Mila's mind was in overdrive. She had just been fired.
In the afternoon, she was prepping for a client when her manager sent her an urgent meeting request. When she went into her office, the human resources head was waiting with her boss. Mila sat stunned as they claimed for weeks her computer had been flagged for suspicious online activity. Despite her superb job performance, the firm would not risk security.
When she asked for more specific details they gave her none, and treated her as if she'd committed treason. It happened so fast, she was in and out within 20 minutes. They escorted her to the elevator with a box of her things after confiscating her key card. For a moment, she thought she was being Punked.
After dropping off her things at home she booked it to The Lookout, her favorite neighborhood dive bar. It was situated in a secluded section of the Capitol Hill, with one of the best views of the water. As she sat on the patio sipping her whiskey coke she was still floored. How could this happen? What was she going to do next?
On top of it all, it was a beautiful day. She felt as if the pink, orange and blue sky were mocking her. How could she feel so miserable with beauty and happiness all around her? She really wanted to be with Evan, but he was stuck at work until late. He was doing his best to console her via text and it killed him he couldn't be there with her.
To make matter's worse, none of her friends were picking up her calls or responding to texts.
"You look like you need a shot," said a familiar voice.
She looked away from her phone to see Alec having a beer at a table nearby. She couldn't say she wasn't pleased to see him. Last time she had it was more than two months ago when he moved into the building.
"Or, six."
"Are you ok?" he asked sounding concerned.
"I honestly don't know. I've just been fired out of the blue."
He signaled to the waiter and moved to the seat next to her. "Two shots of Patron, please."
She knew she shouldn't drink them, but she needed a serious mental break. I can get tipsy without being drunk, right? She thought. Alcohol felt like the only thing strong enough to numb her pain at the moment and Alec made her nervous. Whenever they locked eyes Mila felt her stomach in knots.
Alec felt it as well, except he knew exactly what it was. Desire. He had a hard time not thinking about her lips or her curves. What he would do if he could get a few minutes with her in his bed. Mila Black drove him wild and all he wanted was to be with her. Her eyes were so sad, and his heart leapt that she was glad he was there.
Mila sent Evan a text letting him know Alec was keeping her company at the bar, though she knew he might not be pleased. It made me feel better that he knew. There was something about Alec that unnerved her on some level, but it wasn't anything she was willing to give a whole lot of thought to at the moment.
"So," she said feeling bold and warm from the shot. "Tell me about yourself, Alec."
"Well," he sighed deeply. "I'm here drinking alone because my girlfriend dumped me."
"I'm so sorry." She genuinely felt bad for him. He nodded in appreciation and took a drink from his half finished beer.
She remembered seeing him leave his place a few weeks back with a pretty darked haired girl. She had a super chic bob and looked like she had expensive style. She'd looked pleasant enough, until she saw Mila.
"Joe," she signaled to the waiter, "Could you give us two more shots of Patron?" Joe eyed them for a moment, hesitating. "Chilled please," she reiterated her request.
Shots for happy hour weren't the bar norm, but she didn't care. It was almost 7 p.m. and she needed to let loose for once. She was tired of having to be so uptight all the time and it felt good being with someone who was also going through something.
"I'm just upset, you know?" Alec continued. "She knew today was going to be difficult for me. For months she'd begged me to take her to the Paramount for Aida, and she dumps me a week before."
"You have tickets to Aida?" Mila asked slack jawed, eyes bulging. She LOVED that opera. She was a major choir nerd in high school and had been wanting to see Aida her whole life. It was only playing for a month and most likely wouldn't for another ten years. "If you don't find another friend to go with I would love to join!" she blurted before she could stop herself.
Alec's eyes lit up. More time with Mila, he thought.
"I mean..." she slowed her roll as she read the excitement on his face. "I'm happy to pay you for the ticket. My boyfriend Evan, has been trying to get tickets for weeks, but they've been sold out."
Alec shook his head, "I wouldn't dream of charging you. I'd love some company!"
Mila did a mental sigh of relief. He seemed unfazed by the mention of her boyfriend. She wasn't assuming Alec liked her, but she also didn't want to lead him on. She felt more comfortable now.
Alec played it off well. He was furious at the mention of her boyfriend. Mila was his. That kid couldn't give her half of what he could, she would see that soon enough.
Two hours later...
Mila thought Alec was surprisingly easy to talk to. After getting to know him, she felt she unfairly judged him when they first met. She found him quite understanding, witty and interesting.
They talked about everything, from his Seattle-Parisian upbringing, to her life before Seattle.
"Wait," he said looking dumbstruck. "You went to grad school only a year after you lost all the knowledge you learned from undergrad?"
"I'm a quick study," she replied. "I lost half my senior year in highschool as well." Mila had also skipped two grades in elementary school and began attending college classes sophomore year. She felt uncomfortable sharing her intellect with people she didn't know.
To be fair, she had a good excuse for playing her cards so close to her chest. In school she'd been an outcast, and neither the teachers or students liked her much. Mila looked different from the majority of people in the small town where she was raised. She was Afro-Brazilian, pretty, and smart as-a-whip. Being too different from the status quo subjected her to ridicule, and unsubstantiated judgement. It wasn't until she left Michigan she had her first date. Mila blossomed in the city, and realized the outside world valued her unique qualities.
