He places the takeaway bags on the counter and I piece together that he must be delivering our lunch from the coffee shop.
Looking him up and down I admire the tattoos poking out from underneath the tight black polo shirt, wrapping themselves around his tanned arms. He’s tall and firm, but I can tell he doesn’t spend all his time in the gym. The day-old facial hair matches the black-framed glasses, but doesn’t detract from his stark grey eyes. I’m usually not attracted to the whole rough-around-the-edges thing, but he pulls it off.
Tattoo Guy places his arms on the counter and leans forward while offering Harper a cocky smile. She smiles up at him from under her lashes, and I can tell she has slightly pushed her arms together to accentuate her breasts.
Neither of them say anything and just continue to stare at each other as I stare between the both of them. Okay, this is awkward. I feel like a creeper just watching them. It’s like a form of foreplay, and way too intimate for a spectator.
Grabbing the takeaway bags, I head towards the offices. “Okay, I’ll take these,” I yell behind me. I’m already on my way out of the foyer.
As I knock on Bill’s office door a huge smile lights his face as he looks up to see me.
“Lunch delivery,” I say with a grin as I hold up the takeaway bags.
“Even without the food, you’re always a welcome sight,” Bill says, making his way towards me to take the bags out of my hands, and setting them on the table in front of the couch. “I’m really going to enjoy seeing you every day, Brooke.”
Smiling, I bend over to start sorting the lunches. Surely all this food can’t be just for Bill and me. Bill clears his throat and I look up to see him staring over my shoulder. Still bent over, I glance behind me to meet Saxon’s eyes. He stares for a second before gathering himself and stepping into the office.
“No wonder I had to come looking for my lunch today. Harper is otherwise held up,” Saxon says with mock annoyance.
I laugh. “Ummm, yeah, I got stuck between that too. Although it wasn’t a bad place to be stuck.” I wiggle my eyebrows at him.
Saxon’s head whips towards me, his eyes wide.
“What?” I ask, faking confusion. Did he expect me to mope all day? He should know me better than that. I wouldn’t have come here if I wasn’t going to give it my all. Besides, I can still have a joke, even though it feels like forever since I have. I remember meeting Will and smile; it may become more of a regular occurrence.
Saxon looks towards Bill, who raises his eyebrows back at him, a small grin on his face.
“Nothing, I just came to grab my lunch. Do you still want that tour after you’ve eaten?” I can tell he’s trying to hide his frustration. Wow, riling up Saxon is going to be easy, and fun. He wasn’t this uptight in college. I wonder if this change is because of Nate, or if it had happened prior.
Smiling big, I reply, “That would be great, I’ll come find you.”
He shakes his head and walks out of Bill’s office.
“What’s up with him?” I ask confused.
Bill just cracks up laughing.
Storming past Ruth’s desk, her head flies up at my dramatic entrance.
“Can you make sure my afternoon is clear?” I snap at her.
“Already done.”
I nod before slamming my office door. I shouldn’t take it out on Ruth. Although, if anyone can handle me, it’s her.
Throwing my sandwich onto the desk I fall back into my chair, rubbing my hands over my face. I thought I would stress less about Brooke if she were here every day. I could keep a closer eye on her and how she was holding up. It seems it was easier before when she was at home.
Sure, I knew she was living in her own personal hell, but at least that was all I had to worry about. I feel like I’m going crazy here today, worrying about her reaction to being here without Nate, how the staff is treating her, and whatever the fuck happened in the staff room with Paul. Walking in on the two of them made my hair stand up, but seeing the relief in her pleading eyes when they connected with mine just about killed me.
I didn’t think I would be so overprotective of Brooke, but with Nate gone, I feel like she’s my responsibility. Who has she got to look out for her? Her dad? Mark? Rachel? God help her if she is relying on Rachel.
What a load of crap. I’ve always been protective over her. Always cared for her. Stepping back from our friendship was for my own sanity, my own self-preservation.
Paul Lucas is another ongoing issue I’ve brushed under the carpet to be dealt with later. He’s not fitting in here, and I need to let him go. It doesn’t matter how well he’s doing the job, this is a family business, and Nate would want to keep it that way. If someone doesn’t fit with the family then they don’t belong here.