Ten minutes to midnight.
Julie Ann was angry. Her planned had failed. She had sent out a good-for-nothing imbecile to do what lowly men are known for and he failed even at it. She held the wine glass in her hand tightly that she felt it crack under the pressure. She turned around slowly from the view of the city at the top most flow of the presidential suite at the Blue View Hotel and threw herself on the bed. 'Damn it!' She snapped and got off from the bed and walked back to the window. She looked outside for a brief second then went back to the living room of the suite and took the already opened bottle of white wine. She then turned around and went out to the balcony in her knee-length silk robe. She took angry large gulps of the wine and stopped after a few large gulps, chocking. Suddenly, she remembered her phone and rushed to the bedroom to find it. She dialed a number. It rung several times before it was hung up. She added other several gulps of wine until she finished the whole bottle. 'Damn it!' She snapped again as she rolled on the bed over and over again trying to think.
At The Palace, Natasha was trying to get some sleep unsuccessfully. She kept reliving the events of the day, from being given the keys to the jeep to affording a high end club to William to being saved by her super-cold boss to almost dying to being at his house to him saving her again in the shower. 'The shower!' Natasha suddenly remembered and she put her head in the duvet. It was embarrassing. After a few seconds, she suddenly felt hot and her lips dry. She was feeling thirsty. She never felt thirsty, especially at night. 'I cannot go down for a glass of water. Everyone is asleep by now.' She murmured to herself as she turned over to try and catch some sleep. Her throat was getting drier and drier. 'Damn it!' She exclaimed as she stepped out of bed and put on her slippers. She slowly opened the door and headed down stairs. The bright house lights were off, leaving only the dim lights on. She tiptoed down to the kitchen like a sneaking cat.
She opened the kitchen door slowly, left it open, and went straight on to look for the glasses in the kitchen cabinets. Every cabinet she opened was the wrong one. And the cabinets were all round the large square kitchen. She gave up and went to the tap. She had decided to take water from the tap directly using her hands.
"Bottom left cabinet next to the sink." A voice came from behind her just as she had opened the tap and stretched her hands to the water. She froze. It was him. She did not look back and just proceeded to open the cabinet as directed. She grabbed one of the glasses and took some water. She had his back against him the whole time and so she did not know whether he was still there or not. She took a few sips and was no longer thirsty. She placed the glass in the sink and thought to herself. 'Surely he must be gone by now. There is nothing to fear.' She closed her eyes and turned around. As soon as she opened her eyes, she was startled to see him leaning on the wall, next to the door.
"Thank… thank you. Sir." She stuttered. He folded his hands across his chest. Natasha almost choked seeing his chisel shaped body and captivating biceps, well shown by the fitting t-shirt he had put on. Natasha bit her bottom lip as he licked his lips. The dim light in the room made the tension even more romantic.
"Ms. Claire." He called out softly as he started to walk towards her.
"Since I am living at your house, please call me Natasha." She mumbled as she took a step back unknowingly.
"And since you are living in my house, I would appreciate if you called me by my name, Brandon." He said as he continued to walk towards her. The air was becoming intoxicating. She swallowed hard. He looked at her dangerously. She took another step back unknowingly and he paused almost two meters away from where she was standing. "How are you feeling now?" He asked suddenly, snapping out from the zone he was in as if he was in a trance.
"Delightful!" She answered the first thing that came to her head. "I mean, better. Thank you." She suddenly snapped out of her fantasy as well. She stood there, frozen, looking at him in his black t-shirt and black sweatpants. He always looked so attractive in black. She bit her lower lip again as he was studying his body physique. She did not notice that he was looking at her unconsciously biting her lip and it was driving him insane. They stood there in silence and Brandon could not bear it and took a bottle of cold water from the fridge and immediately drank it. His body temperature was cooler now, as long as he did not look at the woman staring at him.
"Ms. Claire, are you not sleepy?" He asked sarcastically as he disposed of the empty bottle in the trash can.
"No Sir." She answered hurriedly then immediately realized what she had said and corrected herself. "I mean, yes sir. I should go to bed." She hurriedly walked past him to the door.
"Natasha," Came the intriguing voice from behind her. Her voice beat even harder, she struggled to control her breathing. She did not turn. "Do have a good night." He added and she turned around and looked at him looking at her. "I am sure both of us will." She answered simply and walked out of the door, leaving the man trying to figure out what she meant. That night, neither of them was able to sleep well. They kept tossing and turning, deep in thought.
