Knocking on the door, she said in a croaking voice, “It’s Vivian Day, sir.” She had never met the head of HR before, but the nameplate on the door at least clued her in on his gender.
When no one answered, she knocked again, and when nothing still happened on her third attempt, she finally tried the knob. It turned easily, and as her heartbeat sped up, she made herself open the door cautiously before taking one nervous step inside the office.
Closing the door behind her, she quickly scanned the room and saw that a man was seated behind the desk and facing the window.
“Sir?”
When the manager didn’t answer, Vivian was momentarily torn. What if she got into deeper trouble for waking the man up? But if she left, what proof did she have that she had tried to meet with him?
I’ll just try one last time, she thought and slowly and nervously moved forward until she stood just a few inches from the table.
“Sir?”
The man on the chair finally swung around to face her.
Vivian stumbled back in shock.
Gian?
Blood rushed to her head, and a combination of too little sleep, too little food, and the fact that she had always been anemic had her swaying. A moment later, the world started to sway with her.
In her blurry vision, she saw Gian jerk to his feet, his voice abrupt as he demanded, “What’s wrong, Vivi?”
She wanted to yell at him to stop calling her that, anger rising up inside of her.
But it was a mistake.
She felt even fainter now, and her vision became even blurrier.
And now, the world was spinning too fast…until everything went black.
Chapter Four
When Vivian woke up, she found herself lying on a couch, staring up at a pale grey ceiling. For a moment, she was confused, unable to tell why she was lying down and feeling so weak. But then her memory returned, and she shot up to a sitting position—-
Pain struck her temples, and Vivian groaned.
“As your medical history tells me you’ve been anemic for quite some time, you should know by now that any sudden movement will only make you feel worse.” The words were uttered in a cool but familiar tone, and her heart twisted with a love-hate sense of recognition.
Gian.
She knew she should acknowledge him, but she couldn’t – or at least not until she had figured out what was the proper thing to say. She squeezed her eyes shut as she felt his gaze sear her, and mortification filled her at the way her body was starting to stir to life at his presence.
It had been so long, she thought helplessly, and all this time she had really believed she would never have to see him again. But here he was, still gorgeous and sexy, and just having him so close was making it hard for Vivian to forget exactly why she was mad at him.
Luca’s lips twitched as he watched Vivian deliberately avert her face from his. Beautiful stubborn Vivi, he mused indulgently. It was good to know she was still acting as he predicted, and it was even better that she was just as exquisite as he remembered.
It had almost been a week since he had last seen Vivian, and it was the longest time he hadn’t laid his eyes on her since the first time they met. From the very first day, there had been something about Vivian Day that had called out to him. It could be her green eyes, which at times seemed as pure as his daughter’s. Or it could be her adorably tongue-tied awkwardness, the kind he had once thought impossible for today’s modern women to still show. Then again, it could also be something basic, such as the way the sight of her lush dark hair made him imagine countless times of how it would feel, to have those silky strands wrapped around his fist as he pulled her towards him and made her obey his bidding in the bedroom. And then there was the generous curve of her breasts, which even the androgynous fit of her uniform failed to hide – ah, those beautiful breasts of hers had always made Luca hungry to devour them.
It could be any or all of those things, but in the end, they all paled in significance after he found out how foolish she could be when it came to love.
She was possibly the biggest sentimental fool he would ever have a chance to meet, he acknowledged in amusement, and that was a good thing.
Only Vivian Day would think buying an expensive coffin and burial plot was a valid reason for approaching a loan shark.
And only a woman who thought like that was someone Luca was willing to consider trusting with the care of his daughter.
A memory slithered into his mind, and his lip almost curled as he remembered the scene he had caught earlier. One of the reasons he had been willing to take things slow and easy with her was that he had believed he was the only one who had her in his sights.