If the ride to the mall had been quiet, then the ride back was both quiet and tense. Damian refused to even look at me and he headed toward his room as soon as we reached home.
I decided to follow, but the secretary gave me a look that told me that she wanted me to stay back.
Usually, I was not someone who indulged others. But something about the situation made me pause and give her some of my time. And that turned out to be a mistake on my part.
"Hey, don't go thinking that you are something special just because my boss is paying some attention to you. You're just a new novelty that is playing an important role in his plan. That does not mean you are someone important to him."
The secretary repeated herself like a broken record, but she did not fail to make her word sound possessive.
She was like a predator, staking a claim to her prey. However, in this case, the prey was too out of her reach to matter.
I was also not one to get outdone by others, nor was I a sitting duck here to take the verbal abuse. I decided to dish back what I got.
"Hmm, I know my place, but do you? Damian needs me for his plan, however, we cannot say the same for you, right? A secretary is much more replicable than you think."
With how high Damian paid his secretary and how secretive mafia's work was (it could not be handed to the public secretary) her job was all pay and not much work. Maybe that was why the secretary was pushing her limits.
"Y-You-!... Fine, be like this if you want to. I was about to offer you help as well once you were cast out by my boss…."
The secretary raged and I quickly got out of the car.
Had it been my body from two years ago, I might even have taken the secretary's challenge to fight seriously. But I could not do that in my current body.
I watched as the secretary drove away, her anger still shining brightly in her eyes. I just waved her off before heading back inside.
"You are late. Where were you and what were you doing?"
Damian asked me as soon as I entered his house. He was waiting for me right beside the main entry door and he looked uncomfortable as he stood there.
He could have gone and changed by now if he wanted to. But the fact that he did not could only mean one thing—he did not trust me and thus, he had waited for me.
So I did my best to reassure him that I was on his side.
"Don't worry. I am on your side here. I will not run away before I do what I am hired to do."
I assured Damian and his eyes widened just a little bit. He looked flustered and turned his head away.
"That was not what I… ugh, nevermind…"
Damian shifted on his feet a little before he left for his room. I also followed him and took my dress to my room.
There was a lot of jewellery and makeup ready for me and I quickly picked up the best I could for tomorrow in advance.
Once it had all been arranged, I relaxed. Damian also did not come to seek me out for anything. We had dinner together but we did not talk.
All the while, Damian kept looking at me. His silence felt suffocating and I finally asked him what was bothering him.
"Is there… something you want to talk to me about?"
I asked and Damian looked flustered, his mouth opening and closing in shock a few times. Finally, he decided to ask me his question.
"Your table manners are rather… refined. Did someone teach them to you? Where did you learn them from?"
Damian asked in a rather suspicious manner.
"I had a tutor teach me these manners by my parents. They were not the best parents, but they did make sure I had enough skills not to embarrass them."
I told Damian as I paused to eat. I wondered whether it was the right time to tell him about my real identity. But Damian just blinked as he considered what I told him before his eyes narrowed.
"Hmm, so even parents in debt consider the best for their children. It seems that you are a rather ungrateful daughter."
Now that hurt and felt uncalled for.
I did not let Damian's words get to me because I knew he lacked the context of my current situation, but that did not mean that I liked hearing these words either.
My appetite was killed but I still kept eating. Once finished, I picked up my plate and left it on the counter for someone to come and clean.
Damian seemed a little uncomfortable with my silence as well, and he tried to ask me what happened with his eyes.
But I refused to look at him this whole time.
Finally, he got the hint and decided to leave me alone.
"Make sure you are ready for tomorrow's party. I will pick you up from your room at 6."
I had never been taken to a party as a partner by anyone who was not my fiance. Karl was the only one who had been allowed to be my partner ever since we got engaged. But it was not for a romantic or loyalty reason.
It was only reason he kept asking me to go with him was because of the public opinion. He was afraid of what the public would say if he left me alone.
That was why he kept asking me and I kept agreeing. But once at the hall, he was quick to abandon me until I was needed once more.
It made me wonder how different it would be to be escorted by someone else? Somehow, this party was beginning to look rather exciting to me as well. I could suddenly not wait for it to come faster.