Bound (Forbidden Series - Book 1) (21 page)

Chapter One

Three years later

“You’re too thin.”

Arianna Harlow trembled as the man prowled around her, continuously circling her chair. She felt like a caged animal just waiting for him to strike. Why was she still sitting there? Why didn’t she say the job wasn’t for her, that it had all been a big mistake and she’d best be on her way?

She knew why. Reality flooded her mind — why she couldn’t afford to walk away — that was,
if
he offered her the job. She was barely staying above water with her bills overflowing. Her mother was about to be moved from the rehabilitation home she was in, shipped to a lesser facility, and Ari didn’t have a dollar left in her bank account.

She was truly afraid. If her mother were sent to the state care facility, she’d probably wither away to nothing and in no time at all. Ari couldn’t let that happen — she wouldn’t.

Arianna had already dropped out of school during her last semester, her life forever changed because of one brief moment in time, because of one horrendous mistake.

If only…

Those two words had haunted her thoughts for the past six months. She had several different endings to those words, but the dominant words were
if only
…

If only
she hadn’t called her mom in panic that night.

If only
she hadn’t gone to the party in the first place.

If only
her mother had left a few minutes later.

“Are you listening to me?”
Raffaello Palazzo’s voice rumbled through the air, causing Ari to jump in her seat. She had to think for a moment about what he’d last said to her. Oh, yeah, she was too thin.

“Yes, Mr. Palazzo. I just don’t know how to respond to that.”

“Hmm.” His voice came out as a hum, drifting across her nerve endings. Rafe was incredibly intimidating as he paced back and forth, towering over her at a few inches above six feet. Add to that his jet-black hair and stunning eyes and she felt like a rumpled factory worker, totally out of her element in this exquisite office.

As he made another pass around the room and neared her, Ari thought back over the last week — how strange it had been. Never before had she jumped through such hoops during a job interview.

She’d applied for more than a hundred jobs in the past month, and only three employers had called her back. One job had been at a bank; the manager had called her a few days later, saying they’d given the position to another applicant. The second was at an insurance company, and they’d told her she didn’t have enough experience.

The third job…well, she didn’t really know how to describe what she’d been through. The ad had said only this:

Seeking full-time applicants for Palazzo Corporation. Must be willing to work seven days a week, long hours. Must have no other commitments
—
no family, second jobs, or school. Salary 100k a year plus expenses. Hand-delivered applications only.

Ari thought getting the job would be a long shot, but she had nothing to lose by applying. She had immediately spruced up her résumé, which only included two years in her local pizza parlor, then almost four years as a part-time secretary in the Stanford history department.
And after that, nothing — a six-month gap in employment while she took care of her mother and dealt with the fallout of that disastrous night.

With only one semester away from graduation, her life had changed forever because of the first foolish mistake she’d ever made. Why had she been so careless with only a few short months to go? Now that night would haunt her, be something she’d have to live with for the rest of her life.

With a leather notebook in hand, résumé and application inside, she had entered the large building and approached the security guard in the lobby, who’d directed her to the secretary’s office on the twenty-fifth floor. In she’d walked with what she hoped was confidence exuding from her every pore, and she’d handed over her polished résumé.

“Thank you, Ms. Harlow. If you’ll have a seat, Mr.
Kinsor will call you in shortly.”

Oddly enough only women were in the room when Ari sat down, not a male applicant to be seen. The frightening part was that all of them looked far more qualified for whatever office position was open. One by one the women had stepped into a room, the door shutting behind them. After about ten minutes they’d walked back out, their expressions confident as they eyed the remaining applicants. This business world was a
sharkfest and Ari didn’t know if she was up for the swim.

“Ms. Harlow?”

“Right here,” she’d called. Adjusting her oversized glasses, and picking at the bottom of her two-sizes-too-big shirt, she stood and walked resolutely toward the small man wearing a sharp business suit and gentle smile on his face.

“This way, please.”

She’d followed him into a room where a blue screen was set against the wall. There was a table with a piece of paper and a pen sitting atop it and nothing more.

“Please have a seat. I’m going to take your picture.”

Ari hadn’t understood the need for a picture just yet. Possibly it was for an ID card or employee badge, but usually that was done after you were hired. Maybe they were running it through security to make sure she wasn’t a criminal. It didn’t matter. She wasn’t going to protest.

She had taken her seat and waited for the flash, knowing her smile wasn’t genuine, but her
anticipation had been so high, it was impossible to offer anything bigger than a slight grimace.

“Please fill out this form and make sure all contact information is correct. If you’ve passed to the second part of our screening process, we’ll call you in three to five days,” Mr. Mario
Kinsor had said with the same gentle smile.

He hadn’t asked her whether she had any questions. He hadn’t elaborated on the job. Normally, she would have just filled out the paperwork and kept silent, but her rising curiosity had pushed her with an unknown bravery to ask what the job actually was.

“Mr. Kinsor, the ad in the paper was vague. What exactly does this job entail?”

“If you make it to the next level, you’ll be given more information, Ms. Harlow. I’m sorry, but Mr. Palazzo is a very private man and this position is…confidential,” he’d answered with a slight pause.

“I understand,” Ari had said with a brittle smile, though she hadn’t understood at all.

She’d scanned the solitary paper on the table and her confusion had only worsened.

What are your hobbies?

Are you in a serious relationship? If not, when was the last one you were in?

Are you available to travel?

