1. Jane

"Ican"t have a thief in my office."

Not the words you want to hear from your boss.

Her words slammed onto me like a grand piano squashing a mosquito.

This wasn't how today was supposed to go. I was supposed to be promoted. It was supposed to be a good day, but now my world was crashing around me and I didn't know how to stop it. It seemed like each time I reached to pick up the pieces my fingers were cut by the shards of my broken life.

Three hours earlier…

I didn't know it was possible to wake up with a smile on your face until that morning. My eyes opened at exactly seven a.m. and my smile was brighter than the morning sun. It remained on my face as I got ready and headed to work.

I all but skipped into the coffee shop to get my morning coffee for myself and my boss. I also grabbed one for my best friend, Skylar. We worked together, which was awesome.

Everything about this day was awesome!

The older couple behind me gave me a strange look when they saw my bright smile. I felt a strange desire to tell them the great news. It was finally happening. After three years of being Mirabel's assistant, I was finally being promoted. They walked away before I could tell them, but I didn't mind. Absolutely nothing could ruin my good mood.

I grabbed my coffee and headed to Bella's Elite where I worked. Bella's Elite was one of the biggest fashion magazines in the state and today I would become a senior editor at a globally recognized fashion company. It was everything I'd been dreaming of for the past four years. And it was finally here.

My phone rang and I groaned. It would be difficult to fish it out of my bag while carrying coffee. I balanced the coffee holder with one hand and reached into my bag. My earlier annoyance dissipated when I saw who was calling.

"Hey, Ryan!"

"Someone's happy about her promotion," he said, and I laughed. Ryan was my older brother and my closest confidant. We'd been facing the world alone together since our parents passed away and he was who I called for everything. I called him yesterday to tell him about my promotion. I wanted to keep it a secret at first, but I'd never been particularly good at keeping secrets, especially when it's one that makes me so happy. Even right now, I felt the strange urge to tell strangers on the street about my promotion.

"Good luck, sis. I have to get back to work," Ryan said.

"I don"t need luck. I"ve got this promotion in the bag!"

He laughed as he hung up the phone. He worked as an engineer in a construction company nearby.

I walked into the office and smiled when I saw that Mirabel hadn't arrived yet. I always came to work before her, but I was extra early today just to be sure. I couldn't risk coming late on my first day as a senior editor.

I placed Mirabel's coffee on her desk, praying silently for her to arrive before it got cold. She hated cold coffee. If it got cold, I would have to run out and get a new one. I didn't mind that though, because today would be the last time I had to get her coffee.

I sat and waited for everyone else to arrive. My joy remained fully intact when Mirabel arrived five minutes later. She offered me a small smile before walking into her office. I felt overwhelmed with excitement.

I was tempted to jump on my table and do a little dance but that would be unprofessional. I settled for dancing in my seat.

I'd been waiting for this day for three years, and it was finally here. I would be getting a higher salary and my own office. Plus, the opportunity to write my own fashion reviews for the company magazine.

This was huge!

I could barely contain my smile. Anyone who walked past my desk would think I was crazy but I didn't care.

No more rushing to get morning coffees or sorting through piles and piles of documents. No more taking calls on someone else's behalf or standing in meeting rooms without being able to contribute. That was all ending today.

"You're going to rip your face in half with that smile," Skylar said with a laugh as she took her seat. She sat opposite me and eyed me with a look of amusement.

Skylar and I were Mirabel's assistants, but I'd been working here longer than she had. When Mirabel told me she wanted another assistant, I recommended Skylar and that was how we ended up working together. It's been amazing working with my best friend every day for the past year and a half. Not many people had that privilege.

I would miss working opposite Skylar when I got my own office, but I was ready for bigger things. I'd waited long enough. I deserved this.

"I don't care," I told her, not letting my wide smile slip for even a second. "I can"t believe I'm finally getting promoted today. After three long years."

"You deserve it, babe."

Mirabel's door swung open, and I pursed my lips to hide my smile. She hadn"t explicitly told me about my promotion but yesterday she told me that we would be having an important meeting today to discuss the future of my career at the company. That could only mean that I was about to be promoted.

"Jane. In my office."

I smiled softly and followed her.

"Take a seat," Mirabel said as she leaned against her desk. I'd always loved everything about her office, especially her desk. It was huge and yet it fit perfectly into her gigantic office. I knew I wouldn't be getting an office this big, but the hope that one day I might, gave me the drive I needed to keep working harder. One day, all my dreams would come true and today was the first step in that direction.

