So the rest of the previous day was kind of boring for Saphira after she had done her grocery shopping. When she returned to the apartment, she went and informed the manager that she now had a car and would be parking in her allocated parking space. The management was fine by this as she informed them before parking the car there. They were actually happy to allow her to park her car there. With that, Saphira spent the day in her apartment just sketching.

She actually finished the sketch she made of the Porsche itself, and she was very happy with the completed image. She made sure to capture the body stripe and the strange face mark on the hood of the car as well. Then she sketched the interior of the car. She has been told she could make a lot of money with her skill, but she didn't want her hobby to turn into work at the moment.

Saphira did try calling Dylan that night too, but he never answered or even responded after she left a few messages. She was worried that their relationship would be rocky simply because she had a new car. She still thought it was ridiculous, but she also couldn't do much about. If it happens that way, she would deal with it. But for the moment, she just figured he was just sulking and he will come back.

As for the next few days, Saphira would arrive into work expecting to be harassed by Claudia. To her surprise, she was not, and she was able to get work done faster than normal. She heard rumors that Claudia was forced to stay in her area because of her actions earlier in the week. So this was disciplinary by Arthur it would seem. She figured that the woman deserved it.

After the last few days, it was now Friday. Saphira was happy about the upcoming weekend as she hoped to spend it with her boyfriend. And as for the project she and her team have been working on is likely going to be finished before the deadline. She was happy about that, and she has told her team that they could finish it today so that way they could relax on Monday before they are given their new project to work on. That is, if Arthur was happy with it of course.

Saphira was currently finishing up a draft after reading it over when she heard her door opening suddenly. She didn't need to look up to know who it is. She sighed and glanced at the time to see it was just after two before looking up at Claudia. "Hi, Claudia. Are you here to speak to me about something important?"

"Not really. But I heard you got yourself a new car." She raised an eyebrow at Claudia as she was surprised. Saphira has not told anyone about it. Only Arthur knew about it. Claudia simply grinned at her. "It must be nice to drive around now without needing a bus."

"It is nice. I only will use it on my days off though." Saphira glanced at her computer screen before looking back at Claudia. "How do you know that I have a new car?"

Claudia acted all surprised by Saphira's question and she simply smiled at her. "I think I overheard someone talking about it at lunch few times. Why are you asking? Surely everyone knows about it."

Saphira tapped her fingers on the desk thoughtfully as she took a deep breath. "There's a problem with your story, Claudia. I have not told anyone that I have a new car. At least no one who works here."

Claudia widened her eyes as her story was already foiled. "Really? Uh, well you did just confirm that you have a new car. But I swear I heard it from someone else in the office."

Saphira knew that she did confirm she had a new car, but she still wondered where she heard it. "That might be true, but there are only two people who know I have it. Did you overhear it from Arthur?"

"Yeah, I did," Claudia responded quickly with a smile. "I overheard him talking about it. I am kind of surprised that you decided to go and waste money on a car." She chuckled softly as Saphira rolled her eyes. "A girl like you should have used that money to fix that face of yours."

Saphira shook her head in irritation. "Claudia, what I do with my money is not your concern. You can bitch and gossip about it all you want, but having a car changes nothing about me. You are just making yourself look jealous." The woman tensed as soon as Saphira said that she was jealous. "I need to finish my work for the day, Claudia. I suggest you do the same. You need to stop coming to my office for the sake of making trouble."

Claudia took a deep breath as she glared at Saphira. "I want you to listen very carefully. I am not jealous of you. I have never been jealous of you." Saphira found that hard to believe, but she wasn't going to argue with her. "I have been here longer than you. You might have worked your way into this management position, but don't expect to keep it for very long. I will make sure you leave soon. I hate coming to work everyday simply because I know that you are here."

"Those are just stupid, petty reasons, Claudia," Saphira said bluntly as she continued to work on her document. "I know you feel threatened by my presence, but that isn't my problem. Keep working hard and you will move up eventually too."

