Page 39 of The Enemy

She looked at me oddly.

“Well, your stepbrother… Didn’t you know?

I cleared my throat.

“I lost track of the days,” I lied. “Will he be taking over my department now?”

Losing my department was the last thing on my mind. Neo was coming back after being gone three years, and I was not ready to face him again.

My lunch was ruined. The rest of my day passed in a blur, and I felt dread when I walked into my condo.

The asshole didn’t even have the courtesy to tell me he would be coming back. If we were good at one thing, it was revenge. And if I knew him, like I thought I did, he would want to make me pay for what I did.

A thrill ran through me as I sat down on my ivory sectional and then cast one look around my home.

“Game on, asshole.”

ELEVEN

LOURDES

When I wokeup Monday morning, I did so knowing I was ready for battle. The war Neo and I had been waging hadn’t ended. No one ever wanted us to just hit pause. We took time to lick our wounds, and now we would be back for more.

The watch Neo had gifted me was on my wrist. No other jewelry adorned my body. I would take what he gave me and rub it in his face.

I wore a pair of burgundy wide-leg pants and a cream silk blouse. My hair had the perfect blowout, making my mornings all that much easier. Having to deal with my curls was a pain in the ass.

Once I was sure my armor was in place, I walked down to the lobby of my fancy condo and waited for the valet to bring me my new car. It was an early birthday present, but had I known what would unfold, I might have thought better of it.

I didn’t let myself look around the parking lot as I got to work. I was still trying to gaslight myself into thinking everything was fine and this was just another ordinary day.

Clearly, everyone else wasn’t following my same mantra. The building was buzzing with anticipation. You’d think the asshole was special or something. He was just another man who wasgood at his job, that was literally it. I didn’t understand why men like that got put on a pedestal.

When I got to my department, I was hesitant before opening the door. I know Marie said not to worry because I had nurtured my staff, and now I had to sit down and trust that I had secured my seat, but it was still nerve-racking.

I was ready to move on from marketing to sales. It was the next logical move for me if I wanted to be COO. My previous plan had been accounting, then from there CFO, but COO had more power.

Mami, I wish you would have left me a note for a day like this.As quickly as the thought came into my head, I shook it away. My mami didn’t need to be involved in any of this. I would have never fallen for my stepbrother if she had been alive.

I looked at my watch, the same watch Neo had bought me, and smiled when it was ten minutes before the meeting. If I left now, I would be one of the first in the conference room.

Today, the elevator mocked me as it pinged open for me. It wasn’t like I could avoid the damn thing if I wanted to go to meetings. Walking upstairs in my heels was a big hell no, so I had to deal with the hazy memory. At least with the lights on, it felt like a completely different place here.

I gave myself a mental pep talk, then stepped out and headed straight for the conference room.

Hubris was a man’s downfall and, apparently, mine since I was sure I would be one of the first here.

Technically, I was the second person here. The first was already sitting down in a seat that was right across my father’s. The other head of the table. It would have hurt more if the shock of seeing Neo right before me wasn’t taking over my body.

He looked the same except for his hair. His curls were a bit longer but styled to perfection. He was reviewing the files beforehim and didn’t bother to look up. I didn’t say a word as I pulled open my chair. It was two seats away from him on his right.

Once I sat down and put my tablet on the table, he glanced up for a second.

“Good morning,” he greeted me without bothering to look at me properly, then immediately returned to his files.

Just as my stomach dropped with his dismissal, he glanced up again. His brow was furrowed and his eyes narrowed.

“What the fuck happened to your hair?”

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