As I finished speaking, he wiped his glasses on his blazer and blinked rapidly. Now I don’t know why this slightly turned me on, but it did. He was so suave with his movements and body language and, in that split second, I found myself imagining him as my plus one for Mum’s wedding. He would make a great plus one, to be fair: he was tall, refined, handsome, and most importantly, he was a surgeon. I could already see him fitting in with my family.
His reply snapped me out of my very brief daydream as he put his glasses back on and looked up at me once again. ‘I’m glad to hear you’re feeling better, but if you do feel ill at any point in the day please do feel free to leave early – food poisoning can sometimes leave people feeling very weak for a while and you’ll need all the rest and hydration to make a full recovery, OK? Hopefully your partner is taking good care of you, at least.’
Although grateful for his concern, I was probably going totake him up on that offer in order to have a couple more hours to prepare for Theo tonight. I’d decided to order us a takeaway instead of stressing myself out by trying to cook something over the top and impressive. That way, I could spend the time I would have used cooking to clean up the flat a little, take an ‘everything’ shower, and beautify myself even more.
‘My partner – yes. Yes, he’s … been very supportive, thanks!’ I said, trying to not let the panic reach my eyes. I’d completely forgotten I’d told him a fake story about having a boyfriend. ‘Thank you so much, Mr Paulson, I—’ Jeff held up his hand to silence me and said:
‘It’s Jeff, please.’
‘Jeff, please …’ I repeated, smiling up at him. ‘Sorry, yes, I’m … I appreciate you checking up on me, thank you so much. I’m sorry we haven’t crossed paths lately by the way, I know you’ve been away for a bit so when you’re available at some point within the next week, it would be great to pencil in a quick catch-up meeting between us, if that’s OK with you?’
It was nearly impossible to have a conversation with Jeff, his gaze fixed on my lips with an intensity that felt almost hungry. For a moment, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was the star of his favourite TV show, with him watching me as though I were performing for him. This whole exchange was filled with an unmistakable air of tension that I think we both felt. Before Jeff had time to respond, Kofi walked in at that very moment, rucksack swinging to and fro. He stopped dead in his tracks upon seeing Jeff in his seat, looking from Jeff to myself, his face full of concern.
‘Morning, Mr Paulson, hey Cassie – um, is everything OK? How are you feeling?’ he asked finally, as he patiently waited by the photocopier for his seat back. This was so awkward. Jeff – finally realising that he’d been sitting in Kofi’s seat, awkwardly got up and began to slowly back out of the room, slightlytripping over a stack of files as he did so. It took everything in me not to laugh.
‘Yeah, Kof, I’m good! I was just asking Mr Paul – Jeff – if we could arrange some time over the next week for a quick catch-up over his schedule, is all!’ I came across way too excitable, which Kofi might’ve taken as me being awkward and uncomfortable – and, to be fair, I was.
‘Right … right,’ came from Jeff eventually, bordering the door frame now. He puffed himself up to his full height like a rooster about to challenge Kofi to a duel – minus the feathers, unfortunately. It was a weird sight and again, I had to cough to conceal my laughter.
‘Yes, Cassandra, we should get a date in the diary to go over some things. Check and see when I’m next free and you can book it for then – thank you so much.’ With that, he turned on his heel and left the office.
Kofi stared at me, baffled, before taking his seat. ‘What the hell just happened there, bruv? That was so awkward, man. Did he say something to you again?’
I shook my head as I went back to scheduling appointments. ‘Nah, he just wanted to see if I was feeling better and then I mentioned us having a quick meeting over his patients – and that’s when you came in.’
‘I see. He’s a bit of a weird one, that one. Anyway, how are you feeling, love? If you need to dip out early at any point, let me know, OK?’ Kofi was being extra nice today; he seemed to be in a good mood. I wondered why.
‘Thanks so much. I’m feeling much better and I’ve taken some meds this morning but I’ll let you know if I take a turn. Anyway, how have you been? Got any weekend plans?’
