Page 23 of Fraud
I snuck into my cubicle, the bags under my eyes from my evening out going completely unnoticed.
Success!
This morning, I’d risked a late arrival with a mad dash through Starbucks to pick up my own cup of coffee, reducing my need to walk around the office.
This place was a chatty one. Normally, I loved the friendly vibe it gave off. But, today, I was going to do everything in my power to stay chained to my desk and remain as invisible as possible.
At least until my brain decided to fully come on board with the rest of my body.
“You look rough.”
I glanced up to see my boss, Renee peering in on me with a smirk across her beautifully aged face.
Busted.
“Couldn’t sleep,” I lied.
Her smirk widened into a grin.
“Praying to the porcelain gods?” She snickered.
I gave up, huffing, as my head fell to my palms on the desk. “No, that was this morning. Drinking is not for the faint of heart.”
“No, it’s definitely for the young. Why don’t you take a day off? You’ve got plenty of time.”
I firmly shook my head. “That doesn’t seem right at all.”
She shrugged, her short blonde hair skimming the tops of her shoulders. “Who cares? I’m the boss. Shouldn’t I get to decide what’s right or wrong? You haven’t taken a day off since the beginning of this academic year. Go rest. All of this,” she said, pointing at the neat line of Post-it notes I’d left for myself the day before, “will be here for you tomorrow.”
“Okay,” I conceded. I did feel like crap, and the idea of crawling back into bed sounded like heaven.
She waited for me to collect my things, including my extra-large iced coffee, and walked with me toward the back door.
“Thanks,” I finally said.
She gave me a warm smile, patting me on the back, before asking, “Did you have a good time?”
I thought back to the hours that had led up to my current state—the embarrassing tumble into Killian’s arms, those eyes, the way he’d laughed at my jokes.
“Yeah, I did.”
“Good. Make sure it happens again.”
My mouth fell open as she walked away, laughing, her large hips swinging as she went.
“Don’t forget, Kate! Drinking is for the young! And that still includes you!”
Well, she wasn’t wrong.
The downside to my impromptu run to Starbucks earlier this morning was that I felt compelled to drink every last drop of my venti iced Americano on the way back to my second-floor apartment that was situated just on the outskirts of town.
By the time I made it into the parking lot, two things were happening.
I had to pee, and I was buzzing with caffeine.
Great.
So much for going back to sleep.
