Dominated

Chapter 31

Amelia hadn't slept in three days, and her lack of energy was beginning to take a toll on her. She was irritable, which was evident this morning when she snapped at Lily for handing her a new task hours before her vacation. By the time her lunch break rolled around, she had had enough of Vaughn's long list of demands and closed her laptop. She grabbed her purse and jacket and marched to the front desk where Lily was ending a phone call.

"I'm sorry," Amelia said to her friend as she approached the desk. "I didn't mean to yell at you."

Lily looked at Amelia and laughed. "I'd hardly call what you did yelling. Are you ready to talk?"

Amelia glanced around for onlookers. Everyone else was either in their cubicle or nowhere to be found. Regardless, she leaned over the desk and quietly said, "Damien isn't returning my phone calls."

Lily frowned. "You think he's avoiding you."

"I know he is," she said, pouting. "He probably didn't mean it when he told me he loves me, and now he's regretting it."

Lily smacked her lips and gave Amelia a pointed look. "Damien Carter is definitely in love with you. He might even be obsessed, and you can't convince me otherwise. I honestly don't know how you didn't see it."

"He's a kind person," Amelia argued. "I didn't want to mistake that for anything more."

"That man would die for you and you'd still be questioning his love," Lily said, rolling her eyes. "You need to go to him and tell him how you feel before you miss your opportunity."

Amelia deeply sighed and pulled her jacket on. "Fine, but if I don't make it back in time, cover for me."

Lily waved her hand dismissively. Without another word, Amelia rushed out the door and took the elevator down to the garage.

She knew that Damien would be having lunch with Zoey at Transforming Justice. She had never been invited to visit him at work, whether that was at the public defender's office or at his organization, and showing up unannounced was unlike her. But she was impatient to see Damien and couldn't wait until after hours.

Upon reaching her parked car, she entered hastily and started the engine. Then she backed out of her stall and drove the two miles to his office. When she reached her destination, she pulled into the first unoccupied spot that she saw and quickly exited her vehicle.

She made her way to the entrance and paused. She hadn't rehearsed what she would say to him, and now that she was standing outside his workplace, her nerves were getting the best of her. She couldn't bring herself to open the door as hard as she tried to lift her hand.

"I'll get that for you," a woman said, squeezing between Amelia and the door.

Amelia recognized the voice as belonging to Evelyn before she could fully see her face. The slightest smirk appeared on her lips as she entered the building, but Amelia remained composed and followed her inside.

"Did Damien invite you to lunch too?" Evelyn asked. She was two paces in front of Amelia and made no attempt to let her catch up.

"I thought he was having lunch with Zoey," Amelia responded.

Evelyn flipped her hair over her shoulder as they stopped in front of the elevator and smiled to herself. "He asked me to join them."

"Oh," Amelia quietly said. She forced a smile when Evelyn glanced at her to hide her disappointment. "I'm sure you'll have fun."

When the elevator arrived, Evelyn entered first and pushed the button to the top floor before Amelia could fully step on. She appeared pleased with herself when Amelia reacted with a frown.