Page 8 of Love is So Mean
Walking right by them, our eye contact is lost and that’s when I make a decision.
Grabbing my phone, I dial Matthew again.
“Matthew, that list I asked for?”
“Yes?”
“Narrow it to one. I have a prospect in mind but let that one on the list be the backup.”
“What’s the name for the prospect?”
“You’ll know when I’m ready to tell you. Focus. Goodnight.”
I hang up before Matthew can say anything else and I walk out of Halo.
Enrique Souza is the prospect…
Chapter 6
Enrique
What the fuck?
My proposal was going very well and Emily was completely wrapped up in what I was saying until I looked up and saw my boss. Yasmeena is the last person I wanted to recognize during such a romantic moment but I did.
I’m pissed at her and myself. I’m mad at her for going for a sexier look that night, and I’m mad at myself for noticing at the wrong moment. Emily is effortlessly beautiful so I’m not comparing them, but seeing Yasmeena in a barely there, short, black dress with her hair flowing is a big departure from the norm that caught me off guard.
If the restaurant didn’t open the bottle in front of me, I would have been sure that she got dressed up for my death. Let me be clear, I don’t think she hates me; I think she doesn’t give a shit if anyone around her lives or dies. I’d wager that she’d watch me die for fun if I didn’t play such a pivotal role at her company.
It took a lot of explaining, apologizing, and promises of gifts to get Emily to relax but I was able to achieve harmonyby the time we made it home. The two of us were riding off a champagne high after finishing the bottle; our clothes didn’t make it much past the front door as we clawed at each other in the foyer.
I planned to make love to my woman and forget I’d seen Yasmeena or said her name. Yet, in the mist of my passion, her fucking image popped into my head just as I was about to cum. What’s worse is that the image didn’t stop me from cuming.
My only grace is that I was fucking Emily from behind so she didn’t see my confused expression. Still, that resentment lingered the entire weekend and all the way through Monday. Yasmeena didn’t fill my day with meetings as she usually does so I haven’t seen her all morning. This somehow sours my mood because not seeing her means that I haven’t had the chance to glare at her properly.
If I didn’t have to drop her name to get into Halo, I would have demanded to know if she followed me. The words on my computer are in a jumble since I haven’t read a thing in the last hour. I feel a stress headache forming. Closing my eyes, I squeeze the bridge of my nose and attempt to think more rationally.
My botched proposal was accepted and Emily is planning our wedding. I won but a sick feeling I can’t seem to shake lingers deep inside of me. My sigh sounds loud in my otherwise quiet office. My assistant is out on work duties so he’s not here to question the weariness of the sound.
My office has huge windows for me to look out into the city but the rest of the walls are normal. I do, however, have a glass door. It’s the only glass I want since I don’t want people staring at me while I work. I’m not into the complete glass office thing. I’m not a micromanager, I don't need to watch my team that badly. Yasmeena and I have a lunch meeting so I’ll be able to get my irritation with her out of my system.
After locking my computer, I stand and shrug into my blazer. Yasmeena appears on the other side of the glass door as I’m buttoning my blazer. I’m surprised to see her hair down in the loose waves she wore Friday night. Her soft pink skirt suit makes her brown skin glow more than usual. It’s something I’m noticing, not admiring. The skirt is a little shorter and tighter than I expected. With her heels, her stockinged legs look longer than usual.
What is she up to?
Not once has she looked up because she’s smirking as she texts on her phone. Until Friday, I didn’t know her face could do that. Her smile deepens once it rings.
“Hello?” she answers with a smile bigger than any I’ve ever seen. Part of me wonders who is able to make her smile like a normal person. Was it that guy she was with at the restaurant? Her laughter floats into my office, causing my frown to deepen. The person on the other end of the phone makes her seem…different. Almost human.
“I miss you, too,” she interjects before she continues to listen to whatever is being said. She raises her arm and looks at the diamond watch on her dainty wrist. “Now?” We make eye contact as I open my door. Her blazer appears to be the only thing covering her upper body. “I had a meeting but I just moved it to 2PM.”
I. Want. To. Choke. Her.
Yasmeena walks off and continues her conversation like she didn’t just disregard me like I’m not a person. She thinks that just saying it out loud knowing I was in earshot is good enough for me. It’s not but I cannot exactly run after her to argue about it.
I’m stuck again by one of her reschedules. She didn’t give me the courtesy of checking with me before she made such a statement. Now, I have to go to the restaurant alone since shedoesn’t care about the reservation. I also have to move my actual 2PM meeting up or push it back. It’s bullshit. My assistant and I are both tired of her shit.
Pivoting, I turn and head to her office. If I have to be inconvenienced, I’m treating her assistant to lunch and we’re going to have a big meal on Yasmeena’s dime.