•Damien's POV•
I step off the elevator, twirling my car keys around my finger as I head in the direction of Javier's office.
''Oh-wait! You can't go in there! He's in a meeting,'' Someone yells. A hand is on my shoulder in the next second, gripping gently, but halting my movements nonetheless.
I turn around to see a small woman. And when I say small, I mean short, as she couldn't have been more than five feet as she stared up at me. Her brown hair hanging in curls around her shoulders and the stern look in her bright eyes apparent.
''Mr. Stark is in a meeting, and he has asked not to be disturbed.'' She repeats.
I smile. She's cute. She looks to be in her mid-twenties or so and the black high waisted pencil skirt she's wearing is hugging her curves nicely, accenting her small waist.
Yeah, and I'm totally not checking her out.
''My eyes are up here,'' She says seriously, bringing my gaze back to her face. ''And the elevator is over there,'' She points over to the elevator I just got off of.
I laugh.
I like her, she's got some fire in her. She must be new here.
''Look, I haven't seen you around so you must be one of Javier's new assistants or—''
''I'm not new, and I'm not Javier's assistant.'' She says in an irritated tone, cutting me off. I raise a questioning brow at her. ''Do you need me to give that to him?'' She asks, gesturing towards the bag of takeout in my hand.
''Who are you again?'' I ask. Quite frankly I'm over this whole conversation.
She may be cute but she's also rude and I'm already just not in the mood to deal with human interactions today.
''Natalia,'' She says.
I nod, taking a step closer to her and offering her my hand to shake.
''I'm Damien Vitalé—''
''I know who you are,'' She says, shaking my hand, her grip firm despite how tiny her hand is compared to mines.
''So, like I was saying,'' I continue, taking my hand from hers. ''It was nice to meet you but we're not going to be friends.'' I let her know, the smile on my face just as fake as the calmness in my tone.
I walk away proceeding in the direction of Javier's office, and I can hear her high heels clanking on the floor behind me.
I reach forward, gripping the door handle of his office door and pushing it open.
I go to step in but the sight in front of me has me halting my movements.
Javier is seated at his desk, his hand wound tightly around a tie.
The owner of said tie is seated on the edge of Javier's desk, he's leaning over as Javier's grip on his tie tightens and their lips meet.
Interesting.
''Am I interrupting something?'' The question leaves my lips teasingly as a smirk shapes my mouth.
They both break away from the kiss, Javier sitting up straight in his chair, clearing his throat as the guy that I intend to get to know very well, stalker level well, stands up, readjusting his tie around his neck.
''Well this is one hell of a meeting,'' I say, stepping into the office and attempting to close the door behind me but in bursts Natalia, nudging me to the side as she enters the office as well.
''I tried to tell him you were busy, Mr. Stark,'' She says to Javier, throwing me a stern look before turning her gaze back to him.
I roll my eyes.
''It's fine Natalia. Can you show Mr. Lewis to his car?''
''Yes sir,'' She replies, walking over to the door and gesturing to this 'Mr. Lewis' guy to exit first.
As if.
I step in front of him as he goes to head for the door. A smile on my lips as I extend my hand to him.
''Damien,'' I say as he grips my hand, giving it a firm shake.
''Adrian,'' He replies, his british accent thick as he lets his hand fall back to his side.
''What do you do, Adrian?'' I ask curiously.
I have never seen this guy nor heard of him a day in my life.
His ginger brown hair sits in tight curls on his head and his blue eyes are soft but piercing, something of the charming sorts.
From the expensive suit that he's wearing clearly he's someone of importance.
Important enough to be locking lips with Javier Stark.
Yet again, interesting.
''Well right now,'' Javier says, not looking up from the screen of his computer. ''He's leaving my office.''
Adrian smiles in Javier's direction, giving me a nod as he walks out of the office with Natalia, closing the door on their way out.
''Well I suppose it's needless to ask if you had a good time on your business trip to Europe. Anything to tell me about?'' I ask curiously. I sit the bag of food down on his desk as I take a seat in one of the chairs across from the desk.
''Yes, actually,'' He says calmly. Way too calm.
The type of calm he only uses when he's about to give me the speech of disappointment.
Well, damn.
Tearing his face away from the screen of his computer, he reaches across his desk and picks up his phone.
I raise a brow at him as he leans over and hands it to me.
I grab it from his hand, looking down at the messages on the screen.
-'You need to talk to him because he's being a fucking hypocrite.'- C
-'Who? What's going on?'- J
-'Take a guess. He's over here giving hand jobs in the gym to someone who isn't his boyfriend. I'll let you figure out who. And then he has the nerve to tell me to mind my damn business as though he wasn't all in my fucking business when I was dealing with Skylar.'- C
-'Okay, calm down. You need to take a minute, go on a walk or something, don't snap at your brother, I'll deal with it. Do you want to stay at my place until I get back into town?'- J
-'Obviously. And it's a little too late for that. Words were said, and I'm not apologizing until he does. I'll text you when I make it to your house.'- C
-'Drive safe, son.'- J
I sigh, handing Javier his phone back.
