The new CEO introduces himself as Christopher Peters. I try to keep my eyes down, scribbling nonsense on my notepad as he praises how successful the company is and promises not to jeopardize that by coming in guns blazing.
Our eyes meet for a brief second, and I quickly look down again. My dark lob is just long enough to hide my surprise as I peek through my hair to gauge his reaction.
He stares at me while he speaks, a flicker of amusement in his eyes.
I scowl and turn my head to look at Halle.
That's him! I mouth to her, and I watch as her expression transitions from confusion to realization and then finally to surprise.
"Yikes," she says under her breath.
I look back at Christopher Peters in order to be considerate as he goes through the normal formalities of corporate America.
"Eh hem," Halle clears her throat.
A few people glance at us. I turn to her once again.
"He is fine though," she declares moderately.
Becca, who is sitting directly across from us, notices our exchange and raises her eyebrows as if to tell us to refrain from talking. I smile to myself and peer back up at Christopher.
Halle has a point.
***
"I figured you'd ice me out after our collision this morning," Christopher discloses to me in the break room as I fill my coffee cup, again.
I spin around, startled and splash some of my coffee on my hand in the process.
"Shit," I mutter under my breath, grabbing a paper napkin to clean up the mess. He takes a step towards me in an attempt to help. I shoot him a glare, set my coffee cup down on the counter and dab at my sheer white sleeve with the napkin.
"It wasn't a collision," I correct him.
He chuckles, backs away from me with his hands up and grabs a paper cup for himself. I finish cleaning my shirt, and then begin to add cream and sugar to my coffee. Christopher pauses mid-pour, eyeing the large diamond ring that embellishes my left hand as I dump a packet of sugar into my cup. I survey him apprehensively.
"How long have you been married?" he asks, continuing to pour his coffee.
I knit my eyebrows together out of confusion.
"What?" he starts. "You can't be more than twenty-five. I just want to know how long you've been wasting your life."
I stare at him appalled, unable to say anything witty in my defense.
He chuckles, and slides his right hand into his pocket as he brings his coffee cup to his lips. He wears no ring on his left.
"Don't you have an assistant to get you your coffee?" I remark, my eyes trained on his soft lips.
"I enjoy doing things myself," he replies simply.
Great. I have a control freak for a boss.
I scoff, still peeved at his marriage comment, and lean back onto the counter, stirring my coffee as I test him by looking directly into his hazel eyes. Christopher's face shifts from amusement to seriousness.
"Don't you think it's kind of disrespectful to look at your boss that way?" he quizzes.
"Not necessarily," I reply, taking a sip of my coffee.
Christopher cocks his head to the side in question, a playful smirk lifting the corner of his mouth.
"Oh, I'm just thinking back to our last CEO who said misogynistic things to his employees. It didn't really work out for him." I turn around to face the counter again, pleased with myself.
I hear him advance towards me slowly, and then his cool breath is on the back of my neck, just inches away.
"I'm nothing like your last boss," he says quietly, and subtly grazes my arm with his as he grabs a pack of sugar for his coffee.
I feel my pulse quicken and the hairs on my skin stand up. When I turn around, he is already out the door and down the hall.
YOU ARE READING
For A Reason
ChickLit"I just thought..." I begin, flustered, not really sure where my words are headed. He shakes his head. "We can't," he states, removing my hand from his. "There are a million reasons why we can't." He runs a hand through his hair, seemingly frustrate...
