His Dangerous Love On Ice Chapter 232: Olive's Pov

The office stared back at me like a graveyard as I stared into my computer as if I was reading but it was all a false pretense as I was avoiding the side glances from Sophia and the fact that Jessica had been passing through some series of apprehension because of the possible reason that Antonio might be showing himself today.

But I wouldn't blame her because I knew I was once in those shoes before, and I knew her healing would take long, would take a very long time before she could look at him without her heart doing that stupid flutter thing that made you feel like you were thirteen again.

I'd been there myself not that long ago, still was there if I was being honest, except my situation was infinitely more complicated than a simple crush on a charming hockey player who probably didn't even know Jessica existed beyond her excellent presentation skills.

My situation involved near-death experiences and mysterious men watching from shadows and a brother I'd thought had died on a ‘thought so’ accident but found out his accident might not be anything but normal, and I was planning to confront Zane later today and demand answers about all of it, but sure, Zane and Antonio showing up today was apparently the crisis we all needed to focus on.

I almost laughed at the absurdity of it all, would have laughed if Sophia wasn't standing three feet away from my desk with that particular expression on her face that said she was about to make my morning worse just because she could.

"Olive," she said, and her voice was dripping with false concern that didn't match the gleam in her eyes in the slightest, "how are you doing this morning? You look... tired."

The way she said "tired" made it clear she meant something else entirely, made it clear she knew something I didn't know she knew, and I looked up from my computer screen where I'd been pretending to read the same email for the past ten minutes and met her eyes and saw the satisfaction there.

Elena had told her, had to have told her about last night, about me walking in on her and Zane, about me leaving angry and hurt and exactly the way Sophia had probably hoped I would react when she'd orchestrated whatever the hell that situation had been.

"I'm fine," I said, and my voice came out flat and professional, giving her absolutely nothing to work with.

Sophia's smile widened just slightly in that way that meant she was about to twist the knife a little deeper, and she pressed, "Are you sure? Because I heard you had quite the evening yesterday. Left somewhere rather... abruptly."

There it was, the jab she'd been setting up, the little knife she wanted to twist just to see if it would make me bleed in front of everyone, and I leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms and looked at her with an expression I'd perfected over years of dealing with people who wanted to see me fail.

"I'm very interested in why you're so concerned about my whereabouts, Sophia," I said with just enough edge to make it clear I knew exactly what game she was playing, "but I assure you, my evening was quite pleasant. Spent it with my boyfriend. Which, unfortunately for you, happens to be your brother."

The emphasis on "your brother" was deliberate, a reminder that whatever games she was playing, whatever she'd orchestrated with Elena, Zane had still chosen me, still came after me, still held me last night like I was the only thing that mattered in his entire world.

Sophia's face tightened for just a second, just enough that I knew I'd landed a hit, and her voice got sharper as she said, "How lovely. Though I have to wonder how pleasant it could have been given that you—"

"Sophia."

Nina's voice cut through whatever Sophia had been about to say, sharp and professional and carrying the kind of authority that made people immediately straighten up and pay attention, and I looked past Sophia to see Nina standing in the doorway of the conference room with her tablet in hand and an expression that was unreadable but somehow still managed to convey disapproval.

"We're starting in five minutes," Nina said, looking directly at Sophia with that particular expression that meant she wasn't having any of this nonsense today, "I suggest you use that time to prepare rather than engaging in... whatever this is."

She looked at me when she said it and there was something in her expression that wasn't quite a smile but felt supportive anyway, like she knew exactly what Sophia had been doing and wasn't going to let it continue, and I felt a small surge of gratitude because Nina had always been professional with me, firm when needed but fair, and lately I'd gotten the sense that she actually respected my work, actually appreciated the effort I put into these campaigns even when everything else in my life was falling apart.

It was a small comfort but right now I'd take what I could get.

"Of course," Sophia said, and her tone shifted back to professional even though her eyes were still shooting daggers at me, "I was just checking in on my colleague."

"How thoughtful," Nina said dryly, making it clear she didn't believe that for a second, "conference room, five minutes."

She disappeared back inside and Sophia turned back to me, and for just a second the professional mask slipped completely and she said quietly, "This isn't over."

"It never is with you," I replied, watching her walk away and feeling that familiar exhaustion settling into my bones, the kind that came from constantly being under attack, constantly having to defend myself, constantly wondering what fresh hell was waiting around the next corner.

"Olive?"

I looked up to see Jessica standing beside my desk with her hands twisting together nervously and her eyes darting toward the conference room and then back to me, my assistant, sweet anxious Jessica who'd been nothing but helpful and kind since the day she'd started working with me and who right now looked like she was about to jump out of her skin.

"You okay?" I asked, even though I could see she very clearly wasn't.

She nodded, then shook her head, then made a sound that was half-laugh and half-groan, and asked, "Is it that obvious? That I'm freaking out?"

"Only to someone who's paying attention," I said, "which, fortunately for you, is just me right now."

She let out a breath and said in a rush, "It's just—Antonio might be coming today, for the campaign meeting, and I know that's stupid to be nervous about because he's just a person and I'm a professional and this is work but—"

"It's not stupid," I interrupted gently because I understood exactly what she was feeling, had felt it myself not that long ago, that mix of anticipation and terror that came with knowing you were about to see someone who made your brain go fuzzy and your heart do stupid things. "Trust me, I understand exactly what you're feeling."

"Really?" Jessica asked, looking at me with something like hope in her eyes.

"Really," I said. "Just try to breathe. Remember you're excellent at your job. And whatever happens, you'll get through it."

She nodded and looked slightly less panicked as she said, "Thank you. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"You'd be fine," I said, "but I appreciate the sentiment."

She gave me a small smile and headed toward the conference room, and I sat there for another moment gathering my strength and preparing myself for whatever was about to happen in that meeting, because if Antonio was coming that meant I'd have to deal with his presence, his charm that Zane had warned me about, his tendency to push boundaries just to see what would happen, and I'd have to do it while pretending I was fine, while pretending my entire world hadn't almost ended last night, while pretending I wasn't planning to confront Zane later today and demand answers about Klaus and Alonso and everything else he'd been keeping from me.

I grabbed my laptop and stood up and smoothed down my blazer even though it didn't need smoothing, and walked toward the conference room like I was walking toward my execution.

*******

The conference room was already occupied when I walked in, with Nina sitting at the head of the table reviewing something on her tablet with focused intensity she brought to everything, and Jessica had taken a seat near the middle with her papers spread out in front of her and her leg bouncing under the table in a way that betrayed her nerves despite our conversation.

Sophia was leaning against the wall near the windows with Stephanie hovering beside her like a shadow, both of them looking at me with expressions that made my skin feel nothing, and I knew they were probably whispering about me, but I never mind.

I ignored them and took my usual seat and opened my laptop and pretended to review campaign documents I'd already memorized, and that's when the door opened and Elena walked in and the temperature in the room shifted.

She was wearing a red dress that looked like it belonged at a gala or a premiere, not a Tuesday morning business meeting, fitted perfectly to her body and gleaming under the fluorescent lights in ways that made her look like she was about to commit highway robbery rather than discuss campaign logistics, and I felt immediately underdressed, immediately inadequate, immediately like I was a child playing dress-up while she was the real thing.