Betting with the Bride

Chapter Twelve

Ivory

By noon the words of my abstruse boss has already disseminated to the gossiping employees. I am more than mindful of the searing gazes focused on me as I perambulate throughout the building. Unsubtle whispers follow me throughout the hotel. Janice beckons me urgently as if her life depends on it. I throw her a suspicious inspection.

"What's going on between you and the hunky man?" she whispers with a leer grin.

I scowl at her, but a deep blush overcomes my cheeks. "Nothing is happening between us, and quit calling him that," I scold with a scarlet tint to my face.

"I can't help it. He is one fine man!" Janice shamelessly states, earning a playful slap on her arm from me.

I can't stop the laugh that manages to escape my disapproving expression, but nevertheless I remind my impish coworker, "Janice, you have a husband." Although her tone and motive is harmless, I must caution her.

"Don't get me wrong, I love Leo, and I would never love another man more, but you must agree with me. He is definitely easy-on-the-eyes," she admits.

"More than that," I mutter under my breath, but she doesn't catch it, or if she does she lets it slip.

Even though my efforts to steer her attention elsewhere are great, Janice waggles her index finger at me accusingly. "No more about me; what is going on between you two?"

If only she knew, but if she knew it would be around the hotel in two seconds flat. Darn you Janice and your loud mouth. Sheepishly, I advert my gaze from her piercing one when I answer, "Nothing. I don't know what that was all about."

Janice is too smart to not catch my white lie, and I internally groan when she argues with me. "Ivory, we both know very well that you are lying through your teeth right now. Tell me what is going on between you and that man," she commands, but I shake my head pigheadedly.

"I can't," I reticently make an excuse for my withdrawn behavior.

Janice scowls at me, but when she notices my pleaded eyes, her gaze softens, and her voice becomes tender. "Okay," she caves in, but she hastily lightens the mood. "Will you please go out for a drink with me?"

I sigh teasingly and paint my face with a calm smile. "I guess. When?"

Janice becomes giddy at my answer. She replies with a hint of mirth in her tone, "Soon, before you can change your answer."

I let out a merry giggle, and she joins in jubilantly. I can't remember the last time I was actually laughing and enjoying myself. For so long I've been guarded, and it seems as if there's nothing to be joyful about. Her gleeful eyes squint with a chuckle. Finally, we silence our giggles, and become a bit more professional.

"I need to get back to work before the 'hunky man' fires me," I joke, using her aforementioned nickname for our uptight supervisor. She advises I behave myself before I return back to my office.

Tedious files and documents fill the rest of my night as I recluse in my office. I doze off more than once, but I efficiently stir myself each time. Still, rest beckons me, daring me to take a break. The clock hanging on one of the dull walls reads fifteen until ten, and it reminds me that I should've left hours ago. Another yawn justifies my exhaustion, and I reluctantly give in. With sleep causing me to become slower, I lock the confidential files away in the gray cabinet. Before leaving, I snatch my car keys and my purse that holds my phone and wallet.

Pure silence makes it possible for me to hear each of my shoes clack against the flooring. The hospitable, night-shift, employees wish me farewell as I leave. I subconsciously wave goodbye before exiting. The brisk, winter breeze nips at my cheeks, turning them a slight pink as I shuffle to my car. My cold fingers fumble with the buttons when I unlock my vehicle. As I get in, a harsh memory bombards my thoughts, making me cringe involuntarily.