AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Liam stood a few paces away as I returned my attention to Nathan. “Is there anything else? I was about to head out.”
Nathan looked from me to Liam as he gripped the edge of my desk. “I’d like that report today. Can you stay late to finish it?”
My mouth hung open at the audacity of his request. There was no reason for him to have the report today, and if he needed it, he had every opportunity to voice it sooner.
“That won’t be possible,” I said, trying my best to keep my voice stern and not shaky. “I’m waiting on input from some of the managers. I gave them a deadline of tomorrow—a deadline you signed off on in our last meeting.”
His eyes darkened. “Well, there’s—”
“Excuse me, Nathan,” I said, turning off my laptop and standing. “I have to go. I have plans tonight. The report will be ready tomorrow.”
I gathered my things and breezed by him before he had a chance to object further. Liam looked confused so I threw him what I hoped was a reassuring smile.
“Everything okay? He looks pissed.” Liam shuffled uncomfortably next to me.
“He’s being unreasonable,” I whispered. “Let’s get out of here before he says anything else.”
I couldn’t even bring myself to look back at Nathan as we entered the elevator. His request still had my blood boiling. Where did he get off trying to add work to my plate at the end of the day? What an unreasonable ask.
God, his arrogance irritated me.
Liam chattered away about where to go for drinks, and I forced myself to keep my attention on him. I nodded and agreed when he suggested the place around the corner, but unfortunately for me, Nathan still occupied the majority of my headspace. The way he towered over me. The glint of frustration in his eyes.
We had gotten to know each other in a work capacity pretty well at this point, and it wasn’t like him to spring a request at the last minute, especially something we both knew could wait until tomorrow. As a boss, he wasn’t like that—unreasonable just for the power trip. Not like Don tended to be. Typically, Nathan entrusted all timelines to me, and I hadn’t missed a deadline to date. But today he had looked angry, and I saw something new in his eyes. The way he had looked between Liam and me. He almost seemed…jealous.
That would be impossible, though. Nathan? Jealous? I had to hold back a snort at the ridiculous idea. My imagination was getting the best of me.
Liam opened the front door for me. Walking out into the crisp evening air instantly refreshed me. I took in a deep breath and put on my best genuine smile before attempting to turn all of my focus to Liam and our date.
I refused to let Nathan ruin this for me.
Chapter Twenty-Three
NATHAN
I slammedthe door to my office shut, my frustration growing as I began to pace around the confined space. To say I wasn't pleased with the new development of Charlie and Liam would be a gross understatement.
That guy? Really?That's who she was going to pick over me?
She couldn’t even look me in the eye anymore. But the way she smiled at him? It made me want to wipe the smug expression clean off his face. What right did he have to take her on a date? He wasn’t good enough for her. Not by a long shot.
I moved to the window and peeked through the blinds to see if I could catch a glimpse of the two of them leaving together.
“Good view?”
I ripped my hand away from the blinds as if they had just caught fire. My internal frustration had muted the world around me, and I didn’t even hear Ben entering my office.
“I thought I heard it might snow tonight,” I lied.
He chuckled. “You really are dreading that. Wake up. We don't live in southern California anymore. Don’t be a Scrooge. Everyone loves a little winter magic this time of year. It’s romantic.”
“There’s nothing romantic about it.” I glared at him, determined to banish any notion that this evening could be a romantic one. Not when my girl was on the arm of some dingbat who wasn’t even good enough to work with her, let alone take her out.
Damn, my thoughts toward Liam had taken a venomous turn. Before I'd noticed his interest in Charlie, I hadn't spared him a second thought. But then, wasn't that the whole point? Charlie deserved to be with someone exceptional—someone you couldn’t easily ignore.
If I didn’t know better, I might mistake this feeling for jealousy. But I knew jealousy to be illogical. It was just an excuse to cover up another emotion with anger.
I was not jealous.
