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At best.
Leaning toward the mirror, I applied a fresh coat of lipstick to lend me confidence I did not have. I had no idea what to do about Ratcliffe. His antics these past two weeks cut into my personal time and that I could not allow.
I smiled tightly at Jen in the mirror and pushed the door open. Deep in thought, I nearly collided with Ratcliffe.
“What are you doing loitering around the lady’s washroom?” I barked.
His surprised face reddened with anger. “Loitering?” he sneered.
“Yes.” I looked around making a show of the fact there was nothing else in this hallway. “Loitering. Is there any other reason for you to be in this hallway?”
His oily smile creased his face. “Just checking the floor to ensure everyone was heading downstairs.”
“Why?” I gave him no quarter. “Is attendance mandatory for all employees? Will our passes not work? Is janitorial staff not coming in this evening? Is there a chance we’ll be locked in?”
“No.”
“Of course not.” I waved him forward. “Let’s go downstairs then.”
He smiled and held out his hand. “After you.”
I stalked off in front of him, feeling the weight of his stare on my backside. The closer we got to the elevator, the louder the alarms rang in my brain. There was no way I was getting into an elevator alone with him.
I pushed the elevator call button, my chin held high as we waited. Hostility poisoned the silence between us.
The doors slid open.
He stepped in and pressed his fat finger on the door open button, his face a mask of mocking challenge.
I wrested a smile on my face and stepped back. “You go ahead. I’ll wait for Jen.”
The smile fell from his face as the elevator doors began to close.
“Hold the elevator.”
That voice, the one to which my ear had grown magically attuned, came from behind me. I spun around in surprise only to watch him smile broadly at Ratcliffe before stepping into the elevator beside him.
“Hey, Hope,” he tossed with barely a look. “Do you mind getting the next elevator? I need a few minutes with Mr. Ratcliffe.”
I stood watching, my mouth hanging open.
What is happening?
“Close your pretty mouth, Hope,” Ratcliffe mocked.
I snapped it shut. As the edges of the door met, I heard ratface laugh. “I’d love to fill it for her.”
I took an involuntary step back and pressed my lips together in disgust. Ratcliffe’s words replayed in my brain, twisting my mouth into a sneer.
The air thinned as I paced in a tight circle.
What the hell was Ares doing smiling at that rat bastard? I couldn’t tell if he had just rescued me or if I’d made a serious misjudgement about his character.
I stared at the scuffed patch on the floor in front of the elevator.
What is happening?
I was still mulling it over when Jen exited the bathroom, cell phone in hand as she spoke to her husband. Her eyes darted nervously around the floor.