"Don't worry, I will. But you will stay out of my way." Saphira just nodded without a response, as she was annoyed by the woman. Claudia only got angrier from that response. "You think you are so full of it, it makes me sick. You might have a new car, but you are not better than me. And you will find out soon enough."

With that, Claudia stormed out of her office and slammed the door behind her. Saphira just sighed deeply as she was irritated by that woman. She honestly never made sense. Claudia had it out for Saphira since day one, and it was as if she already knew the girl. Saphira did wonder how that was the case, but she knew she really couldn't question it. She just took it that Claudia was feeling threatened by a younger woman.

Saphira just ignored the comments Claudia has made to focus on her work. She would ask Arthur if he told Claudia or if he said something about her new car in listening distance from the other employees. She wasn't exactly worried about the others finding out, but she disliked that, for some reason, Claudia is using it as more ammunition to mock her. She didn't know why it was something else for her to be pissed about.

As she was finishing up the draft, she glanced her phone to see it was ringing. She saw it was not an office number, so someone from outside the office was calling her. She picked up out of curiosity. "You're speaking with Saphira, how may I help you?"

"Hi, Saphira." It was Dylan! He sounded very guilty. "I wanted to apologize for my behavior earlier this week. I know you're still working, but I got off early and I couldn't wait for you to get home."

Saphira smiled as she listened to him, relaxing back in her chair. "I am happy to hear your voice, Dylan. And thank you for the apology. I am sorry if you felt like I offended you, but I truly did not buy the car for that reason. And I have plenty of money saved up, so you don't need to worry."

"I am glad that you are taking this very well, Saphira. I want to make up to you, so I am thinking of taking you out tomorrow night." That was a great idea! Saphira was thinking about that too. "There's that Italian restaurant you like so much, and I've made a reservation for us. Would you like to go?"

"How can I say know when you have already made the reservation?" Saphira responded with a light chuckle. "I would love to come with you. I might get a new dress tomorrow for the occasion too. Do you want me to pick you up, or…will you want to take a taxi?"

Dylan was silent for a moment, and Saphira hoped that she did not upset him again. He took a minute before he responded to her. "I'll take a taxi I think, Saphira. It will be faster honestly. But you are welcome to drop me home if you want, and maybe you could stay over."

She blushed as this was the first time he's suggested for her to stay over. "I think I will consider it. It will be nice to stay overnight for the first time and enjoy your company."

"Sounds like a plan! Sorry for interrupting your work."

"You didn't really. I'm almost finished an important project, so you really didn't interrupt me at all." Saphira began looking over the draft as she continued to talk to Dylan. "What time is the table booked for?"

"Seven o'clock."

"Got it!" Saphira made sure she would remember that. "I shall see you tomorrow night, Dylan. I need to finish off this draft and send it to Arthur, so I might end up leaving work early if you want to ring me again at home."

"I am afraid I'll be out with the boys tonight, which is another reason why I'm calling now." She chuckled a little as she fully understood what he was saying. "But I am glad that you are willing to forgive and forget what I did. I apologize again, Saphira. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow night. Have a good rest of the day."

Dylan hangs up before Saphira could respond. She sighed in frustration as he does that a lot. She really did not like that at all, but that was just Dylan. He wasn't always rash and blunt, so Saphira overlooked the small faults. She returned to finishing up the draft so she could send it through to Arthur. She wanted it to be in before the end of the day. Arthur did give her permission to allow her team to leave early if they finish their work. But Saphira would wait for a response from Arthur before she let them go home.

She took a half hour to finish the draft and sent it to Arthur's email. She knew he was still in the building, so she hoped he would see it and that he would give her the green light very quickly. She took the opportunity to have a quick toilet break and get herself a glass of water before returning back to her office. She didn't see any notification, so she simply took the time to overlook the other drafts that the team had sent her to see if she could have used them in the draft she had sent Arthur.

She sat there for about ten minutes before her phone went off again. She was surprised and she looked at the number on the screen of the phone to see it was Arthur's number. She smiled as she guessed he was calling to talk to her about the draft, so she picked it up to hear what he had to say. "Hello, Arthur. I assume you received the draft?"

