Hannah’s pov
When people say the world is small, they aren’t kidding.
Bridget helps me apply for the secretary job for Holloway Enterprise, and the next morning I have a text asking me to come in for an interview. She was definitely right about them needing someone. She found me an outfit that suited the job title and headed through town to the building.
Before I know it, I'm sitting outside a massive office waiting to be called in. The blinds are drawn, so I can’t see who is inside, but it doesn’t matter. My stomach is already in knots.
“Ms. Blake.”
I freeze as that voice washes over me. The world is way too f*cking small.
I turn, not sure if I should put a smile on my face or keep the shock and awe on it for Damon. He stalks towards me, and I feel stuck under his glaze. He stops in front of me, his smile melting my words.
“Of course it’s you.” I managed to fumble out. He chuckles and casually takes my arm, leading me away from his office.
“Naturally, and I’ll be doing your interview,”
“Naturally,” I mimic him, looking over at him. He chuckles.
“It’s good to know you’re cute even without the beer goggles. You never set a time and date, by the way,” he says, leading me to the elevators.
“Yeah, I’ve wanted to. My life is a bit out of control right now,” I answer vaguely.
“Hint why you were at a bar alone,” he says, nudging my shoulder with his.
“I have friends,” I feel compelled to say, “but yes, I just needed some space,” I add,
“I don’t remember space that night,” he says. I gawk up at him, but he’s staring at a paper on his desk, a smirk on his face. I force a chuckle out, unable to find words to deny that fact.
The doors open, and I realize that we aren’t going up but down and are now in a parking garage.
“Where are we going?” I ask, panic stopping my feet. I’ve seen a few movies that start out like this, and it never ends well for the girl. He laughs and grabs my arm again.
“We’re going shopping. Here at Holloway Enterprise, we must uphold a certain level of standards. Though your beauty surpasses that standard, I think we can do better with the clothes,” he says, pulling out his car keys.
“I can get new ones once I get, you know, paid,” I stammer.
“Can’t wait that long. We’ve been short-staffed, and since you’re here, might as well start as soon as possible,” he says.
“What about the interview?” I ask.
He stops and looks at me, then smiles and skips a few steps away from me, and pulls out his cell phone. A few seconds later, my phone started ringing. I look at his picture on my phone, confused.
“I'm waiting,” he says, so I pick up the phone.
“Hello,” I say into the phone, but he raises his eyebrows at me. I get it and chuckle. Somehow fixing myself so I’m standing straighter, I try again. “Holloway Enterprise, how may I direct your call?” I say into the phone.
“Ah, yes, thank you, I’m calling for the man in charge,” he says, licking his lips as he openly looks me up and down. If he can stare this hard and I’m not even in clothes not fit enough, I can only imagine his look when I am in clothes to his liking.
“Of course, I’ll connect you to Mr. Holloway now,” I say, then push a button on the phone. He laughs and hangs up.
“Perfect, you’re hired,” he says, coming back to me.
“You’re crazy,” I chuckle.
“I can afford to be,” he says, and though he’s smiling, I feel a hint of annoyance at his statement.
I’m not surprised that his car is impressive, nor that he drives it like it’s stolen, either. I cling to the door for dear life, but I try to hide that from him. He notices, of course, but only speeds up. I try to chuckle to hide my nerves.
Finally, we reach our destination, and I fight the urge to kiss the ground. He gets out and holds the door open for me. He leads me into an expensive store despite my protests, and we are greeted eagerly at the door.
“You must do this often,” I hear myself asking as a lady brings us to a back room. Within minutes my sizes are taken, and outfits are being brought out. Damon seems distant, something on his phone keeping his attention.
He looks up from his phone, his eyes catching mine and reading between the lines of my statement.
“The second floor is men's,” he says in his defense, and I blush at myself. He’s not mine. I can’t care about what he did or did before we met at that bar. Hell, I can’t care even now. He’s my boss, not my boyfriend.
The awkward space I created is gone as three workers return to us. One is holding work clothes while the other two are holding dresses. I start to deny the dresses, but looking at Damon, who nods to one dress holder, I think better of it. I’ve already made the room awkward, so probably best not to question it anymore.
Trying on dresses is both time-consuming and exhausting. I try not to sweat as I’m stripped down and donning my fifth dress. I come around the divider, and Damon gives a nod in approval or a shake for no, then I’m pushed behind the divide again.
I excuse myself as he pays, and he meets me as I exit, leaning all sexy against the wall. He eyes me like prey, and my breath catches.
“Hungry?” he asks.
“Starving,” I answered, swallowing my nerves.
I actually am very hungry; I'm surprised he didn’t hear my stomach growling in there.
As per usual, his taste in restaurants is also expensive. We take a table outside, as the day isn’t as humid as normal. We order drinks, and I order a raw steak with veggies on the side. He doesn’t order anything. Can vampires even eat? I want to ask, but don’t put the question to him.
We slip into easy banter, and the feeling of being a sugar baby lessens as he listens to my stories as if he actually cares; he even laughs and the thoughts I started having during the fitting go away. I start in on another story when the hairs on my neck stand up.
I turn as Luke stalks across the street.
A car nearly hits him, and he pounds on the hood and growls without shifting. The driver is clearly human and is smart enough not to get out.
“Sh*t,” I groan.
“Boyfriend?” Damon asks, but Luke reaches us.
“Really, Hannah? I know you don’t agree, but this?” He gawks between Damon and me
“Who the hell is this?” Damon asks, adding wood to the fire in Luke’s eyes.
“I’m her betrothed,” he says, and I die inside. “And who the hell are you?” he asks as well. I quickly jump in.
“I’m the man she chose to have lunch with,” Damon says, his smile cocky and perfectly in place.
“Man? Using that word a bit loosely, aren’t we?” Luke growls.
“Says the animal,” Damon comes back at him. I know I need to jump in before these humans get a real show.
“Just because my father says so doesn’t mean I accept, and I won’t,” I say, unable to look at Damon, so I give my glare to Luke.
Luke turns back to me, his face twisted in frustration.
“Be careful, Hannah. Some mistakes can’t be taken back once committed,” he warns.
“A lesson I hope you’ll learn as well,” I hissed.
He held my gaze for a minute, reading more into my cut eyes than I wanted him to see. I know I’m taunting him, but his appearance has jarred me, not the way I would have thought.
He turns to leave, purposely hitting the table with his hip, making it jump. Damon jumps up, knocking his chair back, and hisses at Luke, who growls in return. They face off with each other as I fight to keep my breathing from going into hyperventilation.
Luke works his jaw, cuts his eyes at me, then leaves, dismissing me as a child.
The food arrives shortly after, but I’ve lost my appetite, among other things.