Make Me (Editing)

twelve (edited)

"I see you've made a full recovery," Nikki chuckled, a wry smile playing at her lips. The giddy expression on my face obviously hid nothing from my highly astute friend.

"Mhmm," I nodded somewhat dreamily, heading towards where she sat behind her desk.

"That good, huh?" she grinned, knowing full well that I was now engrossed in the thought of my new male companion. "Maybe I need to get back to the clubs sometime."

"Did I miss anything yesterday?" I asked in an effort to move the topic away from my blossoming love life. I had no problem with talking about it, but preferred not to do so in the middle of our busy office.

"Nah," she shrugged. "Not anything notable, anyway."

"I guess no news is good news," I smiled, catching a glimpse of the clock that sat on her desk. It was just a few minutes after seven, and I knew that my boss would be expecting me. "I'd better go see Mr Gray before he rips me apart for being late."

"Good luck," she laughed, getting back to her work.

The last time I'd seen Mr Gray, it had definitely been under less than ideal circumstances. He'd been preoccupied, and I'd been made to look like a fool by his clingy mistress. But I'd had a full day to recover since then, and was determined to at least look as though the whole thing hadn't affected me in the slightest.

"Good morning, Sir," I pushed his office door open, a convincing smile covering my face.

His eyes widened slightly as he met my gaze, as though he hadn't been entirely prepared for my arrival. But as always, he managed to mask his expression almost immediately, his features returning to their neutral state.

"Good morning, Miss Carson," he nodded his head, greeting me with my formal title. It shouldn't have been unusual, but it was. He'd rarely called me anything other than Ally since I'd stayed late that one night. It felt like years ago now, but in reality hardly been a week. "I trust that you've recovered from your illness?"

"I have, thankyou," I returned politely, hating the sound of our impassive conversation, but also knowing full well that I would crumble if it was to become anything more. "I'm here for my work?"

"Oh yes of course," he reluctantly moved his attention away from me and towards his screen. It was clear that he was enjoying this awkward exchange about as much as I was.

After he had given me my tasks, which were considerably fewer than usual, I thanked him politely, earning a slight nod in return. He obviously had nothing else to say; neither of us did; so I made my move to leave.

As I was reaching for the handle of his office door, his uncharacteristically timid voice stopped me in my tracks.

"I'm sorry about the other day," he spoke softly.

I didn't turn around, keeping my focus secured on the dark wood of the door in front of me. I was fully aware that my eyes would give too much away. Taking a deep breath, I did my best to mask my expression before finally swivelling my head to meet his now subdued gaze.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I simply replied, feigning indifference. It was the only way I would be able to remain civil with him; pretending that it had never happened, that I hadn't seen her hands running circles on his chest, that I hadn't been so affected by the instant look of regret in his eyes.

With that said, I left the confines of his office, taking a deep breath as I made my way into my own.

---

It had now been a couple of weeks since the whole fiasco, and I had finally started to cool down from my previous animosity and warm back up to Mr Gray.