I take off down the hallway towards the elevator and am only mildly annoyed when I don’t run into her on the way to my car.
Nine
hollie
As soon as Archer dismisses me from his office to be left alone with his girlfriend, I march over to the break room to pour myself some coffee. I don’t want to sit there at my desk and listen to him have an afternoon quickie.
Grabbing my mug, I yank the coffee pot from its holder, almost spilling the contents all over me. I can’t help it. I’m pissed, even though I know I shouldn’t be. Archer never said that hedidn’thave a girlfriend. I just kind of assumed. And who wouldn’t? He almost kissed me last week! Or I almost kissed him… whatever. It doesn’t matter. The fact is, he’s had a girlfriend this whole time and hasn’t even brought her up.
Sure, there was no way I was ever going to do anything about my attraction to him, but that’s not the point. I’m so angry at myself that I forget to add any sugar or cream into my drink before I head out of the break room but gulp down the bitter brew anyway.
Haven’t I been telling myself to stay far away from Archer Clarke? Even my mother warned me! Men like him can’t be trusted. They are too used to getting what they want without regard to anyone else’s feelings. He probably thought it was funny hitting on his young, naive assistant with the crush on him. I’m sure he and his uncle had a good laugh over it after I ran off Friday evening. It would serve him right if I stopMiss. Kelloggon the way out of the office and tell her what kind of man he really is.
As I approach my desk, I see that his office door is still closed. I’m not sitting over there waiting for them to be done with whatever they’re doing in there. I head over to the elevator without a thought of where I’m going and get on, needing to put some distance between myself and them.
God, that woman was gorgeous. She was everything that I’m not. Tall, thin, and elegant. She practically reeked of money. Honesty, that perfume that overwhelmed my senses and almost made me sneeze, was most likely worth more than every item I currently had on my body. That was the kind of woman that Archer Clarke was supposed to be with. Not some frumpy secretary, fresh out of school, supporting her teenage sister and addict mother.
Tears gather in my eyes and I quickly blink them away. I will not cry over some man. Especially one I’m not even involved with. He should be so lucky. I jut my chin out and press the button for the sixth floor before I even realize what I’m doing. Architecture is on sixth.
It’s time for me to make some friends here so my focus won’t solely be on him. I’m not exactly sure where Lucas sits, so I slowly make my way through the twisting lines of cubicles and offices. Some people give me curious glances while others stare at their screens, completely ignoring me.
After a few minutes, I hear my name being called and look to the left. I see Lucas standing up in a cubicle as he waves, “Hollie! Over here.”
I make my way over to him as a smile settles on my face. It’s nice to have someone here that’s actually happy to see me for a change. “Hey Lucas, I was looking for you.”
“What?” He questions in mock surprise, “You mean, you don’t usually wander the floors with your coffee?” I laugh and set my cup down on his desk, taking the seat he’s directing me to. When he settles into his chair, he asks, “To what do I owe this visit?”
“I hoped you were having another happy hour. I know I couldn’t go last week, but I’d love to meet some other people that work here. It’s kind of lonely up on the top floor.”
“I’ll bet.” He gives me a smile and a wink. This boy is too charming for his own good. I want to make it clear I’m not interested in anything more than friendship with him, though. It wouldn’t be fair to lead him on.
“I could really use some more friends around the office, you know?” I hope he gets what I’m trying to convey. Flirting is probably just second nature to him, so I don’t want him to think I’m reading too much into it. I’m not in the mood to embarrass myself any more than I already have here.
“Of course. I’m not sure if anyone is going out tonight, but let’s ask around and check. There’s usually a group of people that are down for drinks after work.”
There’s a buzzing in the pocket of my skirt—yes, it has pockets!—and reach down to pull out my phone. Annoyance shoots through my body when I see it’s a message from Archer.
Archer: Leaving for the day and won’t be back. If any important calls come in, forward them to my cell.
I can’t help but wonder if they had sex in the office and now he’s taking off to spend the rest of the day with her.
Whatever, it works for me. This way he won’t be able to make me work late and I can go out to network with my new coworkers.
“Everything alright?” Lucas asks, genuine concern on his face. I realize I must have been scowling at my phone and work to relax my features back into a smile.
“Of course. It’s nothing. The boss is going home for the day, which means I’m free for the evening.”
“Awesome. Let’s hit up some people and see who’s up for drinks.” Lucas leads me through the maze of cubicles and stops to introduce me to several of his coworkers. Everyone seems friendly and there’s a decent sized group of people forming for drinks tonight. I’m excited about getting out and letting loose a bit. I make my way back upstairs to my desk while Lucas emails a few other people about this evening. We plan to meet in the lobby at six so that we can ride together to the bar.
When I make it back up to my station, I see that Archer’s office is unsurprisingly empty. There’s a brief pang in my chest when I’m reminded he’s left with his girlfriend. I hate that it bothers me. I need to get this man out of my system.
I sit and concentrate on the stack of emails that has come in since I stepped away and try to think about the fun that I’ll hopefully have this evening.
This is good for me. I’m glad I found out that he’s like every other rich businessman, just like I always suspected. On to bigger and better things.
∞
When six o’clock comes around, I head to the lobby and spot Lucas amongst a group of people in business casual wear. Some of them I recognize from introductions with Lucas this afternoon. I stride over to them and he introduces me to those I haven’t met yet. We divide up into groups and decide to take ride shares to the bar. That way, we won’t need a designated driver to get back to the office.