One
Chapter One – Was She Desperate?
Green shorts hung over the ropes beside the building. Stephanie walked to the door. No doorbell? She knocked. Twice.
No one answered. She knocked again, harder this time. Still no response. The building didn’t look commercial.
She checked her wristwatch, then her phone. The time and address matched. She looked around for a place to sit.
A small chair, a stool to be precise, leaned against the wall. Stephanie tried making herself comfortable on the stool and attempted to call Nathan. It rang twice, but he didn’t answer.
She turned on her cellular data and went online immediately. On Facebook, she checked his last message.
From Nathan Squeal: “My number is 81089XXXX.” The number he gave and the one she dialed matched. She glanced around the building again. It looked abandoned—not an ideal business center.
Her phone beeped. A message from Nathan: “GO IN.” She read it again.
“Go into the house?” she asked herself aloud. She left the stool, which toppled immediately. She then noticed it had only three legs and, if not for leaning it against the wall, it would have spilled her.
A short gasp escaped her lips as she headed for the door. It didn’t even have a common doorknob. The place was beginning to creep her out.
Inside, the house was almost empty except for a table and a big red chair with a... skull, maybe not a human's.
She felt her spine tingle; something didn’t feel right. How could she have her interview here? Of all places. Where was her interviewer?
What was the name of the company she was supposed to be interviewing for? She never even discussed the position she wanted.
Nathan had just given her an address. What if it was for something else?
Stephanie decided to dash through the door, but turning toward it, her heart jumped into her mouth. Her body shuddered.
He was standing there, exuding an aura... well, not something she could handle.
It felt like energy was swirling in the room. Her knees almost buckled until she caught sight of his shoes.
Her usual self would have yelled “bad fashion,” but she couldn’t.
Nathan Squeal, though she had only seen him in a picture, seemed more than just the ‘common businessman’ he claimed to be in their earlier conversations.
He was handsome, baby-skinned, with dark curly hair that blended with his wine-colored tunic.
Though his green shoes made the outfit odd, he could still pass as some girl’s ideal man. He definitely led an easy life.
Stephanie stopped herself from thinking about his looks and began to wonder how he had entered the house.
Had he appeared? She didn’t hear the door open; it creaked, so she should have heard it if he used it. So far, he hadn’t spoken.
He had a scar on his neck, a knife scar. It must have been there for years. He was looking down at nothing in particular.
She tried making a slight move toward the door, but he looked up. His eyes locked with hers—they were deep blue. “Whoa,” she gasped.
“Stephanie, is it?” His voice was chilly.
She nodded repeatedly, still trying to ‘unhear’ the rhythm of his voice.
“I’m Nathan, Nathan Squeal, remember?” he said, now moving towards the red chair.
“What was that?” she blurted. She shouldn’t have; she was here for her interview, and only her interview.
“My dead dog.” She was surprised he answered, though after a few seconds. She made an “oh” sound, but doubted he heard it.
He should proceed with her interview. He sat down comfortably on the red chair, with the skull on his thighs.
“Sit down, please,” he beckoned.
“Where?” Stephanie’s eyes searched the room; only the table remained, and it had a dirty red cloth on it.
“There!” he pointed at the table. A smirk rested on his lips. She didn’t ask more and moved towards the table. As long as her interview held.
“Or sit here,” he continued, now pointing at his... thighs? She twisted her face.
During their previous chats, Nathan usually went into ‘flirt mode,’ but he was never this bold and never went this far. She stared at where he pointed. His thighs?
“Excuse me?” she blurted, this time not regretting it. The smirk on his face disappeared, and he looked like he regretted what he did.
“Isn’t this an interview, Nathan?” she asked harshly, shutting him up.
“The fact that I’m unemployed doesn’t give you the right to call me out of my house for these games,” she snapped.
He attempted to speak, but she just moved to the door without thinking about him. She noticed he stood up to stop her, presumably to apologize, but she hurriedly slammed the door on him.
What nonsense! The fact that she wanted a job didn’t mean she had no self-respect or valuable time. Did she sound desperate when she shared her problems with him?
How did she accept the interview without asking what it was all about? Why did she trust him so easily? Very unlike her.
She shook off Nathan from her mind and left for an eatery. The sandwich tasted watery as she was still in a bad mood.
Getting home, she didn’t receive the warm and noisy welcome she was used to. Her little siblings had gone for the holidays. They’d be back by Sunday, asking if she got the job or not.
“How did I get entangled with that freak of a Nathan, anyway?” she yelled to herself. Well, it’s done; she decided to shove it off like a bad dream.
Nathan stood in front of the door. What was he thinking? He had overdone it when he should have known better. This was beyond his mission. He had really crossed the line this time.
Stephanie hadn’t always been the easy type, but he would get her eventually. He had to win the bet, or he’d be giving ten million dollars to the twins.
What made her worth ten million dollars even? Why did he show them her picture? He quietly went back to his chair and slumped into it.
Feelings of rejection filled his heart. What if she never spoke to him again?
Why did he try flirting when he was so bad at it? And she wasn’t the type who smiled at such advances, either. He’d known her for a few months already.
He pulled out his phone to check a message that had buzzed in earlier. It was from Capricorn, a spy he had on Stephanie.
“I found her home, boss. Eagle Eye’s estate. The estate is up for sale, owned by your dog, Chess.”
Nathan smiled at the message. He bet Stephanie would be doubting that he was really a businessman. She’d never believe he was a CEO.
He jumped from the chair and slicked his hair back. Time to go sly on some measly human.
