His Burden To Bear

Isabelle

I waited around at Noami's the next few days, I was trying to be reasonable and give Sterling a minute to come around. I figured maybe if he had enough time to think, he'd decide I wasn't worth losing over what secret he's keeping.

Unfortunately he never did.

I've made the decision that I'm not just going to sit on my ass and be heartbroken over him, again. Instead I need to do what's best for me and that involves breaking this stupid contract with Damon so that I can leave this place behind.

"Mr. Tipton will see you now." Stacey, his assistant gently smiled.

"Thank you." I got up from the couch and headed into the office.

I could feel the nerves coiling in my stomach as I entered inside. I know Damon wanted me to give this a chance but it would only hurt me more to stay. I hope he can see my points and let me out of it without too many repercussions.

"Ms. Avildsen, have a seat please." Damon motioned to the chair in front of him.

I sat down, forcing back all the nerves inside of me. "Thank you for agreeing to see me on such short notice Mr. Tipton."

"No problem." He straightened up and folded his hands on his desk. "I assume this is in regards to Sterling, correct?"

"Yes." I nodded as I glanced down to avoid his intense eyes.

"Of course it is." Damon scoffed. "I don't know what's gotten into him the last few days but his behavior cannot be excused."

"I agree." I sighed as I looked back up at Damon. "I was hoping he would tell me what's going on but he hasn't even reached out since I left the penthouse."

Damon studied me for a moment, I could sense that maybe he was a little surprised by his son's actions. Sterling made it clear how much I meant to him, the fact he was willing to watch me walk away and not say anything more is odd… unless he lied about how much he loved me.

I could feel uneasiness pool into my stomach at that thought. I feel like I let my walls down too quickly for him when I should've continued to guard my heart. Unfortunately what's done cannot be undone.

This mess wasn't all of Sterling's fault. I'm the one who gave into the temptation in front of me. I'm the one who let him get under my blouse and I caved into him so fucking quickly because I still hoped he was the man I had loved for so many years.

Damon shook his head. "Something's gotten into him. However, that's not your problem to deal with. What brought you in here Isabelle?"

"I was hoping to end the contract I had signed with you." I couldn't help the pleading look that took over my face.

I know Damon takes business very seriously and well, this was a business agreement. I just hope he takes into account the situation I'm in and doesn't force me to stick around. It'll only make things worse and I don't know if my heart could take seeing Sterling again at this point.

"I figured that's what it was." Damon responded.

His face was emotionless and his tone was flat. I couldn't tell what was going on in his mind but hopefully it would work in my favor.

"You know Isabelle, working here at Tipton Enterprises is very sought after by assistants." Damon's voice was low as the words left his lips. "If Sterling is the issue then I can set you up in a new position. For example, Killian could use an assistant that I know he won't fuck."

I almost choked on my own spit by how blunt he was with Killian. Of course, that should be expected. Damon Tipton isn't exactly known to beat around the bush.

"I don't think so." I shook my head.

While being Killian's assistant could be fun because he is a close friend, it still would involve me seeing Sterling. To avoid him I needed to be out of the company completely. Hell, I needed to be completely out of Tennessee to avoid seeing him.

"Okay." Damon nodded. "Are you sure this is what you want Isabelle?"

"Yes." It's the only thing that felt like it would work in my favor. "I want out of the contract and I'd like to just be sent back to my old job, that way everything can go back to how it was before."

"Nonsense." Damon's voice was firm. "Isabelle, I'll be honest with you. The contract was to get you to stay here because I felt my son should have a second chance to maybe fix the mess that had been created years ago. You actually gave him a shot, so as far as I'm concerned you completed your end of the agreement. It's only right if I fulfill my promise."

"What do you mean?" I asked as my brows furrowed in confusion.

"I told you in our first meeting when you arrived that I would give you a recommendation to some other companies." His eyes seriously looked into mine. "I'm a man of my word Isabelle, just tell me where you'd like to go and I'll get you into one of the best assistant positions that's out there."

"I don't know." I exhaled a low breath.

To be honest I didn't think I'd actually get this far. I expected Damon to tell me to suck it up and I had to stay. I'm a little surprised he's so willing to allow me to end the deal that had been made.

"Just anywhere he won't be able to find me easily." I added, I really didn't care at this point. I just didn't want to be here.

"Okay." Damon nodded as he stood up. "Give me a few days, I'll get with my contacts and get something sorted for you."

"Thank you." I felt relieved, I would be getting out of here before I knew it and I wouldn't have to even look back at this mess.

"Of course." Damon responded. "Is there anything else you'd like to go over?"

"No." I shook my head and stood up. "That'll be all."

I shook his hand and headed for the door. I stopped for a moment, turning around to face him. Part of me felt like this had been too easy.

"Why are you so willing to allow this?" I asked quietly. "You seemed so hell-bent on making Sterling and I work."

"The world has me pegged as heartless." Damon answered. "My wife can assure you that I'm not. I will not force you to stay just to have my son break your heart even more, that would be like a punishment you don't deserve. And as I mentioned before, you gave Sterling a second chance and he's the one who decided to fuck up this time. This is his burden to bear, I refuse to let you share it with him."