I Built This Home For Me, For You

Chapter 10

Four days after Clara's surgery, Lauren was in her office, taking a much-needed break from hospital visits. Camila had gone to pick the girls up, having spent the past few days at Sofi and Maggie's place and Lauren was checking up on the situation at Jauregui Corp. She was reading over a stack of paperwork that was mercifully small, thanks to Dinah taking over in her stead to keep things running smoothly, and Lauren quickly flipped through the pages, before adding it to the pile she'd already read. A quiet rap on the door caught her attention, and Lauren looked up, her hand reaching out for the next file.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Dinah poked her head in, giving Lauren a warm smile. "Hi, boss. They told me you'd snuck in."

"Dinah," Lauren greeted her with a tired smile, "Hey, how are you?"

"How am I? How are you? How's your mom?" Dinah asked, a concerned look on her face as she crossed the office and sat down across from Lauren.

Letting out a sharp laugh, Lauren spun around in her chair, blowing all the air out of her lungs, before giving Dinah a wry smile. "It's all ... it's being handled. Thanks for the flowers, by the way. My mom appreciated them."

Dinah nodded, "I was glad to hear the surgery went well. How're Camila and the girls? I know it's all been happening so fast."

"They're ... doing better than I am," Lauren admitted, drumming her fingers on the arms of her chair, "My mom should be out tomorrow. Her surgeon's just being overly cautious because they're old coworkers."

"Better to be safe than sorry," Dinah agreed, "You should head home - you look awful if you don't mind me saying. You should take the week off; I can handle it all here, and you look like you could use a good night's sleep."

The barest hint of a smile played on Lauren's lips and she nodded, glancing down at the watch on her wrist and noting the time. "Mm, I might make it home in time for dinner if I leave now."

"Go home to your wife," Dinah said, stealing the pile of paperwork off the desk as she climbed to her feet, "The holidays are right around the corner - put a tree up. Make gingerbread cookies. Do something normal."

"Right," Lauren murmured, running a hand over her tired face, "Normal. That's a thing that people have."

"Goodnight, Lauren," Dinah pointedly said, giving her a smile over her shoulder as she walked towards the door.

Giving her friend a small smile, Lauren leaned back in her chair, watching Dinah leave, "Thanks, Dinah."

"Don't mention it- oh, Alana," Dinah said, almost bumping into Lauren's assistant as she opened the door and found her standing there, fist poised to knock on the wood. "Better make it quick, I've told her she has to leave."

With a quick laugh, Alana wished Dinah a goodnight and walked into Lauren's office, a bright smile on her face as she walked towards her boss. Wondering what business needed her attention right now, Lauren straightened up in her seat, giving her assistant a tight smile. "Alana."

"It's good to see you, ma'am," Alana replied, giving her a coy smile, "I didn't expect you back so soon." Making a non-committal sound, Lauren starting shuffling some papers together on her desk, reaching down for her briefcase to put them inside. Warm fingers wrapped around her wrist, stopping her, and Lauren jumped slightly in surprise, quickly glancing up at her assistant. "Let me get that for you."

Feeling her heart skip a beat at the shock of the touch, Lauren let Alana pluck the files out of her hand, watching the smile playing on her assistant's lips. The files were set down on her desk, and Alana reached out to fix Lauren's collar, her fingers slowly sliding along the fabric as she looked at Lauren with hungry eyes. "You know, Miss Jauregui, I could help you out if you'd like. I know things have been tense ... maybe I could help you work some of it out."