Done being friends, p.1
Done Being Friends, page 1
Contents
Dedication
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty One
Epilogue
About Author
More Books From Author
Dedication
Dedicated to Jesus, for without You, nothing is possible.
To Jeremy, who always think that I am able.
To Jhao, your casual words got me started on the first word in this book.
Prologue
“Faith? Why are you sitting here?” Confusion and indignation blended into Zac’s handsome features. His blue eyes, like that of a perfect day, darkened, and the fine lines within the deep blue raged like a storm.
Once again, Faith found herself swept away in the currents of his eyes.
“Faith? Why are you sitting here?” Zac repeated his question as he stretched out his hands to pull Faith up to her feet.
Faith remained silent, thinking it through in her head for a way to phrase her answer without getting anyone into trouble. Then, she saw Zac’s brows furrow deeper and knew he was getting impatient. He never had any patience when he felt that she wasn’t being well taken care of.
“I was waiting for you,” she paused slightly, considering her words before speaking them. “I tried calling, but I guess Mindy was busy, and she didn’t pick up.”
Instantly, Mindy’s eyes widened and she rummaged in her bag for her cellphone, while Zac turned to look at her with an unforgiving glare.
“Zac, it wasn’t her fault. When she didn’t pick up, I didn’t bother to call again cos’ I thought the two of you were probably busy. The genius in me thought I would just come by and see if I could get you here. I should have called again.” She placed her hand on his arm, drawing his attention back to her.
Mindy gave Faith a small smile, grateful that she had stepped in to help. Zac was an excellent boss, but when it came to Faith, Zac could become rather scary. She knew that no matter how well she performed at work, if she were to ever do anything that would cause a mere inconvenience to Faith, she would be thrown out before she could explain or apologize.
“Why didn’t you call me?”
“You know I don’t like to disturb you.” A long-standing debate between them that neither had yet to give in.
“All right,” Zac knew better than to dwell on their Pandora’s Box. “Then why are you still here in the lobby and not up in my office?”
“Zac, this is your office building. Technically, I am in your office.” Faith flashed him a bright smile, hoping that he would just let the issue pass.
He softened, but rolled his eyes and pressed Faith for an answer. “I have known you long enough to know that you do this when you are trying to get my mind off the main issue. So, why are you still here in the lobby?”
Faith sighed. There is no way he is going to let it go. “Your front desk lady said that I couldn’t go in without an appointment.”
Zac drew in a deep breath as he turned toward the counter.
“Zac, please. It’s a small thing, don’t...”
Zac didn’t hear a single word. He took Faith’s hand and strode toward the front desk. “Who was the one who denied Miss Preston from entering my building?”
There was no need for a verbal answer. The one in question blanched the moment she saw Faith.
Faith cringed and looked away, turning to Mindy.
Mindy knew Faith wanted her to step in to stop what was to befall the poor woman at the counter, but Mindy raised both her palms up and shook her head. When Zac had his armor on for Faith, it was best to simply stay out of the way or risk getting slaughtered along the way.
“Zac...” Faith said his name in a whisper, but Zac heard her. His hand tightened, and he pulled her close.
“Miss Preston is my personal friend. She is one of the few who can stroll in here without an appointment, and I will drop all my work for her. So, unless there is a threat or a fire in the building, she is to be allowed anywhere she wants. You understand me?”
Faith’s free hand cupped over his, letting him know that it was enough.
He sighed softly when he turned and saw her anxiety. Giving her a reassuring smile, he turned back to the woman. “The only reason I’m not firing you at this very moment is because I know she will get upset with me over it.”
Faith chuckled. She knew the worst was over.
“However, I can assure you that if this is to ever happen again, I will fire you.”
“I understand, Mr. Hayden.” The front desk lady nodded and kept her head low, avoiding Zac’s eyes.
Leaning close to Zac’s arm, Faith gave Zac a light tug. “Let’s go.”
Chapter One
Faith entered the Hayden’s office building and walked straight up to the security gantry. She held the security card in her hand and scanned the card that would give her full access to every part of the building.
She saw the initial skepticism on the security guard’s face, but he instantly wiped it off, giving Faith a polite smile and a nod as she entered the gantry, and strode toward the lift.
Marbled floorings tiled the lobby, and a song that Faith couldn’t recognize played in the background. The entire lift area was empty, except for a man clad in the usual well-pressed black business suit with a crisp white shirt. It wasn’t unusual, considering that it was lunch-time, and most of the employees would be out having their lunch break.
The man was fully focused on his Blackberry, pressing away on the tiny buttons while he waited for the lift. When he felt Faith’s presence, he lifted his eyes from the phone for a second, and cast a quick glance at her. His eyes registered the unfamiliar face and were returning to his phone when he saw what she was wearing.
