Chapter 22

SOFIA

I wasn't surprised to wake up alone the next morning. Gabriel had to work, and so did I. It was Friday—just one more day of work, I reminded myself. I liked waking up half-naked in Gabriel's room. I would have loved to spend some time snooping around his room, looking for baby pictures or photos of friends, but I couldn't; I was running late for work.

Hours later, sitting at my desk, I found myself smiling a lot. I liked it when Gabriel touched me. I liked it when he dominated me. I liked him. Him naked. Last night, and the thought of him inside me, made my toes curl.

"Am I to assume you've patched things up with the hot husband?" James's voice broke through my reverie.

"Huh?" My eyes flickered to him. "What?"

"You've been moping around for the past four days, and now you're all smiley again."

"I wasn't moping."

"You're moping again."

I rolled my eyes, and he laughed.

When the main office door opened, everyone fell silent. Viktor didn't come to work every day; this was only the fourth time I'd seen him in the two weeks I'd been working there. This was probably because his company had two branches across the city.

I returned to my spreadsheet until a shadow fell over my desk. I looked up at the man in the gray suit. "Ms. Baker, can I see you in my office?"

I nodded, rising immediately and following him. The entire floor stared at me. I turned to James, giving him an equally confused look as I knocked and entered my boss's office.

"Yes, sir?"

Viktor was already seated. His office was dark green and black, but despite the dark interior, it wasn't intimidating. "It's been two weeks since you joined," he said. "Are you liking it here?"

I nodded, lips pursed.

"Have you gotten a grip on the work?" he asked. "You assisted Drew last week with a client. Did you understand your role?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Because Drew gave his two-week notice yesterday, and he hasn't come in today due to a family emergency. Can you handle his work today? Take the lead?"

I nodded, much faster this time. I was being asked to be the interim head analyst—only for today, but it was still something. "Yes. Of course, sir."

"Are you absolutely sure?" He looked at me dubiously.

"Yes."

"Okay, good. Because we have an unexpected client today." He stood. "The meeting is outside. We leave now."

It was almost lunchtime. I needed to call my grandfather and make sure he'd taken his medicine.

"These are your work hours, yes? I pay you to work wherever that might be?" My boss raised an eyebrow. He somehow took my silence as hesitation… oh, fuck.

"Yes, Mr. Hart," I said instantly, pushing away all other thoughts.

"Let's go then." He walked out, and I followed. All eyes turned to him again, and some to me. James stared at me, and I gave him a small smile to reassure him.

A car was parked downstairs, and he said, "Get in."

I'd already offended him once. Without another word, I got in. He sat on the other side, a respectable distance between us. Alyssa, his assistant, ran behind and sat in the front.

I hadn't expected us all to ride together. Peter usually takes a separate car. I'd never seen any of Gabriel's employees in his car.

While Viktor briefed Alyssa on the meeting and her duties, I texted Grandpa a reminder about his medicine and left Alice a message to call and check on him later.

Viktor turned to me when he finished briefing Alyssa, and I immediately put my phone away. "This is a meeting our company wasn't expecting or prepared for," he said. "I need you to study the statistics of the deal they'll provide and see if it's a profitable venture for us. I'll expect a full report and review on my desk Monday."

"Yes, sir." Those two words, along with nodding, were basically my only contributions to our conversations. He was a nice man, very arrogant for a thirty-year-old CEO of a company that minted more money daily than most people earned in a year. I respected his humility and feared his business acumen.

We parked outside what looked like a small, fenced-in lot, with trees and mostly empty wooden tables—except one. A small truck with menus on it was parked to the side. It was some sort of restaurant, but also not.

What an irregular place to conduct a meeting, I thought, hugging my coat tighter as we stepped out. The city was getting colder by the day.

Viktor went first, followed by his assistant, then me. I was slightly distracted because my grandpa hadn't replied yet, which was unusual. He usually kept his phone handy for emergencies.

I only paid attention when I realized the man standing with a notepad looked a lot like Peter, and I whipped my head around so fast it almost sprained my neck.

And, of course, the man standing before me was my husband.

Completely ignoring Viktor's outstretched hand, Gabriel's eyes were fixed on me, his jaw clenched, his fist curled in his pocket as he growled, loud enough for everyone to hear, "Oh, you've got to be fucking kidding me."