''I was going to tell you about that,'' I say, sitting back in the chair.
''It happened three days ago Damien, when exactly were you going to tell me about it?'' He demands, his harsh tone humble but I'd have to be blind, deaf, and stupid to not notice how pissed he is at me right now.
''Preferably after I had fixed it,'' I say honestly, earning a glare from him. I look away from his livid gaze, instead focusing on anything else in the room.
Yeah, okay I fucked up.
I had a very heated conversation with Cody about what happened between Steven and I in the gym.
And because of that conversation I haven't spoken to Steven in a few days, which is probably for the best right now.
Being around Steven after me and Cody's fight would not earn me any points towards mending our relationship.
Honestly the argument wasn't really that bad, but I just got annoyed and told him to mind his own damn business.
I was angry.
But I wasn't angry at him I was angry at myself.
I am angry at myself.
Cody said a lot of hurtful shit to me but to be honest none of it was untrue.
I got so worked up because the fact that it was true hurt like hell.
But he was right.
I shouldn't be cheating on my boyfriend.
I shouldn't be telling him one thing and then doing another.
I shouldn't be allowing myself to be put in positions where I'm a bad role model to him.
He got so upset with me though, and the moment the words, 'Is this what you expect me to look up to? A cheater and a hypocrite?' left his lips, I was crushed.
And I didn't mean to hurt him with my words, obviously I wish I hadn't told him to mind his own business. I should've just walked away, took a moment to breathe and re-approached the situation with a calm head but...what happened, happened.
I wasn't mad when he went to spend a few nights at Javier's house. We needed our space. We're both a little hot-headed when we're riled up and distance was the best option.
''So, tell me what happened,'' Javier says, resting his elbows on the desk as he looks at me seriously.
''You obviously know what happened,'' I say, gesturing to his phone on the desk.
He slides his phone to the side, and returns his awaiting eyes to mine.
I sigh, shaking my head.
''Steven came over and one thing lead to another and...things ended up happening,'' I say with a shrug.
''And you let them happen? Even though you're still with Otto?'' Javier asks.
''I didn't...I didn't let anything happen, it just happened.''
''Son, you're in control of no one's actions but your own, I understand that, but you have to own up to what you did. I don't care who initiated it, you went along with it, and that's all that matters.'' He says.
I'm not trying to sit here and act like I didn't do anything wrong.
I know I fucked up.
It didn't feel bad when I was doing it but it sure as hell does now.
And to make things worse the guilt of not telling Otto yet has been eating me alive.
But how the fuck do you tell your boyfriend you gave another guy a hand job?
''Son,'' Javier says, bringing my attention back to him. ''I know I wanted you to move on from Steven and I encouraged you to jump into this thing that you have with Otto, but if you're only going to hook up with Steven on the side then you might as well just end it with Otto.''
I groan, running my hands through my hair.
''I don't know how,'' I reply, frustratedly.
''Well for starters be honest with him and tell him you hooked up with your ex. You're human, and you're going to make mistakes sometimes, it's inevitable. But what do I always tell you? The only way to come out on top of your mistakes is to—''
''Be the better man,'' I say, completing his sentence for him. He smiles, a laugh leaving his lips as he nods his head.
''Don't be the asshole who cheats on his boyfriend mijo, be better than that,'' Javier tells me. ''But first and foremost, apologize to your brother.''
''I know, I know, I know.'' I sigh out, feeling an impending headache. ''I'll go pick him up from your place after I leave here.''
''He broke Skylar's nose,'' Javier says casually, picking up his phone.
''What?'' I ask, confusion flooding me entirely. ''When did this happen?''
''Don't worry about it, I'm taking care of it.'' Javier says.
''No, no I'm worried. Why didn't I know about this?'' I demand.
''Well Skylar didn't report it to the school, and he told his parents it was a football accident, so—''
''Skylar told you this?'' I butt in, still confused as to how I'm the last person to hear about this.
''If you let me talk, I'll tell you,'' Javier replies, ''He called me and told me about it and said he didn't want to make it a big deal, which is probably why he didn't call you. He says he doesn't want to make Cody feel bad about his problems, he just wants him to get some help.''
''Jesus,'' I groan. ''So much shit is going on in his life right now and honestly I just feel like I add onto it.''
''It's not your fault that your brother has aggression issues no more than it's your fault that you have anger issues. You didn't do it to yourself, nor did you do it to him—''
''Didn't I though? When I left him in that damn house, I basically decided his faith right then and there. I could've taken him with me—''
''You couldn't ha—''
''I could've!'' I scream, not really meaning to raise my voice but the burning in my eyes has tears forming and I feel so much guilt I'm afraid I'm going to drown in it.
