Page 53 of The Marriage Bid
“We have to purge this thing that’s within us before fully calling it quits, don’t you think?”
She shook her head. “That’s an insane proposition. You don’t even like me.”
“When has that ever been a hindrance?”
She straightened her blouse, grabbed a foundation case in her purse, checked her appearance, pulled her hair back, closed the case, and grabbed her bag. “You’ve gone crazy, Tyler Hawthorne.” And cat-walked out of the office.
“Mr. Hawthorne?”
I sighed and answered the call. “Tell them to give me five minutes.” I searched for my mobile phone and found it lying on the floor. Must have fallen off the desk during our intensesession. The desk was a mess. Pens, books, and decorative items were strewn all across the floor and on the desk. Maybe five minutes was too little time. I would need at least ten to right the office as well as myself.
I sent a text to Saffron.
Me: See you this evening?
Saffron: ???
Me: Your place or mine?
Saffron: The devil’s.
I chuckled and threw the phone on the desk and got to dressing myself and cleaning my office. I also needed an air freshener. The room smelled of sex.
???
Ivy’s bakery was not as busy as usual. According to her, traffic slowed in the later hours unless there was a special. She wasn’t around, but her son Lake was there. He was working as a server as mandated by his father, Damien. Children should learn how to fend for themselves in the real world without the dependence of a trust fund, according to him, and he wanted his first-born to be the most independent of his kids. Lake seemed to take it on the chin. He worked diligently and didn’t mind working under his mother. But that also could be because he liked the patisserie.
When I entered, Lake smiled at me from behind the counter. I waved at him and went to look for a suitable place to sit. I chose a table with a window beside it in the bakery corner. A few minutes later, Lake came to hand me a menu. “Who says I want to order?”
He chuckled. His growth spurt had made him tall and gangly, but at sixteen, he was finally getting into form. The Sinclair-Hawthorne features were starting to show, and a few young teenage girls were surreptitiously glancing at him.
“You are bringing in a lot of customers to this establishment, it seems.” I gestured to the girls.
He glanced at them. “I don’t think that’s my doing. They like our food.”
“Riiight. Anyway, I would like a coffee. My usual, nothing more.”
“One macchiato coming up.” He took the menu back, and as he was walking away, a familiar face came into the bakery. My heart stopped when I saw her. She was still wearing the same clothes she had worn earlier in the day. I wondered if she was still pantiles because she had left them in my office. My groin tightened.
Saffron was greeted by Lake, who then directed her to the counter. She ordered something, and when she was done, she turned to face my direction, scanning for a place to sit. She froze when she saw me. She was about to leave when I jumped out of my seat and caught up with her when she got to the door.
“Please stay,” I said.
She held the door and spoke without looking at me. “It’s my fault. I had forgotten this is your sister’s place.”
“Not at all. Can you please take a seat?” I wanted to take her hand, but I was afraid she would fling it away.
She didn’t, though, even if it seemed she was contemplating it. I led her to my table and indicated to Lake to bring Saffron’s order to us. She took a seat and glared at me. “What do you want?”
“I just wanted to talk, that’s all.”
She cast her gaze away from my face. “You know there’s nothing you and I have to say to each other outside of work, and I don’t think this is a business meeting.”
“Who says it isn’t? I’ve been trying to reach you, and you haven’t been picking up my calls.”
She blanched, dug into her purse, and checked her phone. I was right about sending the texts, but the reason I wanted to speak to her had nothing to do with work. However, it was the only way to make her listen to me. She apologized and then said, “I didn’t know you wanted to discuss the budget. I thought—”
“That I was trying to get into your panties again? How could I do that when you left them in my office?”
