*Isabelle's POV*
I reluctantly take the seat next to Sterling across from Mr. Tipton. I couldn't bear to look at him right now. We were so close but so damn far from each other at the same time. I attempted to keep the emotions that were attempting to surface buried deep inside of me.
"Mr. Tipton." I calmly spoke. "If I had known who exactly I would be an assistant to I would not have accepted the offer."
Sterling let out a sigh, "Izzy-" He began but I cut him off.
"My friends and people close to me call me Izzy, you can call me Isabelle or Ms. Avildsen." My tone was slightly cold as I glared at him.
"I understand this will probably be a little awkward for you both." Mr. Tipton began to speak to get our attention. "With time though I'm sure the both of you can adjust."
I looked at him with a pleading look. "Mr. Tipton, is there any-" He cut me off before I could finish.
"Ms. Avildsen, you've already signed the contract." Mr. Tipton's tone was stern as he continued on. "There's only one way to get out of it and I think we both know that's not possible right now for you, or else you wouldn't have blindly taken a job just for the salary. Besides, if you were to quit from a big company like mine after only one day it would look bad for your reputation."
He was right. I couldn't afford to break this contract. I've been living paycheck to paycheck. I couldn't afford a lawyer to help me find a loophole and I couldn't breach it or that would be like killing my career before it even truly started. It seemed impossible to get out of this damn thing.
"I know." I sighed. I had definitely learned a valuable lesson, don't take a job just because the money's good. It can end up biting you in the ass.
"It's only for a year." Mr. Tipton continued on as he looked between Sterling and I. "When a year is up, if you both still don't feel like this isn't a compatible fit then Isabelle I can give you a recommendation for any other company. As for Sterling, if it doesn't work I'll let you hire your own assistant."
Twelve months. That's all I had to get through. It was worth it to get his recommendation, that pretty much would land me a job wherever I wanted. The Tipton family, Damon especially, had a lot of influence in the business world. This recommendation could get me far away from Sterling once again, I just had to wait it out.
"Do you get off on forcing people to comply with your demands?" Sterling asked his father. The annoyance in his tone was clear.
Damon let out a chuckle. "You still have a lot to learn my son. Business is always about having people comply with your demands. That's why this place has been nothing but successful. Your grandfather can attest to that."
"You shouldn't be forcing her to stay where she's not comfortable." Sterling glanced over at me with his icy blue eyes before looking back to his father. "I don't know what's going on in your head or what you're up to, but if she doesn't want this then let her go."
I could feel a slight pang in my heart. It was like Sterling didn't want me to be around as much as I wanted to leave. I knew it only hurt because seeing him was bringing back my old emotions. I refused to let them get to me though, I couldn't.
"Well, it's not up to you." Mr. Tipton responded. "This contract is between her and I. That means I'm technically her employer, so I would recommend not doing anything that may upset her or I'll have to deal with you myself."
Sterling let out a defeated sigh. "Fine."
"That also means you can't fire her because of a certain outside opinion either." Mr. Tipton stood up from his desk. "I'll give you two a moment."
The air was tense as he left his office. It was uncomfortable and I didn't even know what to say. He was who I was working for now. I had thought I could avoid this nightmare as I thought Nashville would be big enough to keep us from running into each other. Fate and Mr. Tipton however seemed to have plans of their own.
"Look, Isabelle I'm sor-" He began to apologize.
"Mr. Tipton, that's not necessary." I addressed him formally as he was nothing more than a boss to me. That's all he would ever be while I was stuck here. "We have to make the most of this unfortunately and I'd rather forget our past has ever happened to keep this professional."
I could see the emotion in those beautiful icy blue eyes of his as they looked at me intensely. He had only gotten better looking the older he got. His hair was still on the shorter side as it was when he left but now he had some stubble on his face. He was a gorgeous man but I couldn't let my lust for him surface. He had hurt me, he didn't deserve it.
"I understand." He finally spoke in agreement before standing up from his seat. "Let's get out of here and I'll show you where your desk is."
"Thank you Mr. Tipton." I responded as I stood up.
I followed behind him as we exited the office. His father was standing by and I could feel his eyes on us and Sterling led the way. We continued walking a few more steps before he stopped and turned to me. "That's my office, your desk is the one right outside of it." He spoke as he motioned over to the set up.
"No way!" A familiar voice caught our attention. "Isabelle, is that really you?"
A tall and muscular man began to approach us. His excitement could be seen in his light brown eyes. His dark brown hair was in a comb over hairstyle. A smile appeared on his lips the closer he got.
"Killian, it's great to see you." I gave him a pleasant smile.
Killian was one of Sterling's best friends, the only friend of his that I had gotten to know. They had met when they were eight years old and Killian had moved to town. The older I got the more Mrs. Strahm allowed me to go and visit the Tipton's home, that's where I met Killian. He and I even developed a friendship of our own. I had lost touch with him and it was genuinely good to see him doing well.
"What are you doing here?" He asked as he looked between Sterling and I.
"She's the assistant my father hired for me." Sterling responded in a low tone. He then turned to head for the office door. "I need to get things set up, I'll see you later Killian."
"Okay." He watched as Sterling went into the office. "Seems your arrival has shaken him up a bit."
"That would make two of us then." I sighed. "What are you doing here anyway?"
"Mr. Tipton hired me on as a manager a few months ago." Killian answered as he studied me. "You look like you could use a drink, care to get some dinner and catch up after work?"
I gave him a small smile. "I would like that."