“Wow. Are you sure this is a good idea? They’re too many, and you’re just one.”
He smiled reassuringly. “Not anymore. I have you, Leo girl. What do you say? You in?”
She blinked in surprise. Was he asking her to be his sidekick? Well, it wasn’t like she had better things to do with her life. Just as she opened her mouth to answer him, her phone vibrated.
“It’s a message from Goldman,” she said with baited breath.
“What does he want?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know. He says he wants me at the office tomorrow although it’s Saturday.”
“Huh. I hope the bastard is paying you well.”
“I don’t think I’ll stick around for payday.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Penelope was at Goldman Corp at 8:30 AM. Even as she saw her boss arrive, exchange a few words with his secretary, and then enter his office, she didn’t get up from her desk. She was going to wait for him to call her if that bought her more time to get used to the idea that she’d soon have to be face-to-face with the man who had sold her and Nina the night before as if they were nothing. As if they were not people. Earlier in the morning, Enzo had taken Nina back to the Goldman Mansion, and Penny to her own apartment so she could freshen up for another crazy day in a crazy world.
“I can do this,”she thought. Her phone hadn’t rung yet, but she was bracing herself for it.“I can do this. It will be over soon. I just have to play my part, and Enzo will take care of the rest.”
She was doing her best to convince herself his plan would work, although he hadn’t given her any details the night before. He’d said he’d been thinking of something, but he wasn’t sure yet. Whatever he was thinking of, it had to work, because she couldn’t live another day knowing that the twins were living under Richard Goldman’s roof.
Her heart jumped when the phone on her desk rung loudly. She dragged in a breath and answered it in the calmest, most normal voice she could muster.
“Penny, why aren’t you in my office? Do you need a written invitation?”
“I’ll be right there, sir.”
She stood up slowly, smoothed down her simple, casual dress, and put on the elegant jacket she had hung on the back of a chair. For a woman who had gone through more scares than a sane person could take, she looked impeccable. When she stepped into her boss’s office, she held her back straight and her chin high. She even managed to greet him with a pleasant smile.
Goldman studied her from head to toe. He didn’t say a word for a full minute, then motioned for her to take a seat.
“You look great this morning, Penny. Did you sleep well?”
For a second, she wasn’t sure what he was expecting her to say. What was this game he was playing? Could she play it too?
“De verdad, señor Goldman, I didn’t get much sleep.” She smiled conspiratorially. “But I feel good. If you need me at the office today, there’s no problem.”
“Speaking Spanish now, are we?”
“I caught a word or two… here and there… It’s a beautiful language. I thought… since I’m your personal assistant and Goldman Corp is going to invest in Spain, I might as well learn Spanish, so I can help you in case you need a translator you can trust.”
He nodded thoughtfully. For a long while, he simply looked at her.
Penny would have given anything to know what was going through that sick mind of his. She sat still, willed herself to breathe evenly, and waited for whatever he was going to say next. Maybe, he was considering her proposal. Or, maybe, he could see right through her and he was wondering how he could get rid of her more easily. Because, yes, Penny knew that if she refused to play his game, if she fought him, he wouldn’t just fire her. Or… he wouldn’t fire her from her job. He would fire her from life. There was no way Goldman would let her go now that she knew so much about him and his little club of freaks.
He hummed to himself as if he was agreeing with something that had just crossed his mind, then he stood up and started pacing the office, hands behind his back.
“You made the right choice, Penelope. You will not regret it. Your life is about to change. Soon, you will live in the house your parents have always wanted for you, you will drive the car they could never buy for you, and your financial situation will allow you to live as you’ve always desired and even help your father retire and get rid of that burden of a law firm that barely brings in any money. Who knows? You might even visit Spain soon.” He looked at her with an intensity that was meant to drive his next point across. “Not as my personal assistant, but as my business partner.”
Penny forced a smile to her face when all she wanted to do was bend over and throw up right under Goldman’s desk.
“I don’t know, Mr. Goldman. I might lack the experience.”
He grinned. “My dear, now you have more experience than many of the members of my club. You’re tougher than them, too.” He stopped in front of her and stretched out his hand to her. “De verdad, I’m glad you’re on my team.”
She looked up at him in confusion, blinked as if she were at a loss, then finally realized he wanted her to shake his hand. So, she did. When his cold, clammy fingers wrapped around hers, she thought it could be more fun to throw up all over his shoes instead of under his desk. The thought brought a genuine smile to her lips, and she stood up to face him. Asking her to shake his hand to seal the deal was way better than making her sign some fucked up contract.
