Fighting Seduction Read Online Free

was curt. “Take a seat,
Aria. You’re one of the tellers here, correct? I see you whenever I walk in
through the front.”
    I nodded.
    “How long have you been working here?” He was
looking at his computer screen.
    “Just about three months. I worked at State Park
Bank for almost two years before that.”
    “As a teller?”
    I wanted him to get to the point.
    “Yes, sir,” I said meekly.
    “And you’re still in school?”
    Why was he asking me these questions when he was
obviously looking at a document that told him all the answers? Mr. Wilson was
not helping the moth situation in my stomach.
    “Yes, at Southern Eastern. Junior year.”
    “Really?” He finally looked at me with raised
eyebrows. “It says here that you have only been in college for two years.”
    “Yes, but I had excellent grades in many AP classes
so I had a whole year transferred over.”
    “Impressive.” It didn’t sound like a compliment, for
some reason. “Do you have any other jobs besides this one?”
    “No, just the bank. But I work insane hours, so it’s
practically two jobs,” I laughed nervously. He was not amused.
    “I see,” he said and typed something on his
computer.
    There were a few minutes of silence during which the
moths in my stomach participated in an intense war. I was just about ready to
throw up. This loan was my only bet— the only way I would be able to pay for my
mom’s surgery without dropping out of college. The future of my entire life
depended on whatever this Wilson guy was typing on his computer.
    When he finally looked up, my heart was pounding.
    “Here’s the thing, Aria,” he said without a single
expression on his face. “You seem like a smart girl with a very promising
future. However, between your college tuition and loans and your own living
expenses, and just this job to sustain yourself – even if it is, as you put
it,” he paused to make air-quotes, “‘practically two jobs,’ there is just no
way you will be able to handle a loan for 60,000 dollars.”
    My heart fell, and I could feel my eyes start to
prickle.
    “But I will be out of college in a little over a
year.” My voice was shaky. “And I will have an excellent job, I assure you, and
my situation will change completely.”
    “When that happens you can reapply for the loan.” He
actually looked a little apologetic.
    “I need to pay for my mother’s heart surgery.” I
don’t know why I said it. Studying to be a loan officer, I knew that there was
nothing Wilson could do personally. His reasoning was completely sound.
    “I’m really sorry to hear that, and I wish the bank
could help you out, but right now there is nothing we can do.”
    “I understand.” I did. That didn’t stop me from
wanting to run into the bathroom and bawl my eyes out. “Thank you.”
    My face was swollen and covered in tears by the time
I made it back to the teller’s booth.

 
    CHAPTER
4
    ZAYDEN
    She was crying. Crying women made me uncomfortable.
My mother knew this so well that I didn’t remember the last time I saw her
without tears in her eyes. At first it was about my dad’s death, so I used to
try and make her feel better, but slowly it became directed towards my dad, in
bitterness. At first I didn’t understand why she would speak of her dead
husband as though he were some sort of a monster, but snide comments here and
there about how I was handling my billions and it all started adding up. She
couldn’t believe that he hadn’t left a single penny in her name, which made no
sense to me at first either, but eventually the truth came out: she had been
cheating on him for years. With his lawyer. Who also happened to be one of his
best friends. He tolerated it while he was alive because he loved her or some
nonsense of that sort, but apparently this “love” thing was not that big of a
deal because he found a way to get back at her from the grave. It made me hate
her for a little bit, which added to the endless crying, but