The Night Before I Knew Him (June and Hermes) novel Chapter 5

June

I storm into the apartment like a volcano erupting.

Thankfully, shorty after press conference, he dismissed everyone, and left the company. In. A. Foul. Mood.

The front door slams hard enough to shake the keys off the hook. My jacket gets flung onto the floor. My bag drops next. My rage, though, I don't think that one leaving soon.

Kayla sprawled across the couch with her phone in hand, legs swinging over the armrest like she’s auditioning for a toothpaste commercial. She barely blinks.

"You’re back early," she says, chewing gum like it’s my soul. "Didn't expect that from the newest intern in the city,"

I don’t answer. I start pacing, kicking off my heels, one, then the other, both clattering against the tile.

Kayla watches. “Sooo... something happen at the Apex Palace of Corporate Despair?”

I spin around, wide-eyed. "Something happened?" I laugh, and it sounded like a threat. "You want to know what happened to me hours ago? I just found out that the guy I slept with two nights ago, the one Leila dared me to flirt with, is my boss. Not just my boss. He is the CEO of Apex,"

Silence suddenly took over. Dead, pin-drop, murder-scene silence.

Kayla blinks, then sits up straighter, then blinks again. "Wait. What?"

I nod, arms crossed so tight they might snap. "Yep. Hermes freaking Grande. The new CEO of Apex Corporation. Also known as the man I slept with, without knowing his name."

Kayla’s mouth drops open like a broken Pez dispenser. "Wait, wait, wait. You’re saying the guy you hooked up with at the bar is your boss?"

"Correct."

Leila looks up from her laptop across the room, mouth parted, eyes wide. "June... are you serious?"

"I wish I wasn’t."

Kayla whistles. "Well, damn."

She pauses. Then adds, like a mosquito with lip filler, "You do realize this is kind of on you, right?"

I blink. "Excuse me?"

Kayla shrugs. "I mean, the dare was to flirt. Get the digits, maybe a drink. You didn’t have to go all the way. Especially not with someone you knew nothing about."

My jaw drops. "Are you seriously blaming me right now?"

She holds her hands up. "I’m just saying, maybe next time don’t throw your whole career into a one-night stand."

"What the hell Kayla, It wasn't exactly written on his forehead!"

"Exactly."

My hands curl into fists. "Your opinion? It doesn’t matter."

Kayla raises her brows. "Okay. Touchy."

I turn away before I do something illegal. My chest tightens, and suddenly the room feels too hot. My eyes flick to Leila, who is still quiet.

She hasn’t said a word.

"Leila?" I ask, softer this time. “Are you seriously not going to say anything?”

She looks at me slowly, like she’s been watching a train crash in slow motion.

"I’m thinking," she reply

"About what?"

About how to fix this," she replies calmly. "Instead of blaming you for it."

My throat stings. For a second, I forget how to respire.

Kayla’s phone rings. She picks it up and disappears into her room, still chewing smugly.

And then it’s just me and Leila and a silence that feels safer.

I sink into the couch, hands on my knees. "Kayla's right. I'm to blame, God, I feel like the biggest idiot alive."

"You’re not," she says immediately.

"I let him touch me. I let him... God, I let him ruin me. And now he looks at me like I’m dirt under his shoes."

Leila doesn’t say much, but she reaches over and grabs my hand and squeezes it. That’s enough.

Later that night, I'm on the rooftop.

It’s quiet up here, the quiet that lets you hear your own thoughts, which is dangerous, because mine haven’t been kind lately.

I’m lying on my back, watching the stars blink through city smog. Leila joins me, hoodie pulled tight, blanket around her legs. She says nothing for a while, she just sits, hugging her knee.

Then she asks, "How many stars?"

"Fourteen and a half," I reply, deadpan.

She snorts. "How do you count a half?"

"One was hiding behind a cloud. I gave it partial credit."

She chuckles softly. Then, "Do you want to quit?"

I sit up and look at her like she grew a second head. "The internship?"

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