THE BILLIONAIRE'S ASSISTANT

"Apologize?! To a child? You must be joking!" Nadia flared up at Miss Jane, Ella's school teacher. "Maybe if Frank was taught well by his parents, he would know better than to insult a girl or even call her such a vulgar word, a bastard!" She continued. Ella, Nadia's daughter, and Frank, her classmate, had gotten into a fight because Frank insulted her for not having a father and went further to call her a bastard. "I understand, ma, but you have to. You see, Mrs.

Brown, Frank's mother, is one of our patrons and gives a lot of donations to our school" "And since Frank is a telltale, we don't want to be on her bad side. I'm sorry, but you have to." Miss Jane pleaded with a sign of sympathy. Nadia let out a cold sigh, bent down to Frank's height, and forced a smile. "I... I'm sorry, dear Frank. Maybe Ella took it too far. You should, however, be cautious of your words." Frank scoffed and walked off proudly, feeling powerful for getting an adult to apologize. "Silly boy," Ella muttered under her breath, standing next to her mum with her rumpled clothes Nadia gave her a sharp warning glance. "I'm sorry, Mummy," Ella said quietly. "It's okay, monkey. Let's go." They walked toward the exit. "Umm, Mrs. Brando, can I speak to you for a moment?" Miss Jane called out. "Hold on, monkey," Nadia said to Ella, then walked over. "I forgot to mention,Ella's fees are due, and she won't be allowed into class from next week if it's not sorted." Nadia nodded. "I'll work toward that this week, I promise,...hopefully I'll get the job," she whispered to herself, walking back to Ella, and they both left the school. ***** Nadia had dropped Ella at her best friend Julia's place before heading home. She needed to cool off and prepare a meal for herself and Ella since Ella had school tomorrow, and she herself had a big interview. After months of rejections, she was finally invited to one of the most prestigious music companies in Lancity for an interview as an internal auditor. Half into the cooking as she cut the vegetables, she got lost in thought and her anger resurfaced. "That stupid Frank... Apologize? I should've bent him over my lap. No one talks to my child like that." Cutting the vegetables into silly pieces, she missed and accidentally cut herself. "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!!" she screamed. She'd cut herself. The pain and frustration hit her all at once. As she dropped the knife, she bent over the table and burst into tears. Everything was just too much. She had always fought to provide for Ella, doing freelance jobs, odd gigs, saving every coin. Her dad helped occasionally, but he had remarried after her mom's death. She barely saw him now. Her circle was small Ella, Julia, her best friend and a caring aunt who checked in once in a while. Even so, Nadia kept her head up. But today... Today, it just felt too heavy. After a few minutes, she composed herself, treated the cut, and washed her face. "You're strong," she said to her reflection in the mirror in the bathroom. She finished the cooking and decided to take a walk instead of wallowing. ***** "Aren't you stupid to think you can advise me? Just because you let me go all the way and gave me a taste doesn't mean you get to talk to me that way. Know your place. Get out!" Aiden roared at one of his secretaries, his voice thunderous. A critical contract had just gone sideways and without a personal assistant, the pressure was mounting. "Luke! Get the car," he called out to his driver, storming out to clear his head. ***** Still angry and unaware of his surroundings, Aiden stormed out of the car, barging into a coffee shop, and immediately colliding with a lady, pouring her coffee all over her body. "Are you blind? You silly lady! Can't you see I was coming in? You should've waited, fool!" Aiden ranted in rage. It was Nadia. During her walk, she had stopped at a coffee shop. As picked up the shards of the broken cup off the floor, she slowly got up, ready to transfer all her anger on him "Are you deaf? you can't speak" Aiden nudged her further and just then, Nadia raised her head up and replied. "Oh, I'm the fool?, you weren't taught to be cautious of your surroundings in public?, maybe you're the blind one cause you hit me without looking". Aiden's eyes widened, it took him by surprise as he couldn't believe anyone would dare speak back at him. As they stood there, locked in a heated staredown, Nadia couldn't help but notice the man's chiseled features. His piercing eyes, his tall frame and muscular body, his clean skin and he smelt like wealth, surely, he was not a regular guy. But her admiration was short lived, as Aiden provoked her anger again "And what makes you think you can speak to me like that?" He asked, his eyebrow dent. "Oh shut up..." Nadia replied, sighing and walking off, nudging her shoulders on his. As she picked up her bag to leave, she couldn't but question, who did this man think he was, anyway? **** "That silly short fool," Aiden grumbled as he sat and sipped coffee. He was still mad but amused. No one ever talked back to him. As he scrolled through his phone, a message popped up, "I miss you, daddy. How about I give you a proper welcome back? Our usual place. Suzzy xoxo." It read. He smiled, understanding the invitation. With that, he called Luke and headed to the hotel. ____ "Love you, monkey!" Nadia waved at Ella, who sat in Julia's car. It was the next morning, and Julia had offered to take Ella to school so Nadia could focus on her interview. She hurried to the bus stop and prayed silently in the bus. "I hope this goes well. I really need this," she whispered, fingers crossed. She arrived at Blumy Records ten minutes early. "Good morning, I'm here for the interview," she told the receptionist. "Good morning, ma'am. You're quite early." "Yes, I was so anxious I couldn't sleep." The receptionist smiled. "Well, lucky for you, the boss couldn't sleep either. He's in the office. Hold on, I'll let him know someone's here. Maybe he'll begin the interview now." Nadia nodded, "Thank you." The receptionist approached the office. "Sir, for the interview, one of the candidates is quite early. Would you like to start now?" "You were thinking?" Aiden's sharp voice cut through. "I don't pay you to think. I pay you to attend to people. You're the office gateman, not a strategist. Get out and don't disturb me again!" The receptionist froze, then quietly turned to leave. "Wait. Since you disturbed me anyway, send the person in. I'll dispose of them myself," Aiden ordered. She walked back to Nadia, now with a changed demeanor "You can go in now," she said flatly. "Thank you," Nadia replied, confused by the sudden coldness. She approached the large office door and took a deep breath before knocking. "Come in," a deep, familiar voice responded. She opened the door and smiled. "Good morning, Mr. Luthor." "Yes goodmor..." Aiden looked up from his desk and froze. Their eyes met. "You?!" they both exclaimed in unison. The air thickened with tension. Silence took over.