Chapter 6- Fake it till you make it

Remy

“So,” a redhead drawled, strolling towards my desk with her arms folded, and a devious grin plastered on her face. “What they say is true. The runaway is back.”

“Nice to see you too, Freya.” I replied with little to no enthusiasm.

Freya was what I liked to call a bully. The kind that smiled when she stabbed. She felt threatened by me and took every opportunity she could find to belittle me.

She hated the fact that I was close to the Wilmer family and thought everything I was given was purely out of favour from them.

“Hope you didn’t cry too much when he broke your little heart.” She inquired, looking me up and down with cold irises that could pierce through my skin if given the opportunity.

I exhaled slowly, forcing my fingers to stay calm on the keyboard.

“Look, Freya.” I replied, staring away from my computer. “As much as I’d love to catch up with you.”

She lifted a brow.

“Actually, I’m lying,” I continued flatly. “I don’t want to catch up with you.”

Her smile twitched.

I stood up slowly, placing my two hands on my desk and locked eyes with her intensely just enough to make my point.

“As a matter of fact, I don’t even want to see you. So if you don’t mind, get away from my desk and go back to work. Because I have a shit load of work to attend to and your presence is just slowing down my process.”

A flicker of anger flashed across her face but was subdued with a sly smile.

“As you wish, lover girl. But this isn’t over. In fact it’s only just beginning.” She gave a brief chuckle before turning towards her desk which was only a few feet away.

She definitely knew how to get under my skin. But not today.

Today was the day I had to prove my worth, not just to my colleagues and superiors, but also to myself. I must let everyone know that this break up didn’t break me.

But how the hell was I supposed to do that when Infact the break up did break me. I was still trying to get my life together. I guess all I had to do was fake it till I made it.

My stomach rumbled. I hadn’t eaten breakfast before l left the house. Food could wait, work couldn’t.

My phone buzzed.

‘I know you didn’t have breakfast, how about lunch with me?’

I looked over at Cory’s closed office door.

Technically, accepting lunch from the brother of the man I was meant to be getting over was probably the worst decision I could make for my reputation.

It would definitely give Freya and her minions something to gossip about for a couple of days.

But, a girl had to eat. The knot of hunger in my stomach battled with the knot of anxiety in my chest, and I quickly realized I needed an ally. Or at least a distraction.

I typed out a quick reply.

‘ You know me too well. I’ll be in your office by 1.’

**********

At exactly 1, I switched off my computer, tucked my notes into my desk drawer and grabbed my purse.

I stood up, intentionally walking past Freya’s desk without sparing her a glance. I could feel her burning gaze as it drilled the back of my head, but for the first time since I walked into this building, I didn’t care.

I slightly tapped on Cory’s door and opened when I heard his consent.

My eyes widened at the feast laid out on the large marbled glass table in the middle of the office.

“Are we having a party I’m not aware of?” I slowly asked with a disbelief smile as I closed the door firmly behind me.

“Erm, no.. no.” He stuttered, raking his fingers through his hair. “I… I got this for us. Didn’t know what you wanted so I got a little bit of everything.”

“You could have texted or called atleast.” I replied, shaking my head. “How the hell are we supposed to finish this?”

“I did call,” he objected quickly. “Took me straight to voicemail. Left a couple of texts too, but got no response.”

“Oh.”

My phone must have been turned off. A habit I created for me to concentrate at work.

“My apologies,” I continued, pressing my palms together. “I turn my phone off whenever I’m at work. Makes me focus more.”

I walked over to the table and settled comfortably on the floor. He looked down at me like I was crazy.

“What?” I asked, already sorting through the packs of food till I found a container of Chinese fried rice. “Food tastes better when you’re on the floor. Didn’t you know this?”

“ I did not, thanks for the update.” He lowered himself beside me, legs crossed.

“Hmm, this is so good.” I exclaimed, closing my eyes and wiggling my head. Something I did whenever I tasted good food. “When did all this arrive, I could have seen it, but I didn’t.” I asked through a chew.

“ I have a private entry for deliveries,” he explained, finally feeling relaxed as he dugged into a container of spicy noodles. “Part of the executive perks. Keeps the office vultures from circling around the scent of honey glazed chicken.”

I chuckled. I felt the sensation that had been buried deep in my core finally begin to unravel.

“Smart. Freya would definitely have staged a protest if she knew there was a high end stake out passing her desk.”

Cory paused, his expression shifting from lighthearted to serious. “Speaking of Freya…” he said carefully. “I saw her hovering near your desk earlier. Did she give you any trouble?”

I poked at a shrimp with my chopstick, stared at it for a moment, then popped it into my mouth.

“You know Freya. She thrives on drama.” I swallowed. “She called me a ‘runaway’ and asked if I cried too much about the breakup.”

I looked up at him, a small, defiant smile tugged at the corner of my lips. “But don’t worry, I handled it. I told her to go get her work done, cause her presence was disturbing my work process.”

Cory laughed, a genuine warm sound that filled the large office. “Looks like you had it all figured out.”

“For now,” I said, taking another bite. “You can never tell with Freya.”

“Well,” Cory said, raising a spring roll like a silent toast. “Here’s to you,” he said, raising a spring roll like a silent toast. “ A stellar employee, who for the record is currently the only person brave enough to eat Chinese food on a five thousand dollar rug.”

I laughed, then took another bite.

We were in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, the only sound being the clinking of plastic containers, and the quiet hum of the air conditioning.

It felt strangely normal, sitting on the floor of a multi million dollar office, sharing a meal like it’s the most natural thing in the world.

August and I never had lunch in the office. We always ate out together.

This was new

And not bad at all.

“So,” Cory cleared his throat, setting his food back on the table. “I’ve had this thought for a little while now, but I don’t know how you’re going to react to it.”

He finished, turning his attention to me fully.

My stomach tightened.

“What is it?” I asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

“Now you don’t have to say yes,” he said quickly, “If you’re not totally fine with it. But, how would you feel if I moved into your new apartment as your upstairs neighbor.”