The Assistant

Chapter Thirteen -

Chapter Thirteen -

I used to think the most awkward encounter I'd ever experience in my life was when I had run into my crush in senior year, looking like a fire truck had just run me over from the cold I had been sporting that day, and I sneezed - boogers and all - into his face; then, like fate's cruel intensions, was paired up with him for a class activity in my biology class. He sat as far away as he could, and kept looking over at me like I was about to pass on the plague.

That moment, however, looked like a nicely decorated cupcake in my mind - in comparison to the newly formed awkward memory of sitting next to Adrian all the way back to New York, and to my apartment. My mind was still trying to process the fact that he had kissed me, and I enjoyed it. No, not only did I enjoy it; I kissed back. My boss. The guy I thought I had loathed due to his arrogance and sleazy way with women - and I had kissed him back.

Once I was back in the safe arms of my bedroom, that's when I had finally exhaled the breath I had been holding back since we flew back into New York, and looked at my plain purple bed sheets absent minded. Adrian had texted me once I was at my door, and told me to take the rest of the day off. It was a brief text, with none of his usual wink faces stringing at the end of the sentence, and I exited the message before my mind could linger on it any longer.

I put my suitcase down near my wardrobe before deciding to have a shower, in an attempt to wash off the shakiness that my skin currently inhabited. I texted Amy and told her to come over as soon as she could; silently praying that she had taken the Monday off work like she usually did.

Once I finished getting dressed, I exited the bathroom and almost screamed when Amy jumped out in front of me, engulfing me into a bone crushing hug. "Don't ever leave me alone on a weekend ever again!" She exclaimed, pretending to sob into my shoulder before pulling away from the hug and giving me a toothy grin.

Once she saw my grim expression, her smile instantly dropped and her eyes grew wide with concern. "What's wrong?" She asked, studying my expression thoroughly.

"I..." I trailed off; frowning slightly as I thought ahead of what Amy's reaction was going to be once I informed her about the kiss. "Let's sit down first." I suggested, giving her a weak smile.

She grabbed my wrist before I could finish my sentence, and pulled me to my living room with a force I didn't even know she had in her, before throwing me onto the sofa and glaring. "WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?!" She asked with frantic eyes. I opened my mouth to tell her but she cut me off. "What did he do? I swear to God Emily, if he hurt you in any way, I will throw his body into a wall. I don't care how hot he is." She threatened, narrowing her eyes at my slightly amused expression.

"Thank you Amy, your threat is... comforting." I finally said, smiling slightly. I missed her. Amy and I had never been separated longer than a day, so this was taking its emotional toll on the both of us.

"What happened?" She asked again, her concerned expression returning. I sighed and looked down at my lap while unconsciously biting my bottom lip. The lip he kissed. "I... Adrian and I kissed." I finally managed to get out. Saying it out loud finally made the words seep into the realisation part of my brain, and I let out a shaky sigh.

Amy, on the other hand, didn't need long to process my confession. "WHAT?!" She screeched, falling off the sofa in shock. The corners of my lip tugged up slightly in an amused smile as she stumbled off the ground and took her original position across me on the comfy sofa. "You- You- Are you messing with me, Emily Hannah Johnson?" Amy asked sceptically, giving me a suspicious look.

I shook my head, suddenly feeling a lot less nervous at the news due to Amy's amusing reaction. "He kissed me, and I... I kissed him back." I frowned as I recalled the kiss, unconsciously biting my bottom lip again.

"Oh my god." Amy murmured, looking away from me with a disbelieving look. I mentally counted down from 3 in my head, before she jumped off the sofa with a squeal that had enough pitch to crack glass. "YOU KISSED! OH MY GOD! YOU AND MR SEXY PANTS KISSED!" She screamed out, jumping around my living room in excitement.

This time, my face wore the look of disbelief. "Amy! This isn't something to be celebrating!" I exclaimed, blushing slightly. She stopped jumping around and smirked in my direction, waggling her eyebrows. "Am I missing something? Did he get the chance to see the sexy lingerie I packed?" She asked excitedly, making my blush instantly begin to fade.

"Funny you bring that up..." I trailed off, slowly getting off the sofa with a glare. Amy's face paled and she began to back away from me. "I'M SORRY!" She squeaked once her back collided with my wall, making my eyes narrow even further.

"Do you know how humiliating that was?!" I exclaimed, blushing as a flashback of Adrian's expression once he saw the lace undergarments on my body appeared in my mind, and I shook it out of my head before snapping my glare back on Amy's fearful expression. "And you didn't pack a single pair of pyjamas! And don't even get me started on the fact you didn't pack my swim shorts! I'm never letting you pack my bag for a trip ever again!" I exclaimed, giving her an incredulous look.

