The Office Rival: An Enemies-to-Lovers Romance

Reality check. I have to do this eventually, so I make my way out of the apartment and promise myself I’ll be back in exactly an hour.

It turns out that I enjoy my freedom way more than I should. I stop at a local café and devour a meal in peace and quiet, followed by a trip to the salon. In the space of two hours, my regular stylist, Chantelle, works magic on my hair and eyebrows. She even manages to get the forest down below back to normal. By the time she’s finished, I feel like my old self again. My hair is trimmed, and because I’m in the mood for something different, she dyes it a honey-brown color. My body is hair-free, and I can’t believe how such a simple thing could lift my spirits so much.

As Chantelle wraps up, I quickly grab my phone and send Haden a text.

Me: Thank you for sending your mommy over. I’m feeling much better and nicely trimmed.

The chime of my phone goes off before I even have a chance to place it back in my purse.

Haden: Poodle got a trim? Dare I ask where?

Laughing out loud at his text, I hand my credit card over to Chantelle and finalize my bill. After saying goodbye, I stroll leisurely back home and respond to his text.

Me: Mind out of gutter Jerk! My fro…

Me: On my head!

It’s in our best interest not to mention the entire makeover. That, and I’m still trying to adjust to being bare. I wait for what feels like forever until my phone chimes yet again.

Haden: Always playing hard to get. Can’t wait to see the trimmed poodle ton

ight.

Every night this week, Haden comes over after work. This time, however, it’s different between us. He stays for hours on end and lies beside me, just talking. Both of us share stories of our past, laughing at random memories from our childhoods to our awkward teenage moments. We share our dreams and hopes for the future, and every night I learn a little bit more about Haden Cooper. Tonight is no different, and Haden finally begins to open up about his dad.

“The night we got that call, we were all sitting at the dinner table waiting for him.” He closes his eyes and continues to lie on his back recalling the tragic memory. “I was angry at my parents that night, especially Dad, for not letting me go to baseball camp. Mom had made his favorite soup, and I remember the skin on the soup forming over because it was cold. He didn’t have a phone back then, so we just waited.”

I lace my fingers through his, ignoring his sweaty palms.

“The police knocked on the door, and I watched my mom fall to the ground screaming. My sisters were really young at the time, so I told them to go to their room. I didn’t want them seeing Mom like that. It wasn’t the police who told me, but my mother. He had been driving home on a winding part of the road, and another driver swerved to avoid hitting a drunk hitchhiker and hit Dad’s car head-on. The man driving lost his wife and young son in the accident.”

Haden takes a deep breath and opens his bloodshot eyes, turning to face me. “The man driving that other car was David.”

My mouth gapes open as the blood rushes from my face. “Mr. Sadler?”

He nods. “After the deaths and funerals, Mom and David became friends, both having to deal with similar grief. Romantically, nothing happened until years later, but it didn’t surprise me when it did. I wasn’t dealing well with anything, and everything just went downhill from there.”

“You were fifteen, right?”

“Yes. Fifteen with a massive chip on my shoulder. The rest of high school I kept to myself, losing any interest in baseball or girls. Kids would tease and bully me, but I ignored them. When college rolled around, I was desperate to move, and David convinced Mom to allow me some freedom. I don’t know if it’s what I needed. It was a time in my life where I experimented with everything I could to forget the pain, and I also got a taste for sex.” He chuckles lightly, unable to hide the wicked grin on his beautiful face.

I laugh along with him. College is the time everyone gets a taste for sex. Yet somehow, through the generations, parents still allow their kids to attend and move into frat houses.

“Remember this conversation when Masen asks to move across the country.”

He simply grins. “That seems so far away.”

Still holding hands, he continues to tell his story, “After college, I had no idea what to do with my life. I traveled a bit and got into extreme sports abroad. There is such an adrenaline rush when you jump off the highest bridge in the world. I got really addicted to that feeling, but after a couple of years, Mom and David had had enough. Plus, I ran out of money.”

“And then what?”

“I couldn’t hold down a job in the city. I was bored with the usual political shit until David offered me a position I couldn’t refuse. He wanted me to learn the ropes at Lantern Publishing, so he could commence his five-year retirement exit.”

“You know,” I say, “it explains so much. Like why half the time you just didn’t give a shit about anything.”

His smirk widens, and as he moves to his side, he runs his finger down my cheek. “Oh, I gave a shit all right. About you.”

“Whatever.” I laugh. “You never once paid attention to me unless you needed something.”