"No, this trick won't work... How on earth are you going to ever explain in terms of chemistry and physics so important a biological phenomenon as first love?" Albert Einstein

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Silas's POV

Me and Sage pull into the parking lot at O' by Claude le Tohic at 5:50 pm.

Sawyer was running late, something about a toilet paper catastrophe in one of our hotels, whatever that means, but he texted me saying that he'll be here shortly.

After walking through the line and being seated in a private section of the hotel, I begin to lay out what our plan is for this meeting.

"Okay, so Mr. Nguyen is bringing his wife and son, who will be the future CEO of his company, so I want you to be on your best behavior."

"Yes, dad."

"Shut up."

"We're most likely going to discuss how much money-," I never get to finish my sentence as Sawyer joins us... along with someone else.

Her.

God, are you kidding me?!

I clench my jaw hard, sending daggers at Sawyer's direction as he sits next to Sage, the girl by me. Great, just great.

She's wearing a long yellow dress, pink flowers scattered throughout it. Her hair is flowing over her shoulders.

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Again with these clothes. I mean, does she not know how to dress herself in a professional setting? She looks like she's about to go to brunch at the beach.

I am going to kill Sawyer.

And if she ruins this meeting for us... I swear to god.

"Hello, Mr. Sanders." Mr. Nguyen walks in, his wife by his side, their son trailing behind them.

We all stand up to greet them, shaking his hand and hugging his wife, Tracy Nguyen.

We seat ourselves, Mr. Nguyen in front of me, his son beside him, directly in front of her.

I turn my attention to Philip Nguyen, the future CEO of Nguyen Enterprises.

He doesn't look much older than me, with a sharp suit and a defined jawline. But something about him puts me off.

I mean, for one thing, he's going to be given a thriving company in the future without ever lifting a finger.

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Philip Nguyen played by Nhan Phúc Vinh

27 years old

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When he spots Caden sitting beside me, his eyebrows raise, his eyes widening slightly.

What the fuck?

I can feel my fist ball up as I notice how he rakes his eyes from her face to her chest.

I quickly snake my arm around her waist, making her yelp softly in surprise.

She looks at me with a confused look but my eyes are set on the man in front of her, who quickly snatches his gaze back to the menu after noticing where my hand is placed.

Good.

I remove my hand and pick up my menu, leaving her confused and shocked.

Whatever.

I notice her eyes bulge as she looks over the menu, whispering a few of the dishes in broken French. I smirk as she reads out the different dishes.

When the waiter arrives, I order the Jambon de Bayonne (cured ham, heirloom tomato basil tartine) along with a water.

"And for you, madam?" The waiter turns to her, waiting for her order.

"Um, I would like the Sojoo, the uh-" she finally gives up trying to pronounce the dish and instead points to the menu. The waiter nods and jots down her order along with a sweet tea.

After everyone orders their food, I turn my attention to Mr. Nguyen.

"So, Mr. Nguyen, how much are you willing to put into our company?" I say, finally getting down to business.

"I see a lot of potential in your company and I believe you could go far. I am going for 10 maybe 20 million dollars, if we get 25% of your net income."

My heart leaps hearing the numbers and I notice her writing them down on a notepad. She really doesn't need to do that, but whatever.

Our appetizers come and they are all exquisite.

I hear her let out a soft moan as she consumes her food in small bites.

I wince at the sound and I can feel my lower half already reacting to her soft voice.

What the fuck??

Chill, Silas.

I glance back at her chewing her food slowly, as if savoring every taste, her eyes trained on her dish as if it's going to run away.

My lips threaten to curl up but I manage to suppress it.

Jesus Silas, she's a fucking criminal!

That gets me out of my trance and I quickly focus on my own dish.

Once we finish those, we move on to the next course.

We continue talking about where our two companies will be the in future, glancing toward her every now and then as she writes down as much as she can hear on her tiny notepad.

On one occasion, I spot Philip looking her way again which sets a deep scowl in my face.

My hand moves to her thigh, making her jump, but I ignore it and begin drawing circles with my thumb through the slit of her dress, her soft skin heating up against my palm.

His eyes are still on her and I guess she senses that too as she looks up.

A deep crimson red grow on her cheeks.

What!? Is she... blushing??

Oh hell no.

I grip her thigh harder, my nails slightly digging into her skin, making her wince and turn towards me.

I meet her eyes with a dangerous glare, but she just shakes her head in confusion.

God, is this girl clueless?

"So, are you Mr. Sanders' new PA?" Philip speaks up, his eyes locked on her.

"Uh, ye-

"She is," I interrupt, a deep frown settling onto my face.

He nods awkwardly in my direction before turning back to her. "When did you get the job?"

Is he serious?

"Yesterday," I reply. I release my hold on her thigh and instead wrap my arm around her torso, my palms cupping the side of her small waist.

He notices my hand again and looks away. A smirk settles in my face.

I win. Again.

She squirms slightly under my hold but I don't remove my arm, instead grasping her waist tighter.

