Cheating By The Rules | Harry Styles AU (ongoing)

chapter 16

Over time, the anticipation had risen. Every day that had passed without hearing from him, made me want to reach out. The thing is, I obviously couldn't give him a call or text without facing the disastrous consequences. Like we promised each other, we would only communicate through emails, so I waited patiently on him, which wasn't always easy. Waiting on him often resulted in less sleep at night. However, the unknown also kept me on my toes.

Sitting behind my desk, my eyes wandered to the time and date on the corner of my computer screen. Today it was exactly two weeks since Harry and I had met up. It felt like it had been longer, but that happens when you want to see someone more than you're allowed to.

I couldn't mope all day about there being no communication, because there was a lot of work that needed to be done. Employees were showing up or emailing me several proposals that had to be reviewed before strict deadlines. I didn't manage to leave the office at all, seeing it took hours to go through everything.

As I was typing up an email I was about to send to Zoe, I heard the sound of a notification I hadn't heard before. Immediately, realization dawned on me as I figured out this had to be connected to an email from Harry. The moment I hastily opened the app, my thoughts were confirmed.

There it was. The email I had waited on for so long.

Instead of opening right away, I anxiously looked around my office; afraid someone had suddenly stepped inside. Even when I saw the coast was clear, I still decided to get up and lock the door of my office. It was best to take precautions. There was no room for prying eyes catching a glimpse of the forbidden correspondence.

I returned to my desk to grab my phone, eager to see what he had sent me. My heartbeat quickened when I saw the message unfold on my screen.

Free this Thursday eve and Friday morning?

x. H

Like he had promised me, he reached out. I was well aware of the fact I had been looking forward to a message from Harry, but only now I experienced how the days of silence had heightened the anticipation. Also, the words he had sent to me were another confirmation of us really doing this, making my cheeks turn red.

I didn't want to respond immediately. Not only did I want him to think I had been checking my email for days, but I also had to make sure I was free and it wouldn't be suspicious to Jace.

Opening my schedule, I saw I had meetings till five o'clock on Thursday but was free after that. On Friday I could come in later, seeing there was nothing planned in the morning. Knowing those time slots were free, I called Rachel right away. I could step out of my office and say it to her face, but I didn't want her to see the color of my cheeks because they might reveal something that needed to be hidden away.

"Morning," Rachel greeted me.

"Hello, Rachel," I responded. The soft glow of the desk lamp casting a warm hue on my face as I spoke, the air in my office feeling charged with the weight of what I was about to do. "Could you make sure there aren't appointments scheduled from Thursday 5 p.m. till Friday 11 a.m.?"

"Yes, I will do that now."

"Perfect. I will work from home on Friday morning, so anyone can reach me if there are urgent matters." I said, shooting a quick glance at the closed door of my office, as if I was half-expecting it to betray whatever I was doing.

"Does that mean you'll be here around noon?"

"Yeah, it does. Nothing has to be rescheduled."

"All right. I have removed those time slots. Do you want me to send a memo to everyone about you being out of office for those hours?"