TWENTY-FOUR
"Don't you think it's too early to shade tears, Cinderella?" A familiar voice mocked.
"Excuse me?" Claire scowled incredulously as her eyes met Doris. She wiped her unshed tears right away, her hatred for crying deeper.
"You look terrible," said Doris as she neared her, her manner rather spiteful and conceited. "Have you finally learned your lesson?" She crossed her arms on the chest, smirking.
This bitch! Claire tried her best to keep calm despite her stirred tempter.
"I can't say it was nice meeting you, so I'll pretend you're not here," Claire retorted, pissed off. She continued walking, ignoring Doris' victorious remark.
She was not worth it.
"There'll never be two suns in the sky," Doris uttered scornfully, and Claire halted in her tracks. "I'm glad you've realized sooner than later," she added.
Fuck her! Claire turned around. "Do we have a problem, Doris?" she asked calmly.
"Oh," Doris muttered, her tone sarcastic. "Sorry, I was just thinking out loud. Why? Did something happen so early in the morning to turn you into such a foul mood? Are the designs complete? Because that should be the only reason for bringing you here, no?"
"Bitch," Claire murmured. Watching Doris acting all high and mighty, as though she owned the world, made her sick to the bones right now. "I don't think that's any of your business. We are not close enough to talk about personal matters, don't you think?" She smiled slyly.
Doris scowled, but her smirk stayed. "Did you think easing yourself to him will make you his woman?" She sounded nasty.
Okay this was it! This bitch was clearly pushing too hard. Claire gulped tightly, and slowly released a smile.
"Oh, so this about Ryan?" she uttered wickedly. "If it is, then it's still none of your business, Director!"
"Anything related to Ryan is my business! I don't know what you're looking for, but I can assure you that you'll never find it!" Doris snarled, her voice laced with menace.
"Oh really, now?" Claire huffed a little laugh, hardly affected.
"I know very well people of your kind, little girl. I can smell a gold-digger even from a distance," Doris snickered, scrolling Claire up and down.
"A gold-digger?" Claire huffed, surprised to hear the name. "Wow, I wonder when I became that." It was very amusing.
"Do you think you've won a lottery or something by getting involved with him?" Doris lashed, angered by Claire's feigned indifference. Her eyes flamed. “No, darling. He'll just use you and then trash you like a used tissue."
Maybe she was right, Claire thought, but it no longer mattered.
"You know what, Doris," said Claire, sighing tiredly. "I'm not wasting my energy arguing with you. No, it's not even worth it."
"Oh, you're scared?" Doris sneered. "You don't know where you're getting yourself into. Be very careful with Ryan, because he's like fire and you may end up getting burned, girl."
"I know." Claire moved closer, her smile confident. "I've seen that fire so many times already. And it's very hot! But guess what, I know how to extinguish it quite well. You can ask Ryan himself if you want to."
Doris was losing it.
"You bitch!" She raised her hand but Claire caught it midair.
"I'm not the bitch here, Doris. You are! And don't you dare call me names, and much less raise your hand on me!" Claire shot, gripping Doris' wrist tightly. "And you're right; the sky has only one sun. And that sun . . . is definitely not you, Director! Now leave the sky be, will you?" Her eyes blazed, and Doris' were stormy.
"What's going on here?" Ryan's voice snapped them both, and it's how they parted their hands.
"Why don't you ask your fake girlfriend?" Claire shot sternly.
"Claire—" Ryan started but she was already walking away.
This was not part of the plan. All her life, the only person she'd ever had a heat argument with was her stepmother. But now it appeared she had made herself a new enemy. However, backing out without a fight was not Claire's style. Not at all. After all, Doris started it. And he who laughs the last, laughs the best.
It was not a discussing matter that, more than anything else, Claire wanted to forget Ryan. However, given what Doris had just insinuated earlier, her desires to enter the challenge grew immensely. She wanted to prove that woman wrong, but at the same time it conflicted with her need to stay away from Ryan.
What was she going to do? Follow her heart or her dignity? Sighing, Claire slipped into the first taxi she came across which took her to Gena's. Only her best friend would help her release the anger, she decided, and it was the wisest decision. Gena was at home and Claire was glad to find her. She was ready to vent.
"What's wrong, Claire? Your eyes are puffy." Gena frowned at her sight.
