A Deal with Ethan Stratvoski

ht. Dawn was creeping in, painting the sky with soft colors like lavender and pink. I could hear

ays of sunlight creeping through the drawn shades. Blinking away the remnants of a heavy night, a deep, unfamiliar voice shattered my drowsiness. It took mom

he I was having. God, I was in no mood for this. A man stood at the foot

aned in planting a kiss on my forehead and I shifted uneasily on the bed as I accepted the coffee with a forced smile, hoping the caffeine might jolt my senses

love how you sound," he praised

ged with discomfort, tr

from slipping into you. Girl,

to leave. “I mean, just…the worst.” I sat up straight, looking straight at him

ere?” He stood up, glaring at me, his face a mixtu

y sort of personal affairs, with my main goal of increasing Hartley's cooperation revenue and paying off my family’s debt. But then, man was no log. No matter how hard you work, at some point, you have to crave into nature's call…satisfy your burning desires. Which was what I did. I hit the club as much as I could whenever I had the time, took shot

his expression for a brief moment. "It's Darr

he room, still in disarray from the night by the way. His name meant little to me, just another addi

u do me a favor? Grab me a hot towel, would

owed “Sure, I can

aining an air of nonchalance as I edged towards the bathr

against the unease that permeated the air. With silent haste, I scanned the room for an alternate escape route. My gaze landed

des he’s in love with you. It was moments like these when the weight of my responsibilities collided with the hollow encounters I sought in an attempt to escape the suffocating grasp of reality. I couldn’t afford to handle love and

r, his muffled voice calling out, "I found the towels, but I'

nd what are the pros and cons that if I should maybe take a wrong step and slip or fall, I won’t break my neck,

a rush of fresh air and distant city sounds. Peering outside, I assessed the distance, calculating the likel

e interrupted my hurried

called out, my voice strained as I mustered a sense of casualness

as a brief pause before he contin

ained with forced calmness. “I mean, Why wouldn’t I be?

on back to the window, adrenaline coursing through my veins, I swung a leg over the windowsill, With a last cautious glance around the room, I took a deep breath, steeling myself for the leap. Balancing precariously on the windowsill

oning every ounce of courage, I pushed off the windowsill, descending in a controlled descent to the ground below. The landing was softer than

? Swiftly navigating through the hotel corridors, I emerged onto the busy streets, clad in nothing but a bath towel and

ent creeping in. "I'm getting some odd looks h

e of relief. Hastily, I slipped into the backseat, grateful

ush," I apologiz

aced his voice. He’s been my father's driver for years now and now he was my d

need to get to work. Shelly must be wondering

+~

A greeted me as usual with a coff

t out of my face" I shivered as the thought of Darren cr

nto the trashcan and walked with with me to my o

calls yet?" I inquired inst

me trying to keep up my pace as she upda

haven’t they responded yet? It’s been weeks now.

ma'a

st respect me, then they should fear me. “It's been two weeks now!" I shouted at her, which earned us looks from the other people. Good. They should watch what

g towards my office with her following up closely behind me. I was sure she was already crying. Shelly was such a crybaby. When we got to my office, I turned and hugged her. I didn’t want the other employees to think their boss was weak or hadn’t grown a pair yet and take advantage of my niceness. A

gain, Maddie” Shelly apologized, hugging me. Oh, that’s true. There were a bunch of six of my employees I caught trying to steal important documents from my office an

company.” I gave her a weak smile “Handle the E-mail with that obnoxious company and I’ll handle t