"What was that like?" Alec asked, pulling her away from her thoughts. "Recovering from an accident like that?"
"Well, very traumatic at first," she said. "You can imagine waking up in a hospital bed in searing pain, with no hair." she recollected the worried, disappointed look on her mother's face and it made her wince.
He looked at her in awe. "You literally just made my face fall off."
"What?" she asked curiously.
"Oh, it just means you've surprised me and I think you're amazing," he clarified. "Something my mother always says. Her name is Celine, and she's French."
"Thanks," she said. She was flattered, but didn't feel like talking about it anymore. She was starting to feel guilty about what she was currently drinking and pushed it to the side.
"I can tell you're not really up to talking about it anymore, but I'm curious," he said. "How did you piece your time back together and move on?"
"With the help of my closest friends and family. It wasn't easy. I didn't have a cellphone to look at because that's what caused the wreck. I was looking at my cellphone," She lied, and he knew she lied. "I was lucky no one else was hurt," she continued. "I kept a journal up until my senior year of highschool, so that helped a lot."
"What about college?" he inquired.
"That is a little more difficult," she replied. "But according to my mom, there wasn't much to it. I was an unfocused asshole burning through my financial aid who didn't call home enough," she said matter-of-factly. "I also had professor Truitt, my student advisor who helped a ton."
His icy blue eyes intently stared at her again. It made her drop her gaze to the floor.
"Will you stop doing that?" she asked.
"What?" he smirked.
"Looking at me like that?"
"I don't understand," he said.
"Like, your staring into my soul or something," she looked at him again.
"I see you, Mila," he said touching her face. She flinched. He could tell she was getting uncomfortable and quickly got back on topic. "So, how do you know that in that time you didn't develop a love for Gelato or travel to Eastern Europe?"
She laughed again. "It wasn't that complicated," she said. "Besides, I'm pretty sure someone would have told me." she yawned. "I'm pretty tired. I think it's time to call it a night."
She wasn't actually that tired, but she was getting a vibe from Alec. She browsed her phone again, feeling defeated none of her friends had answered her texts still. It was too late for Evan to come over now.
Alec wouldn't let her pay for the check. They'd both reached for it at the same time and their hands touched. For a moment he let his linger on Mila's. She recoiled less this time, clenching her hand into a fist and putting it under the table.
This made Alec tense, he wanted to touch her more than anything. He told himself to keep control, unfortunately Mila was no good at helping with that. If he didn't keep it together he would ruin everything.
"You know Alec," she said as they walked home in silence. "You're surprisingly easy to talk to. Honestly, I wasn't so sure about you at first." He didn't respond. He didn't even look at her. He was trying to keep control.
So much for small talk, she thought. She knew she'd probably offended him by recoiling. She felt he shouldn't have touched her in the first place.
He stayed quiet for another full minute. After walking uphill a while, they finally reached a flat residential area known as North Capitol Hill. The houses (mansions) were amazing in this area and she enjoyed just walking around studying the different architecture. Of course, most of the houses were gated.
"I would die to live in one of these houses," she said, trying to make small talk again.
Alec was ruining what would have been a nice walk. At first Mila was nervous by his silence, but she was beginning to get pissed.
"Look," she huffed. "If you're going to be..."
Suddenly her back was against a hard stone wall. Alec's tongue was in her mouth before his hungry lips covered hers. He passionately kissed her, and it took her a few seconds to break away and fully comprehend what was happening.
"Alec. What the hell!" she yelled, gasping for air. Her hand pulled at his arm trying to break free. She couldn't even slide down the wall because his knee was between her legs holding her in place. He didn't budge, he just looked at her coolly. It was as if the Alec she was speaking to a few minutes ago wasn't there. He pushed her further into the wall. Her fear was everything to him.
"Tell me you don't feel this Mila," he said as he calmly pushed hair out of her face.
It might have been hot for a moment, but all she felt now was fear. He'd pushed them between privacy hedges and they were hidden from view. No one knew they were there and she didn't know what he was capable of. Alec could see she was seconds away from full out panic when his eyes softened and he released his hold.
"I'm sorry," he said backing away to the sidewalk, placing his arms to his head. "I'm so sorry, that was completely inappropriate."
She folded her arms to her chest and silently watched him, on guard for what he might do next. Slowly she made her way to the sidewalk as well. Her legs felt like jelly as the adrenaline rush wore off.
"This has been a really rough day for me and I'm not myself. I'm sorry Mila." He looked at her warmly again, as if his gaze could erase the memory of what just happened. Not fully believing him and not wanting to escalate the situation, she physically released some of her tension by uncrossing her arms.
"I don't know what that was, Alec," she said softly. "But I'm going to walk the rest of the way home by myself."
As she turned to walk away, she began processing.
It scared her. She had felt something. Whatever it was, she decided to put it in a box and bury it somewhere deep.
She knew nothing good would come from Alec Laurent.
Alec watched her walk away. He knew his outburst was only a minor setback. He had much bigger things in play. Of course he knew she'd been fired, he'd done the dirty work himself, including hacking into every electronic device she had. He was going to crush her. She had no idea who she was dealing with.
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