One Missed Call

17: you started this

Owen glances over to Hailee who has her head pressed against the glass window and constantly clicking her tongue as she watches the people speed by along with the buildings and shops.

A deep sigh escapes his lips before he drops his gaze down to his laps, unsure of why she is acting this way around him now over a small weekend with another man.

Hailee always has trouble finding the right men which was a known fact that Owen knows about. But he also knows that Hailee is a sucker for a little attention, though not any amount of attention he can give her this day is enough to turn her head to him.

He runs his fingers along his trousers and glances out of the window, watching as the car pulls into the fancy black metal gates of De'pearl restaurant.

The car makes its stop right at the door where a waiter steps out to greets them with a small smile tagging his lips.

"Uh..." Owen furrows his brows as he watches Hailee remain unaware that they have arrived. "Hailee? We're here."

"Oh." Hailee leans from the window and shakes her head slightly before opening her door and stepping out. "Right."

Owen sighs out and steps out of the car as well, walking behind her as she leads the way into the restaurant.

"Oh, Madame, right this way." The waiter smiles as he points towards a table by the window. "Since it is a quick lunch break at your office, we prepared it before you arrived." He explains as he pulls the dishes from the plates and exposes the well grilled steak, steamed baby potatoes, some salad and a few side dishes as well.

Hailee instantly did down and grabs her fork and knife, starting to eat before Owen could even take his seat.

"Someone seems pretty hungry." Owen jokes as he grabs his fork and also begins to have his meal. "I hope he didn't leave a baby in there." He jokes out, though his expression is entirely straight and plain.

Hailee glances up from her plate with a deep frown on her face and sets her fork down.

"Is this all we'll talk about the entire day?" She asks as she raises a brows at him.

"If you answer my questions." Owen shrugs his shoulders and leans back to his seat.

"One kiss, Owen." Hailee points out as she holds up a finger to him. "One kiss we shared and it's like you think I married you."

"You made it seem so. You said you don't like unsteady men and I thought things would work out but-."

"Unless you forgot, we're still at work and I'm still your boss." Hailee points out as she stares dead into his eyes with a deep frown on her face. "So... Stop asking already." She glances down at her plate as she slowly continues to eat with his prying eyes staring right at her.

He nods slowly and glances down at his plate, knowing too well that there is nothing he can say to convince her to tell him.

Somehow he knows there is a bad reason she can't tell him about it. Hailee doesn't hide her disappointment or her excitement when she thinks she found someone she might have a bond with.

But this one is different.

She wants to hide him other than express what she feels about him.

Hailee's eyes move from her food the instant her apitite leaves her body and instantly falls on her phone lying on the table beside her meal.

She stares at it for a moment, fighting with herself whether to use it or not with not one thought trailing her mind.

Do it.

Or your keep thinking about it.

She sighs out shakily and leans back, running her fingers through her hair as she feels more uncomfortable than ever before.

Eventually losing to the tempting demons, she reaches out and grabs the phone before tapping right into the dail and tapping Aaron's phone number.

She waits patiently as the phone call goes through with the visible shaking of her body from the nervousness that Owen can easily see radiating from her body.

Hailee sits in her seat with the call still reaching out as she begins to chew on her fingernails, unable to keep her racing heart from jumping out of her throat.

"Hi there, Mr Black speaking. Who is this?"

Aaron's voice pours out of the phone like a violin and into her ears as she sits there nearly like a statue, frozen in time at just how manly and lazily Aaron's voice is as always.

"Hello? Anyone? Hello?"

Hailee opens her mouth to speak out but not a single word leaves her lips as she mindlessly stares down at the plate in front of her.

"Something wrong? Hailee?" Owen asks as he tilts his head to the side a bit, taking in Hailee's stoned expression.

"..... Hailee?"

Aaron's voice asks out and Hailee could feel her heart leap into her head, causing her to feel a bit faint from all the pressure building up in her head.

"So, this is your number..... Just know... You started this, Hailee."

Aaron chuckles out, getting Hailee's cheeks to turn red as she cuts the call and places the phone down onto the table as she bites onto her lower lip and clenches down onto her skirt.

She reaches her hand up to her chest and can feel her heart racing dangerously under her finger tips.

"You almost look scared. Who called?" Owen asks as he leans towards the table in a bit of worry as he watches her close her eyes and lean back into her seat. "Hailee?"

"No one called, I was just calling someone and the line isn't reachable." She clears her throat and combs her hair back with her fingers before fishing out her wallet and placing the bill onto the table before getting up. "If you are done eating, it would be best that we leave for work."