What kind of questions were these? Was the second one even allowed in a job interview? Still,
she’d answered as best she could and finally read a question that made sense:

What are your career goals?

The sentence had elicited a genuine smile. Before her mother’s car accident, before her life had changed so dramatically, she’d been an honors student at Stanford, working toward her bachelor’s degree in history. She’d planned on getting her master’s, then a doctorate so she could be a university professor.

Someday…

In her heart of hearts she still held out hope of resuming her life at some point — accomplishing the goals she’d set for herself. But instant guilt filled her whenever that hope entered conscious thought. Her mother would have liked to have her life back, too, but she never would. It was only fair that Ari make sacrifices. Ari had to atone for her sins.

Her mother had sacrificed for her entire life so that Ari could have what she needed. She’d paid for Ari’s education at a small private school, and then she’d scrimped and saved to send her to the best college. Ari had earned scholarships, but her mother paid for her room and board and even her beloved car.

Ari had never realized how much her mother had given of herself until the day her mom had been checked into the hospital. Circumstances now demanded that Ari grow up quickly, without having her mother to lean on. She was now responsible for her mom’s care — and Ari was failing at her new role in life.

Since the day of her mother’s car accident, their lives had been filled with utter trepidation and uncertainty.

Thankfully, the Palazzo Corporation had called her back. But the second interview had been more odd than the first. She’d been put through a fitness test. They’d had her run on a treadmill for half an hour, timed her as she navigated an obstacle course, and then tested her endurance.

She’d run track all through high school and continued her running at college, so the physical aspect hadn’t been a problem, but with each step she’d taken in the bizarre interview process, she’d felt rising concern about what she was applying for.

All they'd offered in response at the second interview was that it was a private position with the CEO of the corporation. Maybe she was expected to dodge bullets in countries he was invading? She’d heard rumors that his businesses weren’t always welcome overseas — that some of the governments thought he was overstepping his bounds.

From the research Ari had done, the people normally welcomed him, as he paid high wages and offered excellent benefit packages. A lot of the time it seemed it was other businesses that wanted to keep him out because when he came in, he conquered, no matter what industry he was pursuing.
So she knew that if she got the job, she’d have security. People rarely quit when they worked for the Palazzo Corporation.

The pay for the position was high enough to give her mother good medical care and still leave enough left over for her to save up — possibly getting her back to school within a couple of years. At this point, she’d do almost anything to be hired.

“Ms. Harlow, if you aren’t going to take this interview seriously, you may exit the way you came in,” Mr. Palazzo said in an irritated tone, snapping her back to the present.

“I’m sorry. I truly am. I do take this interview
very
seriously,” she quickly answered, hoping she hadn’t missed a question.

“I won’t repeat myself again — do you understand?” Before she could answer, he continued. “I asked if you’re available all hours. I don’t mean Monday through Friday. This job requires your availability to me seven days a week, night and day. There will be times I won’t need you for extended periods, and other times I’ll need you with me for several days straight. There may be travel involved. The bottom line is that you must have
zero
other commitments. If that doesn’t work for you, this interview is over.”

Ari felt a lump in the back of her throat as she struggled to hold in the tears threatening to spring to her eyes. She finally gazed into his unusually colored eyes, getting her first solid look at them.

She’d heard about his type of eyes before, with something called heterochromia iridis, where two colors were present. His had a deep purple center around the pupil, fading into a gorgeous midnight blue. They were mesmerizing — intriguing — capturing her gaze, even though they were narrowing intensely right then.

“I have no other commitments. I’m available,” she told him, inwardly crossing her fingers. She was committed to her mother, but with this money she wouldn’t have to worry about her mom’s care. She’d go see her when she had those downtimes he was speaking of. If she didn’t get in to see her mom for a month, she’d be devastated, but her mom would be in good hands, and, most importantly, she wouldn’t notice since she was in a coma.

“What about your mother?” he asked, as if reading her mind, his gaze boring into hers. She was stunned by the question, leaving her silent for a couple of seconds too long.

“How do you know about my mom?”

“I know everything I need to know about you, Arianna,” he replied with a slight lifting of the corner of his mouth.

His expression was
far
too knowing and she immediately felt the urge to flee. Something wasn’t right; something was telling her to get out while she still could. She was in over her head — she could feel it. All signs pointed to jumping from the chair and rushing out his door. But no. Loyalty to her mother kept her seated where she was.

“Yes. Of course,” she responded. “My mother is being well taken care of. She’s not even aware of who I am at this point. It won’t hurt her in the least if she doesn’t see me for long stretches of time.”

He circled her again, causing her foot to twitch. When she was nervous, she did one of two things — tapped her foot, much to the annoyance of everyone around her, or bit on her thumbnail. She felt the urge to raise her hand, to make contact between thumbnail and teeth, but with great mental effort she kept her hands folded in her lap.

“I can see that as a hindrance, but as she’s the only family member you have, I’ll let it slide for now.”

Was this guy for real? He’d let it slide?
Ari was taking in air through her nose in long, deep pulls to keep her temper at bay. She needed the job, she kept reminding herself as she clenched her fingers tightly and locked her jaw to keep the words she wanted to throw at him from rushing out.

“Is something upsetting you, Ms. Harlow?” he asked, his voice smooth as molasses as he came back around and looked into her eyes again. She felt as if he were analyzing her, breaking her down into parts, trying to decide whether she was a waste of his time or not. She was sure that was how he conducted all his business. It was most likely why he was where he was in life, at the top of the ladder, and why she was at the bottom.