Kofi spun around like he’d beendyingfor me to ask what he’d been up to. A grin lit up his face, stretching wide until it turned into a full-on, all-teeth smile. I could already tell whathe was about to say, and honestly, I was delighted for them both.
‘I’m seeing Sade this weekend; she’s actually staying over at mine tomorrow so we’re just gonna chill and stuff. It should be good,’ he said, now switching his demeanour to sound a little suave.
‘Oh, you guys are into each other DEEP, huh? To be honest, I can tell she really likes you because she’s been a little quiet on me lately. She’s normally like that when she’s into someone heavy; tunnel vision and all that. I’m loving this for you both!’
Kofi smiled again, his mouth spreading to the far corners of his face. You could tell that he was absolutely besotted with Sade, and to know that I had played a part in their impending love story/future marriage filled me with so much joy.
‘I can’t lie, Cassie, I feel like she may be the one. She’s just … she just has such a beautiful soul, you know? We talk and text literally every day and she’s just this radiant light that fills me with – well – I don’t know what it is, but I’ve never met anyone quite like her … she’s amazing, so thank you.’
Hearing Kofi talk like that about my best friend nearly reduced me to tears. Sade deserved all the amazing things coming her way and I was glad that they were getting on well. Now if only I could get someone to talk about me the way Kofi talked about Sade, I’d be set.
‘You’re welcome; you guys deserve each other, you’re brilliant people,’ I said, turning back to work. I’d decided to play up my upset stomach throughout the day and leave at 3.30 p.m., giving me plenty of time to get ready for tonight.
At lunch I decided to send Theo a text through theOuiMeetapp instead of through Instagram this time. As endearing as our informal chats were, due to his boundaries I wanted to try and keep things as professional as possible. The last thing I wanted was to fall for him completely, only for him to keepme at bay. Being rejected by a sex worker was not something I ever wanted inscribed on my epitaph.
Hey Theo, hope you’re well. I’m looking forward to tonight. :)
Just something plain and simple. Nothing too flirty for now. I’d be saving that for that evening.
‘Ooh … d’you know what? I think I may take off a bit early, if that’s OK, Kofi? My stomach’s been cramping up all afternoon. I’ve been taking painkillers and trying to ignore it, but it doesn’t seem to be going away – I’m so sorry.’ I exaggerated the dramatic arch of my ‘aching’ back, really laying it on thick. It had finally hit 3.30 p.m. and I’d already wrapped up everything I needed to do – including setting up a quick meeting with Jeff next week. Honestly, the anticipation for tonight was getting unbearable; I was buzzing to just buckle down and start getting ready. Besides, thanks to staying on top of my meds, I was actually feelingwaybetter. Not that Kofi needed to know that just yet.
‘Aww sis. To be honest, you shouldn’t have even come in! I didn’t wanna say it earlier but you don’t look one hundred per cent,’ Kofi replied, looking concerned. Oh great. I quickly scanned my face in the nearby mirror – I didn’t look that bad, did I? I made a show of doubling over in my seat, adding a bit of a wince of pain for dramatic effect. Kofi leaned over to see if I was OK, to which I replied I was. After switching off my monitor, I bade him farewell and to have a great weekend, before slowly ‘hobbling’ out of the office, semi-crouched over. All I needed to do was to keep up the ruse until I hit the elevator, and then—
‘Oh, hey!’ I heard a man’s voice to the left of me, booming down the corridor. It was Jeff again, mug of coffee in hand as he walked in my direction. I wondered if he showed any of the other members of staff this much attention? I was still trying to figure out whether I should have been bothered or flatteredby his interest in me, but now wasn’t the time to figure that all out. I just wanted to leave as soon as possible.
‘Oh! Hey … hey, Jeff, how are you? Is there something you need? I was just about to head home early for the afternoon – the stomach bug is still bugging unfortunately.’ I chuckled meekly as I rubbed my belly, pretending to wince at its touch.
Jeff genuinely looked concerned as he followed my hands to where I’d perched them on my tummy.