I never meant to leave Cody to go through the same thing I did.
I swear I never meant to.
''Damien you were 90 pounds and severely dehydrated when I found you! You want to know what the doctor told me at your checkup? He told me you wouldn't have survived another month out there the way you were living! You were barely surviving. A month mijo, a month was the only time left that you were gonna have on this earth!
''And if you've ever had a question as to why I took you under my wing the way I did it was because I refused to let you perish before you'd even lived! Imagine putting your brother through that...imagine losing him to that. It wasn't worth the risk Damien. It wasn't worth his life, and it sure as hell wasn't worth yours either.''
''Don't cry,'' Javier says.
I shake my head. ''I'm not,'' I lie, the tear trickling down my face, the wetness of it cool against my warm skin. I wipe my face. ''I'm okay.'' I say quickly as he gets up to comfort me. ''I'm fine,'' I protest, but he smothers me in a hug despite my pleas of contentment.
''I brought you lunch,'' I say after he releases me from the hug, attempting to lighten the mood.
''I had lunch with Adrian,'' Javier says, sitting back behind his desk.
I raise a curious brow at him.
''Did you? Or did you have Adrian for lunch?'' I tease.
Javier shrugs.
''Probably could've did that too had someone not barged in,'' He says with a smirk.
We both laugh and I take out my phone, opening google.
''Who is this guy anyway?'' I ask him.
''He's no one, don't worry about it.'' Javier answers, as I expected.
''How long have you been seeing him?''
''Damien,'' Javier says in his warning tone. I look up from the screen of my phone, an innocent look of confusion on my face.
''Hmm?'' I hum. ''I'm just being a protective son, and it says here he's a famous British architect, eye's blue, hair brown, age 31, height 5'11, weigh—'' Javier snatches my phone from my hand and I laugh as he tosses it on the couch near the office door.
''What?'' I ask, attempting to regain myself, still partially out of breath from laughing so hard. ''Don't blame me, blame the internet.''
''You are not allowed to stalk him, or talk to him, or have him followed or anything of the sorts. I will introduce you to him when I feel like it's time for you two to meet.'' Javier says seriously.
Yeah, okay. Because I'm definitely going to listen to him.
I'm not.
I'm really not.
''And here I was thinking that you were lonely and you hadn't gotten laid in years and all along you've been sneaking off to Europe to go have 'tea time' under the London bridge.'' I joke.
Javier rolls his eyes.
''Thank you for the lunch, son. The door is over there.'' He says, pointing towards his office door.
''Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's not my fault you forgot to lock your office door.'' I tell him.
''Actually, there is something I needed to talk to you about. I'm planning on giving Julia a promotion. I'm going to need her to move to New York and oversee an office that I have over there. The models and the employees up there are out of control. It's like no one know how to show up to work on time or how to act when they get to work.'' He says.
''No,'' I tell him. ''No, I barely see her now as it is with all the extra models you've given her to handle. I thought she was supposed to be my handler anyway.''
''Well Damien I'm pretty confident that you've grown out of the stage of needing someone to tell you where to be and force you to get there on time.'' Javier claims.
''Yeah, well you're wrong.'' I argue.
''Look Julia's very good at her job, and she's the only one I trust to run this office in New York. Besides, she's overdue for a promotion and I feel like this is the perfect fit for her.'' He says.
I shake my head in disagreement.
''Nope, I forbid it.'' I say.
Javier laughs.
''That's not up to you, Damien. I'm not going to make her take the job, but I have little doubt in her turning it down.'' He says confidently.
I sigh, leaning forward and resting my head on his desk.
''I have a lot to deal with today and I'm not gonna lie, I'm a little jealous by the fact you're probably just going to go have an elevator quickie or something with Mr. London Bridge after this.'' I say, humored by my own words as a laugh leaves my lips.
''How many times do I have to remind you where the door is?'' Javier asks, clearly not as amused by me as I am.
''Five more times, tops. Then I'll probably leave you alone to go be an adult and deal with my shit. Probably.'' I tell him, a smile shaping my lips.
•••A/N•••
Hi everyone!
I know this was a shorter chapter but you know when the filler chapters happen that mean some sh*t is about to go down soon...
SO! About the BIG NEWS!
I've started my own CANDLE BUSINESS!!
Hopefully you guys can sense my excitement about this through my constant use of all capitol letters lmao.
The Instagram page is @HopesAndScents and the Etsy shop name is the same thing!
I hope you all will check it out for me! You don't have to buy anything if you don't want to but if you could re-post my page or share it I'd really appreciate it!
I've got a couple of LGBTQ+ inspired candles and some inspired by my favorite music artists (such as Halsey).
Here's some pictures of them!
Click the external link down below for a surprise!
You may have to enter it into your browser if you're on the mobile app! :)
https://forms.gle/2Sx3uEAMZgQo2hmC7
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Posted: May 13, 2020.