Page 27 of Breaking All The Rules

“What’s up, mom?”

“I’m worried about you,” she said quietly, studying me as if I had some horrendous illness showing on my face.

“Why are you worried about me?” I asked, completely clueless.

“You’re acting different lately. I can’t put my finger on it, but something is definitely different about you.”

“Nothing is different. I’m just busy with work, like always,” I groaned and leaned back against the wooden chair. I already knew the lecture that was seconds away from coming out of her about how I’m always working too hard and how I don’t enjoy life as much as I should.

“This isn’t about you being busy,” her voice trailed off as her features changed, the frown quickly replaced by a soft smile that played at her lips. It was as if something suddenly clicked inside her head, and she had the answer she was looking for. She smiled and touched her hand to her heart. “You’re in love.”

I pulled my head back, bewilderment splattered across my face.

“What?!” I exclaimed. “I think you’re more tired than you’re willing to admit because that’s just crazy.” I shook my head and felt myself getting irritated with the smile that was still plastered across her face.

“You can deny it if you want to,” she said, pushing away from the counter as she wagged a finger in the air at me. “But I know you better than anyone, and you, my dear, are in love.”

My mind immediately went to Eva, and I started to panic as I thought about how much control she had over me without even trying. She could ask for anything in the world, and I would find a way to give it to her. But to say that I was in love with her was absolutely ridiculous. We had barely known each other for a month, if you counted when we first met at the club—which I didn’t. It wasn’t like I had been trying to get to know her as I fucked her in the linen closet.

As I tried to justify that I couldn’t be feeling anything close to love for her, I thought back to when I was in her apartment, taking care of her while she was sick. That wasn’t love, though. That was just being a good boss. Or maybe even a good friend. Hell, it should be that I was being a good human being who wascaring for another person when they needed it. That didn’t mean that I was in love with her... did it?

I stayed silent while my mom filled a kettle with water and then set it on the stove while I tried to process what I felt about Eva. Maybe I liked her more than I was willing to admit, and that was why I couldn’t stay away from her.

“So, I noticed that you have someone new working in Cora’s office,” my mom prodded, turning slightly to look at me over her shoulder. “What happened with Cora?”

“Ugh.” I groaned and ran a hand through my hair. “You don’t want to know.”

“Oh, I’m sure I don’t. But I asked anyway, and given your reaction, I know I am right. That also leads me to believe that it’s the new girl working across the hall from you that has you acting this way.”

I didn’t have to ask what she meant bythis way. It was clear as day in her sing-song tone as she said it.

“Eva,” I replied with a heavy sigh. “Her name is Eva.”

While I didn’t want to get into the nitty-gritty details with my mother, I knew she wasn’t going to stop until she got what she wanted from me. Telling her Eva’s name wasn’t much, but hopefully, it would keep her satisfied for a little while until I could get out of there and avoid her for a bit.

“That’s right. I remember her telling me that when I stopped by on Wednesday.”

I nodded and felt my lips pull into a tight smile as I tapped my knuckles against the table.

“She seems nice,” my mom said as she walked over and set a cup of tea down in front of me before taking a seat across the table. She lifted the cup to her lips and took a small sip as she waited for me to talk about her.

“She’s very nice. And smart. And overqualified for the work she’s doing there.” I laughed, thinking about how I still had yet to find time to train her.

“So, what’s the problem?” she asked.

“The problem is that I can’t be with her, yet I can’t stay away from her.” My eyes lowered and focused on the cup of tea before I raised it and took a sip.

“Because you work together?”

“That for starters.” I sighed. “A lot is happening right now, and I don’t want to risk jeopardizing my career by doing something stupid.”

We sat in silence for a few minutes while sipping our tea.

“You know, you’re not like your father,” she said suddenly, taking me by surprise.

I lifted my head and studied her, finding the hurt on her face that I had seen so much of when I was growing up. I reached over and gently squeezed her hand.

“I don’t know about that,” I blew out. “I’m currently in the middle of a sexual harassment lawsuit because I wasn’t smart enough to say no to Cora when she wanted to have sex in the boardroom. After that, she later tried to blackmail me to get a promotion that she wasn’t qualified for.”

---