Page 24 of Hate You Up Close

She’s wearing a tight, gray skirt that rests above her waist, paired with a black shirt that showcases her perky tits and curvy hips. Her legs are covered in dark pantyhose, sheer enough to see her ivory skin glisten through the fabric. Her inky-black hair is loose, flowing like waves of silk around her shoulders.

“Good morning,” she smiles sweetly, her viridescent eyes darting between me and Zion. She stands there awkwardly, holding a plastic cup of coffee in each of her hands.

I force down the lump in my throat and wipe away the sweat dripping down my temple.

“You’re early this morning,” I say in a gravelly tone whilelooking down to check my watch. She doesn't have to clock in for another twenty minutes.

“I wanted to give myself extra time to stop and get coffee,” she replies. “You never know how long the Starbucks line is going to be,” she chuckles nervously.

“Two coffees, huh?” I smirk. “You must really need the extra caffeine. Trying not to fall asleep on the job today?”

She rolls her eyes, but I don’t miss the way her lips tilt up in a playful smirk. Silence fills the room as her smile falls.

“One of them is for you,” she mumbles, a faint blush creeping along her cheeks. “I figured…I was hoping we could start today off on a better note.”

What an interesting turn of events. If anything, she should be throwing a scalding hot coffee in my face after how I spoke to her yesterday.

“Oh,” I nod, pursing my lips together. “So, is this a peace offering?”

She tilts her head, narrowing her eyes to little slits.

“Sure, if that’s what you want to call it,” she replies, blowing an annoyed breath before striding towards my desk.

It’s clear that it’s killing her to do this, to offer up something nice to me after the way I treated her yesterday. But on the flip side, if I needed a job and my boss acted like they fucking hated me on my first day, I would probably kiss their ass too.

Or maybe she really is just trying to be nice after our debacle yesterday? I don’t see Roxanne as ateacher’s petkind of person.

Her feminine scent overwhelms me, smelling of strawberries and vanilla. I wish she would stop getting closer because it’s too much. And I wish Zion would take his fucking eyes off of her because she’s not his to look at. If anything,she’s mine.

Mine to look at.

Myassistant, not his.

“Here you go,” she mutters, setting a steaming cup down on my desk. “It’s a vanilla latte. Pretty standard order,” she smiles softly. “I didn’t know your go-to coffee, and almost everyone likes a latte.”

I stare down at the drink and then back up to meet her eager eyes. She’s waiting for me to take it. I have to admit, it was sweet of her to think of me. But aside from whiskey, I’m religiously strict about what I put in my body.

And I know what you’re thinking; alcohol is the worst thing a person could put in their body. It might be poison, but it’s the only poison that gets my mind to shut up.

“Is it sugar-free?” I ask, holding her stare.

“Um…no,” she replies, furrowing her brows. “It’s just a regular vanilla latte.”

I stare down at the cup as an awkward silence takes over.

“I’m sorry,” I clear my throat. “But I try not to consume artificial sugar.”

Roxanne shifts from left to right as she tucks a lock of hair behind her ear. She looks…embarrassed. She lowers her gaze to her feet, avoiding eye contact with me. I hate myself for being responsible for her somber expression. She has nothing to be embarrassed about, it’s purely a personal decision that has nothing to do with her.

“Oh uh…okay,” she stammers, twining her fingers together.

“Look, I appreciate the gesture.” I pull together a fake smile and run a hand through my hair. “Why don’t you give it to someone in the office so it doesn't get wasted?”

“Jesus Christ,” Zion chimes in. “You’re painful to watch,” he says under his breath, shooting me an irritated glare.

Oh shit. I forgot he was here, sitting directly across from me.

“I’ll drink the coffee,” he exhales, reaching for the cup and taking along sip.