"I did. It is very wonderful, Saphira," Arthur responded in a happy, professional tone. "The promotional material you and your team have come up with is some of the best I have seen in a long time. I kind of wish I had you on the NASA project instead of Claudia's team."

She chuckled gently as she relaxed in the chair. "Well, we cannot really take everything good away from her team, Arthur. Claudia's team work very hard, so I think they definitely deserve it."

"Yeah, I agree." Arthur took a deep breath as he thought on it. "I won't punish them because of her. Speaking of, I have some good news." She raised an eyebrow in surprise as she listened to him. "I have been in talks with a couple European investors, and they would like our company to work with a few of the transport companies in Italy, France and Poland."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. This meant this company was getting bigger. "Really? That's wonderful! How did they hear about us?"

"I think they have seen our connections throughout this country, and even though I had wanted to work with Canadian transportation networks as well, it seems we will get into Europe before than. And possibly Dubai as well, as there is a big of chatter of supporting the transportation of oil from the region. Which means there could be new offices showing up around the world."

"That is wonderful news, Arthur! Have you told anyone else in the company yet?" Saphira was curious on how many others know of it. "I bet everyone will be thrilled to know."

Arthur chuckled a little, and he sounded a little off, which possibly meant he did not tell anyone. "Not yet. I am going to reveal it at the next meeting. I am telling you first because there is going to be a new position available." A new position? Saphira frowned curiously as she listened to him eagerly. "I need someone to oversee the relations between this company and our overseas investors. I believe you are perfect for the position. I know you can speak those languages."

She could not believe her ears. She was getting a promotion!? That was insane! Saphira never expected that. "Uh…I…y-yes I can speak Italian, French, Polish and Arabic, though I am not quite fluent in Arabic. I can definitely go and get lessons on that, but I did study Spanish, French and Italian in school before I fled my home and I learned both Polish and Arabic when I left. It helps that I read a lot. If we ever expand into Spain, I definitely can speak that language. And Mandarin will likely be a language I will learn in case we get a Chinese investor."

"That is why you are the best fit for this role, Saphira. You are the only multilingual person here at the company. My skills in those languages aren't great, so I'll need to brush up on them. I was thinking that you and I can go out to dinner tonight to discuss it."

"Wow…I actually was going to offer to take you and your boyfriend out for dinner to thank you for the car," Saphira said with a light chuckle. "This is kind of perfect to do both."

The man was instantly amused as he snorted over the phone. "I see. Well, I hope you don't take offence, but I won't be expecting you to pay for the both of us. He will be joining us. In fact, I managed to get a reservation. You and your team can leave early now." Saphira glanced at the time and saw it was just after three. "That way you have time to get home and shower before you get ready. The reservation is at the Ocean Prime restaurant at six-thirty."

Saphira wrote the time and restaurant name down on a notepad. "Ocean Prime's very hard to get reservations at. You must be a regular there to be on a cancellation list."

"You could say that," Arthur responded with a light chuckle. "And you also have an excuse to drive your car tonight. I very much would like to see it. I am afraid when Marcus owned it, I never saw it. And maybe you can take Nicholas and I out for a spin around the city. Even though I will probably take the Mercedes."

"True…but I am not too confident in that part of town, Arthur. I'll probably take the bus. Plus, I don't want to drive around at night."

"Oh, right…Manhattan is very busy all the time…hmm, well…" Arthur paused as he thought about it. "The bus station is not far from the restaurant…maybe Nicholas and I can meet up with you there. A lot of unsavoury people crawl out of hiding at that time of night, and even though this city is busy, it can get a bit creepy."

"Aw, thanks, Arthur. I appreciate that you look out for me a lot. And this new position sounds wonderful! I promise to not let you down."

"I know you won't. I shall see you tonight. Go and let your team free, I don't want to keep holding you back. I think I am going to take this draft and you can have an easy Monday. Although don't expect to stay comfortable as your current position will become available for someone else."

