Andin looked up as Sebastian left his office, shoving his phone and wallet into his pocket. Without even looking, she knew where he was probably heading. She refrained from sighing. It did not take a genius to know that her boss was on his way to meet his lover, London Star. Every day it was the same. The phone call he had received before lunchtime would determine who he would be spending his lunchtime with. Either his family (either his older brother, Thornton, his youngest sister, Clarabelle, or on a rather rare occasion, his mother) or his most recent lover. Most of the time, it was the latter.

Since evidently, London had called merely fifteen minutes ago, it had been determined that he would be spending his lunchtime with her. And if she was right, they were probably going to go to a restaurant in a five-star hotel around the area and once the lunch was concluded, they would retreat to a suite and ravish each other for desserts.

"I'm going for lunch." He looked over the contract he had given her to review on her desk, and a faint frown crossed his face. "Do make sure to take a break, Miss Williams."

Andin could not help but smile. This was not the first time that he had said that to her, and it likely would not be the last. "Yes, Sir," she replied before focusing back on her work.

Once he was gone disappearing through the doors, she took a moment to breathe and leaned back in her chair. He had not made any moves despite what had happened last week at his party and it left her feeling unsure and anxious. It was as if she was waiting for the proverbial shoe to drop.

Sebastian had continued to be polite and friendly, not quite managing the formal professionalism he was likely going for, but smartly stepping behind a line that he seemed to have drawn between us. She was not sure what was on his mind but again, she could hardly read him. He was one of the hardest men to read and perhaps that was one of the reasons why he was a good businessman. He never allowed his opponent (or in this matter, anyone, really) to guess what he was thinking or planning on doing.

Andin took her purse from the first drawer and rose from her seat. She could hardly sleep last night, knowing fully well that she had to meet Leroy today. Her stomach churned and she felt uncomfortable even though she was yet to face him. Trying to calm herself down, Andin took a sip of her lukewarm tea and massaged the bridge of her nose.

She briefly closed her eyes and had to reopen them when a notification on her computer pinged. Sebastian may have not realized it, but one of the reasons why she did not always take her breaks was because there was just so much work to do. Summers Entertainment had so many lines of business including movie adaptation, TV series production, talent management, modeling agency, and so many more. It did not only focus on one thing and over the years, but it also kept on expanding. Therefore everyone wanted her boss for something, but not all of those email correspondences made it directly to him. Many questions and problems were things that Andin could settle in order to clear Sebastian's time for far more important issues that came with running the company. And that was only on the company front alone, other than that she was also arranging events and organizing his calendar. On other occasions, he even asked her to do something she did not find any pleasure in such as firing people or worse, booking hotel rooms for his love trysts.

The workload could be hard sometimes but Andin enjoyed the challenge. She knew she was good at what she did and on top of that, she knew her boss relied on her far more than he was willing to admit to, and there was definitely something heady about the fact that a man worth billions of dollars needed to come to her whenever he had a problem that he could not solve or needed her opinion on.

Sadly this all would come to an end once her last day came in three months' time. Andin shook the sorrowful thoughts away and scanned the email that had just come in. It was from the hotel informing me that there were only two rooms left with a shared bathroom. "The universe is trying to punish me for that resignation letter, I am sure of it," muttered Andin under her breath as she quickly typed her reply, then hit send.

Another email arrived. This time it was from the legal department asking about Sebastian's schedule as they wished to have a brief discussion about the alteration in the new contract. She took a glance at Sebastian's calendar for the day and managed to find a slot at three PM then let the legal team know by replying to their email. She also made sure to take note of it so she could inform Sebastian when he returned to the office.

Several minutes had passed when she finally decided that she should get going to the cafe and meet Leroy. As much as she wished she did not have to do it, she knew she could not run or delay it any longer. She had to set things straight. There was only half an hour left on her lunch break after all. With a huff, Andin stood up, grabbed her purse, and headed out of her office towards the set of elevators.

* * *

By the time she arrived at the cafe, Leroy was already there. Andin was thinking of getting one of those delicious blueberry muffins but then decided not to. She simply wanted to sit down, tell him her piece, and then leave as soon as she could. Eating or drinking would imply that she would stay longer and she really did not want to. Leroy's obsession had scared her more than she let on.

"Andin, I am so happy to finally see you in person," said Leroy once his eyes caught her. He was about to hug her when she quickly sat down, avoiding any physical contact.

"Hi, Leroy. It has been a while."

