Unexpected Kiss

Chapter 004

Lily's POV

The alarm on my phone rang loudly.

I groaned and reached for it without opening my eyes. My hand searched across the table until my fingers finally found the phone.

I switched off the alarm; silence followed. 

For a few seconds, I stayed still.

Then I realized my head was on the table.

I slowly lifted it, blinking several times. My neck ached, and my eyes felt heavy.

The empty coffee cup beside my laptop reminded me of everything that had happened the night before.

"Damn, gurl!" I touched my throbbing forehead.

He had dumped twenty documents on my desk before midnight and expected every one of them to be sorted by morning. If that wasn't hatred, I didn't know what was

I glanced at the wall clock.

"Shit!"

I jumped out of my chair.

I had barely an hour to get ready.

I rushed into the bathroom and splashed cold water on my face. When I looked into the mirror, I almost screamed.

Dark circles had formed beneath my eyes from lack of sleep.

I looked terrible.

Without wasting any more time, I washed my face, brushed my teeth, took a quick bath, and rushed out of the bathroom.

Ten minutes later, I was already inside the taxi, checking my wristwatch every few minutes.

I had twenty minutes left to get to work, and the traffic was so frustrating.

"Can you try to speed up a bit?" I asked the driver as my frustration grew.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. There is no other way," he replied.

I could also hear the frustration in his voice.

Another five minutes passed, but the car hadn't moved.

With no other choice, I paid the driver and started running.

I had twenty kilometres to cover in just twenty minutes.

Who did that? Apparently, me!

No matter how fast I ran, the company seemed to get farther and farther away.

Surprisingly, the traffic started clearing, and the cars began moving again. However, there was no taxi in sight

Just then, I heard a familiar voice.

"Ms. Smith, where are you heading?"

My face lit up the moment I saw Zack, seated at the back of a black SUV Escalade.

"Mr Thompson, we are heading in the same direction!" I smiled and rushed toward the car, reaching for the door.

"I never said I wanted to help. Running is good for the heart" He smirked. "Make sure I don't get to the office before you"

He didn't spare me another glance before the car zoomed off.

I stared in disbelief, unsure of how to process what just happened. Did he just leave me here?

"Zack Thompson!!" I screamed inwardly. 

I stood there, staring after his car disappeared.

"What an annoying man."

I clenched my fists and started running again.

Of all the people who could have found me struggling on the road, it had to be my boss.

And judging from that irritating smile on his face, he was definitely enjoying this.

By the time I reached the office, one hour was gone. I didn't even bother to run; I walked into the company slowly with my dress drenched from sweat.

"Oh my gosh! Look who has arrived here!"

I heard Claire's voice trailing behind me as I headed to the admin building. If not for Zack, a mosquito like her wouldn't even have the confidence to comment on me. 

"You look like a stray dog who doesn't even belong here", she mocked.

I stopped in front of the elevator and turned to her. "Even though I'm sweating, I still look hot" I moved closer and then whispered, "You know you can't sweat this way because your face is a solid stone of heavy makeup"

I smirked as I pressed the elevator buttons, leaving her speechless. "Make sure you bring coffee for me later on; I don't like too much sugar, please", I teased before entering. 

The door closed, and my face dropped immediately. I was only pretending to be strong; my legs became shaky, and my heartbeat increased every moment. 

I've never been a fan of sports, but today, I deserved the Olympics award.

When I got to my office, I lay flat on the floor and shut my eyes. I could hear my own heartbeat; my body shook as I felt weaker.

"You are late!" I rose immediately. 

Zack stood by the door, his hands tucked casually into his trousers.

I glared at him. "I know."

"Good. And this is the office, not a resting Villa." He turned to his assistant and called, "Leo"

His assistant walked toward my desk and dropped another thick file on top of the pile.

My jaw dropped. "What's that?"

"Documents," Zack responded sharply. 

"I can see that." I snapped. 

"Then why did you ask?"

I took a deep breath; this man was going to be the death of me.

He pointed at the pile. "Print everything. Arrange them according to the numbers on the files, staple the documents, and put them in separate folders."

I stared at him. "All of them?"

"I just said everything."

I gritted my teeth. I'm in this mess because I made a promise to Mother Teresa. If not, this man should be dead with my teeth by now. "When do you need them?"

"Before lunch."

My mouth fell open. "Before lunch?"

He nodded calmly. "There are printers downstairs if the one here isn't enough."

He turned to leave.

I wanted to punch him hard, but I had to control myself. I dropped into my chair.

"This man is evil."

I spent the next few hours running between the printer and my desk. By the time I finished the first batch, my fingers were already aching.

I glanced at the clock. My stomach growled; I hadn't even had breakfast.

"Zack Thompson, I hate you."

I was almost done with the document when Leo came in with another pile of documents. "Mr Thompson said you should add this"

Without waiting for my response, he left. 

I glanced through the document and realised that the only difference was the first page; it was literally the same document.  

I shoved the last document onto the pile and pushed myself out of my chair. "Enough of this shit!"

I marched into his office with the remaining documents in my hands.

"Mr. Thompson."

He didn't even look up from his laptop. "Yes?"

"You need to stop this and tell me my offence" 

His fingers paused over the keyboard. "Stop what?"

"Stressing me out!" The more I thought about it, the more pissed I became.

He finally looked at me.

I dropped the documents onto his desk. "I've been working since I arrived. You gave me enough documents to open a library, and you still keep adding more!"

A small smile appeared on his face. "Are you complaining?"

"Yes!" I pointed at the documents. "I'm your secretary, not a printing machine!"

He leaned back in his chair. "You seem to have a lot of energy for someone too tired to arrive on time."

My eyes widened. "Don't change the subject!"

I stepped closer to his desk. "You deliberately gave me all these documents because you wanted to punish me."

"And so what?" he said casually. 

I opened my mouth, but no words came out.

This man was impossible.

"You know what? You're..".I stepped backward while waving my hand dramatically.

"You don't have to hire me when you want to make my life miserable!" I curled my fingers into a tight fist "So what? Because of the fake date? If that's your reason, then you are such a coward!"

"Young lady. Be careful of your words with me!" His tone changed, but that only triggered me.

"What if I'm not careful? What will you do?!" I yelled out, feeling frustrated.

"You are no different from a fake slut who could do anything for money" He smirked, glaring into my eyes. 

For a second, I couldn't breathe.

The room suddenly felt too quiet.

My fingers tightened around the documents.

He didn't know me. He knew nothing about why I did what I did.

Yet somehow, his words hit the exact place I tried to hide.

 "Fake slut?? If only a stupid, arrogant dude like you understood other people's situations instead of thinking you're better than everyone just because you have everything!"

My voice shook despite how hard I tried to sound angry.

“You came from a rich family. Good for you! At least you don't have to worry about how you're going to survive because you have people supporting you.”

My throat tightened. I hated that his words had gotten to me. My vision blurred, and I quickly blinked, refusing to let the tears fall.

“You don't know anything about me,” I whispered.

"I'm done! Take your job!!" I turned to leave, but my heel suddenly caught on the edge of the carpet.

"Ah!"I lost my balance.

My arms flailed as I tried to grab onto something. Unfortunately, the only thing within reach was Zack.

I fell forward and landed directly on his lap.

My hands pressed against his chest.

His arms immediately wrapped around my waist.

I froze.

Our faces were inches apart.

Then, before either of us could move, our lips met.

My eyes widened. Oh my God.

I had just kissed my boss