Her casual indigo blue jeans, T-shirt and sneakers were a stark contrast to what anyone would wear to work. Faith could feel his eyes scrutinizing her from head to toes. She coiled her fingers around the strap of her bag and looked away. She had never enjoyed being the center of attention, and his scrutiny was making her uncomfortable.
As the lift door opened, Faith hesitated for a moment, wondering if it would be better to wait for another lift. Chiding herself for being absurd, she trotted in behind the man. He scanned his security pass, pressed the button for the twenty-fourth level and stepped back for Faith to press the button.
His watchful eyes never left Faith as she stepped forward, scanned her card, and pressed the button for the fortieth floor.
The fortieth floor belonged to Zac’s personal office. Zac and Mindy were supposed to be the only ones who had a card to access that particular level. Anyone else would require special permission from either of them to enter.
Faith used to call Mindy to let her know that she was here; so that Mindy could let her in. However, Zac had once gotten back to find Faith sitting in the lobby because Mindy had missed her call, and the front lobby refused to let her get through to Zac without an appointment.
He was furious that Faith didn’t call him directly, for he would have settled the problem immediately. Yet, instead of giving her a lecture, he redirected his anger to the front desk lady. Faith knew that if she hadn’t been there beside him, he would have dismissed her on the spot.
Zac had always been protective of her that way. His first priority was always to protect her, even if the situation was due to her own fault.
Despite the warning he had given to the front desk, it wasn’t enough to satisfy Zac. The very next day, Zac drove over to her house, and gave Faith her own security card.
Faith had laughed and shook her head in disbelief, but accepted the card anyway. She knew that Zac wouldn’t relent in his stubbornness when it came to protecting her.
Back in the lift, Faith was wishing that she had thrown the card out. She would rather have waited for him in the lobby than to have his staff’s eyes focused on her like she was some kind of terrorist, sneaking in to destroy the building.
Faith kept her eyes straight and placed a nonchalant look on her face, pretending that the man didn’t exist.
Just before stepping out of the lift, the man gave her another suspicious, or perhaps, quizzical look. Again, Faith looked away. She pretended to be examining her reflection. When the lift door closed, Faith let out an audible sigh. Doesn’t he know that it is rude to stare?
Shaking her head, she checked her watch and wondered if Zac would be in his office. She would have called, but was afraid to disturb him.
Zac could never understand why she was so unyielding about the issue. He always told her that he didn’t mind her disturbing him, and that he would drop anything that he was doing for her.
Faith knew that for a fact, but precisely because she knew that, she never liked calling him during working hours.
She stretched her back and took in a deep breath, trying to shake off the weariness that was plaguing her. She had just wrapped up her latest mission trip, gotten off the plane and came straight here to look for Zac.
This time around, her trip was much more fruitful. Not only did she get to teach English to the children in Indonesia, she had managed to invest money in a factory, and helped to provide some work for the locals.
Though she had chanced onto the project and thought it was a brilliant idea, Faith was rather apprehensive about taking it up.
She knew that having a stable income would mean a world of difference to the families. A factory where the women could sew and sell their traditional clothes, providing income to their family and contributing to the economy. However, she didn’t have any experience.
A million different things could go wrong, and she could end up wrecking everything, but she couldn’t deprive the village of their opportunity simply because she had fears. So, she dived into it clueless, praying that God would take care of the details for her. And He sure did.
Everything on the trip had gone smooth enough for her to get back on time.
She had previously emailed Zac, telling him that the trip might be delayed for another few days. When all the administrative nightmares finally got settled, she found herself making a mad dash toward the boarding gate, getting there just in time before they shut the door in her face.
Even before the plane took off, Faith was asleep. The fatigue that she had managed to keep at bay suddenly overwhelmed her. When she got off the plane, she dragged herself all the way into George’s car and was dozing off throughout the drive to Zac’s office.
George, her housekeeper, had tried to persuade Faith into going straight home, but she had insisted on dropping in on Zac first.
As the lift’s door opened, Faith stepped out to absolute silence and sunlight streaming in through the glass windows. Her sneakers slipped slightly as she walked on the marble flooring. It had either just been recently polished, or perhaps it was time to get another pair of sneakers. Mindy wasn’t at her desk, so she just strolled right past, and headed toward Zac’s office.
She leaned her ears onto the door, trying to listen to any sound that would indicate Zac or someone being inside, but there didn’t seem to be any sound or movement within. Thinking that Zac was out for lunch, she pushed the door open.
“Gosh, sorry!”
Her apology was coupled with gasps from the unknown female whose tongue was currently in Zac’s mouth. Faith immediately turned around and stepped out before anyone said anything else.