She tries to meet my eyes but mine are set on the food in front me, Steak au Poivre with a side of roasted potatoes, ignoring her gaze.

She gives up, returning her attention to her dish, half-smoked salmon, although I notice she's barely eaten a bite, instead just picking at her food.

I furrow my brows. Seriously?

This shit is expensive and if she's going to be an ungrateful little shit, then she doesn't deserve it.

I lower myself to her ear and whisper, "Eat your food."

She takes a deep breath, and begins to ingest her food quickly, leaving no room to breathe.

I spot Mr. Nguyen eyeing her weirdly and my jaw clenches.

Is she trying to fucking embarrass us?

"Slow the fuck down before you choke," I growl into her ear again and she stops abruptly, stopping her fork from their travel to her mouth and instead, swallowing the food still trapped.

She smiles weakly toward Mr. Nguyen before looking down into her lap and reading off the notes she's scrawled into her notepad.

What the fuck is wrong with this girl?

Half an hour has passed and of Sage and Sawyer talking to Mr. Nguyen about expenses while she continues to record each word, sometimes eating a bite of her dessert, Profiteroles (vanilla ice cream, warm chocolate Chantilly).

Philip has hardly said a word, instead glancing toward her direction a few times.

My hand is still molded onto her side, at times squeezing her waist as Philip peeks a look at her.

God, I want to slug this son of bitch.

We are finally getting ready to leave, and only then do I release my grip.

I hear her let out a sigh and I stop myself from chuckling.

This girl is just too easy to miss with.

Once we're outside, I round on Sawyer.

"You fucking son of a bitch, why the hell would you invite her??" I yell/whisper into his ear.

He doesn't respond.

I fume even more. God, his calm demeanor just makes me want to punch this fuck shitless.

My eyes are trained on my little brother that I don't notice Philip walking in her direction, a smile planted on his ugly ass face.

Before I know it, I hear soft giggling coming from behind me and I whirl in that direction.

She's tilting her head back, laughing at whatever the spoiled bastard said.

Are you fucking serious?

I stride next to her, again planting my hand around her waist and speak up, saying "I'm sorry to intrude on your conversation, but the car is here," I say politely, my eyes trainee on Philip.

I have a short smile before guiding her to turn away. But right when I do, the motherfucker opens his mouth again.

"Uh, Ms. Wilson, can I ask you something?"

I clench my jaw.

No, you may not.

"No, you may not." I can barely control the annoyance in my voice as I speak.

She looks at me confused. But then, I see a glimmer in her eye that I've never seen before.

She gives me a short smile before turning to Philip.

"Sure."

Philip perks up at that.

"Would you like to go out for lunch sometime?" His sweet smile makes me want to vomit up my dinner.

God, I know this is all a fucking act. He's just playing the nice, innocent guy to get into her pants, and when he's satisfied, he'll throw her out like the piece of shit he is.

Why can't she see that?

She smiles.

A genuine smile that reaches her eyes. And god, does that smile make my blood boil.

She shouldn't give him that smile.

He doesn't fucking deserve it.

I need to punch something. Anything.

"Okay," she replies softly.

He perks up at that and nods his head before walking away.

My hand drops from her waist as I angrily saunter to our car.

My hands are balled into fists and it takes every fiber of my being not to punch the window of my car.

The driver is already seated and I open the back door, quickly stepping inside.

My leg bounces frantically as I wait for one of my brothers to get in.

Hurry the fuck up.

I see Sage and Sawyer exchange mischievous smiled at each other.

Oh god, what are those dickheads planning to do?

Sawyer whisper something in her ear. Her head is faced toward me so I can't see her reaction but I can see Sawyer's.

He meets my eyes at the window and gives me a smirk.

I glower at him.

I'm going to kill that motherfucker.

Then I see Sawyer coming around the car to it's side, opening the door.

Fucking finally.

But instead of getting inside, he gestures to someone outside, and before I know it, i'm fucking alone in the car with her.

I need to pick out a tombstone for Sawyer.

I'm absolutely fuming to have to be alone in a fucking car with her.

She senses the anger resonating off of me as she quickly sets her gaze to her fingers, fiddling with the the hem of her dress.

My driver, Kenny, asks for her address.

Right before she speaks, I cut her off. "1602, Birdwood Drive."

Kenny nods before staring the car.

"You are not going out with him," I speak up, five minutes into the car.

She turns her head to me, her eyes set in confusion, but I just look out the window.

"Why?"

I roll my eyes. This girl knows nothing.

"Because we are officially business partners with Nguyen Enterprises and it is highly unprofessional for employees of both those companies to be dating."

"Oh, okay," she responds in a small voice.

When her eyes leave me, I turn to the front, so I can peak at what she is doing from the corner of my eye.

She is again fiddling with the hem of her dress. Why does she keep doing that?

I reach my hand and pull her fingers off her dress.

Her voice hitches when I touch her but I ignore it. "Don't do that."

She doesn't respond.

When I remove her hand, I see that her palm is under the incision of her dress, slightly massaging a part of her thigh.

