Mr. King [Book 1]

Thirty-Seven

Things pretty much went back to normal in the following days of Ethan's departure. As normal as it could be anyway. There were no more surprise visitors. And no more tension between Katherine and Mr. King.

Circumstances hadn't really changed between them – they weren't anything more than they were before, but she could feel a noticeable weight lifted off her shoulders when it came to him. His mood seemed lighter as well, which she truly appreciated.

"Mr. King?" She called, knocking on his open office door.

"Yes, Miss Mason," he answered, looking up at her from the document he was reviewing.

"I am going to go out to run some errands. Do you need anything?" She asked him curiously.

She didn't expect him to need anything, but she still wanted to ask, mainly because she wanted to see him before she left.

"Nothing," he replied as he stared back at her, his expression unchanging.

"Alright," she said with a smile just before turning to leave.

"Uh, Miss Mason?" She heard him call to her.

"Yes, sir?" She answered, stepping back into the doorway to look at him.

"How long might you be gone?" He asked, looking curious and she had no idea why.

Why did the length of her absence matter to him? He went about his day every single day unphased by where she was or what she was doing. What changed?

"I'm not sure, sir," she told him honestly. Her eyebrows furrowed, giving him an odd look.

"What errands do you need to run?" He asked, staring straight at her, his eyes penetrating her.

"Household ones..." She said vaguely, wondering why he was pressing her for information. It was so out of character.

"Yes. What kind of household errands, Miss Mason?" He asked with obvious annoyance in his tone.

"Uh, grocery shopping. I'll be stopping at the pharmacy, the post office, and possibly the bank," she told him, still giving him an odd look.

"That'll take you until the afternoon, yes?"

"I suppose," she replied, feeling a bit uneasy.

He nodded once and went back to reading his document. Katherine stood staring at him in wonder. He was so mysterious all the time.

"That'll be all, Miss Mason," he dismissed her without even looking up at her again.

"Ohh-kay," she said under her breath and turned to leave.

She felt more than a little weird by their exchange. Was he trying to get rid of her? Or was he being thorough, knowing where his staff was at all times? Or was he just concerned where she was all of a sudden? Did the fact that she kissed his brother cause him some sort of jealousy? 

Was she being paranoid? Or was he just a fucking mystery that she would never figure out? If there was one honest thing she knew about him, it was that he was a very complicated man.

...

Katherine spent the tail end of the morning and a little bit of the afternoon taking care of all the errands she needed to get done. She finished before she thought she would, pulling Mr. King's very expensive SUV into its designated parking spot in the garage. One of the parking attendants helped her with the groceries, bringing them into the elevator on a rolling cart. If she ever quit or lost the job, she was sure that would be what she would miss the most – not having to load in her own groceries.