To my surprise, she began to laugh. I took a step back in astonishment, as she continuously heaved a fresh breath of air, before erupting with laughter once again. I huffed angrily and went to sit back down on the sofa, waiting for her laughing fit to die down. Once she stopped laughing, she came and sat back down with me, still stifling a few giggles. "I'm glad I'm your source of amusement." I grumbled, glaring at her.

"I just want to know one thing." She began, still trying to stifle a laugh. My eyebrows rose as a signal for her to continue, and she broke out into an amused grin. "What was his reaction to the lace nighty that I packed?" She asked, bursting into a fit of giggles.

I glared at her again. "I didn't wear it!" I snapped, blushing furiously.

Her laughing stopped instantly. "What? Why not?! You're such a party pooper!" She whined, pouting.

My eyes grew wide in disbelief. "Are you kidding me? Amy! He's my boss! Not my husband who's taking me on a romantic weekend where we'd spend most of our time in the bedroom!" I snapped, blushing. My mind went back to the couple we had met - and guiltily lied too - on the beach, and I wondered if that's what they spent their time doing.

"Ugh! You need to loosen up more." Amy grumbled, making me glare in her direction again. "He's my boss, Amy." I pointed out.

"So? You guys have slept in the same bed, he's practically seen you naked, and now you guys have kissed!" She exclaimed.

The kiss pushed me off the edge. "I'm not another one of those whores that parade into his office every day!" I exclaimed angrily. "The kiss was a mistake." I added, before sighing. "It's so awkward between us now, Ames. What do I do at work tomorrow? Do I act normal? Who has to break the silence, him or me? Oh my god, why did he have to kiss me." I groaned, pushing my face into the soft pillow that was in my grasp.

When I pulled my face away from the soft cushion, I found Amy chewing her lip in thought. "Okay, listen up." She snapped suddenly, making the pillow fall out my grasp abruptly. "We're going to put you in your sexiest business outfit you have. Act like your usual self. You don't want to show him that the kiss affected you in any way. Say good morning, and ask him if he wants you to do anything. Keep it strictly professional, if he wants to talk, he'll talk. Got it?" Amy asked, giving me her stern look.

I nodded, becoming amused at her sudden professionalism towards Adrian - but it didn't last long. "I'm sleeping over tonight. Now that that's settled, I need every detail! From the time you got into the plane to go to California until the time you unlocked your apartment door!" She squealed excitedly, inching closer to me with an eager expression.

I shook my head and sighed at her excited personality, before launching into the story of the weekend.

***

"How was the sweet sunshine in Cali?" Allen asked, giving me an amused smirk as he mixed Adrian's weird latté in the large cup.

I shrugged, not comfortable under his prying gaze as he looked over my body once again. "It was okay. Really hot." I nodded awkwardly, giving him a tight smile.

"Allen! Stop checking the poor woman out you perv!" Lisa snapped from beside him, whacking his head with a glare before proceeding with mixing my own latté.

Allen chuckled and glanced back at me before turning around to his sister. "It's not my fault she looks so hot today. Hotter than usual - I mean. I can't quite put my finger on it..." He trailed off as his eyes scanned my body once again. It's the push up bra, shorter and tighter pencil skirt, and the extra and very unnecessary makeup my best friend made me wear today. I mentally answered him.

"Allen, stop it." Lisa said, frowning slightly at her older brother. "It's rude, and you know what Adria-"

"OKAY EMILY! I think your order is ready. Here you go!" Allen said in a sudden cheerful tone as he shot a warning look in Lisa's direction, who cowered away under his gaze immediately.

"Yep! Definitely done! Oh! Would you look at the time! You better be going! You'll be late!" Lisa exclaimed, her voice coming off high-pitched at the end of each sentence she managed to get out.

I looked in between the pair suspiciously as I handed over the money. "What's going on that I don't know about...?" I trailed off, glaring slightly as they both handed me the coffee cups.

"What? Nothing!" Lisa squeaked, before her face began to transform into the colour of a tomato.

"It's nothing." Allen claimed, giving Lisa another warning look before turning a smile on for me. "So, if I do recall it correctly, you still owe me a dinner." He declared, smirking slightly.

"I don't owe you anything. I'll think about having lunch with you sometime." I offered a small smile, not believing their earlier claims, before saying my goodbyes and rapidly making my way over to Kingston Corp.

Once I stepped off the elevator, Suzie instantly greeted me with her motherly hug. "You look absolutely incredible! How was the trip honey?" She asked with a warm smile on her face, instantly brightening my mood.

I nodded and smiled at her as we began walking down to Adrian - and my - office. "Thank you. It was very nice. California has lovely weather." I told her. She nodded before her smile widened. "And Adrian's beach house? I've never actually been there, but from the photo I once saw on his father's desktop background, it looks incredible."

