Chapter 1
964 Words
On the third floor of L.H. Group, Lerisa Jonah stood up from her office chair as she had finished her work for the day.
She worked as Anthony Gregson's secretary, so she stepped out of her office seat and picked up her black handbag from her desk, already preparing to go home.
Lerisa was a fair-complexioned young lady, 24 years old, wearing a yellow shirt, a black pencil skirt, and black shoes. She wondered why she had not seen Anthony come out of his office.
She knew that Anthony usually closed by 5 PM and left the company before 6 PM, which was the company's normal closing hour.
She made her way toward Anthony's office door to find out what was delaying her boss, as it was already after 6 PM and most of the staff were heading home.
Approaching Anthony's office door, Lerisa knocked, and heard him respond, “Come in.”
She pushed the door slightly open and stepped into his office, where she saw him seated in his executive chair, staring at a red ring box in his hands.
Lerisa's heart dropped the moment she saw the beautiful, sparkling diamond ring in Anthony's hand.
At that moment, she realized that Anthony was in a very serious relationship with Clara Harry, and he would soon propose to her.
Lerisa felt like crying out, as she was also secretly in love with Anthony, but she couldn't bring herself to tell him the truth.
Her sunny disposition quickly turned to sadness, and she stared downward to hide the anguish on her face.
Anthony was busy admiring the diamond ring in the box, not shifting his gaze to look at Lerisa.
They had been childhood best friends, due to the closeness of their fathers in the past. In fact, Lerisa's father had been Anthony's father's former assistant, helping him build the shoe company that Anthony now owned.
Lerisa knew that Clara Harry was unfaithful and not deserving of a man like Anthony. She had seen Clara several times behind Anthony's back, flirting with different men, but she couldn't bring herself to advise him to stop dating her.
Lerisa had also witnessed Clara visiting Anthony in his office and had even caught them kissing, which made her heart sink, knowing that Anthony was genuinely in love with Clara.
Anthony was a 30-year-old Black man, dressed in a black suit with a red shirt and black shoes, which made him look handsome.
He had a short mustache and beard that enhanced his looks and added to his charm.
Finally, Anthony glanced at Lerisa's face, noticing she was staring down in his office. He wondered what she wanted, as he had already seen her for the day.
He had forgotten that the office had closed, caught up in admiring the ring he had bought to propose to Clara the following day.
“What do you want, Lerisa?" Anthony asked her.
"I… I…" Lerisa stammered, unable to explain why she was in his office. Her heart ached at the sight of the lovely ring.
She had come to tell Anthony that she was already going home, but he didn’t look up from the ring again. He continued to admire it, pondering whether Clara would like it.
Anthony then asked her, “How do you like this ring, Lerisa? Remember that I invited you and the rest of our staff to my birthday party tomorrow at my family's house? Well, I plan to propose to Clara tomorrow. But I'm nervous about whether she will accept this beautiful diamond ring that I ordered from abroad. I love Clara. What do you think, Lerisa? Do you think Clara will appreciate this ring and accept it? I bought it to prove my love for her."
Lerisa's heart shattered even more at Anthony's innocent question.
She watched him smile sweetly at the ring while he continued to look down at it. Trying to maintain her composure, she replied, “I thought you had closed, Sir. That's why I'm here to collect the office key from you. But it seems you are not quite ready to go home.”
Anthony immediately picked up on the sadness in Lerisa's voice.
He closed the red ring box and stood up from his office chair, walking towards her as he asked, "What's wrong, Lerisa?"
Lerisa turned her back to Anthony as hot tears streamed down her cheeks.
She couldn't bring herself to confess her feelings to him; he only saw her as a sister, even though they were not related.
"What's wrong, Lerisa?” Anthony repeated, finally stepping closer and turning her to face him.
Lerisa felt the sparks between them, but Anthony seemed oblivious, focusing intently on her face.
“Tell me, what's wrong with you?” he asked again in a firm voice. Lerisa shuddered in his presence but shook her head, indicating nothing was wrong.
She lied, saying, “Nothing, Sir… I just came here to tell you that I'm going home. The company has closed for the day, and I wanted to collect the office key from you…”
“Sir?” Anthony prompted again, continuing to stare coldly at her face. His eyes reflected concern for her.
"How many times do I have to tell you to stop calling me sir, Lerisa? You’re like a sister to me, not just a staff member here," Anthony responded, and Lerisa shuddered at the reminder of their relationship, which only deepened her sorrow.
At that moment, Anthony's office door swung open, and his assistant, Mark Terry, entered the office.
Mark looked surprised to see Anthony holding Lerisa's arms closely to his chest. Anthony, however, remained focused on Lerisa's face.
'Do they want to kiss?' Mark wondered, quickly composing himself and apologizing, “I'm sorry, boss.”
- Writer
