Thank you for selecting my story.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of my imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Copyright © Rituparna Darolia.
All rights reserved. No part of this novel may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.
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Prologue
“I think I’ve clearly specified that I want an ad placed for a male assistant only,” barked a furious Jaxon Craddock as he scrolled down his emails to find a female application for the post of his personal assistant. Which woman was so desperate that she couldn’t stay away from applying? They specifically mentioned that he would recruit only a male one. There are certain things he was very particular about, and no amount of persuasion could make him change his decision. He hated women and wouldn’t bend down at all!
His best friend and business partner, Ralph Van Halen, who was the Production Head at his company, shook his head. “I did what you had asked me to do, Jaxon,” he answered calmly. He was used to Jaxon’s short temper and his tantrums. Usually, he had his assistant Phil in New York to look into these matters, but here with no assistant present, Ralph was the only one who could calm his friend down. None of Jaxon’s assistants could stand his whims and fluctuating mood for long!
Jaxon took a deep breath to calm himself down. “Then what is this resume of a woman doing in my inbox?” he growled. He always chose assistants who were male, and he would not change that. Ralph groaned, knowing that now this would be an issue till Jaxon had his way.
He started hating women after his own mom murdered his dad and escaped with his money. It was such a clever ploy that she easily fooled the police into believing that it was suicide. He was just ten and couldn’t do anything but watch helplessly. His own sister, Josephine, eight years older, divided the money that was left into two halves and left with her share.
Jaxon grew up under the care of his housekeeper, Molly. Her father’s sister, aunt Barbara, came over and adopted him and lived with him for the next nine years. However, she too wanted a share of her brother’s money and left after receiving her share. Jaxon was very bitter against everyone after she left. When he was twenty, he had his first girlfriend. One night she came over for a night of fun and the next morning, she stole whatever she could lay her hands upon and escaped without a trace. Shattered, Jaxon swore he would have nothing to do with women ever in his life.
“Ignore that application, Jaxon. Shall I summon the rest for an interview?” asked Ralph. Their headquarters were in New York and they all had arrived in Vegas for the most happening International Fashion Week.
“Yes, only five at a time, please, but we will start tomorrow. I can’t handle more than that,” he said, calming down a little and massaging his temples.
“Sure, I’ll do that. Anything else?” Jaxon shook his head and Ralph left his office to do as asked.
At the young age of twenty-nine, Jaxon Craddock, a celebrity designer, had built an empire in the world of fashion design with his two best friends, Ralph Van Halen and Gilbert Prescott. Their fashion house, Jaxon Craddock Inc., named after Jaxon, displayed its trademark JC on all their products. The brand was known for its large range of clothing, footwear, and sunglasses and also created footwear and jewelry. His name became iconic amongst the younger generation for its modern lines and embraced the culture of youth and promoted gender fluidity. With exclusive outlets all over the world, he was too busy to have a personal life. His work was life and life was work.
Based in New York, Jaxon had arrived in Las Vegas for an important meeting with the Las Vegas Fashion Council. His last assistant had resigned, and he needed someone as soon as possible, preferably before the meeting and the upcoming International Fashion Week conference. With his entire schedule being disorganized, he had no clue what to do.
Ralph helped him to the best of his abilities, but he wasn’t a very organized person himself and he managed the production side of his business. Being the Head of Production, Clothing, he himself had a very tight schedule in London, where he was currently based.
Jaxon sighed and went on with his work, trying to check the agenda of his upcoming meetings. Tired, he closed his eyes for a few minutes. He had been working continuously for the last two days and still couldn’t cope with the mess. He really needed a break for a few days to rest his tired head a little, but work had multiplied and he couldn’t get a moment of respite. His fingers clicked on the mouse by mistake and he opened his eyes to see the damage done.
His jaws dropped when he saw what was on the screen before him. It was a picture of a beautiful young woman, around twenty years of age, with green hypnotic eyes and a face exuding a glow that attracted him like a moth to a flame.
He saw her name, Carmella Parker.
“Carmella,” he pronounced her name, loving the feel on his lips. Then it dawned upon him whose picture it was. This was the single female applicant amongst the list of male applicants for the job of his PA.
Shocked at the roots of his hair, he quickly shut the window and closed his eyes again, but could he get rid of the image from his mind? No, it crept up into his head, floated before his eyes, and played havoc with his brain the whole day till he couldn’t take it anymore. He dropped all his work and headed to his apartment in Las Vegas. The clear innocent eyes staring back at him haunted him every second of his day and he just closed his laptop and packed up to leave.
