Controlled By The Billionaire

*****

This time she didn’t cry in the car. She was numb, numb and lonely. The tears that started at the office didn’t continue but dried up as she walked out to her car and stepped in. She wasn’t going to the bar to work and she wasn’t going home. The need to drive until the pain that was crushing her chest disappeared was all that she could think about. But she knew it was useless, the pain would never go away, especially not since she would see Tristan for several more weeks until the album was done.

She drove twenty minutes from the city, until she hit Santa Monica. Before she knew it, Mel was at the beach. She pulled her car into a spot and exited the car, stopping to slip her shoes off before walking onto the sand. Mel ignored the beautiful homes that overlooked the beach and walked to the water, which was pleasantly warm. She would love to live closer to the beach, in a place she could get away from the city and relax.

If this album did well her dream may come true. Butterflies of a different kind fluttered through Mel’s stomach. Maybe everything happens for a reason and this whole Tristan thing was only a means to an end. Sighing, she sank down into the sand, resting her head on her knees. Maybe if she told herself that over and over she would believe it and her heart would stop feeling like it shattered into a million pieces.

*****

Tristan stood on his patio, past the pool, and looked over the cliff down at the beach below. There were only a few people on the beach at this time of day, the sun was still up and the air hot and dry, but it was well into the evening, the late summer sun making the day seem unending.

A few people surfed in the distance, their black wet suits reflecting the sun just like the water they were gliding over. Tristan wished to be anyone but who he was at the moment, one of the surfers or people on the beach would be just fine with him. A broken man with a painful past who pushed away the one person who made him feel whole again was the unfortunate body he possessed.

His heart quickened at the idea of seeing Mel around the office for the next few months before her album was released. But he couldn’t talk to her or be with her in any way. He’d already hurt her too much, and he was hurting too. It wouldn’t work, he wasn’t the type of guy who could be in a relationship and he would ruin it and make her hate him just like he did his parents. There was no use even trying.

Blowing out a long breath, Tristan raised his glass and took a swig. He was drinking too much the last two days and not eating enough. It didn’t matter. He would be back to his old self as soon as Mel moved on from Powers Records. Getting through these next few weeks would be hard but he’d survived being abandoned by his parents so this should be a cake walk.

Tristan glanced at the beach one last time, the hunched over silhouette of a dark haired woman catching his eye. No, it wasn’t Mel; he was just seeing her everywhere now that he regretted what happened. But regret was also an emotion that Tristan never felt, so he pushed it down and gulped down the rest of his drink. If he told himself he didn’t feel often enough maybe it would be true.

*****

Three weeks later Mel walked back into Powers Records. Her heart pounded a loud rhythm in her chest. She didn’t want to see Tristan, but some part of her evil heart wanted her to see him though she knew it would hurt.

The receptionist sat at her desk, looking as if nothing changed while Mel’s world fell down around her three weeks before. This was her first time back since he tossed her to the curb like yesterday’s garbage. They were putting her album together and she met outside of the office on two occasions with the PR firm who was handling her on behalf of Powers Records but she hadn’t set foot inside since her heart was crushed. Her heart was still in pieces but she was slowly picking them up and putting them back together. If Tristan didn’t want her then so be it, she would worry about her music career.

Sighing, she waved to the receptionist as she passed by her desk on her way to her meeting for album sound and mixing as well as the person who was doing her album art. As she approached the conference room she froze. Through the glass double doors she could see Tristan, sitting at the head of the table like a king on a throne, gesturing wildly with his hands. She couldn’t go in there. Mel turned and started to walk away from the conference room and back out to the reception area.

What am I going to do? She thought, wringing her hands in front of her as she walked.

“Mel? Where are you going? The meeting is in conference room A.” Mel turned at her name. It was Louis. He was the last person she wanted to see.

“Oh, I thought it was in the other wing in B,” Mel lied, averting her eyes so that he couldn’t tell.

Either Louis was poor at reading others or he didn’t care that she was lying because he took it at face value and steered her towards the conference room. Mel spotted Tristan with his back to the door this time, in a heated discussion with Rob and she released a big breath. Maybe she could sneak in and find a seat without having to speak to him. Just as she entered the room Tristan turned around. He turned so quickly and looked straight into her eyes she could have sworn he felt her presence.

“Mel.” He said her name in his deep, gruff voice and her skin began to prickle.

Why did he have such an effect on her?

“Uh, hi, Mr. Powers.” The formality just slipped out and Tristan frowned, his eyes growing dark.

Mel wanted to shrink into a corner of the room and disappear.

“Let’s get started,” Louis said, dense as ever to the tension in the room.

Rob raised an eyebrow at Mel and she shrugged, not wanting to make a big deal about the whole thing. Tristan sat down on his throne and Mel took the opposite seat from him on the far end of the table. He began to discuss the work they were doing with her album and the meeting flowed on as if the awkward moment when she entered the room never happened.

A few hours later they broke for lunch, still with a couple more hours left to go in the sound room. Mel was tired and hungry but didn’t want to eat in the conference room with everyone else. She needed air and to be away from Tristan’s roaming eyes. It was too much for her. Jumping up from her seat, Mel left the room as fast as she could without looking insane, pushing through the glass doors and heading towards the exit. She didn’t care where she had lunch or what she had.

“Mel.” Tristan was behind her.

Mel sighed, unable to turn around right away.

“I don’t want this to be weird for you. We are both professional and we can deal with this is a professional way.” Tristan moved closer, his scent reaching Mel’s nose.

Mel held her hand up so he wouldn’t come any closer. “I’m fine. I just need some air. I’ll be back.” With that last statement she stepped into the elevator.

Mel blew out a breath, resting her forehead on the cool stainless steel of the elevator wall. This was not going to be easy.

After lunch, Mel slunk into the building warily, hoping Tristan didn’t sneak up on her again. She didn’t want to speak to him or see him and being in the same room was difficult when it seemed he had moved on and she hadn’t. The conference room was empty which meant Louis and Rob were in the studio. Mel let out a relieved breath and turned back down the hall to head to the studio.