Page 21 of Valentine’s Billionaire Auction

The office was buzzing with the usual post-event chatter when I arrived. I didn’t even get the chance to get some of the cheap coffee and check the job assignment board when my manager appeared in front of me.

“Kaira, can I see you in my office?”

His tone made my stomach drop. I knew I was probably in trouble after abandoning them without telling them I was leaving. Technically, I was done with my job, but my shift hadn’t been over.

I followed him into the office. He closed the door behind me and gestured for me to take a seat.

He sat down and looked at me. I saw pity on his face, which was my second clue this was not going to go well for me.

“Sorry about running out last night,” I said.

“Kaira, I’m sorry to do this, but we have to let you go.”

My heart sank. “What? Why?”

He sighed, rubbing his temples. “The auction. Your false bid—it’s a bad look for the company. Roman Kelly had to cover it, and we can’t afford that kind of scandal. We’ll start losing gigs.”

“It was a mistake,” I said, my voice shaking. “I sneezed. I didn’t bid!”

“Be that as it may,” he said, sliding a check across the desk, “this is your final paycheck. We wish you the best.”

I stared at the check, my mind racing. “That’s it? No severance?”

“We’re a small company, Kaira. We don’t have the budget for that. You were hired on a trial basis. It didn’t work out.”

I was stunned, my hands trembling as I took the check.

“But Mr. Kelly insisted on covering the bid. I told him I wanted to fix it, but he wouldn’t let me go back. He dragged me out of there!”

My manager’s face softened slightly, but there was a finality in his eyes that told me the decision was already made. “I understand it was a complex situation, but we have to consider the company’s reputation. We can’t be associated with unpredictability or accidents like this. There were a lot of complaints. One woman in particular was very upset that she did not win the bid.”

I felt defeated. It seemed so unfair—punished for something I hadn’t even intended to do. Suddenly, the office felt incredibly small, the air stiff and suffocating.

“Thank you for the opportunity,” I managed to say, my voice hollow. I stood up, clutching the check like a lifeline, but feeling it was just another reminder of yet another failed job.

He practically shooed me out of the office. I didn’t bother looking at any of my former coworkers. Stepping outside, the bright Los Angeles sun did little to lift my spirits. I felt small surrounded by people indifferent to my plight, each person absorbed in their own routines and dramas.

I walked aimlessly for a while, letting the noise of traffic and snippets of overheard conversations wash over me. My thoughts kept circling back to the unfairness of the situation. I hadn’t meant to bid at the auction, and yet here I was, jobless because of a simple mistake. If anyone should get fired, it was the damn auctioneer who couldn’t tell a bid from a sneeze.

The thought of going home and facing Carla with this news was daunting. She had her own worries about money; adding mine would only burden her further.

“Shit, shit, shit!”

Why couldn’t I get a job and just keep it?

8

ROMAN

The flash of cameras started the second my car pulled up to the curb outside my downtown LA office tower. I didn’t even have time to straighten my tie before a wall of reporters surged toward me, their microphones and smartphones thrust forward like weapons.

I stepped out of the car, my polished leather shoe hitting the pavement with practiced precision. A sunny January day in LA should’ve been glorious, but not when you’re fending off vultures.

“Mr. Kelly! Any comments on the recent acquisition rumors?”

“Are you dating a secret Kardashian?”

“Will you be selling your hotel?