The Blindfold » l.t au

twenty six

"Good morning," I sing happily, trying to be as ridiculous as possible. He visibly tenses, but doesn't turn around. "Oh come on, Captain Wanker, you're not seriously going to ignore me are you? I'm wearing a bikini."

He turns around this time—he really thinks I'll wear a bikini in the morning?—and scowls when he discovers I'm lying.

"Ha-ha." He rolls his eyes, turning back around. He doesn't even notice Charlotte's hopeful expression.

I catch her arm. "Leave us for a minute, I've got this."

She nods slightly and gives one last sad look to his back before leaving the kitchen.

"Hey, idiot. Come on now, don't be mean." I duck in the small space between his body and the counter, cupping him through his pants. He sighs, looking down at me.

"Good morning, Lola." He mutters and kisses me too quickly.

"Seriously?" I squeeze him and he grunts in surprise. "What happened to our late-night-sexting?"

"I'm not in the mood," he groans when I rub against him and catches my hand, pulling it away. "It's not the right time."

"Fine," I pout exaggeratingly. God I can't believe all this silliness didn't faze him. "But can you please talk to your sister? You're being unfair, Louis."

"Lola, stop." He says sternly and moves away. "It's not a game. She really needs to watch out for herself. What if I wasn't in the flat when she came back? What if someone hurt her in the mall? You saw what she was wearing, it's a miracle no one harassed her."

"She knows it." I argue. "She's barely eighteen, Louis, which means she's still a baby—in comparison to you and me. Everyone makes mistakes, and she's your sister for god's sake."

"She should be thankful I'm not telling her father," he hisses, glaring at me. "Their relationship is already balancing on the edge, can you imagine if he finds out about this? Let's hope Olivia isn't chatty."

"Okay you better stop this," I stare at him incredulously. "Stop saying shit, alright? It's not a big deal, Louis. It's over. You either talk to her or you'll never touch me again."

It's his turn to be incredulous, and I realize I'm being dramatic. But I'm torn between these two—one of them is my lover and the other is like the sister I never had.

"Nice try." He laughs, but it vanishes a little by little until he's gaping at me. "Wait—you're actually serious?"

"I'll go to work now," I glare at him, my body trying to pull me towards him. "Think about it. If you really want me, then fix your shit."

I turn around, suppressing a laugh at how cheesy this fight had been. I felt like a wife for a moment back there.

I greet Derek briefly before ducking inside my car and driving off.

David Ryan hardly ever smiles. I realize that now as we end this meeting and everyone is satisfied with the outcome and excited for the reopening. He just nods, turns around and leaves. No smile, no encouragement, not words whatsoever.

How I'd like to pull that stick shoved up his ass. He's such a bastard.

I don't enter my office until noon, having to do lots of work. I sit down, kicking off my heels and probing my feet on my desk, sighing in relief. I check my phone, not surprised to find some texts.

There's couple of texts from Charlotte.

He's still not talking to me...

Wait, he actually told me to get dressed.