I lifted my head and stared at Mirabel as I waited for her to announce the news. Her features were strangely blank. Mirabel had never been the most expressive person but she seemed almost… sad. I suppose it was normal for her to feel a bit unhappy. I'd been a great assistant to her so she'd probably miss having me around. I'd be sure to stop by as often as I could when I got to my new office.

"I'm sorry, Jane, but I'm going to have to fire you."

Mirabel was speaking but her words just weren't making any sense. In fact, if we weren"t alone in the room, I could have sworn she wasn't speaking to me. She couldn't possibly be talking to me. She couldn't possibly be firing me. But she was.

"Why?" I asked, my voice shaky and barely audible. I could feel the itch behind my eyes that told me I was about to cry. I gulped and did my best to hold my tears back. Crying right now would do me no good.

"I can"t have a thief in my office," Mirabel said. Unlike my shaky voice, hers was cold and steely just like the rest of her. The traces of sadness I'd noticed earlier were gone.

"A thief?"

"You stole from me, Jane. I can't forgive you for that. I like you a lot. You were a great assistant and for those reasons, I will not be pressing charges, but you can't work here anymore. I cannot work with someone who steals from me."

This time I had to look around just to be sure I was the only one in the room. I simply couldn't believe that she was saying those words to me. I have never stolen anything in my life. I tried to speak but it came out in incoherent whispers.

What could I say to the woman who thought I was a thief? Anything I said would sound like nothing more than excuses but I had to try anyway.

"I didn't steal from you, ma'am. I swear. I would never steal from you. I…"

Mirabel glared at me. "Don't insult my intelligence by lying to me! There's evidence against you, Jane, so I suggest you leave before I call the police."

Getting arrested would only add to the pile of problems that had mounted before me. I stood up slowly, struggling to use my legs because I was in shock. I had to use the chair to support me.

Tears welled up again in my eyes again and this time, I couldn't hold them back. A single drop poured down my cheek and I wiped it away before turning to face my former boss. The woman I had served loyally for the past three years. The woman I'd admired and hoped to be like one day. The woman who taught me everything I knew. My mentor. My role model. And my friend.

Or at least I thought she was. The person who stared back at me was not my friend. Her eyes shone with hate as she glared at me.

"I didn't steal from you, Mirabel," I tried again and I made my voice as clear as I could. It still broke over certain words like her name. I typically didn't call her by her name at work but there were days when we'd worked late together and I was free to call her Mirabel. Maybe I was a fool for thinking it meant we were closer than we actually were. At the end of the day, she was still my boss. A boss who could accuse me of stealing and toss me out of her office without a second thought.

"Get out."

Her final words landed just as heavily as her first ones. I dragged myself out of her office and began packing my things from my desk. Skylar stood up and offered me a bright smile. I could see the joy in her eyes. She probably thought I was packing to move to my new office.

My tears began to flow freely and her smile disappeared. Skylar rushed over and threw her arms around me. I cried silently, allowing all the pain and disappointment I felt to pour out of me. I did my best to keep my sobs down because I didn't want to attract attention. The other employees were just around the corner.

When I was done crying, I would lift my head and walk out of here. Until then, I allowed myself to break down in the arms of my best friend.

"Would you at least consider it?" Ryan asked as he paced around my apartment. He frowned when his eyes landed on a half-eaten box of noodles that sat on my kitchen counter. Several more of those were in my trash can. I haven't really had an appetite lately. I'd order Chinese food, eat for a few seconds, and then toss it. The one on the counter was the one I'd yet to toss.

"No," I said. "You've asked me this several times before and I told you no every time. I won"t do it."

Ryan sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He was exasperated. I could tell and I couldn"t blame him. I was being stubborn but I had no plans of backing down. "It will just be for a little while. You never know you might even like working for William."

I scoffed. The words ‘like' and ‘William' should never be in the same sentence. That man was the complete opposite of likable.

William Aldaine was the CEO of Aldaine Group, a real estate conglomerate that managed prime properties all over the world. He was also my brother"s best friend and the bane of my existence. I would rather sell my hair strands one by one than work in his company like my brother was suggesting. William was arrogant, egocentric, narcissistic, and… well, he was simply every bad thing you could think of. Imagine the devil himself but with Armani suits and Rolex watches.

"There isn"t a world where I would enjoy working for William. I'll never do it,"

I said two weeks after I lost my job at Bella's Elite. Back then I still had faith that I would be able to get a new job but after a month of searching, I realized that I didn't have a choice. And that was how I found myself working in William Aldaine's company. With any luck, I wouldn't end up strangling my boss.