New beginning: Billionaire love story

Lisa sat on the couch, flipping through TV channels with the remote, looking like she had absolutely nowhere else to be. Her mother, standing in the doorway with a laundry basket in hand, was not amused. "Lisa," her mother started, clearly annoyed, "I don't understand how you got fired in the first place."

Lisa groaned and rolled her eyes. This conversation had been happening far too often lately. "Mom, I told you. The company didn't appreciate my skills."novelbin

Her mother crossed her arms, looking skeptical. "And what skills are those? Sitting around doing nothing?"

Lisa shouted her a glare, but her mother wasn't backing down. "You're 25, Lisa. A grown woman. You need to start taking responsibility. I've told you to look for a new job, and what have you done? Sat here watching TV for hours." "I've applied!" Lisa snapped, but the truth was, that her attempts were half-hearted at best. And she still hadn't heard back from anyone.

Her mother sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration. "You need to try again. You can't just sit here forever. You have to work, Lisa. I can't take care of you for the rest of your life. How about Metacortex? You could apply there."

At that, Lisa's eyes widened in horror. "Are you insane?" she practically shouted. "There's no way I'm working for Claire Peterson. I'd rather die than have to answer to that witch."

Her mother raised an eyebrow but said nothing. She just stared at Lisa, clearly expecting more.

Lisa crossed her arms, her annoyance turning into full-blown anger. "I'd lose all my pride if I worked there! No way am I going to be one of Claire's lackeys."

Her mother sighed again, her patience running out. "Then do something, Lisa. Anything. Find another job or I'm kicking you out."

Lisa rolled her eyes, sinking deeper into the couch. "Yeah, yeah," she mumbled, giving her mom a dismissive wave.

Hours passed by the TV drowning in the background while Lisa mindlessly scrolled through her phone. Suddenly, an idea hit her-an idea so brilliant, she sat up straight, eyes wide. Why hadn't she thought of this before? "Harris," she muttered to herself. "I could apply to work at Harris' company."

A slow grin spread across her face. Working there wouldn't just be a job. It would be the perfect opportunity to get close to Alexander. Maybe she could even make him fall for her again. She pictured it in her mind-Alexander, charmed by her presence, remembering how good they were together. It was perfect.

Without wasting any time, Lisa leaped off the couch and rushed to her room. She needed to prepare everything. A resume, her best outfit, and all the charm she could muster. She wasn't about to just apply online like everyone else. No, she'd go in person. See Alexander herself. That way, she could use all her tricks to make sure he'd accept her into the company.

Once she was dressed and ready, she gave herself one last look in the mirror. Perfect. Lisa smirked to herself, grabbed her bag, and headed out the door.

Arriving at Harris Corporation, Lisa felt a surge of excitement. The building was sleek and impressive, but her focus was entirely on the prize-Alexander. She was going to get his attention, no matter what.

First, though, she needed to make sure she looked flawless. She ducked into the ladies' room and stood in front of the mirror, touching up her lipstick. As she applied it, she heard someone enter the bathroom, heels clicking on the tiles.

"Yes, I'm definitely going to ask Alexander out," the woman's voice said, clearly on a phone call. "He's been single for a while now, and I think it's time to make my move."

Lisa froze, her lipstick hovering mid-air.

What did this woman just say? Ask Alexander out? Oh, no. That wasn't happening.

She glanced over at the woman through the mirror's reflection, recognizing her face but not quite placing her.

Lisa stayed calm, though. She

finished applying her lipstick and waited patiently for the woman to finish her phone call. When she finally hung up, Lisa turned to her with a polite, almost too-sweet smile. "Excuse me," she said "do you have a perfume I could borrow? I've got a job interview today, and I want to make a good impression."

The woman smiled back, clearly happy to help. "Of course! Here you go," she said, handing over her perfume.

"Thanks," Lisa said as she took it, then paused, tilting her head with a friendly expression. "I don't think I caught your name. I've seen you around before."

"Oh, I'm Abigail Hastings," the woman replied with a warm smile. "Good luck with your interview!"

"Thank you, Abigail," Lisa said, maintaining her cheerful façade. She sprayed a bit of perfume on herself and handed it back to Abigail, who then waved goodbye and exited the restroom.

As soon as Abigail left, the fake smile slid off Lisa's face. Her eyes narrowed, and she glared at her own reflection in the mirror, a wicked smirk creeping across her lips. Abigail Hastings, huh? Well, that was one name to remember. "She thinks she can ask my Alexander out?" Lisa muttered to herself. "Not a chance."

A crazy idea started to form in Lisa's mind, one that made her grin wider. No one, absolutely no one, was going to take Alexander away from her. She had promised herself that long ago. And if that meant playing dirty, so be it.

Claire stepped into her office, her eyes immediately spotting Matthew sprawled out on the couch. He lifted his head lazily when he heard the door click shut. "Well, look who decided to show up," he greeted her with a lopsided grin. "Where have you been?" She didn't answer right away, instead making her way to her desk and plopping into the chair with an exaggerated sigh. Leaning back, she closed her eyes for a moment before opening them to glance at Matthew. "It's been a day," she muttered. Matthew, now fully awake and intrigued, sat up straight, raising an eyebrow. "A day? That sounds like code for 'something went horribly wrong.' Spill, what happened?"

Claire ran a hand through her hair, then gestured vaguely toward the door. "Where do I even start?" she said, exasperated. "Let's see... Mateo Jones."

Matthew's brow furrowed. "Mateo Jones? Doesn't ring a bell." His hands automatically reached for his laptop, curiosity getting the better of him as he began typing away. "What did Mateo do?"

Claire shook her head, leaning forward and resting her chin in her hands. "I had dinner last night, just trying to get some peace, and out of nowhere, Mateo Jones just shows up and sits at my table. Uninvited which I have no idea that is Mateo Jones." "What happened?"

"He proceeds to disrespect me the entire time. Even tell me to find another. The funny thing is that the table is reserved for me and Mateo didn't even book a table. And today? He accuses me of stalking him and ruining his meeting." Matthew let out a snort. "Stalking him? That's rich."

"He thinks that the world revolves around him." Claire rolled her eyes in annoyance.

Matthew, still tapping away on his laptop, raised his hand. "Hold on a sec. Let me took this guy up again... Oh wow. Claire, you've got to see this." He turned the screen toward her, and Claire leaned in, squinting at the image on the screen. "The man not only has a problem with his attitudes but also his receding hairline."

Claire chuckled, her mood lifting slightly. "How come I didn't notice that before." "What happened after?"

"I told Alexander if he still wanted to use Mateo for the hotel's publicity, I was going to pull out. I'm not dealing with that kind of nonsense. And you know what? To my surprise,

Alexander canceled the meetine

with Mateo right then and there. Told him to leave. I didn't expect it either. He's always prioritized business over everything else. At least, that's how I remember him from three years ago."

Matthew grinned knowingly. "You know what that means, right?"

Claire groaned, immediately sensing where this was going. "Don't even start. I would rather throw myself off the Metacortex building than have Alexander liking me."