Hate Mates

3 | be my Valentine?

be my Valentine?

Cate thought she was hallucinating when she stepped into the office two weeks later. Her jaw hung open at the decorations that covered every corner of the office, bile churned in her stomach realizing what the decorations were for.

Valentine's Day

If there was anything Cate hated these days, it was the concept of bloody Valentine's Day. This was the day she was reminded that she was still alone, still single, with no one to partner up with.

Her mother had already spoiled her mood this morning by setting her up on a blind date without her permission and then calling to remind her that she had to meet the guy at 7 pm. She had protested but ultimately obliged after Darla Miller's persuasion, already scheming to spoil the date in all ways she could think.

She stepped through the decorations, earning glares from her colleagues as she neared her cubicle which was right next to Ryle's. Only a thin glass wall separated them which was the reason Ryle was able to steal her clients easily — he knew everything about their requirements due to the lack of privacy.

Tripping through the decorations, her movements were brought to a halt when she collided with a hard chest. Her hand touched something softer. She glanced up, seeing Ryle towering over her with a little red heart-shaped balloon held in front of him.

She blinked at him, basking in the sight of his handsome features, that square-cut jaw with the light stubble dusted over it, the amber eyes so enchantingly magnetic. He was wearing a faded salmon shirt and a pair of slacks that clung to his body as if they were custom-made. Her heart catapulted, breath hitching which caused him to pinch his eyebrows as he looked down at her.

"Happy Valentine's Day, kitty Cate." He grinned, forwarding to her the balloon to take.

Cate glanced at the balloon, its ugly shape tormenting her with memories of some of her ex-boyfriends. She acknowledged his greeting with her lips thinly pressed, dismissing Ryle to walk past him into her office. The sound of his calculated footsteps followed her inside, the proximity of his presence burning a hole in her chest.

"What?" she asked brashly as she dropped her handbag on the table and turned.

Ryle seemed to have been about to say something because his mouth was open midway through unspoken words.

The past two weeks of being his 'friend' had been revealing to Cate. He was uncharacteristically proper with her and it had been two weeks of no pranks between them. She did her work, he did his. Even the projects they had to deal with together were going pretty well. Except for the one where he kept telling her that sex scenes in Jessie Patson's book weren't well-fleshed out. She gathered it was probably his way of making her uncomfortable. The tension between them was visible like dancing currents. He teased her about it, flirted with her, and cornered her near the printing machine, all in an attempt to break her stern attitude.

All in all, these two weeks they had made it past their animosity by being cordial which had surprised many of the colleagues. She hoped that Sam had gotten the news too. It would be life-changing for him, although it would make his decision of promoting one of them more difficult.

It didn't cease to amaze her how they had managed to pass two weeks without having any kind of argument. She had managed to keep her anger in check, along with her racing heartbeats while he had been the perfect gentleman, even bringing her coffee mid-day.

Not that it changed her scope of getting it on with him. They were still different, still worlds apart. Not even their cubicles had a matching definition. Hers was minimalistic — a mix of black and white furniture with a cactus near the bay window. His was color-bright with a gaming console inside because he couldn't focus without mid-time breaks. Cate never needed breaks.