"It has indeed. You're always busy. You never reply to any of my texts or calls."

"I am busy." She nodded in agreement, resisting the urge to tell him that she had only been ignoring him because he had been somewhat stalkerish, then took a deep, calming breath. "Anyway, I asked you to meet so that we could talk. I think we need to discuss this face-to-face like adults."

Leroy threw a disarming smile. One that Andin truly hated because it was warm and bright, and it was the one thing that had caught her attention when they had first met.

"Do you want me to get you anything?" He pointed at his tray, which had one coffee cup and one chocolate muffin on it.

"No, thank you." Andin shook her head and hardened her heart. She hated doing this to people. It was almost as bad as firing people. She just did not particularly enjoy causing distress in any shape or form to people. Yet this was the only thing she could do so she could be free of him. "I am going to make it brief. Please leave me alone."

Leroy's face fell. His lips parted and for a moment, he did not move nor say anything.

"Wait. Please, Andin darling, please just talk to me. We need to sort this out."

"There's nothing to sort out, Leroy. I broke up with you last year and I have told you multiple times that I do not wish for us to get back together. How much clearer do you want me to be?" It was evident that there was exasperation in her voice. If she could turn back time, she would not date him if she knew that this was what awaited her.

"But I love you."

Andin could hardly believe his nerve. Suddenly, she wished that Damon was here with her. At least he would know what to say or do in this kind of situation. He would know how to deal with Leroy's persistence.

"Well, I'm sorry to say this, but I don't."

"I know," Leroy said earnestly and gave her his puppy eyes, the ones that had been used to make her cave in to spare his feelings. "Trust me, Andin darling, I know. And I know that I was such an idiot but I do believe that we made a mistake by breaking up. I love you so much. I need you in my life. I know we can fix things if we give ourselves a chance."

Andin ran a frustrated hand through her hair and wished things were simpler. When they first had gotten together, it would have been nice to have a red flag warning her that she was about to gain a lifelong stalker the moment they broke up.

"No," she said more firmly. "We're not getting back together. It didn't work the first time and I honestly don't think it'll work the second time around. Please understand that I don't want to be with you anymore."

It would hurt him without a doubt but she had to do it. In the past she had tried doing it more gently, to spare his feelings, but it was time he heard the cold, simple truth that she did not want him in her life anymore.

A flush crawled up Leroy's cheeks. "You don't mean that. You just convinced yourself of that because it helps you to get over me."

"Are you being serious? There are so many reasons that we won't be getting back together. So please, for both of our sakes, leave me alone."

"Is there someone else?" he demanded.

Andin was about to open her mouth to tell him, truthfully, that there wasn't, but then she stopped herself. If Leroy thought that she was in a serious relationship with someone else, perhaps he would finally leave her alone.

"You know even if you are with someone else, you should know that I love you more than anyone ever could."

"No, I can't do this anymore, Leroy. I'm sorry but my heart does belong to someone else."

"You don't know that for sure, Andin darling. Once I remind you what it was like to be with me, what we had, I'm sure you will soon realize that it was nothing compared to what you have with this other person so please give me a chance."

"Look, I am trying to be nice here. But if you fail to see reasonings, then I have no choice but to take this matter to the police."

"Police? Whatever for? Is it a crime to love someone?" Leroy shook her head, his lips forming a smile and Andin felt sick.

She fiddled with the ring on her left middle finger, trying to carefully slide it off without him noticing, then managed to push the ring onto the appropriate finger on her left hand. "I am sorry. I really do not want to do it but I have to. I am engaged."

"W-what? To who?"

Her eyes moved to the person approaching their table and met his smoldering blue eyes. Then it felt like the world had stopped. Without so much as giving it a second thought, Andin lifted her hand and pointed it directly at her boss. "To him."

* * * * * * * *

SEBASTIAN

Sebastian stepped out of his Rolls Royce and into the fresh air and breathed in deeply, appreciating the feel of the sun on his skin. Although he mostly spent his afternoon with either his family or his lover, he couldn't help but admit that it was quite nice to be away from the hustle and bustle of the office for a little while and simply be in his own company. He walked towards the coffee shop not far from his office building. It was tucked away at the corner of the street. Once upon a time, back when he was fresh from the university and was working a managerial-level job, he used to go there often. Nowadays, not so much.

"Sebastian!" Crystal Jones, a stout little woman behind the counter who also happened to be the owner, greeted him. He was surprised that she even recognized him and remembered his name. "Long time no see. How are you?"

