The Billionaire's Trade

"Oh my God" Elena whispered, color draining off her face.

Laura, who had been watching her mother closely, took the letter from her shaky hands and skimmed her eyes through the content.

Her heart seemed to drop too, glaring hard at what the printed letter contained as if it was written in Spanish.

"what is it?" Peter, her younger brother asked. Looking from one person to the other.

"This can't be happening "Elena said, lowering herself on one of the bakery's stools.

Peter obviously grew tired of waiting for explanations and snatched the letter from her hand.

"What did we ever do to him, we already promised to pay" Laura said, mildly. "Now he's threatening to seize the bakery"

She blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall. The letter had arrived early in the morning, they had been in debt to Jacob Marcini, a ruthless billionaire who had successfully taken anything his hands touched from them.

Before her father had died, they had been living comfortably as a middle class family until her father got diagnosed with Liver cancer and they practically spent all they had trying to keep him alive.

Her father had gone to Jacob Marcini, his boss in the company he worked, begging for financial assistance.

Her father had eventually died after all the money was spent for him to be flown to a specialist hospital. His death left them all in pain, suffering and a huge debt to pay .

"He says till the end of the week, there's no way we can pay everything off in three days" Elena said, her voice quivering.

"We should plead with him, Becky, her cousin who has been quiet suggested," He should give us more time"

Becky had come to live with them ever since her parents died in a plane crash since she was sixteen, she had ever since then, contributed to the welfare of their family but it had been barely enough.

Laura thought about all her family was going through, they had gone into abject poverty ever since her father died.

They had nothing and she had to drop out of school so that Peter could continue schooling.

But then the money they had was barely enough for feeding and he had to drop out too.

As time went on, they had gone from bad to worse and Jacob Marcini was hell bent on ruining them.

"We can't just let him take away the bakery, it's the only thing we've got " Laura said, "We don't even have a penny, we are only depending on it for little"

"The only way is paying him every penny he gave us," Elena said.

She watched her mother become so pale and empty, she buried her face in her palms. Her body was rather bony and frail.

Elena had been suffering from a serious case of colon cancer which had eaten deep into her health.

Laura didn't know what to do now, tears welled up in her eyes as she thought of everything they had been going through.

They needed money so badly, she had to buy drugs for her mother and pay for her surgery bills .

Their rent had long been overdue and the caretaker had visited just days before, giving them the final warning note from the landlord.

Soon, not only will the bakery be taken away from them, they'd also be homeless.

"I'm tired of all this," Peter said suddenly, "Damn him, and his useless debt "

Becky ran her fingers into her hair, looking at Laura who was obviously lost in thoughts.

"What do we do now?" She whispered

Laura looked down at the letter, hot tears that were welling up in her eyes rolled down her cheeks as she shut her eyes in hope the tears would stop.

The whole weight of her family was weighing her down, she had always been responsible for her family's welfare but now they were as poor as church rats.

What if she could stop the bakery from being forcefully taken?, what if there was something she could do afterwards? Yes, there has to be a way...

...."Can I wait for him?" Laura asked the frowning receptionist.

She looked up from her computer, they barely had visitors let alone one who was requested to see Jacob Marcini.

"I don't think he'd be here today, he went for a meeting," She said.

The receptionist looked up from her desk as the glass doors flung open behind them, Laura could bet the receptionist almost choked in her own breath as she sprang up from her chair.

"He's here!" Announced the receptionist.

Laura wondered who she was referring to and who it was that made her look frightened to death.

Slowly, she turned, immediately her heart skipped a beat or two, her jaw dropped and her brows raised as she watched two men walk in an intended slow motion to where she stood.

The one in front was breathtakingly handsome, tanned, tall and muscular while the other who followed closely behind him, a few inches shorter with lean muscles.

"Good day, Mr Marcini" The receptionist greeted, eyes lowered to the ground.

Did she just refer to him as...Laura's thought seemed to come to a halt as she gaped at him.

Laura couldn't believe her eyes, he was actually a young man and a handsome one at that. She felt rooted to the ground at the powerful sight of him, momentarily forgetting the reason she came.

Her eyes followed as they slowly walked past until it took her a whole lot of will power to snap out of whatever had entangled her. She was here to save the bakery, she was here to see him.

"Mr Marcini !" She called, she actually didn't know when she did.

The two men in suits looking like undercover agents stopped abruptly and slowly Jacob Marcini turned to the other man,Troy, his cousin.

Her heart was beating so fast now, what do she do now? What would she say?.....

........Laura had followed him into his office. She stood before him in his magnificent office, Laura kept her eyes pinned to the ground as Jacob Marcini's eyes seemed to Pierce through her.

" What did you say your name was again?" He asked not to look up from a file he was flipping through.

"My name is Laura Bloom," She answered.

"Hmm" He nodded, his eyes still not leaving the files,"And?"

"I came to apply for the job of your secretary," She said quietly.

"You think you can work for me?" He asked after a long time of staring at her.

"Yes, because I want something in return" She said carefully

He raised a brow,"Really?"

"I know you might not know me sir but I'm Laura Bloom, the daughter of Matthew and Elena Bloom"

"How is that any of my concern?" He asked

"Please, I'm here to plead with you. My father had been indebted to you before his death and you're threatening to take away our bakery" Laura told him, "The bakery is our only source of survival, if you take it away we might not be able to feed"

"If this is why you are here, then I'll have to ask you to leave" He said, returning back to his file

Laura dropped to her knees, tears sliding down her cheeks. She clasped her palm together, praying he had a change of heart.

"I only want to work for you so you can extend the time you gave my family on the bakery" She looked up at him in the face for the first time," If you take it away, we won't know how else to survive"

"And you think I give a hoot how you survive?"

"I beg you, Let me work for you.You don't have to pay me, I'll just work for as long as it takes till my pay becomes enough to cover up the debt"

It just seemed as if he was enjoying the whole begging. Jacob rested back against his chair.

"Very well then" Jacob said, "You'll work for as long as it takes to cover up the debt your family has"

"Thank you" She said, clasping her palm together.

"We'll put this into writing," He said, not seeming interested in her gratitude," Just in case you choose to suddenly go back on your words"

Her heart took a leap of joy but she was enveloped with emotions on how he would treat her as his new secretary.