She giggled softly as she was happy for someone to take her post. "I could recommend a couple people from my team who I think would be great to takeover for me. But we can discuss that at dinner tonight." She really could not believe how things were turning out for her right now. "I am so excited! I'm meeting my boyfriend tomorrow for dinner as well, so I cannot wait to tell him the good news!"

"And I am sure he will be thrilled!"

"Oh, and one more thing, Arthur. Did you happen to be speaking about my new car with Claudia around you by any chance? She came in today saying some stupid things because she somehow found out I have a new car. And no one else knows."

Arthur was silent as he was surprised. "Um…no…I think only Lara knows, but you already know she never says anything to anyone else in the office. Did you tell anyone else about the car?"

Saphira had a bad feeling as she realized the possibility. "Yeah…just my…boyfriend…"

"Oh." Arthur was even more shocked as he heard her. "Maybe we should wait for tonight. Don't think too hard on it, Saphira. Go home, have a shower and wear a nice dress. As you know, you have to dress up for a nice restaurant. See you tonight."

"Yep…see you tonight…"

Saphira hung up as she was in shock at the moment. She really hoped that what she was thinking was not happening. Deciding to ignore the bad feeling at the moment, she got up from her desk to go into her team office to inform them that Arthur had given them the green light to go home early. And everyone was thrilled. Most of them were just talking among themselves with some tea and coffee in their hands. So when she told them to go home, they responded immediately, and Saphira was happy that they did.

She returned to her office to gather her things and put her computer on sleep mode. She wanted to get home to get herself ready. But she could not help but think of what she might have learned. If Claudia did not learn about hew new car from Arthur, the only other person Saphira knew she had told was Dylan. Unless Claudia had some connection to Marcus, which would be better in her mind. She did not want to think about anything else like she was starting to fear. Plus, Dylan is twenty-five and Claudia is a few years old than him…though that really wasn't very weird.

Saphira tried to push the negative thoughts into the back of her mind as she left the office and went to the bus stop to catch the bus home. She didn't want it to cloud her thoughts, but it was hard not to. She would certainly know more later, at least she hoped she would know later. She knew that Arthur probably did not have all the answers for her, but if he didn't actually tell Claudia and if Lara did not say anything either, that really left Dylan and Marcus.

If she's related the Marcus, at least I can see that being a reason. She's definitely not as nice as him.

Saphira distracted her mind by sketching, and she ended up sketching a basic house. It was the first thing that came to her mind, so she focused on that while waiting for her stop on the bus. She didn't get much of the house sketched when she got off to head into the apartment building to head up to her apartment. She was happy to be home so early so she could relax. It was so nice to be home before five, and it would definitely give her time to get ready.

Once she was home, Saphira showered first and took her time as she wanted to enjoy the shower. It was so nice to spend extra time doing some TLC for herself and enjoy the warmth of the water running down her body. She was mindful of the time though, so she didn't spend more than thirty minutes in the shower and blow dried her hair before putting on a nice, simple, shoestring green dress and light, natural makeup. She left her hair out and smiled to herself in the mirror. She was happy with what she had done.

By the time she was ready, it was just after five, which meant she needed to hurry. She made sure that the heels she chose to wear were not going to dig into her heels and toes as she walked quickly into them to the bus stop. When she took the keys with her, she was unaware that the car key itself was a tracker. It made the owner of the key itself aware of where she was going, and he was curious as to why she was leaving the apartment at this time of day. He had been surprised she had come home early, but he was curious. Unbeknownst to Saphira, she might find herself feeling surprised if she happens to see a car that almost looked exactly like hers parked in near the restaurant.

Saphira was glad that the bus trip would not be too long, but as this was a time of day where people were heading home from work, it was very busy on the road. It made her happy to decide that she did not bring the car with her. She most certainly would have been nervous and would have made a mistake, and she did not want to cause an accident during the first week she even owned the car. It would definitely be a waste of money if that were to happen, and she probably wouldn't buy another car for a while.

