The Heart Of Moss

Chapter 3

Seven weeks had passed since Mikayla had been fired.

As a result, she had been forced to move back into her parents' home in Northampton, as she was no longer in a position to pay her rent, or anything else for that matter.

Mikayla had been applying to jobs, but had not had much luck. The stigma of Mr. Northefielde's shady business dealings and his pending court date was like a stain on her résumé. Seeing as that was the only work experience she had acquired to date, finding a new job was proving to be most difficult, even though the authorities had cleared her of any involvement.

"I really think that it's time to ask Monsieur Asshole for a job," Hannah said, in a fake French accent.

The two young women were currently watching Netflix while eating popcorn. Mikayla was lounging in her best friend's apartment, located in Peckham, and Hannah's comment nearly made her choke.

Mikayla shook her head as she laughed, "His name is Arnauld!"

"Tomato tomahtoe, same thing! I mean, I get that Mr. Northefielde messed up, but to send home so many employees without any sort of compensation is just cruel," Hannah fumed, as she grabbed more popcorn from the bowl.

"Well you know what they say, it's just business," Mikayla's voice took on a professional tone.

Hannah sighed, "But seriously Miks, what do you have to lose? You've been job-hunting for weeks! Can't be in a worse position than you are now, right?"

"I guessssss..." Mikayla exhaled.

"Besides, it's like I told you before, smile and shake that titillating ass in front of him, you know he wouldn't be able to resist those lovely curves of yours." Hannah teased, as she raised her eyebrows playfully.

"Oh my god, you! Always so nasty! Stop trying to pimp me out!" Mikayla griped and threw some popcorn in Hannah's direction.

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The next day Mikayla found herself dressed in a tan-coloured pants suit standing outside the tall and elegant headquarters of Arnauld Tech Corporation, located in London's Central Business District. She waited patiently and tried not to feel self-conscious, as people glanced at her while they entered the building.

She began to feel uneasy, her stance shifting slightly, her black heels making light scraping sounds as she dragged her feet. Mikayla idly pulled a curl over her shoulder and played with her hair that she had slicked back into a puffy ponytail. It was then that she noticed a black Rolls Royce Phantom pulling up, and out stepped Mr. Damien Arnauld, looking like a million dollars in a dark blue 3-piece business suit.

Mikayla fixed her handbag strap on her shoulder before quickly walking over to approach Damien; two men suddenly came out of nowhere blocking her path as she yelled, "Mr. Arnauld, a word please!"

Damien looked at his watch and ran a hand through his hair. He did not stop walking as he headed towards the glass doors, "Follow me," he said while barely glancing in her direction.

Shaking her arm out of one of the man's grip, she hissed, "Like seriously! You can't just manhandle people in any way that you feel!"

Letting out an exasperated huff, she looked at the bodyguards and narrowed her eyes. Their hold had reminded her of how she had been restrained by the police during the altercation at Northefielde Elements Inc.

Refocusing her thoughts, she turned to follow Damien into the building, hurrying behind him as he entered what seemed to be a private elevator.

As the doors closed, Mikayla opened her mouth to speak. At the same time, Damien's iPhone rang. He instantly held up a finger to her lips, silencing her as he answered his call, ignoring her the rest of the way.