with my status I hated the attention. There was a certain business deal that had to take place there, something that so obviously went wrong. No one was supposed to walk in during any part of that meeting, especially not the part that made me look like a monster. But Amelia Rhodes did. She walked in and changed everything.

Now my reputation was on the line, everything about my business and what I built would crumble at the first word she gave to the press. So I did the only logical thing, I threatened her. It was no secret that my money spread into places it shouldn't have, but the benefit of it was the intelligence. I had a team who could find anyone on this planet with as much as a hair color.

So of course I had them gather as much as they could on this woman. It wasn't hard either. The past she so desperately wanted to hide was not very well hidden. Maybe to an untrained eye yes, but anyone who wanted to find out... could.

"Here you go sir," said my personal assistant Rebecca. She handed me some files to look over before the end of my day.

"Thank you," I mumbled and opened the door to my office. Large and modern. That's all it was. It was kept neat and properly clean because if not I'd go out of my mind.

Sitting down behind my desk I got to work on those files. Signing documents that needed my approval and reviewing prospective clients. When going through the folder I noticed a group of paperwork clipped together labeled Program Applicants. I remember giving this list to my co worker Daniel to go over and narrow down. Curious because of a certain woman in attendance I flipped through the papers.

Amelia Rhodes it read at the top. When I landed on her application, my eyes quickly scanned the paper before me. Listing the address I already knew and her job history. Turning to the back page I looked to her signature at the bottom, and the message that was left;

"I look forward to this program and am delighted to learn under the great Dante Brown. His reputation is unscathed, not a bad report, and because so... l'm honored. I look forward to our first meeting.

Sincerely,

Amelia Rhodes."

That little spit fire. She knew what she was doing with this note and she's lucky Daniel is as oblivious as it gets. I clenched the paper between my fists, eyes narrowing at the message.

My mind raced back to earlier when she hadn't seemed surprised to see me, clearly expecting me. I should've known, should've looked over my own paperwork. Fuck.

Picking up the office phone I called Rebecca.

"Clear the rest of my schedule, I'm leaving for the day." And I hung up not waiting for a response.

Making my way to the car awaiting my arrival, my mind was hyper focused on a certain brunette.

Amelia Rhodes was supposed to be a business deal and just that. From the first night I met her, it was supposed to be professional and strictly business. But we were walking on the fine line of something more. I didn't know what it was about her, or her challenging personality that drew me in, but I didn't like it. My life was centered around control and I wasn't going to lose it.