I've Changed

15. our little secret

"Girl," Malcom says as he sits beside me, his feet strewn around the seat beside him. As we are still partying with many guests present, I grab his legs and throw them off the chairs. "These shoes are giving me blisters, so I need to elevate my feet."

"We don't want to upset our guests," I say as I put away my phone after receiving several calls and emails.

"But my feet are more expensive than anyone here," he scoffs, his arms crossed and his lip jutting out. "How was Mr. Lewis, I was walking by and he was busy showing off."

"He's a dickhead, that's for sure," I roll my eyes. "I told Russo, and he said he'd take care of it later, but I just got off the phone with our company's new facility in New York. They informed me of everything I needed to know about Mr. Lewis, and his work is depressing."

"Yeah yeah can you get me a drink, please?"Due to his exhaustion, he throws his head back, closes his eyes, and groans aloud.

"Yes, your highness," I joke as I get up from my seat and walk over to the bar to get him a drink. The final dance is announced as I make my way down the hall and move through the centre. Several people crowd the dance floor, pulling me inwards and making it difficult for me to go forward.

"Lost?" Someone takes my wrist and spins me to face them. When I see the person in front of me, my face scrunches up.

"May I help you?" I ask, clearly annoyed to his superior behavior.

"We didn't finish our talk earlier," Mr. Lewis smirks as the song starts, and he begins to lead the dance.

"It wasn't really interesting in the first place," I scoff as I wrench myself free from his grasp, one hand on my side and the other beside us holding my hand.

"You can't really go anywhere," he says, and when I look around, I see couples dancing in a circle in unison, side to side. I mentally slap myself across the face, forgetting that the last song is normally reserved for choreography and it's been going on for generations. I was really hoping to get myself out of it.

"Mr. Lewis, how much did you pay for tonight's charity?" I ask, as I engage in his games. When his eyes move down my chest and linger on my breasts, I'm disgusted.

"50k," he shrugs as we follow the remainder of the dance.

"Where did you get this money?" I raise an eyebrow, aware that I've caught him red-handed, as his face changes to a scowl and his grip on my side tightens, causing me to step on his foot by "mistake".

"I worked hard for that money"

"Money that belongs to Russo," I almost puke as he harshly spins me out and drags me back in for a dip

He grits his teeth, mindful of possible eavesdroppers, and says, "That's none of your concern." I look around and see a lot of people laughing and dancing to the beat of the music, unaware of the dangerous topic on which me and him are talking about.

"Are you implying it's true?" I continue to press his buttons, realising how frustrated he becomes with each passing second.

He spins both of us, saying, "You have an interesting past Ellie Miller...how are your parents?" When he mentions them, my breath catches in my throat, and I see an evil grin creeping across his lips as my hand tightens around his.

"They're doing quite well," I say, swallowing the rage that is rising in my body. "Can you tell me how they're doing? And, in all fairness, I couldn't care less about them, but I'm open to suggestions."

"Oh, you couldn't find anything, could you?" I pout as I watch him become angry, his brows furrowing into deep lines on his forehead, his nose scrunching up in disgust, chewing his lower lip to keep from saying something offensive and snarky, and his face red as a tomato. My trust grows knowing that my past is well buried if you find the right people, particularly if you work in a company that can handle it for you.

"You're acting really bold for someone who works below me; you should be careful who you speak to Mr. Lewis because I can fire you at any time. You don't want to do that to your family," I say, tilting my head and watching as he desperately scans the area around him, most likely his wife and daughter.

"Do you not want your wife to know?" I scoff in his face and transfer his hand back to where it belongs because it's disgustingly close to my ass. "Be careful what words come out of your mouth next time, Mr. Lewis; we don't want a misunderstanding." As a part of the choreography, I spin away from him, and my next partner quickly catches me in their arms.

"I finally got my dance," I hear, my fingertips feeling the familiar touch. I raise my eyes to meet the hazel eyes I recognise, my gaze wandering over his features, mostly highlighting the faint freckles visible underneath his mask.

"How did you learn this dance?" As his arm wraps around my waist and my hands reach his shoulders.

"I had to learn it last year," Jae moves us side to side.

"Oh really?" I wasn't able to participate in last year's activities because I was just an intern.

He turns me in my place, causing a giggle to escape my lips as he says, "I got some moves, don't lie."

"And I thought you were mad at me," he murmurs to himself, hoping for me to not hear.

"You aren't the only one that frustrates me," I roll my eyes. Because of our height differences, I shift my arms to the side of his biceps, feeling them contract under my touch as we move around to the song.

"They must've pissed you off"

"You talked to Sofie," I change the subject as we dance past Mr. Lewis and his wife, Rose, seeing her give me a glare.

He confidently says, "Yes, I did," meeting my gaze as if he meant it.

"What did you tell her?" I ask, wondering if he's willing to tell me.

"I told her I'm sorry," he says softly, and my heart skips a beat as I realise he's putting in more effort than I expected. Despite the fact that I've obviously made it difficult for him, I wasn't expecting this sudden confidence from him.

"And what did she say?" I lift a brow, but this time it's because I'm curious about Sofie's response to Jae's apology. She said it was their little secret, which only adds to my frustration at not knowing.

"I can't tell you that," he chuckles, his hand comfortingly moving up and down my back. "It's our little secret."

I laugh at his honesty and shake my head, "Of course it is." But the fact that he respects Sofie enough not to tell me is a positive sign.

"But I can tell you...I'm here if you need anything," he says as we near the end of the song, tucking my hair behind my ear the way he used to, memories filling my mind as I recall the feeling of warmth and care that the gesture gave me. "This time, I'm not going anywhere."

I stare down at his chest, bewildered by his words. I shake the feeling of caring that lingers in my mind and body; I don't think I can care or love anything anymore, as sad as it might be. I clear my throat, pushing those feelings down, and smile sheepishly as I walk away from the dance floor, leaving him alone once more in the middle of the dance floor.