Want Me (Mess with Me 4)

“It doesn’t have to mean anything.” The words sound hollow even as I say them.

“Just breakup sex, huh?”

The look he gives me says he knows I’m full of shit. Despite the fact that he’s right, it pisses me off. Like he’s so sure it’s only a matter of time before I give up and come back to him.

There’s no mirror in Law’s office so I can’t check my appearance. I settle for running my hands over my hair a few times and tucking the stray pieces behind my ears. I grab my phone and tablet. I’m not sure whether we were actually done working but anything else will have to be handled over email. There’s only so much I can deal with in one day.

Law doesn’t say anything as I gather my stuff but I can feel his eyes on me the whole time.

Right when I reach the door, I look back.

His eyes lock on mine, like he’s daring me to admit our mid-day hookup is proof I’m not ready to move on. What he doesn’t get is that sex has nothing to do with why I left him. Our chemistry isn’t going to make me forget what’s missing between us.

“It’s not breakup sex. You were never my boyfriend, remember?”

The rest of the week I don’t even have to try to avoid Law. He stays in his office with the door closed and I make myself very busy tackling the backlog of supply requests from each department. Not that our mutual avoidance keeps everyone else from noticing the weirdness.

Mya has suddenly stopped asking me for anything that would involve Law and even Sharon asked why the boss is mad at me. I’m sure it won’t be long before someone fills her in as to exactly why.

Shame burns my cheeks as I think of all the conversations in the break room that have suddenly died when I walked in the last few days.

All the work that’s piled up should keep my mind from what happened in Law’s office but by the time Friday arrives, I’ve given up on being productive. Our office hookup completely threw me off my game. When I catch myself staring off into space reliving the moment his palm covered my mouth for the sixth time, I decide it’s time to get my weekend started.

It’s not even four o‘clock but that’s close enough. It’s Friday so whatever.

Friday. Date Night.

I groan. Agreeing to this date with “Shy Clint” was probably a mistake. It was an impulsive move to piss Law off but do I really want to go clubbing with some guy I don’t know? Maybe I should have suggested something less intense like meeting for coffee. If he’s a creep then I’ll be stuck with him for hours if we’re at a club.

Ariana insisted that I get ready at her place. Before I leave the parking garage I make sure I have my garment bag with my dress and my only pair of black high heels that don’t pinch my toes. They might not be as cute as some of my others but I refuse to spend a night dancing in uncomfortable shoes.

“You’re early,” Ari comments as she opens the door a few minutes later. She’s wearing a faded shirt and leggings with holes in them and holding a can of soda.

I step into the living room and drop my bag next to the couch. Now that I’m away from the office, the stress I’ve been feeling all week finally falls away. It’s crazy how much energy pretending to be fine takes.

“I left early. I had to get out of there.”

“Bad day with the boss-ex?” Ari takes a loud slurp of her soda.

“Sex on the desk with the boss-ex.”

She chokes. “Maybe you should have left earlier.”

That makes me laugh.

“Not today. It was a few days ago. Now things are even more awkward. People around the office are starting to gossip.”

“You don’t know that for sure, right?”

“The new receptionist asked me what was up with me and the boss. So… yeah.”

“Ugh, sorry.”

Something pink and glittery catches my eye. There’s a long ribbon dangling from the ceiling. Weird but then again, this is Ariana. She’s the type to decorate with random ribbons just because.

However, it drives home how one-sided our conversations have been. Instantly I feel like a crappy friend. We’ve been conspiring for the past two weeks on this whole GlowUp thing and I’ve never once asked about how things are going for her.

“So how are you? Are you still trying to get rid of your guy?”