"I'm well, thank you," he replied to her with a brief smile. "I've been busy. So, what delicious specials do you have today?"

"Well, the twins came back from their summer camp and Roddy has been teaching them how to bake," said Crystal, nodding to the back where the kitchen was located. "We're selling cheese tarts that they made. They're quite delicious. Do you want to try?"

"Sure," he said with a nod then paused. Andin had a tendency to forget to take breaks to eat. He had reminded her thrice and when she was still doing it, he kept his silence. He had never done anything about it but now he could not help but wonder why he had not. Andin had done so much for him, the least he could do was to help make sure she was fed well. "Make it two, please."

"Got it. Do you need anything else?" She asked as she was bagging the two treats. "Maybe your lady needs a cup of coffee or tea to accompany the cheese tart?"

"No, I'm not going on a date. My secretary tends to work through lunch, so I'll bring her something."

"That is sweet," she replied with a smile. "Still, that did not answer my question. Do you want a coffee or tea for her as well?"

"Mocha latte for her but please just give it one shot," Sebastian answered, recalling how she had told him, once or twice, how she took her coffee. Unlike himself, she could not take too much caffeine, or else it would give her a headache. "And I will take my coffee black. No milk, no sugar."

"Just like always, huh." Crystal smiled again and bustled to the coffee machine, grabbing two cups as she went.

Sebastian stayed at the register while idly looking around. There was a small basket placed on the counter, and out of curiosity, he leaned forward to peer into it curiously. There were several braided bracelets inside, all of them were made of threads in different colors. "Ah, those are for charity," said Crystal, noticing where he was looking. "They are selling those bears to try to raise some money for the homeless."

One of the bracelets with a dark brown thread and a moonstone attached to it caught his attention and he extracted it from the basket. She wore a different bracelet every day; it almost seemed like she had a small collection of it at home. Perhaps she would appreciate the addition to her collection. He was about to put it on the counter then paused. Would buying her a bracelet be going a step too far? It had not occurred to him that he could use this purchase to get on her good side, he simply wanted to do something nice for her. But would she see it as him trying to seduce her?

"That's a cute one," she said, carrying the two takeaway cups over carefully. "Would you like that?"

He made a split-second decision and handed the bracelet to Crystal to run it through the register. Hopefully, Andin will like it. He could simply tell her that he appreciated how much she had done for him and wanted her to have it for that reason. It could be a farewell gift even though he must admit, it had not sunk in his brain properly that she would be leaving in three months' time. He just had to make sure not to say 'this bracelet made me think of you', which, funnily enough, was more or less the truth. But she, no doubt, would take that the wrong way.

Crystal put the bracelet into a small box and then handed the box and the two drinks and the bag of treats. "Here you are."

"Thank you, Crystal." Sebastian handed her his card and once the payment was made, he carried everything in a paper bag, then headed towards the door.

Andin was probably going to be surprised that he was doing something so nice for her, but that just meant that he needed to do more nice things. Andin had been an indispensable part of the company since he hired her, and it had just occurred to him that he had really been taking for granted everything she had done thus far. She definitely deserves some recognition for her efforts and perhaps that was the real reason why she decided to quit her job.

"No, I can't do this anymore, Leroy. I'm sorry but my heart does belong to someone else."

Sebastian came to a halt and blinked. Whoever had just spoken sounded like Andin. But it was impossible considering she would highly likely be at the office. She rarely left the office even during lunchtime. Sometimes she brought her own food and ate it at the office.

"Look, I'm trying to be nice here. But if you fail to see reasonings, then I've no choice but to take this matter to the police."

That was definitely Andin's voice. Turning around, Sebastian scanned his surroundings and in a matter of seconds, his eyes found her. His secretary was sitting next to the window. There was a man sitting in front of her but Sebastian could not see his face as his back was to him. However, he could tell that this man was definitely not Dylan or Damon or whatever the name of the boyfriend she had introduced him to last week. He decided to slowly approach her table.

"I'm sorry. I really don't want to do it but I have to. I must tell you that I'm engaged."

Sebastian suddenly froze. He felt a moment of horror. Was that why Andin had been rejecting him? Had he been hitting on an engaged woman? Damn. He had so many apologies to make.

Her eyes flicked at him and for a moment, they were staring at each other. Then the next moment, her hand shot out and she was pointing at him. "To him."

Sebastian froze at his spot. He would've looked behind him if not for the fact that the man who sat in front of Andin had just turned to look at him.  

* * * * * * *