He needed sleep to calm his jumpy nerves. That was the only reason he was reacting so much to a woman nine years younger than himself. He couldn’t fall for a woman, the most untrustworthy species in this universe, as experience had taught him to believe. After downing two glasses of whiskey, he hit the bed and in a matter of minutes he dozed off but had a fitful sleep all throughout the night.
The next day started as a nightmare, with him waking up late. He reached the office just in time to take the interviews scheduled for the day. Despite his instruction, Ralph had called twenty candidates for an interview. After a cup of disgusting coffee, he started with the task at hand.
The first candidate was over-smart, trying to prove what a talented designer he was. “Are you aware that you’ve applied for a PA job?” he grunted with disgust.
“Yes sir, but later I can handle both,” the candidate spoke confidently.
“Look, Mr. Hartman, I’m not interested in a designer right now. You may leave,” he gritted out.
The next candidate was a punk weirdo with pink-streaked hair who didn’t look like he was interested in work. “Do I need to work on weekends, sir?” he asked with disbelief. “I can’t work overtime as I have obligations. I would love to travel but on company’s expenses,” he conditioned.
“Thank you. You may leave,” he said without a glance at him.
The next one had a disgusting body odor which suffocated Jaxon before he could take the interview. He somehow got rid of him. The next few candidates were all worthless, and he didn’t like any of them. He was at his wit’s end and in a terrible frame of mind. Ralph tried his best to pacify his friend while everyone else avoided their boss like a plague, knowing his mood. He would sack anyone who appeared in front of him.
After the interviews were over, it was lunchtime, and he had a headache. He really needed coffee. Not the shitty coffee that Ralph made. He needed a proper coffee, a Starbucks one.
“Ralph, how many more applications do we have left?” he asked a flustered Ralph who was already haggard since he wasn’t used to this sort of work. Handling an angry Jaxon drained up all his energy.
“We have thousands of them, all male applicants, Jaxon. Don’t worry,” he said, holding onto his head out of stress.
“Forget it, Ralph. I’ll shortlist who I want,” said Jaxon. “I need coffee. No, not your disgusting coffee, thanks. I’m going to the Starbucks outlet nearby.” Ralph nodded with a hurt look on his face. He had never made coffee for anyone else other than himself and instead of being grateful, how could he bicker? His friend really needed a wife. He was becoming impossible to handle day by day.
Jaxon went down the elevators and down the pavement to the shop a few feet away from his building where his office was located. Ordering his regular dark roast coffee, he sipped it, sitting down near the window, his back towards the rest of the customers. He didn’t want to get recognized by any reporter, as they would rush to bother him. He just wanted to enjoy his coffee.
Inhaling the fresh, robust aroma of fresh coffee, he sorted the resumes himself. Ralph would send all the candidates and he didn’t have the patience to interview all of them. He needed to shortlist. Later. he paid for his coffee and turned to go out when someone bumped into him and spilled a cup of cold coffee all over him, infuriating him further. His face flushed with anger and he glared at the spill. Now, who the fu*k had a death wish?
“What the f*ck!” he growled, looking at his white dress shirt and designer expensive suit, now all stained and sticky.
“I-I’m s-sorry. It was an accident. I didn’t see you,” said a scared female voice. He was tired of these manipulative creatures who could stoop to anything to get his attention, but today he couldn’t ignore this. He had interviews to take and couldn’t afford to waste any more time than he already did.
He looked up, ready to give this bitch a piece of his mind, but all his words drowned as he stared mesmerized by the green eyes of none other than Carmella Parker. She looked guilty and ashamed as she took in the damage that was done to his attire.
“I’ll get your clothes cleaned. Please don’t get mad at me. It was an accident and I’m really sorry,” she kept on rambling, flustered and nervous.
“How the f*ck will you do that, may I know?” he growled more, getting frustrated at his bad luck, but she just gaped at him instead of replying. Why did he have to meet the girl? Seeing her picture was bad enough and now he had to come face-to-face with her! He wouldn’t be able to get any work done now for the rest of the day.
He got angrier at his own reaction to her glowing beauty. She was too gorgeous for her own good, that was for sure. No wonder she had applied for the post, knowing she could seduce him with her looks. These manipulative creatures!
“I-I,” she stammered, not knowing how to go about her offer.
“Cut it. You’re not getting what you wanted. I’m not giving you my contact details nor inviting you to my house,” he gritted out. Her face paled as she stared at him wordlessly, taken aback by his rude words. Jaxon felt a little better at seeing her reaction. He was, after all, right about her intentions. Furiously, he strode off towards his office without a backward glance, although he wanted to get a last glimpse of her. Out of his peripheral vision, he could see her remain transfixed on the spot since that encounter. Served her right for fu*king with his senses.