Early in the morning at six the next day, the woman in the presidential suite opened her eyes. She had passed out from her intoxication and the headache cut her sleep short. 'Damn it!' She shouted as she walked out of the bed room to the living room.
"Rough night?" A voice came from the couch before her. She knew that voice. It was him! She rushed to the couch and stood before the man who was reading a beauty magazine while sipping his cup of coffee. On the balcony to his right, stood another man enjoying the view before him.
"How did you get in here?" She asked trying hard not to shout as her head was spinning.
"Ms. Julie, is the "No sleep for the wicked" experience hitting you hard right now that you cannot sleep without some motivation?" The man asked sarcastically as he continued to enjoy his coffee and the magazine. The man at the balcony turned around giggling and looked at them. He had shaded on so one could not tell who he was looking at. She looked at the man dressed in an all-black suit and sneered. "Is that what I get for being concerned that the woman who is becoming a drunk and who had left me for the same reason?" He added putting the magazine down and smiling at her. Suddenly, he stood up and walked towards her. It frightened her and she took a step back. Her head was calling out for help. "I am only going to ask this once, was it you?"
"Was it me?" She asked back looking confusedly at the man who standing before her with his hands in his pockets. She recollected her thoughts and immediately knew what he was asking but she pretended to not know. "What are you taking about Boss Bran?" She asked again innocently, rubbing her sore head. Brandon wiped the smile off his face and rushed to her and held her chin between his left-hand's thumb and index finger and slowly lifted his right hand, waving his index finger at her. She forced him to look into his deep dark-brown eyes and smiled again at her, a cold emotionless smile. He then let go of her roughly and put back his hand in his pockets. Watson went from the balcony and straight to the door and opened it for his boss.
"Welcome back to the city, Ms. Julie." Brandon said as he walked out of the room. Julie was so furious that she spit at the door behind him and hit it hard with her foot. 'You bastard!' She shouted at the shut door before her and went back to the couch where he was seated. She could still smell his perfume. She held the cushion on which he had rested his back on and deeply inhaled his intoxicating scent. 'Oh Brandon! As long as the birds chirp, you will have nobody else, but me!' She swore deep within then laughed hysterically with tears feeling her eyes.
Natasha had always been an early riser and by six thirty she was already awake. She went down to get breakfast after brushing her teeth. She still felt tired as she did not sleep well the night before. Breakfast had already been set on the dining table when she got there. She greeted Mrs. Gilbert good morning before taking a seat. She asked about Brandon but she was told that he had already left for work.
"At six!" She exclaimed. "That is extremely early. Especially for a big boss like him. Aren't bosses supposed to be late and stuff?" She thought out loud.
"The young boss has always been hardworking. Especially after he almost died." Mrs. Gilbert answered her as she continued to serve her breakfast. "Please have some milk." She added as she poured a glass of warm milk into a glass and placed it in front of Natasha, next to the plate of scrambled eggs and toast bread. She then gave her an apple.
"He almost died?" Natasha asked carefully taking the apple being handed to her.
"Yes. A while back, he met a woman. She was nice at first, but secretly vicious. The young boss liked her a lot but she had other plans in mind. One time, she had an argument with boss' mother, Mrs. Joseph and the young boss found his mother unconscious down the stairs. Rumors say that she had been pushed down the fleet of stairs by her because since then the evil woman disappeared, but there was no evidence. The guard who was on duty reported that he had heard an argument between the two women but he was soon found poisoned and dead before he could say more. The boss went on a drinking spree from range, especially when he could not find her. After he got so sick from excessive drinking and almost died of alcohol poisoning, he turned his life around and chose to be a workaholic instead. Being the only child to a billion-dollar fortune, he did what was expected of him." Mrs. Gilbert summarized with worry in her eyes.
"Has he succeeded in controlling his alcoholic problem?" Natasha asked even more carefully.
"Yes. He is doing his best. He curbs his desire with sweets things like chocolate and drinks only once in a while." Mrs. Gilbert answered and smiled at her. "The way he looks at you, is quite different from how he looked at her. As soon as the evil witch left, he had this whole house redecorated to get rid of all her memories."
"She used to sleep here?" Natasha asked curiously. She felt a sad feeling in her heart.
"Never. He always got her a room in a hotel. You are the first woman to sleep here." Mrs. Gilbert smiled sweetly and left the young lady to her breakfast.