Chapter 2 - The Billionaire Asked for My Name
The next morning, I assumed I had been fired.
I woke before my alarm.
My mother was asleep in the next room.
Alice, my younger sister, was already getting ready for school.
I stared at the ceiling.
Maison Greer.
Adrian Vale.
Vanessa Whitmore.
I had no doubt Preston would blame me for the entire disaster.
At seven thirty, my phone rang.
“Emma Carter?”
“Yes.”
“This is Mr. Greer's office.”
My stomach dropped.
“I understand.”
“Mr. Greer would like you to come in at noon.”
There was a pause.
“Am I fired?”
Another pause.
“No.”
I exhaled.
“Then why?”
“I was told not to discuss it.”
I knew exactly who "I" meant.
Adrian.
At noon, I walked into Maison Greer wearing my only black blazer.
Mr. Greer met me in his office.
He looked exhausted.
“You're not fired.”
“Thank you.”
“In fact, you're getting a raise.”
I stared.
“What?”
He slid an envelope across the desk.
Inside was a check.
It was more than my monthly salary.
“I can't accept this.”
“You can.”
“Why?”
“Because Mr. Vale insisted.”
I looked at him.
“Why would he do that?”
Greer leaned back.
“Because his mother told him you made her birthday special.”
I shook my head.
“I didn't do anything.”
“You did something most people here forget.”
“What?”
“You treated a woman like a woman.”
I left the office confused.
When I stepped into the dining room, Adrian Vale was sitting alone at a table.
He looked at me.
“Emma.”
I stopped.
“How do you know my name?”
He smiled slightly.
“You told me.”
“That was yesterday.”
“I remember names.”
He gestured toward the chair.
“Sit.”
I did not.
“I have a shift.”
“You've already been excused.”
“By whom?”
“Me.”
“I work for the restaurant.”
“You work for yourself.”
I frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“It means you decide whether you want to sit.”
I remained standing.
He nodded.
“Fair.”
He stood.
“I owe you an apology.”
“For what?”
“For putting you in the middle of my mother's humiliation.”
“You didn't.”
“Still.”
He placed a small envelope on the table.
“My mother wanted me to give you this.”
I opened it.
A handwritten note.
Dear Emma,
Thank you for seeing me.
Most people see what I wear before they see who I am.
You looked at me first.
Love,
Rose.
My throat tightened.
I folded the note carefully.
“Please thank her.”
“She already knows.”
I smiled.
Adrian watched me.
“You're different from the people here.”
I laughed.
“I’m broke compared with the people here.”
“That wasn't what I meant.”
He picked up his coat.
“I'd like to hire you.”
My heart stopped.
“For what?”
“My mother's events.”
“I'm not an event planner.”
“You don't need to be.”
“What would I do?”
“Be near her.”
I stared.
“You're asking me to become your mother's companion?”
“On certain days.”
“I have a job.”
“I know.”
“How much?”
He named the amount.
I almost dropped my purse.
“That’s ridiculous.”
“It's fair.”
“No.”
He looked surprised.
“No?”
“I can't accept charity.”
His eyes sharpened.
“That's not charity.”
“Then what is it?”
“Employment.”
He smiled.
“You said you have bills.”
I froze.
“I never told you that.”
“You didn't have to.”
“How did you—”
“I have people who research people around my family.”
“That sounds terrifying.”
“It is.”
He smiled.
I couldn't tell if he was joking.
Then his expression softened.
“My mother likes you.”
I thought of Rose sitting alone by the window.
I said yes.
Not because of the money.
Because I wanted her to smile again.
Two weeks later, my schedule changed.
I still worked at Maison Greer.
But on Rose's clinic days, I accompanied her.
On Tuesdays, she came to the park.
On Thursdays, she went to a small bookstore.
And once a week, she visited a bakery in a neighborhood Adrian usually avoided because of his security concerns.
Rose loved ordinary life.
She hated luxury.
She loved walking.
She loved talking to strangers.
She loved cheap coffee.
And she had a habit of telling me stories about Adrian as a child.
“He once hid in a laundry basket because he didn't want to take piano lessons.”
I laughed.
“I don't believe that.”
“He was seven.”
“He's terrifying now.”
“He still hates piano.”
We laughed together.
One day, Rose took my hand.
“You remind me of my daughter.”
“Claire?”
She nodded.
“Claire was kind.”
“What happened?”
Rose looked away.
“Family.”
The answer made me uncomfortable.
“What do you mean?”
She didn't respond.
That evening, Adrian came to pick her up.
He noticed Rose holding my hand.
Something unreadable passed across his face.
“You two had fun.”
Rose smiled.
“We did.”
He looked at me.
“Thank you.”
“Of course.”
As Rose walked toward the car, Adrian remained.
“You've been asking about Claire.”
I froze.
“Rose mentioned her.”
“I know.”
He studied me.
“Why?”
“Because she's your sister.”
“That doesn't answer my question.”
I sighed.
“She seems important.”
“She was.”
“What happened?”
Adrian looked toward the car.
“She disappeared.”
I blinked.
“What?”
“Five years ago.”
“How?”
He didn't answer.
Rose called him.
He turned.
“Goodnight, Emma.”
“Goodnight.”
He got into the car.
But before the door closed, he looked back at me.
“If anyone asks you questions about my mother or my sister, call me.”
“Why?”
“Because there are people who still want them hurt.”
Then he left.
I stood in the cold.
May you like
For the first time, I understood that Rose's story was much bigger than a birthday dinner.
And somehow, I was already inside it.
