Inheritance

Chapter 19

People were already beginning to piece together that I was a Milton. It would be even worse if there was cause for speculation that I was having an intimate relationship with their boss. That's why I planned to discretely return Kendall's jacket. That way, I could avoid being alone with him altogether and decrease my chances of falling for any more of his tempestuous escapades. 

Using my computer to access the link to the company schedule, I internally celebrated when I saw that Kendall had an ongoing meeting that wasn't due to end for another half hour. I decided to make use of the opening by quickly returning the jacket to his office.

Rising from my desk, I quickly grabbed the borrowed item and walked the short distance over to his work space. Managing to quietly open and close his office door without being seen, I released a large sigh of relief at the sight of the empty room. However, my senses were immediately overtaken by the cherry and pine scent that placated every inch of the place. 

Neatly placing the blazer down onto one of the chairs lined along his back wall, I turned on my heels to leave. But, I delayed my departure when something caught my eye.

Carefully sectioned off into a corner of his busy desk, was a rusty brown journal that looked like it had survived an animal ransacking, as evidenced by the torn front covering and overflowing ripped pages. Given the unconcealed pen placed on top of the book, it seemed that Kendall had just written inside it. Quite possibly before having to rush off to his meeting.

I knew that the morally correct thing to do in this moment was to leave. However, my feet remained glued to the ground, as I couldn't help but steer them in the direction of his desk. Picking up the heavy notebook, I flipped through the most recent pages, until I landed on one that had somewhat eligible handwriting on it.

November 8th, 2022

I haven't stopped thinking about her since the first night I saw her. I wonder if she'd still want to know me if she found out the truth about why I came here or who I really was—

The sound of the office door opening caused me to swiftly shut the journal, doing my best to place it in the exact way it had been left atop his desk. I tucked my hands seamlessly behind my back, while Kendall walked into the room. His eyes immediately flashed to mine.

"What are you doing in here?" He asked, while his eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"I-I was just returning that." I pointed to the chair where the jacket now resided.

"That still doesn't explain why you're at my desk." He folded his toned arms across his chest, resembling a parent catching their child with their hands stuck in the cookie jar.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know your desk was off-limits." I responded, refraining from hiding the sarcasm apparent in my tone. 

Rather than offering an ill-fitted response, he casually stalked towards me. His daunting presence somehow allowing the large room to become claustrophobic. 

Since the first day we'd reconnected, I had become suffocated by everything that was Kendall Fine. While I internally worked myself up, he seemed to take up the act of precariously scrutinizing my appearance and releasing a hefty chuckle.

"I see you abided by the dress code today." He boasted, positioning himself directly in front of me. I glanced down at my pant suit before rolling my eyes.

Recalling Sebastian's earlier comment about my appearance, I decided to play along with that story. I didn't want to give Kendall the satisfaction of believing that I had subconsciously listened to his instructions, even if I had. His ego was already unbearably annoying enough to deal with.