Nick's Trouble

Can't Count

"Mr. Sinclair?" I finally spoke.

He looked up from his laptop. "Yes, Ms. Stewart?"

"Is there something I can do for you?" I asked.

"Not at the moment." And with that, he went back to typing again.

Another fifteen minutes passed.

"Mr. Sinclair?" I called again.

He let out a breath. "Yes?"

"Is there something I can do for you?"

"No—"

"I can fetch your coffee? Or send e-mails? Or go out to get someone in case you don't feel like using the phone?"

"Not really."

I frowned. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

He thought for a moment. "Yes."

My eyes lit up. "What?"

"Sit quietly."

My jaw dropped. Did he really say that? That was so mean.

"Well, I'm not skipping my classes to sit here and do nothing." I crossed my arms over my chest.

I regretted my words when his callous look fell on me, which was soon replaced by a look of amusement. But it was gone as soon as it came.

"Blake said you were a very docile person. Seems to me he was wrong."

"He also said stuff about you. Guess he was wrong," I said, knowing well that Blake had never said a word about him before. I didn't even know his name until I met him in his office.

I seemed to have caught his attention.

"What kind of stuff?" He placed his elbows on the desk and leaned forward, suddenly showing interest in a futile conversation.

"You know," I shrugged. "Good stuff. Stuff that I really wish was true."

There was a glint of amusement in his eyes once more and a slight smirk forming on his lips.

"Careful what you wish for, Ms. Stewart. I'm nothing like Blake."

What could he mean by that?

"Clearly you're not. Because, you see, I was actually learning something at his company."

He pressed his lips into a thin line, then took in a deep breath like he was stopping himself from lashing out at me.

I'm one step away from being fired on my very first day. That should be put on record.

Then, he got up from his spot and I held my breath as he rounded his desk to walk in my direction.

He finally stopped when he was standing a few inches away. I found myself involuntarily getting up in fright and facing him.

"Turn around."

My eyes grew wide. "What?"

"Turn around, go to that cabinet and get all the files from the first shelf." He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against his desk.

I turned around in confusion to find a sleek white cabinet in the corner. Walking over to it, I collected all the files from the first shelf and walked back to him.

There were five files, each containing a large bundle of papers.

He picked up a few papers from his desk and placed them on top of the bundle in my hands.