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One
CAMILA
My motheronce told me the smartest thing a woman could do was hide her intelligence. I never understood why a woman would want to do that.
To me, being open and free with who I was seemed more important; especially when it came to dating. When I realized I liked men and women, I didn’t want to choose only half of myself. It was why a poly relationship had always been my preference.
It wasn’t until I met Darren that I started to understand my mom’s message, along with all the things I’d learned at Siren camp as a teen. By the time his deceit started to show, it felt too late to get out, or perhaps I’d been hoping he’d change for me.
Turned out I wasn’t as bright as my mother believed me to be. If anything, I was brilliantly reckless, which was a dangerous combination.
Dropping my keys into the bowl, I listened for any sound, wondering if I had time to peek around his office before he returned. Darren typically had a business meeting every week at this time, so I hoped it was still on this evening.
It would be my luck that the one Sunday night I decided to quit being a scared little girl, I’d get caught because I hadn’t done my due diligence.
Yeah, yeah. There was that recklessness rearing its ugly head again.
Slipping off my shoes, I tiptoed down the hall as I slid against the wall. When I came to his office door, I stopped, taking a minute to slow my breathing. Everything I’d learned as a teen had felt dumb, never having a purpose in my life. But now, as I stood outside a locked door, I was regretting not paying attention to all of my classes. Lock picking 101 would come in real handy right now.
Letting out my breath, I turned the knob, praying it would open and be empty. When the knob turned, I sagged in relief, one hurdle out of the way. I didn’t know if I should be offended, though. Darren thought so little of my ability to know he was bad news that he hadn't even locked his office? Or was it just that there wasn’t anything there to begin with?
Easing it open, I let out another breath when the light was off, and silence met my ears. Stepping into the room, I debated whether I should keep the door open or closed. Deciding open would make for an easier escape and let me hear if anyone entered the apartment, I got to work. Going to his desk, I glanced at the papers lying there, but nothing caught my eye. Opening drawers, it all looked like ordinary desk items: pens, paper clips, rubber bands, envelopes, and staples.
Nothing stood out other than Darren’s unhealthy obsession with whiteout. He had a whole drawer of the stuff. Who even needed that much whiteout? So strange.
Walking over to the bookcase, I peeked at the titles, but they all sounded boring.
Business Ethics 101
Accounting Principles
How to Win at Backgammon
I pulled a few to see if there was a hidden door, but nothing released, and I gave up thinking Darren was that clever.
“Alright, I guess it just leaves the computer.” Cracking my knuckles, I sat down in his chair and woke the machine. The monitor flickered to life, the password box blinking at me. I picked up the keyboard, looked under the mouse pad, and then the tape dispenser, but I couldn’t find any papers with a potential password on them.
“Fuck. Come on, think. Where would Darren keep a password?”
The odd drawer of whiteout had me pulling it open, tugging the wooden drawer all the way, and dumping the bottles on the floor. I picked one up and opened it. It looked like the stuff, but I wasn’t an expert. Grabbing a piece of paper off the desk, I swiped it across and was surprised when it did nothing.
“So, it’s not really whiteout. You are more clever than I thought, Darren,” I mumbled out loud. Grabbing my phone, I checked the camera app I had for the small one I’d left in the garage to see if his car had arrived. Still an empty spot, so I clicked back over to the app we used at the club. Shining the black light, I scanned the desk, feeling a sense of victory when numbers and words lit up.
“Bingo.”
Putting all the bottles back, I shoved the drawer in and typed in the password. The computer opened to the main screen, and I felt the exhilaration of doing something right surge through me. Clicking on a few folders, I scanned quickly to see if anything caught my eye. Opening the search bar, I typed in a few words to see if I could bring any files up.
“Come on, come on.” Taping my fingers nervously, I began to sweat as I thought of what he might code things as. A door shutting on the video feed had me jumping, and I quickly clicked on a folder and airdropped it to my phone, hoping it was more than his grocery list. I watched on the camera as Darren began to walk toward the elevator, and I was officially out of time.
Logging out of everything, I pushed the chair in and quickly ensured nothing was out of place. Shutting the door quietly, I made a mad dash to the bathroom, closing the door behind me and turning on the water. I stripped out of my clothes and jumped in, holding in my shout at the cold water as I heard the front door open.
Cranking it up, I lathered my body and hummed a song loudly, all in an attempt to slow my racing heart.Fuck, fuck, fuck.
“Gorgeous, is that you?”
Sticking my head out, I shouted, “Darren? Are you home, babe? I’m in the shower. One second.”
I made sure to rinse my body of the soap and that all my hair was wet before I turned off the faucet. I took a few deep breaths as I dried myself, centering my focus on playing the role of a lifetime. Wrapping my hair up, I grabbed the robe off the back of the door, and I walked out into the bedroom.
