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As the day wears on, more despair and desperation set in. What the fuck am I going to do now? How am I going to even feed my daughter much less get her into Atlas academy? I mean, I can pretty much forget about the academy now. With schools like that, it’s not just about the money. Reputation matters. And while I could have gotten her in as a hardworking single mom who’s also a real estate agent, they aren’t going to go for the mom who allegedly sleeps with her clients.
Which means, I've failed my daughter. Again.
"Mommy." The door creeps open and I look up to see Mimi trotting into the room in her pajamas.
I sit up in bed hastily wiping my eyes and yawning to pretend I was asleep. “Hi, baby. What’s up? Can’t sleep?”
She sits down at the edge of my bed and shakes her head. Her knowing eyes run over my face and she notes, “You’re crying, aren’t you?”
Too perceptive. I shake my head. “No, mommy is just tired.”
“No, it’s not just that,” she says. “You’ve been sad all day. What’s wrong?”
Oh, my precious baby.I reach over and draw her into my arms praying against prayer that one day I can give her everything she deserves.
“You’re not supposed to worry about me, sweetie,” I tell her.
“Why not?" she asks.
“Because you’re not supposed to. I’m the mom. I’m supposed to worry about you."
She pauses for a few beats. “That doesn’t sound equitable.”
Another new word. “No, but it’s the way things are. And I’m not sad, sweetie, I promise. I can never be sad with you around.”
She smiles at me in that adorable way of hers. “I’m not sad with you either, mommy.”
And you’ll never be. Not if I have anything to say about it.
Which pretty much cements what I have to do tomorrow.
I accepted my fate even before I got to the large sky rise that imposes and threatens the heavens. It's the tallest building in the city and obnoxiously modern, with glass and embossed leather interiors.
My heart is beating a mile a minute as I enter through the automatic glass doors. I’m seriously fighting my flight response, the sense of self-preservation that’s screaming at me to get as far away from this place as possible.
Because I can’t.
Running away would mean letting my daughter down and that is one thing I absolutely will not do.
So, I take a deep breath and hold onto whatever nerve I have left as I walk through the hustle and bustle of agents rushing around me.
As I pass by, I can already feel the tension in the air. The closer I get to the elevators, the worse it gets. As I said, Maddox's people are constantly under watch, pressured to produce higher and higher quotas. So, I’m sure they must all be halfway crazy by this point. And I can’t help but wonder if it’s something I can handle.
But I have to be able to because I don’t have a choice.
I take the elevator up and consider my first obstacle. Getting Maddox to meet me in the first place. I’m not above using Chloe as an excuse because I know, if there’s anything that cold-hearted bastard cares about, it’s his sister. And if his secretary refuses to let me on or says he’s out or has back-to-back meetings, then I’ll just wait. I’ll wait all day if I have to.
It’s not like I have somewhere else to be, I think sardonically.
The next obstacle will be to make my proposal. I have a solid portfolio and a lot going for me but Maddox will probably hesitate to hire me simply because of our relationship.
There are things I could do to convince him.
But I can’t take no for an answer.
I really need him to give me this job.
As the elevator dings open on the top floor, I take a deep breath before I exit.
