Worst Cupid Ever

Personal Paparazzi

"How did you do it?" Raymond stared at the chessboard in stupefied disbelief.

"Shocked, eh?" Genevieve asked around a laugh. "I was chess club president at fifteen; took my team to many victories."

Raymond dragged his eyes from the chessboard to Genevieve's grinning face. Her eyes were slanted as she smiled, white teeth flashing against her dark lipstick. He blinked, then collapsed into his seat, groaning. "You should have hinted I was going against a pro. I would have taken the game seriously."

"And rob you of the honour of being my personal paparazzi?" She chuckled. "Not a chance, Ray-ray."

Still observing her, Raymond massaged his temple with two fingers. "What's with the nicknames? First, it was what? Demonic? Now Ray-ray?"

"I only do it 'cause it gets a rise out of you." She began arranging the chess pieces in the upturned board. "Don't know if anyone ever told you this, but you look like you have this... this big ball of pent-up energy begging to be popped."

Amused, Raymond laughed. Why had he never noticed the animated way she talked? How her eyebrows moved like they had a mind of their own. And the spark in her eyes that made him feel like she knew a joke he wasn't in on and was entertained by his ignorance.

"You should laugh more." She sounded sober now, attention shifting to her phone as she set the chessboard aside. A soft silence settled over them and just when Raymond was about to speak, she beat him to it.

"So, can we get to it then?" She sat straighter as she offered him her phone, a simper curving her lips.

Raymond looked from the device to her expectant face. Clearing his throat, he began shifting through the papers on the work surface. Accepting her help was a smart move; what he would have completed in six hours they were able to finish in two. "Why are you offering me your phone?"

At her silence, he glanced up and noticed she had an eyebrow arched, an expectant look still on her face. Finally, she sighed. "You lost at the game. Take some shots of me." She made an impatient gesture with the phone. "Come on now. Chop-chop."

Huffing, Raymond collected the device. "You do know the probability of you returning to the company is quite high. Don't you think it's foolish to get on my bad side?"

She waved a hand and shot a megawatt smile at the camera. "Don't be so sure of yourself, Mr. former boss." She fluffed her hair, softened her smile, and eased into another pose. Raymond tried and failed not to drink her in. He took another shot, doing well to keep his expression neutral. In a few weeks, she would return as his employee; it would be foolish to explore whatever he was feeling. Yes, she was gorgeous and carefree and had the body of a woman he would have pursued with a singular focus years ago but that was years ago.

"We'd be coral farming under Jamal's watchful guide." She tsked and shook her head, observing him with real pity. "When he's done with us, I bet you'd be back on this jet and shooting for the homeland at first light tomorrow. Wanna bet?"

His thumb paused over the shutter icon. When he smiled it was full and with cool assurance. "I've never backed out of a challenge, Miss Johnson. When we are done with all this, you will happily return to Dominic and Dimes. Not just that, you'd gift me one of those ridiculous 'Best Boss Ever' coffee mugs and mean it from your heart."

She blinked at him as if shocked. Then shaking her head, she offered him a cross between a sympathetic smile and a wince. "We all have to crawl before we walk. Survive a day under Jamal before boasting."

***

Ada's ride through the drain portal had been somewhat calming but now that she was back on the Division grounds, anxiety was beginning to crawl back in. The domed colosseum-styled seven-storied building sat upon a fluffy white cloud and around it was a garden and a roughened marble walkway that stretched from the insanely tall double doors of the Division to the edge of the cloud.