Chapter 3

Lillian's POV

I was officially the queen of evasion.

For the past three days, I had successfully dodged, sidestepped, and outright avoided any form of contact with Nathaniel Caldwell. My boss.  

The man I had unknowingly slept with.  

The same man I had been trying to scrub out of my memory, only to be slapped in the face with reality when I walked into the office Monday morning and saw him looking irresistible as he walked to he elevator.

I had felt the blood drain from my face so fast I nearly passed out.  

And since then, I had been playing an elaborate game of cat and mouse, except in this case, the cat had no idea the mouse was desperately scurrying to avoid being seen.  

Any time my boss in the finance department needed a report delivered to the CEO, I came up with the most ridiculous excuses.  

“Lillian, can you have this delivered to the boss's office, please. Linda just started to work on a report.” He said and my eyes widened, thankfully he didn't catch on.

“Oh, I just got a call, I need to run an urgent errand.” I quickly put my phone against my ear and ran out of the office like the place was on fire.

“But…” I sent a polite smile his way and never looked back.

But, I think fate decided to gang up on me, because soon enough, there was another paper report that needed to be delivered to the CEO office and I was the only one available.

Yet, another excuse.

“My shoes are giving me blisters, can someone else go?”

I think at this point, my boss was on to me.

“I think I might be coming down with something, I don’t want to spread it.”  

My coworkers began to get suspicious. But, who would blame them.

Hell, I was suspicious of myself.

It wasn’t like I had done anything wrong.

We were two consenting adults, meeting in a club, acting on impulse and attraction.

The problem was, I had done all that thinking I’d never see the man again.  

And now?  

Now, every time I so much as heard his name, my stomach twisted into knots. And not in a good way. In a way that I want to go back to that night where it was all about me, where he paid extra attention to every of my need.

But, I couldn’t risk facing him.  

Couldn’t handle the moment his gorgeous, piercing gaze locked onto mine again, threatening to unravel me the way he had that night.  

So I kept avoiding.  

Until today.  

Because, as karma would have it, my luck was bound to run out.  

***

It started the same way it had the past few days.  

I had just received a printed quarterly report from my manager, meant for the CEO’s desk.  

The CEO’s office . The report said and it was dropped on my desk.

I turned to my colleague, Janet, flashing my best help-me-out smile.

“Hey, Janet, can you drop this off in the CEO’s office? I…”  

She held up a hand, cutting me off.

“Nope.”  

I blinked. “What?” when did Janet get so brave? She used to be so timid around everyone.

She smirked, arms crossed. “I don’t know what’s going on with you, Lillian, but this is the fourth time this week you’ve asked me to take something up there for you. Whatever you’re avoiding, you need to handle it yourself.”  

I opened my mouth to protest, to lie my way out again.

But before I could, she grabbed her purse and shot me a knowing look.

“Good luck,” she said, before walking out the door and leaving me alone with my misery.

I sighed, looking down at the report in my hands.  

My fingers curled around it, heart hammering as I realized I had no choice.

If I didn’t take this report to Nathaniel myself, my manager would start asking questions. And the last thing I needed was more attention.

With a deep breath, I straightened my shoulders and forced myself to move. Each step toward his office felt like I was walking into a trap.

By the time I reached his office, my pulse was pounding so hard it echoed in my ears. His secretary was not on seat.

I lifted my hand, hesitated, then knocked.  

“Come in,” came his deep, authoritative voice.  

I swallowed, pushing the door open.  

And there he was.  

Seated behind his massive desk, one hand resting against his temple as he studied a document.  

His jacket was off, his white dress shirt rolled up to his forearms, his tie loosened just enough to look deliciously undone.

It was a problem.  

A big problem.  

Because now all I could think about was how that same man had been on top of me just nights ago.  

He looked up, and the moment his eyes met mine, the air in the room shifted.  

Something flickered across his face, surprise, recognition… amusement? I couldn't tell. But, I cleared my throat, shoving the report forward.  

“Quarterly analysis from finance, sir.”  

Nathaniel didn’t take it.  

Instead, he leaned back in his chair, his sharp gaze never leaving mine.  

“I was starting to think you didn’t work here anymore.”  

My breath caught.  

He noticed.

Of course he did. He wasn’t an idiot.

I straightened, forcing a neutral expression. “Just been busy.”  

He let out a quiet chuckle, low and rich, like he saw right through my pathetic attempt at nonchalance.  

“Busy avoiding me, you mean.”  

My stomach flipped.  

I refused to confirm it.  

Instead, I placed the report on his desk and turned to leave. “Enjoy the report sir.”  

But before I could reach the door, “I don’t regret it.”  

I froze. I turned, my heart pounding as I met his gaze again.  

His expression was unreadable, but there was something undeniable in his voice.  

“Do you?” he asked.

I opened my mouth, but no words came. Because, I didn’t know how to answer. I wasn’t sure I wanted to.  

But what scared me the most was that, deep down… I already knew the answer. And no, I don't regret it.

Infact, I crave for more.