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My breath catches.
I don’t know if he saw the slap. Or my fall.
“Mr. Vexley,” Audrey says, her voice suddenly sweet. “Please forgive the commotion.”
Nathaniel says nothing.
Audrey steps toward me and gives a sympathetic sigh. “Ella, dear, you really must watch where you’re going. I told you the runner bunches near the corner. You tripped over your own two feet.”
My cheek pulses.
She holds out a hand. “Come now,” she says softly. “Up you go.”
I stare at her hand. And I ignore it. I can’t take it, not after she hit me.
Instead, I look at Nathaniel Vexley.
His eyes are on me.
Not in the way Arthur Vexley looked at me during my interview. Not like an object, exactly. Not like a beautiful piece of furniture.
Like he’s seeing me.
Really seeing me.
He steps forward and offers his hand.
For a second, I hesitate, but then I take it. His fingers close around mine. They’re warm, inviting almost. He helps me to my feet as if I weigh nothing at all.
“Thank you,” I manage.
He gazes at my cheek. I know he’s seeing the red mark. The proof that Audrey slapped me.
“You’re Ella Hart,” he says.
“Yes. Uh…yes, sir, I am.”
Audrey steps in quickly. “Mr. Vexley, Ella is scheduled for her morning assignments. I apologize for her clumsiness.”
My cheek burns hotter.
“I’d like to speak with Ms. Hart privately,” Nathaniel says.
Audrey blinks. “Privately?”
“Yes.”
My heart thunders. Privately? Why? I keep my hand from sliding back to the flip phone in my pocket. It must have something to do with—
“I’m afraid that won’t be possible at the moment,” Audrey says. “She has a lot to get done today.”
“Reassign her duties,” he says.
Audrey’s mouth tightens, but then she relaxes. “Of course,” she says. “May I ask why?”
“No.”
Audrey’s eyebrows nearly fly off her forehead. “I’m sorry?”
