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The biggest smile lit up her face. “Oh, I could just kiss you right now!”
Then she blushed and looked down at her hands as she realized what she had said. “I mean, uh, thank you. Thank you very much.”
“Should I take that as a yes?”
“Yes, thank you, I really appreciate everything that you’ve done for me.”
“Good.” I reached across to grab her hand, squeezing it tight. “I very much look forward to working with you.”
5
Bernadette
Though part of me had been hesitant about taking what felt a little like a handout in terms of a job from Lucas, I also knew that it was unlikely I was going to find anything as good so quickly. And the idea of being able to support myself and take some stress away from my mother was more than enticing enough.
What I had not known, though, was that I would be working so close to Lucas himself.
I had expected to maybe work at the front desk, or with one of his other associates, or at least in a separate room from him. But Lucas had other plans, and I had no choice but to go along with them.
When I arrived at the small and unassuming office building on the first day, I was directed by the very sweet older lady at the front desk to head up to the highest floor of the building and go into the first door out of the elevator.
I thanked her, then headed up, only to find that the first door was, in fact, the very large office of Lucas, complete with a desk that was waiting for me.
He smiled as I entered, standing up to come over to greet me.
“I didn’t know I would be working with you,” I said, taking his hand.
His eyebrows came together in a knot of confusion. “Sorry, I thought that had been obvious. Well, no problem; the fact is that I really needed an assistant as the company continues to get more and more busy. Don’t worry, it’s not too much work, you’ll just be scheduling appointments for me, filing paperwork, screening calls, things of that nature. I can walk you through anything that you need help with.”
“You don’t have to worry about me,” I replied. “I’m sure I can figure things out. Besides, it’s probably best if we keep things professional.”
“I guess it is. Well, this is your desk, let me show you around.”
I was very aware of Lucas’s hand on my lower back as he showed me over to my desk and gave me a mini tour of everything. It made my heart beat fast inside my chest and caused warm sensations to fill my stomach. I knew he probably meant nothing by it, but I was still sad when its presence left as he returned to his own desk.
“There’s some paperwork for you to sort through, and I just need you to screen any calls that come. Think you can do that?” he asked.
I nodded. “Of course, shouldn’t be too difficult.”
“Good.” He gave me a warm smile that sent flutters and butterflies all through my stomach. I hoped that my cheeks weren’t showing the heat that I was feeling. Clearly, this was going to be a long day, and an even longer job if I didn’t get over whatever it was that I felt for him.
Over the next few weeks, my feelings for Lucas only seemed to grow stronger and stronger.
I attributed part of this to the hormones that were now coursing through my body from the pregnancy, but part of it was also the way that Lucas approached our new working situation.
Working so close to him was one thing. I had a feeling that there was probably somewhere else where I could have worked in proximity to him that would have still allowed me to complete all the tasks he needed me to without being constantly in his presence.
But part of it was also the way that he treated me. It definitely wasn’t the way that a boss should be treating an employee. Instead, he graced my ears with jokes and anecdotes throughout the day and always seemed to be finding an excuse to wander over to where I sat and place a hand on my shoulder or touch me in some other way.
This always sent so many electrical signals coursing through my body, heat sparking from wherever the point of contact was. I wondered if he even noticed how red my face became, or how flustered my words sounded whenever he was that close to me.
If he did, he probably just attributed it to nerves, instead of what it really was: attraction to my best friend.
To make matters worse, he continued to treat me as a friend would instead of as a boss, taking me out to lunches or making me eat with him. In this way, I only knew him at the company and had no one to really confide in or tell my worries to. But who would listen to me anyway? They would probably laugh and find it absolutely absurd.
It was on one of these days that things finally changed.
Lucas came over to my desk right before lunch was about to start with the widest smile on his face.
