Chapter 7

7

ALINA

R eading the email for the second time doesn't make it seem any more real. So I read it a third, and it's still there.

A job offer from one of the biggest digital design firms in the country. They want me to start as a junior designer. The pay is amazing, it's a remote position, and it's a chance to work at an amazing company.

I should be over the moon, and a part of me definitely is! Except I'm sure that I didn't see this specific design firm anywhere at the job fair.

Which means that someone else must have contacted them, and the only person who knew about the job fair is Derrick. I've been trying not to think about this whole situation, about the way he's slowly creeping into every single part of my life. Instead of getting less intense, his feelings for me are growing, just like mine are for him.

I love him, the thought brushes against my mind, but I don’t acknowledge it. It’s too early. Not yet … even if love courses through me every time he looks at me.

He's obsessed, and I'm starting to think that maybe it's mutual. The way he touches me, fucks me, kisses me—I've never felt this way before. Everything feels so right when we're together.

But I've never had a boyfriend before, never really had a serious relationship. How am I supposed to know if what I'm feeling is normal? Is it possible for love to feel this perfect and right, or is it always messy and complicated?

Derrick is at Sage and Salt for a few hours every morning, and we have dinner together most nights. I've woken up at his place every day for two weeks now, and when he's not with me, I miss him.

The idea of living without him, of being away from him, makes me want to cry.

He's gone right now, and a wild thought occurs to me. I haven't even considered doing this until now because it feels like such a betrayal to a man who has done so much for me. What if … what if I use this time to find out who he really is?

It's not a perfect plan, but I don't need to know everything. I just can't shake the feeling that he has something to do with this job offer, and if that's true, then he has some sort of connections more far-reaching than I could have imagined.

Slowly, almost guilty, I close my laptop and rise from where I've been sitting on the couch. Derrick and I have a lot of time together, and I've learned that while he's at the cafe, his office door is usually closed. He's not big on visitors, and he keeps his laptop and important papers locked in the desk. I don't even know the actual address of the house I'm currently inside of, and that's the first thing I want to figure out. Maybe if I know it, I can discover Derrick's identity.

Making sure no one is pulling down the driveway, I quickly slip outside and make my way barefoot to the mailbox. A few pieces of mail sit inside, and I glance down at the envelopes.

Derrick Anders, 145 Pollyanna Drive, Cape May, New Jersey

The name is familiar somehow. I bite down hard on my lip. So Derrick does have a last name. I don't dare take the mail, so after I snap a photo, I close the mailbox and sneak back inside.

With shaking fingers, I type the name Derrick Anders into Google. There are a couple hundred results, and most of them are social media profiles for men with the same name. Clicking on the images tab, I try to find one of Derrick. But the few profiles that seem like they could match have their privacy settings too high to be certain.

Then, at the very bottom of the page, there's a link to a news article.

Anders Tech founder, entrepreneur, and millionaire Derrick Anders has sold his company and disappeared from the public eye.

Derrick Anders was once the CEO and founder of the world-renowned tech company, Anders Tech, which was acquired by a larger company earlier this year. After the acquisition was complete, Mr. Anders released a statement explaining that he was retiring and leaving the city. His whereabouts are currently unknown.

The shock that burns through me is so pure and immediate that I'm on my feet without even realizing it.

I'm reading a news article about Derrick. An article about a millionaire. He’s a freaking millionaire, and he didn't tell me.

My chest is tight, and I can hear the rushing of blood in my ears. I'm having a hard time breathing, and all I can think about is the way he's held onto every scrap of information about my life I've offered. How he's discouraged me from applying to jobs, and how he's so secretive about his home, his life, his business.

My entire body trembles. He had one of his old techie friends offer me a job just so he could keep me in his sphere. A job that would be a dream for me—but not if I didn't earn it.

Why would he lie?

The question swirls through my mind, but I already know the answer. Derrick has an iron grip on his entire world, and he wants me to be a part of it, but only on his terms. I know the truth now, and I'm not going to stick around to let him play any more games.

I grab my stuff and get as far away from this house, from him, as quickly as possible. If only my hands would stop shaking long enough to pack. I have to get out of here.

My things are still scattered around the bedroom, and I grab whatever's closest and shove it into a bag. A shirt, a pair of underwear, a phone charger. There's no rhyme or reason to what I'm gathering, and I'm not even sure I can get the bag shut when it's full.

Now, with my bag in hand and my thoughts spinning out of control, I grab my phone and call the only person in town I know will pick up right away. Thank goodness he flew in just last night.

"Dad? It's hard to explain, but do you think you can pick me up?"