Nothing Personal [*Complete*]

4

The e-mail on my computer screen made my insides hurt, and I had to fight from crying.

"Dear Mr. Aidan Emery,

After consideration of your proposal we have arranged for you a list of the following candidates who would be amenable to the arrangement as outlined in the document sent to our offices on November 2nd. Should you wish to further amend your proposal after deciding upon one of our available candidates please contact their agent directly.

The package will arrive by courier later today."

Fighting with the knots in my stomach I forwarded the e-mail to Mr. Emery. Once it was done I felt like crap and in an act of further self-flagellation I took out my purse and pulled out Chloe's manuscript. There were a good fifteen minutes before I'd need to run Mr. Emery his next coffee so I decided to read.

Unfortunately, every page twisted my insides. What I'd read before essentially summed up my experience to a degree. However, intimacy filled these new passages, moving moments of lazy mornings in his bed. Chloe moved out of the room on the first floor to join Mr. Emery in his room. I only stepped foot in his bedroom once.

I couldn't put it down. The relationship they had was touching, it was compelling and despite knowing it ended it made me jealous.

As I stuffed the manuscript back into my purse I couldn't help but to be envious of the relationship Chloe and Mr. Emery had. The more I repeated that I didn't want Mr. Emery to be my boyfriend the less genuine it felt. There was one thing I noticed absent from the pages. There wasn't any mention of The Society, and there also wasn't a single hint about Mr. Emery wanting her to become a slave.

Am I special, or is he trying to get rid of me?

My eyes went to the clock and after snatching up my purse I sent Mr. Emery a quick text.

- I am going to grab your afternoon coffee. Do you need anything before I go?

Usually I would have gone in to see him and ask, but in light of that e-mail and reading what I had, I didn't trust myself.

- No.

The single word reply burned me a little but I pushed my emotions aside as I left the building to the coffee shop on the corner where Mr. Emery liked his lattes from.

When I opened the door a blonde woman at the back of the line turned and looked at me. She had a runner's build, slim and lithe. Even under all the layers she wore there was little hiding it. She was beautiful in a warm and open kind of way with long glossy golden blonde curls and happy almost eager green eyes. She stared at me for a moment longer than just the courteous once over. There was almost recognition in her eyes.

"Hi!" She greeted me the moment I stepped into line.

"Hello." I smiled at her and tried to place her face, but I couldn't.

Maybe she's one of Lacey's colleagues?

"So, how's your day going?"

"Good. And you?"

"It could be better." She giggled. "Eleven fifteen."

"Excuse me?"

"Eleven fifteen, his pre-lunch coffee. You're running late."

Our eyes locked and my whole world focused in on this unknown woman.

"I'm sorry I don't know what you're talking about."