Free Web NovelChapter 10: Chapter 9 A Certified Psycho
I didn’t sleep a fucking wink.
Every time I closed my eyes, that text message played on a loop in my brain.
Efficiency requires a clear mind at home.
I spent the entire night staring at Anastelle sleeping soundly beside me.
"You’re fucking insane if you walk back into that office," Giulia whispered, leaning against the kitchen counter as I aggressively downed my third cup of coffee.
"Mireya, the guy tracked our address in three hours. He sent your kid two hundred dollars’ worth of toys just to prove he could. That’s not a boss. That’s a certified psycho."
She dragged a hand through her long blonde hair before fixing me with those warm brown eyes that had gotten me through some of the darkest days of my life.
"Quit. Block his number. Let’s pack our bags and move to Naples."
I almost smiled.
Five years ago, when I arrived in Italy with swollen feet, morning sickness, and exactly three hundred euros to my name, Giulia had been the one person who didn’t look at me like I was a lost cause.
She helped me find my first apartment.
She sat with me through doctor’s appointments when I was too scared to go alone.
She held my hand through eighteen hours of labor.
When Anastelle was born, Giulia cried harder than I did.
Some people become friends.
Giulia became family.
Which meant she had earned the right to look at me like I had completely lost my mind.
"With what money, Giulia?" I snapped, "I have exactly forty euros left in my account. If I quit now, we’re on the street by next month."
Then she sighed.
"Fine. But when this inevitably turns into a Netflix documentary, I want it officially stated that I told you to run."
The office should have been empty, but the door of Laziel’s office was open.
As I approached his desk to drop off the morning schedule, a gorgeous blonde woman stumbled out, She was fixing her lipstick with her phone camera while trying to smooth out the wrinkles in her dress.
She didn’t even look at me as she bolted toward the elevators.
I stared after her for half a second.
Then immediately hated myself for caring.
Why did I care?
Laziel Monroe could sleep with whoever he wanted.
It wasn’t my business.
Still, something twisted in my chest.
Jealousy?
Absolutely not.
He heard my footsteps, and his head snapped toward me. He noticed the exact second my eyes shifted from his sweaty collar to the door where the blonde had just fled, and a chuckle broke from his throat.
"Disappointed, Miss Brenner?" He leaned back, entirely unbothered by his own state. "Don’t look so puritanical. It ruins your face."
I clamped my jaw shut, refusing to ask if he was okay. Instead, I set the tablet down on his desk.
"Did your daughter like the dolls?"
My blood boiled. "You had no fucking right," I said, my voice dropping.
Laziel barely reacted. He picked up a glass of water, "Your daughter wanted toys. I provided them."
"You investigated my private life. You tracked my home address."
"You are my executive assistant," he murmured, "Every single detail of your life matters to me."
The arrogance in his voice made me step closer to his desk, completely forgetting that this man could ruin me with a single phone call.
"Normal people don’t send expensive gifts to a stranger’s child, Mr. Monroe. It’s creepy as hell."
"And stubborn people let their children live in a barren apartment because their pride is too bloated," Laziel shot back smoothly. He leaned forward, "Poor children shouldn’t have to suffer just because their mothers want to act righteous."
"You don’t get to buy your way into my daughter’s life," I whispered, my knuckles turning white against the edge of his desk. "You don’t own her, and you sure as fuck don’t own me."
A sudden change crossed his face. He didn’t look angry. Instead, the corners of his mouth twitched into a smirk. He looked absolutely fascinated. Most people in this tower shook in their shoes when he looked at them.
But I was standing here, cursing in his face, and he was completely eating it up.
"Let’s get one thing clear, Miss Brenner," Laziel said, "Yesterday, you were entirely useless, and you were completely distracted because your child was vomiting."
I bit my lip, staying silent.
"The toys solved the distraction," he continued casually, as if he hadn’t just bought out a toy store. "A happy child stays quiet. A quiet child allows my assistant to focus. An efficient assistant benefits my workflow. It is a simple business transaction."
He was lying through his teeth. A billionaire didn’t personally curate specific Winx Club sets for a four-year-old girl just to fix a spreadsheet typo. He wanted me to know he could touch my life whenever he wanted.
Before I could call him out on his bullshit, he reached down and tossed a bag across the desk. It landed right in front of me.
"Wear this on Saturday night," he commanded. "The charity gala begins at seven sharp."
I didn’t even unzip it. I pushed the bag right back toward him. "I appreciate the gifts you gave my daughter, Mr. Monroe. Truly. But I can’t accept this. I’m not going."
He frowned.
"You don’t dictate your attendance to me, Brenner," he murmured. "If I tell you to dress up and stand by my side, you put the fucking gown on. I don’t pay you to have an opinion."
"I don’t have childcare for Saturday night," I said, holding my ground. "Giulia has a shift. I can’t leave Anastelle alone."
Then, he casually shrugged.
"Bring her."
Bring her? Bring Anastelle to a Monroe family charity event? Helix might even be there.
"Absolutely not."
Laziel’s eyes narrowed. "Why? It’s a children’s charity event, Miss Brenner. Why are you so terrified of having your daughter there?"
"Because I don’t want my daughter anywhere near the Monroe family!" I yelled, the word slipping out before I could stop it.
"That is an incredibly unusual thing to say to your employer, Miss Brenner.... Care to tell me what my family did to make you hate us so much?"
