74 - Rejection

 "I have to go somewhere," she told Atlas when she returned to the office. He had been waiting for her with a smile, half-sitting back on her desk with those eyes that were so blue that her resolve had nearly crumbled in the first instant. But Daniel's words were still burning in her mind hours later, and this was something she had to do.

"I'll take you there."

She smiled back but shook her head. "It's personal. I need to go alone."

At his silence, she paused to wonder if she had been too cold. She hadn't meant to be, and she was sure that none of her anxiety had slipped out in her tone, but maybe the words themselves had been too brusque. She came closer and stopped only when she stood directly in front of him, nearly touching his knees.

"But I'll see you in the morning if you like," she added. "If you still want to pick me up?"

Maybe he wouldn't want to, a voice whispered in the back of her mind. She tried to stamp it out since there was no