I nodded. "It was very nice. Maybe we can manage to convince him to let you and Richard stay there for one weekend." I winked, causing her to laugh and blush at my statement, before she pushed the office door open for me. I placed my cup on my desk before walking over to Adrian's and placing his coffee on the polished marble surface. "Is there anything important on today? Did I miss much from Saturday and yesterday?" I asked, already digging into my bag to pull out my notebook where I recorded any crucial information

Suzie frowned in thought for a moment, the movement making her fragile skin wrinkle at the base of her eyebrows, before replying. "Yes, there's a conference call this Friday with the head office of New Zealand again. They've put the ideas you brought up into the advertisement and need to confirm everything with Adrian." She paused and waited for me to complete the sentence before continuing. "Also, Mr Harrison said he agrees on the deal that Mr Kingston offered, and Mr Walter said his offer to accept still stands, as long as Mr Kingston meets the requirements he laid out for him. I don't understand the last one, but make sure Mr Kingston is informed anyway." She smiled, and I went rigid from David Walter's name being mentioned.

"David Walter?" I asked in small voice, looking over at her in fear.

"Yes... Emily, dear. Are you oka-" Suzie's concerned tone was cut off by a gruff clearing of the throat. Both our eyes snapped towards the doorway, where Adrian stood, and my throat instantly dried up.

"Good morning Mr Kingston. I hope you had a pleasant weekend." Suzie said, breaking the silence that fell in the office with a warm smile. Adrian's pissed off expression didn't change as his eyes fell on hers, and he frowned. "It was fine." He snapped as his eyes briefly flickered in my direction, and did a slight double take before he covered it up by looking back at Suzie. "You may leave now, Mrs Brown." He ordered, walking past us both to sit at his desk.

Mrs Brown gave me questioning look, and I shrugged slightly to show that I didn't know what was wrong with him - even though I had a small hunch that was sitting at the bottom of my stomach - before she left the office.

I replayed Amy's advice in my head before I slightly turned to him. "Good morning Mr Kingston. Mr Harrison has accepted the deal you offered him, and Mr Walter has said that his offer still stands if you meet his requirements." I tried to keep my voice neutral. "Is there anything you'd like me to do for you sir?" I asked, keeping my stance strictly professional, just as Amy advised.

Adrian didn't look up from his phone, and I mentally cursed my best friend for making me wear all this makeup and uncomfortable clothing. "Cancel all my morning appointments." He ordered in a cold tone, reaching out to take a sip from his coffee.

An unfamiliar poisonous feeling delved its way into my bloodstream, and my heart suddenly began to thump against my chest rapidly with the unfamiliar feeling being its fuel as the words left his mouth, and I instantly trained my eyes to my heels to hide my expression. The last time Adrian told me to cancel his morning schedule, there was a whole parade of women lining up at his door to get their daily dose of him, and for some reason, and it bothered me. A lot.

"Of course. Anything else?" I asked, trying to cover the slight shake in my voice.

"No." He answered bluntly. I inhaled deeply before making my way over to my own desk - which I now wished wasn't in the same room as his - before beginning to call up all the scheduled appointments for the morning just as the door burst open. A tall, slim red head walked into the room, and I vaguely recognised her from the day of the interview for this job.

"Hey Adrian." She purred, closing the door behind her slowly. My eyes scanned her skimpy skirt and flimsy tank top before I glared sightly, putting my head down in anger.

"Amanda." He greeted. I saw his lips curl into a tight smirk as his eyes scanned her body and he rose from his seat. The red head - Amanda - giggled uncontrollably, as if Adrian had made the joke of the century, before he sauntered over to him, kissing him full on the lips. He responded instantly, pulling her slim body into his own and kissing her back.

My lungs closed off at the site - and I felt my breath stop midway in my throat as I looked over at the pair with wide eyes. Adrian began to lead her to the glass door that he had disappeared into a few times, and just before he shut the door completely, his eyes met mine. He pulled away from her lips and gave me a cruel smirk, before he began to trail kisses down her neck and shut the door behind him.

For some identified reason that I tried to ignore, my eyes began to swell up with tears, before loud, high pitched moans began to erupt from behind the glass door. I jumped out of my desk and grabbed the papers in front of me, as well as my bag, and inhaled deeply. I was no longer crying, but pulsing with anger. I left the office, slamming the door shut behind me, before making my way over to Suzie's office.

She looked up at me in surprise, before she frowned slightly. "Emily, are you okay? You look a little teary eyed." She observed, frowning at me with curiosity.