She kept checking the time as the bus rolled through the city. She could see that it was ticking away pretty quickly, and she was getting anxious. She knew she would get to the stop before six-thirty, but it still made her anxious about being late. But she wouldn't have to worry as an hour would pass, and the bus would finally reach the correct stop. She spotted Arthur and his boyfriend, Nicholas, waiting by the bus stop for her. She was relieved as she made it on time. And she knew the restaurant itself was only a few minutes walk, but it was still better to be there early.

She stepped off the bus and smiled as she walked over to the two men. "Evening Arthur, Nicholas…" She gave both of them polite nods. "Thank you for meeting up with me. I know I am early, but I wanted to get here early."

"So did we," Arthur responded with a smile and glanced at Nicholas. "This is Saphira, Nicholas. She's been a star ever since I hired her in my company. She's been performing so much better than those who I have employed before."

"It is a pleasure to meet you." Nicholas's smooth voice made Saphira raise an eyebrow slightly before she shook his hand. "Arthur here has told me so much about you. And now with such a great opportunity to present itself is amazing. And he has told me all about what he wants you to do."

"I am beyond excited!" Saphira said enthusiastically with a big grin on her face. "This is the kind of responsibility I had dreamed about. But this isn't the kind of place to be talking so loudly."

"I agree. Let's start making our way to the restaurant. If we take our time…" Arthur looked at his watch to check the time. "We have about twenty minutes to show up for the reservation. If we waste fifteen, we can get there early."

"That sounds like a plan!" Saphira said confidently as they began to walk away from the bus stop. "It is a shame I cannot show you my new car right now. But hopefully I can show it to you sometime soon."

Nicholas smiled at Saphira kindly. "Thanks for thinking about us, but you don't need to be in a hurry to show the vehicle to us, Saphira. We own more than one car, as Arthur and I happen to like collecting vehicles. It is likely we have a car like yours."

"Oh really? That's nice to know." Saphira was not surprised that they owned multiple cars. Arthur was a CEO, so he was making a lot of money. "What do you do for a living, Nicholas? I don't think I ever heard Arthur say what you do."

"Oh, well…" Nicholas was surprised she had asked the question and he began to act flustered. "Um, well, I am in the fashion business for men's fashion. I own a very large, well-known retailer for men. There's at least eighty stores around the country, with a further twenty stores in Canada and two in France."

"Really?" She was very impressed. She did notice the suits the two were wearing seemed very high quality. "That's pretty cool! I don't know many guys who are into fashion, but I am always curious about what men like to buy. I always see adds focused on women."

"I am afraid that is true. The fashion industry focuses on women more than men, but that is why I started my boutiques five years ago and they took off. If it wasn't for a French investor, I am not sure where I would be today. After all, all my designs are merveilleux!"

She giggled softly at Nicholas's use of the French word. "Well, the French label probably had something to with it."

The man nodded in agreement. "And now I am stretching into watches. It won't be the same as Rolex, but I will be opening the first watch store in New York in about four month's time. I am very excited to present it as we already have some amazing designs, and we are using real crystals, diamonds, gold and all the works in them."

"Wow…I am surrounded by successful people!"

"And you are joining us on that too, Saphira," Arthur said in an encouraging tone. "You may not own a company, and you may never own one. It isn't easy, it is very hard work. I didn't become wealthy overnight. But your skills are important, and I know you aren't interested in wealth, but I promise that your new position will have a very nice pay rise."

Saphira was still excited regardless of how much she would be paid. She really was looking forward to discussing business over dinner. She did not know how her boyfriend was going to react though. After seeing him react poorly to her car, she did not know how he would react to her getting a big promotion. She knew that Dylan wanted to become a developer with his company, meaning he wouldn't be in the dirt of building a new building. He would be involved with the architect process, and city planning, which would be a higher and better paying position. He's been aiming for that for a few years, and she didn't know how he would feel.

But as she walked with the two men towards the restaurant, she turned her head as she swore, she saw a car with the same color and markings are her Porsche. She figured she was just seeing things, so she didn't not react too much to the possible sighing of the car. She was looking forward to the dinner tonight, and that was all that mattered. It was business, nothing more, nothing less. And she hoped that this was what the cardinal was signalling when it flew into her apartment over a week ago.