Compulsion

Compulsion Part 26

Georgia was in shock. After that wonderful weekend they had spent in Auckland, this was last thing she was expecting to see.

It was Monday lunchtime. They hadn't arranged to meet today. But she had taken a risk and decided to show up at his office to ask him if he was free to do lunch. A surprise. For him. One she hoped he would like.

But as she stood frozen to the spot, she knew the surprise was on her. And that surprise rendered her immobile, and complete and utter shock swamped her.

She couldn't stop looking at Elias. His hands framed the woman's head, and he was looking into her eyes, whispering something that Georgia could not hear. It looked intense. Private. Georgia felt like a voyeur.

It felt as if someone had put a rusty blade through her heart. Georgia felt the slice of the blade as if it was real. The pain was something she had never experienced. She stood, mute, rooted to the spot. Unable to move. Unable to look away.

She had arrived some five minutes earlier, happy, smiling like a demented fly as she recognised the fact she was confident in taking this initiative. But then after the weekend they had spent together she was feeling confident. Pretty sure that they were on the cusp of something huge, on the cusp of admitting to each other how they felt about each other. Coming here to ask him to lunch was her way of showing him that she was willing to take that risk and step forward.

When Georgia entered Mendoca Enterprises, her nerves kicked in. It was an imposing office, with architectural pieces at the entrance, black tiles on the floor and walls. Interestingly from the outside it looked like a box. And it was only when she stepped in and saw that practically the whole of that front space was a reception area, with floor to ceiling glass walls behind the receptionist's desk that she realised this building was far from ordinary.

It was a courtyard shaped building, with the light coming into the building through the floor to ceiling inner walls that looked out onto the courtyard. When Georgia looked past the receptionist through the glass floor to ceiling windows she saw the series of offices on the opposite side and on the two side wings. Looked like the corridors ran on the outside, leading to doors to a series of offices on the ground floor, with the inner courtyard walls for each office being floor to ceiling glass. Trust Elias to be different she thought as she headed for the woman at the reception desk.

Georgia smiled broadly when she recognised one of the young women ahead. Amber Matthews was Caitlin's school friend. So Georgia spent a few minutes talking with Amber before explaining somewhat self-consciously that she was here to see Elias. Amber knew that Georgia was seeing Elias, for Caitlin had told her that just this weekend when a group of school friends had caught up for a meal out. Amber asked Georgia to sign in and when Georgia said she wanted to surprise Elias, Amber then simply gave Georgia directions to find Elias' office. Amber explained that Mendoca Enterprises occupied both levels of the building and was in essence a simple courtyard formation with the inner walls of both the downstairs and upstairs spaces being floor to ceiling glass. So just as Georgia could look past the reception desk and out through the glass window and see the other offices she would on reaching the first floor be able where she needed to be, for Elias' office suite occupied the whole of the back of the courtyard with the inner walls being glass. So Georgia would be able to see him or his office before she made her way round the corridor to the rear of the building.

Before Georgia headed up the set of stairs leading to the upper floor Georgia asked Amber for directions to the ladies room. Once there she took a few moments to check on her hair and makeup, and to shore up her confidence. She wanted to look her best for him. And given she'd had a busy clinic this morning she knew that her makeup could probably do with a touch up. So she took her time to reapply her lipstick. She noted that a few wisps of hair had escaped the confines of her neat chignon, and that just made her smile, because she knew that Elias would be delighted. She was sure he would use the opportunity to take those strands between his fingers, twirl them around his fingers, and just play with her hair. She contemplated tidying the chignon and then decided that she wanted him to play with her hair! So she left the escaped wisps where they lay. She gave her image in the mirror one last cursory look and smiled at herself.