What is she doing?

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing," she responds, too quickly.

My eyebrows raise up in suspicion, and cautiously, I reach out to see what she is trying to hide from me.

"No uh-"

Before she can finish her sentence, I move aside a part of her sliced dress and see, to my horror, four nail imprints on the outskirts of her thigh.

I did that?

I fucking did that!

My eyes widen at the sight but before I can do anything else, she covers herself with her dress again, shifting uncomfortably in her seat.

I hurt her.

I fucking hurt her.

Why? Because some other bitchass liked her.

I don't even know why I fucking did that in the restaurant. It's not like I fucking own her.

I don't even fucking like her.

And now I hurt her.

My chest pounds against my ribcage and I feel the car getting hotter and hotter by the minute.

"It's nothing bad," she whispers.

I turn my face to her, but her eyes are on her lap.

No, it is fucking bad.

I shouldn't have even fucking touched her.

God, what is wrong with me?

"Kenny, take us to my hotel."

Kenny nods before making a swift turn, to one of my hotels in the city.

"Wait what?" She tries to find my eyes but I'm so sick to my stomach, I can't even look at her.

Why did you do it, Silas? You're such a fucking asshole.

"Why aren't we going to my apartment?" she asks.

I ignore her.

I wat to fucking punch something.

I want to punch Sawyer for bringing her in the first place.

I want to punch Philip for eyeing her like a piece of candy.

And I want to beat the shit out of myself for hurting her. God, I need to punch something.

We finally arrive at one of Sanders hotels where I usually spend my time. We have a multitude of hotel chains in San Francisco, but this one just happens to be my favorite.

I step out of the car, noticing Kenny opening the door for her before she follows me inside the lobby.

The desk clerk, Ryenne, waves at me and I give a short nod.

She then notices her with me and her expression darkens, replaced by a deep scowl.

I ignore that and walk into the elevator

She trails behind me.

I hit the top floor where my penthouse is located.

The elevator ride is awkward but I turn out the uncomfortableness of it and replay some of my favorite childhood songs. That usually helps me in these types of situations.

When the elevator door finally opens, we step into my penthouse.

This hotel was the first Sanders Corporation ever made so I wanted something special for me to live in.

I wanted a dark theme to it, so there are dark colored chairs scattered throughout the space along with an accommodating dark colored kitchen.

One of the reasons why this hotel is one of my favorites is because I have a breathtaking view of the Golden Gate Bridge.

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I hear a small gasp escape her lips as she takes in the penthouse.

"Why am I here?"

I ignore her question, instead, walking to my medicine cabinet in the kitchen. After grabbing a few bandages, I go back to the living room where she is standing in from of my gargantuan window, her eyes alight with the view down below.

"Sit," I say simply, gesturing to my couch.

She obliges, seating herself on the edge of the couch, scared as if she will ruin it by just touching it.

What's with this girl?

I kneel down and unwrap a bandage, placing it on the imprints of my nails.

Just looking at it makes me want to throw up. I can't believe it I did that.

As I place the bandage on her thigh, my fingers brush against her skin, and for a moment, I feel her soft, tender skin.

My hands itches to touch her again, but I stop myself.

Stop it, Silas. Remember who she is.

Right.

How do you apologize to someone?

I've never done that in years and that's because I'm always right.

I take a deep breath and say, "I apologize."

She looks taken aback before a small smile fist her lips. "It's okay."

I place one more bandage on her thigh before getting up.

"When am I getting paid?"

I'm startled by the question but answer it nonetheless. "In three weeks."

Her face falters at that which sparks my interest. "Why?"

"Nothing."

Nothing, my ass.

"Why?" I repeat again, more sternly. But she just shakes her head before getting up. "Thank you for the Bandaids. You didn't have to."

She's right. I didn't.

So why did I?

"I should go now." She begins to walk towards the elevator but I ask again. "Why? Do you need the money now?"

She stops straight in her tracks but doesn't turn around to face me. "Nothing. Just curious."

She is a terrible liar.

"Why do you need the money now?"

I hear her sigh before she turns around, facing me. "The deadline for my rent is due um, tonight," she says, her eyes trained to the ground as if ashamed of herself for speaking those words.

She needs to pay rent.

Done.

"I'll be going now."

I find myself not wanting her to leave. Why Silas?

I don't fucking know!

All I know is that she's not walking away from me. "No, you are not."

She's almost to the elevator before stopping and turning around. "What?"

"You can't leave. I called you here so that you can help finalize the paperwork for Mr. Nguyen," I state simply.

I mean I do need to do that but I was going to force Sage and Sawyer to do it.

"Okay," she replies.

"Why are you just standing around. Get out your notes and lets get to work!"

She nods her head frantically before pulling out her small notepad.

I walk to my office, her trailing behind me, and tell her to read everything she's written down.

I'm amused at how she tirelessly states everything on the notepad, sometimes apologizing because she couldn't read her own handwriting.

I swear to God, this girl.

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