Fake Fiancée

Chapter 36: The Start Of Something New

I will be posting up the EPILOGUE after this, so stay tuned for that! Thank you so much for reading and enjoy my lovely readers! :) XOXO

A grumble escaped from my lips as I sifted through my closet. It was seven o’ clock, on a dull Monday morning and I really needed to find something to wear for my first day on the job. I wanted to impress (obviously), but I wasn’t going to overdo it. That was a definite no-no.

In the end, I picked out a baby blue sleeveless blouse with little white pearls as buttons and light grey tailored pants. My hair was unruly, so I quickly fishtail braided it and let it sit on my right shoulder. My overall appearance looked pretty good to me but I wasn’t sure if it was perfect, because maybe my perspective on myself was messed up.

The door of the bathroom slightly creaked and my head snapped up. Mom was leaning against the doorframe and studying me with a slight smile on her face. “Excited?” she asked.

I bit my lip and did a twirl. “Does this look good?”

She came forward and smoothed down my hair. “Of course it does,” she answered. “Just perfect. It’s good that you didn’t choose a skirt, or a dress. That would overdo it a bit.”

“Good.” I nodded and smiled with relief at her answer. “I should be eating breakfast now.”

“Alright baby girl, but I haven’t cooked anything so you’ll have to make do with something else like jam and toast.”

Mom locked the door so she could have a morning shower after I walked out. When I reached downstairs, I scurried the kitchen cupboards for cereal. As I poured some Crunchy Nut into a bowl, I felt an odd sense of déjàvu. The memory of pranking Henry by freezing his cereal bowl came back to me and I felt myself smile. My knees became weak and I felt like I was dreaming.

How had it all turned into this situation, where I wasn’t waking up to Henry’s gorgeous face every morning? I already knew the answer of course. It was because of me. Henry and I had no chance of being together because of my selfishness.

Ugh. I shook my head as sat down at the dining table.  Why was I thinking about him?

“Lainie, you better hurry.” I looked up and saw Weston heading into the kitchen to make breakfast. “Time’s running out.”

I looked up at the clock hanging on the wall and nearly spat out the milk and cereal in my mouth. Damn!

“I’m leaving now Weston!” I called, as I grabbed my bag and rushed out the door. The Corolla mom and I used to share was now officially mine because she had bought a new car, so I hopped in and backed slowly out of the driveway.

It took about half an hour to reach the office building and when I did, my heart was pounding so loud that I wouldn’t have been surprised if the passer-by’s could hear. I couldn’t believe I was actually going to be working with a real architect. I would have so much more experience and insight into being an architect.

The instructions Mr Ramsey had left me said that my boss’s office was on the fourth floor, so I headed over to the lift. A ‘ding’ noise notified me that I had reached the right floor and I hesitantly stepped out. I was standing in a small waiting room, where faded green chairs lined the opposite wall and by the fish tank, a receptionist sat on a spinning chair, looking through some papers. She looked up when I walked up to her and offered me a generous smile.

“Good morning. How may I help you today?”

I gripped the strap of my tote bag tighter and bit my lip. “I’m here to see Mr Benally?”