AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thanks.”
We stare at each other, awkwardly, and I recall the scene from the office where I had nearly lost my mind.
“Well, uh…” Halley pats the pillow. “I don’t have guys over, so I think I’m supposed to tell you to keep your hands to yourself and some other stuff.” She coughs, discreetly. “Uh, but I won’t do that because I’m sure you know that, and well, um—”
“Got it!” The atmosphere is getting more and more uncomfortable and I grab the pillow.
She can’t get out of here fast enough.
When I hear the door close behind me, I fluff the pillow, unbutton my first few buttons, and tell myself that I can come out of this unscathed. All the inappropriate thoughts I’ve been having about my intern are simply because I’m overworked.
I put my head down on the pillow.
Yeah, that’s it.
I just need a break.
I don’t know when I fall asleep but I do know what wakes me up.
I like to sleep in complete darkness, so when I feel the heat behind my eyelids, my eyes open, blearily, and I see the gleam of light coming from what I assume is the kitchen.
Did Halley get up for water?
Thinking about water reminds me my mouth is pretty dry and I wouldn’t mind a drink myself. I get up and pad over to the kitchen, barefoot and yawning.
However, while Halley is in there, she’s not drinking water.
She’s sitting on the kitchen table, her hands wrapped around a mug as she stares absently at the table, as if lost in thought.
It looks like she’s been up for a while.
Lately, it seems I’ve been glimpsing different sides of this woman and my initial presumption about her is shattering. But I don’t quite know what to make of her yet.
I can always walk back out since she hasn’t noticed me yet but part of me wants to understand that expression on her face and why she’s sitting here alone in the kitchen so early in the morning when the sun hasn’t even risen.
“Is that coffee?”
Halley jerks as if she’s been slapped and gives me a dazed look before her expression clears. “Sorry, did I wake you?”
“I was thirsty. What are you having?”
She looks down at her mug as if she’s forgotten then gives me a sheepish smile. “Hot chocolate. But it’s cold now.”
“My mom used to make the best hot chocolate,” I tell her, all the while wondering why I discuss my mother with her so much. I don’t even discuss her with Kendall.
Halley smiles in a way that tells me that she’s not upset. “Mine is really watery.”
I lean against the doorway, my hands in my pockets. “Want a cup?”
“It’s five in the morning.”
I straighten up and move into the kitchen. “There’s never a wrong time for hot chocolate. The key to it is adding loads and loads of melted chocolate in your drink. That gives it its flavor.”
Halley rests her chin on the palm of her hand, grinning, as she watches me use the ingredients she’s still left out. “You mean along with diabetes.”
“Exactly.” I smirk. “Now shut up and let a master show you how it’s done.”
Two over boiled cups of milk and a broken mug later, we’re both sitting at the table, dipping marshmallows into the thick cup of steaming hot chocolate.
