CHAPTER 9

KIMANI

By the time we got back to the office, I was already filled up. I laid on the couch like a rag doll, not caring if I looked undignified. My shoes had already been kicked off somewhere near the couch, and I let out a long groan, stretching my legs as though I owned the space. Technically I did, for now.

“You’ll crease your blouse lying like that,” Alaric’s voice came from behind his desk. I tilted my head lazily to look at him. He was already scanning documents, as if the weight of the world waited for his pen stroke. How is he not sleepy after that huge meal.

I shrugged. “Then I’ll crease it. I’m not made of steel like you, Alaric. A girl needs a break.”

He set down his pen, his gaze flicking to me in that sharp, assessing way of his. But instead of his usual clipped retort, his tone was softer, almost indulgent.

“There’s a private room through that door.” He inclined his head toward a sleek wooden door to the side of his office. “It’s where I rest when nights are too long, or mornings start too early. Go there if you want to sleep properly.”

I blinked, propping myself up on my elbows. “You have a nap room?”

His brow furrowed faintly, as if the term offended him. “It’s not a nap room. It’s a private chamber for convenience.”

A slow smile tugged at my lips. “Sounds like a nap room to me. You are just saying it in a fancy and serious way."

He didn’t rise to the bait. Typical Alaric. Instead, he simply gestured toward the door with the air of someone issuing an unarguable command. “Go.”

I yawned, too tired to argue. Gathering myself, I padded over and slipped inside. The room was dimly lit, quiet, with a king-sized bed dressed in crisp sheets, and the faintest trace of his cologne lingering in the air. Everything was immaculate, controlled, yet somehow… warm.

I sank into the bed, pulling the soft duvet around me. My body melted into comfort. My eyes grew heavy almost immediately.

The last thing I remembered before sleep claimed me was thinking—so this is where the great Alaric Walker lets himself breathe.

And then, I was gone.

I woke up hours later, groggy but refreshed, wrapped in the warmth of Alaric’s sheets. For a moment, I didn’t want to move. His scent clung to the duvet, fresh, sharp, masculine—it made me want to burrow deeper. But curiosity won.

When I padded back into the main office, the space was eerily quiet. The chair behind his massive desk sat empty, the man himself nowhere in sight.

A grin tugged at my lips. A very wicked, mischievous grin. I probably look like those evil cartoon geniuses.

Oh, the temptation.

I glanced at the door like a thief checking for witnesses, then slipped behind his desk. His world was spread out before me: neat stacks of documents, pens aligned with surgical precision, everything was so meticulously arranged, even the name plate stood at a particular angle, I'm sure of that. I wondered if he would notice any difference.

I began to rearrange, not too much so it is not so obvious, changed the position of some pens, and change the arrangements of the file.

“Well, well,” I whispered to myself, dropping into his chair. It was far too big for me, but the leather swallowed me up in a luxurious hug. I grabbed one of his pens and scribbled nonsense on a spare sticky note, pretending to sign off on some important note. Like an ancient emperor signing on a decree.

I looked at the tiny arrangements I made, if he will notice. To avoid any suspicion, I returned to my spot. The couch. But first, I took out some snacks from the cabinet beside where I was sitted, and a big box of chocolate I know I am not meant to finish in one sitting but I will.

The door clicked open, and in walked Alaric, tall and composed as ever, his jacket already removed, shirt sleeves rolled to his elbows. He paused mid-step, his sharp gaze sweeping across the room like a hawk scanning its territory.

I froze with a chocolate halfway to my mouth, then casually popped it in, chewing as though I had been doing nothing more scandalous than minding my own business on the couch.

“Comfortable?” His voice was deceptively calm, though there was an edge beneath it.

“Very,” I replied brightly, waving a half-empty snack wrapper as proof. “You keep the best stash hidden in here. Consider me impressed.”

Alaric’s eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly, and without another word, he strode to his desk. His movements were precise, controlled—but I saw it. That tiny pause. The flicker of his gaze at the files. The faint tightening of his jaw when his hand brushed against the pen tray.

Oh, he noticed.

He didn’t say a word, though. Instead, one by one, he realigned the pens, straightened the papers, and adjusted the nameplate until it was angled just so. Each motion was deliberate, an act of silent reprimand that only made my grin widen.

When he finally looked up, his eyes locked onto me. I popped another piece of chocolate into my mouth, smiling as sweetly as I could manage with cheeks stuffed full. Like a chipmunk.

“Something funny?” he asked, voice cool, unreadable.

“Not at all,” I said, licking a smear of chocolate off my thumb. “Just enjoying my snacks. Want one?” I held out the box innocently, as if I hadn’t been caught red-handed meddling with his sacred meticulous order.

Alaric stared at me for a long beat, then exhaled slowly through his nose, the faintest shake of his head betraying his exasperation. He didn’t take a chocolate. Of course he didn’t. Mr Espresso as a desert. What was I even expecting.

Oh well, more for me.

"Are you not leaving, I thought every office going person closes by four pm." I asked him. It was already few minutes past four and I was seriously bored.

Alaric didn’t answer me right away. He just continued with his work, signing the last of the documents with that same ruthless precision. I could swear he was dragging it on purpose, just to make me suffer through boredom.

Finally, with a sharp click of his pen, he stacked the papers, aligned the edges into perfect symmetry, and slid them into his briefcase. “Done,” he said simply, as if the whole room hadn’t been a silent battlefield of wills.

I sat up on the couch, brushing chocolate crumbs off my blouse, and clapped dramatically. “Bravo. The great Alaric Walker finally decides to call it a day.”

He gave me a flat look but said nothing, only slipping into his jacket. Typical. No reaction. At least none I could read.

When we walked out of the office together, heads turned again—staff whispering behind polite smiles, eyes flicking curiously between us. Alaric didn’t acknowledge them, his stride long and commanding, but I felt their stares burn holes into me. If anyone asked, I’d say it was because I looked fabulous.

The car was already waiting, sleek and gleaming. Evan opened the door, and Alaric gestured for me to slide in first. The gentlemanly gesture would’ve impressed me if it wasn’t wrapped in that same frosty silence of his.

Once we were both settled and the car pulled away, I stretched out with a sigh, turning my head toward him. “You know what?”

His eyes flicked to me briefly before returning to the window. “What?”

“I’m not coming with you tomorrow,” I said, letting each word drop with deliberate finality. “You’re too boring to be around.”

The driver’s shoulders stiffened slightly, as though he was trying not to laugh.

Alaric’s jaw flexed, but otherwise he gave no outward reaction. For a moment, I thought he’d ignore me entirely, as usual. Then, with that cool, cutting calm of his, he murmured, “Good. It will be quieter.”

I gasped, sitting up straighter. “Did you just… insult me?”

He didn’t look at me, but I caught the faintest twitch at the corner of his lips. Almost a smile, but not quite.

Unbelievable. The man was teasing me.

I crossed my arms, pouting like a child. “You’re impossible.”

“And you are loud,” he returned smoothly, still staring out the window.

I turned away with an exaggerated huff, but inside, my heart thudded strangely fast. Because beneath his words, beneath his composure, I had glimpsed something rare—something that looked suspiciously like amusement.

And it made me wonder… if I kept pushing, how much more could I get out of him?

Well, I guess I will find out.