"Just let me take off these jeans first; I feel cramped. Can I have a T-shirt or something?" Claire said while peeling off her clothes.
"Suit yourself. But what happened? I can't stand the suspense any longer." Gena stalked her, as she walked towards the dresser. She was impatient.
Sighing, Claire plucked a T-shirt. "It's Ryan," she said, putting it on.
"Ryan? What has he done?" Gena inquired. Claire's silence made her more impatient. "What did that jerk do you huh? Did he hurt you last night? Because I'll personally kill him if he—"
"Okay, will you calm down for a sec?" Claire laughed, amused for real at last. "He didn't hurt me. At least not physically, if that's what you're thinking."
Gena breathed her relief. "Okay, so then what?"
"Well." Claire sat down on the couch and started telling Gena what really happened earlier today, including her tête-â-tête with Doris.
"The nerve of that woman!" Gena snapped. "I knew from the start something was off. It just didn't feel right that only she kept showing off that she has exclusive ownership of him. So, it was all a lie?"
"Yeah, apparently." Claire prompted.
"And shouldn't we celebrate for that? Why do you look like you've lost a round of the Olympic tournament?" Gena asked excitedly.
"Yeah, right." Claire rolled her eyes pensively. "I should be happy. In fact, I feel such a relief that I wasn't fooling around with a taken-man. But it doesn't justify my disposition either, Gena. I just feel so angry and somehow like a fool."
"Angry with Ryan?" Gena let out a weak smile, showing how understanding she was of the fact, and Claire nodded. "Oh, honey, I think I wouldn't love to be played like that either."
"That's exactly it." Claire sniffed. "He could've just told me the truth. Why did he have to play that way? I was feeling so terrible, Gena. Knowing that I was fucking someone with a girlfriend already was like a cheating whore, and yet I went on with it. And all to learn this? It feels like betrayal."
"And to think Harry has been with me and never said a word, how dare he?" Gena suddenly snapped.
"Hey, easy there!" Claire chuckled. "I appreciate your support, but I'd love not to involve you and Harry in this. He wasn't the one who implied that he was in a fake relationship, got it?"
"Okay. But he'll hear it from me!" Gena grunted, and Claire laughed hard.
"Can I just lie down in a few? I'm feeling tired and my head is spinning." Claire said after a long chat. "I just want to get over this; Ryan Stevens can rot in hell."
"Are you sure about that, Claire?"
"Absolutely!" she reckoned.
On Monday, at work, Claire was inside Nathan's office after the morning briefing. The designs were proceeding accordingly, except for a few details made during their recent meeting.
"So, you think we should adjust a bit?" Nathan asked once they settled down, a big computer screen displayed with the specific illustrations.
"Not the whole thing. I was just thinking of using the false ceiling over here, and some LED lights with similar ambiance, but on this one . . . let’s keep it as it is." Claire was tentative, seemingly engrossed into her element.
"That sounds great, Levy!" Nathan said, and thoughtfully he studied everything they were discussing about.
At last they were done with work matters.
"So how was your weekend?" Nathan asked when Claire got up to gather her notes.
"Just so and so; nothing major," Claire replied vaguely. "I'm sorry for leaving in such a frenzy at the club."
"No, don't mind. I knew you were in safe hands," Nathan teased, grinning up at her. "He seems like the jealous type, huh? Are you two dating?" he said.
Oh boy! This is exactly what Claire had been afraid of; her coworkers finding out her involvements with Ryan. It was pretty much uncomfortable, given her position in the office. But it wasn't a secret anymore, because as a matter of fact, they weren't dating.
"No, we are not dating. He's just someone I know. And if possible, I'd like to ask you to keep it between us," she kindly requested. "You know how things get around here; one little fact and people escalate the matter."
"But of course, it'll stay between us, Levy. That's your personal matter and this is the work place," Nathan said, sounding sincere. "I'm sorry for making such a comment. I know it's not my place, and he is the boss; a scary boss indeed."
Claire found herself laughing heartily at the sound of that.
"No, he's not scary at all. Maybe a little uptight . . . but not scary," she argued, blushing without knowing as she recalled the few moments she'd shared with him.
"Or maybe he tries to protect what's his too much," Nathan joked. "He seems to be extremely possessive as far as you are concerned—which is quite understandable."
"Oh really? And what does that supposed to mean?" Claire was curious.
