Stella

Fifty-six

suprise

Stella scrolled through the document on her laptop. Work was insane. Dante was newly hired and dove into his new position with a lot of ease, although his work hours weren't much improved from before, Gabrielle was happy. 

She would often stop by for lunch. On one hand, Stella loved having her friend visit, on the other, she was a distraction when they were caught up with work and she came waltzing through the door asking to go to lunch. 

Stella sighed through her nose and sent the document to Kieran who was just as, if not more, busy. Though, he had been giving her strange glances like he was trying really hard not to say something. They were both working to sort and clean up after Ms Williams and she wondered if the pressure was getting to him. 

Her arms raised above her, stretching her back out. A few clicks sounded in the room. She frowned at the strain in her neck and ran a hand over the paining muscle. 

Bram raised his head from his bed by her desk and looked at the door which swung open a second later. In sauntered Robert with dishevelled hair and missing his tie. His jacket was thrown over his arm and he was looking just about as done with the day as Stella. 

"Is it over yet?" 

"No," Robert muttered, slumping in the seat before her desk. "The court case is soon though. Ms Williams was released on bail. She's under court order not to give interviews or speak with the media. It'll be behind us soon." 

"At least there's that. How did the investigations go?"

"Well, there was an inquiry by OSHA and EEOC into the running of the company and HR in particular. We cooperated with everything and they seemed satisfied. Ms Williams never brought the sexual assault and misconduct claims to the police, so I think people will realise they're just mere accusations and she was just trying to bring us down with her. Father will be back next week and so will Mr O'Sullivan." 

Stella nodded. 

"Are you ready to go home?" 

"Yes." She logged off her computer and stood up. Bram reached his feet and shook his fur out. His tail swayed from side to side at the thought of getting to leave the office. He was always eager to run the grounds of their home. 

Robert helped her with her coat and opened the door. Stella took her bag and followed Robert out. 

The streetlights illuminated the road as Robert drove them home. Stella yawned and sighed. 

"Is Cas coming for dinner tonight?" Robert asked.

Stella blinked and frowned. "I don't know. We've both been rather busy so we haven't talked much in the past week." 

Stella found herself missing his smiling face and safe, calming presence. In the darkness of her bedroom, she would wonder if he felt the same. It felt like it had been much, much longer since she saw him, but when she checked she would find herself feeling shocked that it hadn't even been a full week since the banquet.  

"Oh." Robert frowned. "Are things alright between you two?" 

"Yes." Stella sent her brother a smile. "We're just busy, that's all." She sighed. "Have you seen much of Lexi since the banquet?" 

"No." He pursed his lips. "When I have, she's been pretty quiet." 

 "What about Lucas?" 

"Lucas is Lucas." Robert chuckled. "That kid acts like nothing fazes him, but I'm pretty sure he's fed up. I think something happened between him, Gina and Father. I'm sure you've noticed things are a bit weird."