"I'm fine. Do you mind if I stay here for a while? Adrian... Adrian's occupied for the morning." I finished bitterly, mentally cursing myself for feeling so much anger towards the situation. Suzie nodded with no hesitation, and began to drag a small table she had on the side of the room, before placing it in front of the chair I was standing beside. "I'm sorry... I don't have anything larger..." She trailed off, giving me a guilty look.

"It's fine, Suzie! Thank you so much. This is more than enough." I assured her, giving her a strained smile. She gave me a knowing look, and I frowned curiously as she turned around to walk back to her desk, but didn't question it.

***

By the time lunch time came around, my body was cramping in areas I didn't even know were capable of cramping, and Adrian was still going in his office with different girls. My anger never dimmed down during the four hours it was going on; not being at my desk adding more fuel to the fire.

I decided to text Allen and take the lunch offer we agreed to have earlier, and told him to meet me at the burger shop across from Kingston Corp. He agreed and was even at the place before I was - making me laugh once I saw him standing in front of the burger shop in a black shirt with the Starbucks logo printed on the left chest area of the shirt. "You don't look too eager to have lunch with me." I teased, smirking slightly as his cheeks began to flush a light shade of pink.

"Shut up." He mumbled, looking down at his black converse shoes. I laughed and opened the door to the small diner, Allen following in tow. "So what made you finally agree to have lunch with me? Have my killer good looks finally caught up with you?" He asked with a slight smirk on his lips.

I rolled my eyes and raised my eyebrows. "Yes Allen. How will I ever be able to survive this cruel, cruel earth without you having lunch with me?" I gushed sarcastically, putting my hand over my chest to emphasise the damsel in distress role.

He chuckled and slid into the booth we walked to in the corner of the diner before smiling up at me. "Sexy, smart, feisty, and funny. The list just keeps growing every day." He declared.

I rolled my eyes again at his attempt at flirting, before picking up the slightly greasy laminated menu in front of me. "I'm going to go out on a limb here and say you and Adrian were the playboy's of your high school." I guessed, scanning the menu briefly.

"And college." Allen grinned, making me laugh.

"Figures." I stated, biting my lip as I tried to decide between a chicken burger or a beef burger. "So, what was the deal between you and Lisa this morning? And don't bother saying it was nothing. She began to say Adrian's name. So I know it's not 'nothing'." I glared slightly at Allen, whose eyes snapped to mine once I mentioned the topic.

"She was just reminding me of a deal I made with Adrian. It's nothing big. You don't need to worry that sexy and smart mind of yours." Allen said, smiling slyly at my unwavering expression.

"Oh Allen. Your words touch me. Right here." I pointed to the middle of my chest where my heart was, before throwing another sarcastic smile in his direction.

"I know something else that can touch you there, if you like." He smirked, winking at me.

I laughed before throwing a sugar packet at his face, blushing. "Shut up you idiot."

He chuckled just as a waitress made her way over to our booth. "My offer still stands." He said, waggling his eyebrows at me. I laughed before turning to look up at the waitress. "Can I please get the beef burger and fries?" I asked. She nodded and wrote down her order, before turning over to Allen. "And you?" She asked, visibly checking him out.

"I'll have her, she's not on the menu, but I'm willing to pay." He smirked in my direction, making the waitress giggle. "You're a cute couple." She observed, smiling at the both of us.

I instantly spoke up. "Oh no, we're not-"

Allen cut me off. "Why thank you lovely lady. I'll have the same thing as my sexy girlfriend over here." He smiled, before looking over at me and winking. I gave him a look of disbelief as the waitress wrote down his order and walked away from my booth. "What is with men and making me their fake girlfriend?!" I exclaimed, more to myself.

"Men? Why, cupcake, I'm crushed." Allen said, faking hurt.

I laughed at his horrible acting skills before shaking my head. "You're a handful. I don't think I want to have lunch with you again." I declared jokingly.

He smirked before leaning forward. "Sorry, what was that? Did you say you wanted to have lunch with me again? That's great. Every day, 1PM. I'll be here, in this booth, waiting for you." His tone turned serious, but he still managed to keep the amused glint in his eyes, and I agreed with offer, liking the fact that Allen was an entertaining distraction from Adrian.

---

Hello!

Sorry for the filler guys! Writers block and all. And a persistent friend made me update today. (I'm going to kill you.) Sorry for any mistakes! Not a lot of Adrian in this chapter, but what did you expect? I love Allen's character though. :D

Omg my One Direction concert is in 3 days! *Squeals* and my birthday is in a week! Yaaay! :D

What do you guys think? It's so bad, i'm sorry :'(

Picture on the side is Allen! Who is played by the wonderful *becomes heart eyed* Dave Franco!

Dedicated to Dreaamerr for being an awesome supporter and fan! Ily Ella :D

Vote/Comment/Fan If you deem it worthy enough!



Thanks for reading lovelies! xx