"It means he's crazy about you, Levy, and I'm sure you know that," Nathan said.
"You know what, Nathan?" uttered Claire. "I'm not discussing this with my boss. But maybe if we bump into each other at Rocket next time, I may reconsider the topic." She got up.
So far the day was proceeding quite well, and the workload kept Claire too occupied to think about Ryan, and especially Nathan's comment about him.
But when her phone started buzzing around twelve, with Ryan's name on the screen, is when she started feeling uneasy. She slowly rejected all his calls, and got herself his text messages instead.
"How persistent!" she growled, eyes on the phone.
FROM: RYAN THE JERK
Please pick up my calls Claire.
[Received]
Ryan called again. She stared at the screen until the call ended. No, she wasn't going to give in. She stayed still for a while, pondering. Singing, she returned the text.
What part of 'we are over' that you don't seem to understand? Please STOP calling me!
[Sent]
She placed the phone down on her desk and continued with work, which by now was already disturbed. Ryan was all over her head. Her mind wandered back to his penthouse, his hotel room, and all the time she'd spent with him. Yes, they were magical, and she could relive them over and over again.
Not even once she could bring herself to forget his wild kisses, caresses, touches and great sex she'd ever had. But other than being physical with him, was there anything else she was missing about him? She kept asking herself. When her phone buzzed again, she checked her phone quicker than she wanted.
FROM: RYAN THE JERK
All of it. I refuse to accept any of it, and that's why we should meet. We need to talk, and I'll personally make sure it happens.
[Received]
"The audacity!" Claire smirked when she read it. It was incredible how Ryan kept exercising his controlling nature even in this situation. He was supposed to beg her, not ordering as he did.
She grabbed the phone and typed furiously.
But of course, Sir. How can I possibly forget your grand sphere of influence? You are right, I won't be able to escape you as long as I'm still one of your employees, but it doesn't mean I'm willing to follow your whim. Don't make me quit my job just to avoid you.
[Sent]
Claire knew right from the start that avoiding Ryan was impossible, but she still wanted to try. However, sooner or later she was going to face him, and it scared the hell out of her. He had become both her strength and weakness at the same time.
She needed him to feel like someone had her back; something she'd forgotten in a long time. She wanted someone to feel proud of her, and he'd shown that within a very short moment of their interaction. So in the end it wasn't all about sex and good times, she thought. A new text arrived.
FROM: RYAN THE JERK
Am I being threatened right now?
[Received]
"Did he just emoji me?" A loud laugh escaped Claire's mouth.
She had to apologize to the others for the indiscretion, and luckily they were too busy bickering on some mundane topics. She could almost imagine Ryan's voice asking this question and it was comic. Was she missing him now? Oh no!
She typed the reply calmly.
It's best you think it that way; after all it's what I learned from you. Unlike you, Sir, I've got things to do for your grand project, so I'll get myself useful where I'm truly needed.
[Sent]
She tossed the phone aside in an obtuse attempt to get herself back to work, which became only short lived as another text was received.
FROM: RYAN THE JERK
I also need you. I miss you, Claire. It's been one hell of a weekend without you.
[Received]
She swallowed and sucked in a deep breath while jotting the words into her head. He was missing her? It made her heart flutter foolishly. But no, she wasn't supposed to fall for it, she reminded herself, and decided to turn off the phone altogether.
Between working until late, revising the designs, and receiving a few calls from Ryan that she deliberately ignored, and only replied to one or two of his texts per diem; the week eventually flew by fast. She didn't see him, but she did miss him.
It was Friday once again. Nathan walked into their office and clasped his hands with a beaming smile. They all stared at him, waiting.
"Okay, guys," he said with a pause. "We'll be having a wrapping up meeting after lunch. We're finally done with this, and I hope everyone will get to sleep better this weekend."
"Finally!" Chris, one of the coworkers, shouted.
"Good job, everyone," Nathan said proudly, and got rewarded with cheers and happy comments. "Get yourself ready for Monday, Levy. We are going to SK, and I hope everything goes well."
"I'm going again?" Claire nearly shouted, utterly startled with the news.
"Of course you are. Why do you look surprised while we've been in this together from the start?" Nathan remarked with a knowing laugh, and Claire's heart began pounding nervously.
"Well, nothing." She sighed, and her biggest horror returned to haunt her.