Faith’s finger splayed across her face as she shook her head. She wasn’t sure if she was embarrassed or irritated, although she really had no cause to be feeling the latter.
She made her way toward the other side of the room where a black leather sofa leaned against a thick glass wall.
She certainly shouldn’t be surprised to see another woman draping herself all over Zac. He had grown up in a family without love. His parents were like strangers living under the same house. Over the years, Zac seemed to have convinced himself that no one would ever truly love him simply for who he was, and that happy-ever-after didn’t exist anywhere, except in fairy tales.
What made it worse was that he never had to seek out women; they came to him in droves. He was after all, extremely good looking. His dark brown hair only emphasized his clear blue eyes, making him look dangerously sexy. Standing over six feet, he had broad shoulders that made anyone around him feel safe, and the hours spent in the gym had produced his chiseled muscles that put him on par with Roman gods.
Then, there was the success in his family business that had placed him in the top ten bachelor lists of various magazines for the past few years.
The Hayden’s company had been at its best and most profitable ever since Zac took over. His father had passed away in a car accident during his last year of college. He was suddenly thrown into a world of sharks, with business partners and even family members who were obviously fishing in muddy waters. Everyone was trying to manipulate or intimidate him into doing things their way.
Fortunately for the company, Zac was a brilliant businessman. Much better than his father, Blake Hayden, ever was. Zac had grown the Hayden empire bigger than what his father could have ever achieved.
The company was at its most prosperous, and with what many economic magazines had said, had limitless potential.
Faith had never met any of those women who graced magazines or news with Zac, except for the occasional times when they saw each other at a function. Even then, Zac had never bothered to introduce them to her. He would simply leave them with whoever they were speaking to, and go talk to her.
It never really mattered to Faith; she always knew he never took any of the women seriously. Why then did sourness seem to be creeping up on her? Why couldn’t she shake the image of that blond bimbo in her short black dress clinging onto him?
They were just kissing. You guys are just friends. Grow up. Faith reminded herself.
“Faith!”
Faith jumped and spun around. Zac’s voice had brought her out of her trance, and she found herself steps away from her devastatingly handsome friend.
Devastating because that was all they were ever going to be - friends.
“I don’t have to go, you can tell her to leave. I’ll wait,” an annoying, shrill voice whined. The woman behind the voice pranced up behind Zac, hooked her arms into his and leaned onto him.
A fresh wave of annoyance and rage washed over Faith, or perhaps, it was jealousy. When Faith tried once again to remind herself that she had no right to feel that way, another wave of frustration crashed into her.
The blond bimbo gave Faith a quick head-to-toe glance, and glared at Faith with a smug look on her face. The look of contempt was enough to instantly morph all that she was feeling into self-consciousness.
Faith looked at the blond and had to admit to herself that she was beautiful. Her features were sharp, and she was well-polished. It was obvious the woman had taken time in every inch of her. Her make-up and hair were perfectly set; her manicured nails gleamed, and her clothes, as compared to what Faith was wearing, were chosen with much greater care.
Running through a mental image of herself, Faith felt sloppy and out of place. Should have listened to George and gone home first.
Zac stood looking at his angel. He always wondered how Faith seemed to constantly outshine all the women he had ever met. Her porcelain face was flawless and perfect, even without any make-up. Though clad only in jeans and T-shirt, Zac thought that she looked like a model walking out of a magazine.
Without even looking at the blond, Zac pulled his arm from her, and flashed Faith a wide grin. “She leaves for no one. I will never choose anyone over her.”
His statement, made so simply, threw the smugness from the blond’s face, and embarrassment took over.
Faith couldn’t help but smile. She knew that she could rely on Zac for anything. It wouldn’t matter if it were the day that the world would end. If Faith ever needed help, or even just some kind words and a hug, he would be there.
Faith wasn’t one of his many women and one-night-stands. They were childhood friends who grew up and played together. Zac was her friend, probably her best friend; someone whom she knew would back her up even if the rest of the world would scorn his decision to do so. They were friends, really good friends, but just friends.
The blond was, however, not ready to give up. She placed an exaggerated pout on her well painted face and was about to speak again when Zac moved forward and closed the gap between Faith and him, dismissing the blond from his mind.
The blond rolled her eyes and gave Faith a final glare before trotting off toward the lift.
Not waiting for the bimbo to get into the lift, Zac drew Faith into his arms and hugged her.
“I missed you,” he had whispered the words so softly that it felt like a caress.
Faith leaned her head onto his chest, feeling his warmth and strong arms around her. Zac was tall, but she fitted into him perfectly. She would have loved to stay in that position for as long as she could, but her heart had picked up speed, pounding away within her chest. Faith took a step back and stepped out of his hug, praying that he didn’t feel the wild palpitations that his simple hug did to her.
