RED

12. Sunflower

"Are you trying to sneak out?" She immediately turned, a bit startled upon hearing his voice.

Her eyes widened in surprise as she let go of the bag she held onto. It fell right to the floor. She was stunned and, at the same time, frozen at the very spot she was. Kiana knew she had to look away from him at the very moment, especially as he was shirtless. He stood close to a corner she hadn't noticed was there last night. He held a towel in his hands, as he tried to wipe off the sweat that trickled down nearly every corner of his entire body. His wet hair stuck to his skin. Finally, she was able to see these muscles that had always threatened to rip through his shirts. His abs were well in place. His chest drawing her to place just a hand on them. Enrico looked so fit and Kiana wouldn't deny the fact that, at the very moment, any woman could be attracted to him. How could she have forgotten the fact that he was no longer that young boy of yesterday? He was a grown man. She truly hadn't expected him to turn out this way. The only thing that reminded her of the fact that he was the same Tyler she knew were the glasses he had on. He still couldn't see without the help of his glasses.

Enrico slightly tilted his head to the side, as a sly smile drew by the corner of his mouth. He had noticed how quick she let her bag go upon seeing him and then, she couldn't look away. He looked away from her for a second, feeling quite amused by the whole situation before taking steps towards her.

Kiana, just look away!

She ordered herself, but it seemed that her body chose to counter the order of her mind, so there she stood, eyes wide open as he approached her.

"You weren't planning on sneaking out, were you?" He asked, his breathing a bit ragged, as if trying to catch his breath as he spoke up.

Kiana slightly opened her mouth to speak up, but nothing came out. Perhaps, the shock of seeing him this way still affected her a great deal.

Look away!

She ordered herself. Immediately, she shut her eyes before turning her head away from his face. Realising just how much she had messed up, Kiana wished the ground could just open up and swallow her; save her from this embarrassment. She knew it was quite obvious that she had been ogling at him. For goodness sake, he's her boss, as well as an old friend who was no longer a friend. She really didn't want him thinking that she was attracted to him just because of his great features or... was she?

Kiana slowly opened her eyes before unwillingly turning her head back to him. At first, she hesitated at looking up at him. She felt irritated, annoyed, frustrated and strangely hot, all at the same time, as her eyes met his.

Enrico noticed her present situation which amused him and for once, he was loving this effect on her. After all, Kiana was a woman. She would feel just as any other woman would. He was so loving this. Enrico buried a hand into the pocket of his trouser before suddenly drawing his face closer to hers, quite taking her by surprise. Her eyes widened once more. Damn, her cheeks burned as well. The worst part, she couldn't look away. Her eyes felt magnate to him. Their faces were barely three inches apart. Suddenly, a wide smile grew on his face.

"Do I make you uncomfortable, Kiana?" He asked a question, which clearly had an obvious answer to it. He noticed just how hard she tried to move her lips and have a word escape from her mouth, but that was to no avail. On purpose, he lurked his eyes from one of hers and to the other, before taking a look at her cheek.

"You're blushing again." He stated another obvious. Suddenly, something clicked and Kiana realised he was making a jest of her, so she gathered up her strength as quickly as possible and with both her hands on his shoulder, she pushed him away. He was forced to take involuntary steps backwards, but that didn't stop the laughter he held within from eventually surfacing.

"What, on earth, do you think you're doing!? Do you usually roam around shirtless?" She asked, all at once, finally finding her voice and hating the fact that she had lost it for a few minutes just because of him. Kiana was fuming mad at him. He was being disrespectful and annoying. It pissed her off. She couldn't fathom why seeing him this way rendered her weak and subtle. She had seen a half-naked man on television and a few places before. Perhaps, not one standing directly in front of her, but anyways, she had seen one before. None made her feel this speechless; this weak. How was it possible that Enrico affected her this way?

"Not really, except for mornings when I work out in my own home." Enrico explained after he was done with his laughter. He pointed to her luggage on the floor.

"You were planning to leave without letting me know, right?" He asked as he placed the towel around the back of his neck. She gulped down, as she looked away from him for a minute.

"Not really. I did promise to leave by morning, so I'll just go. Thank you for everything." She stated as she took hold of her bag once more and turned to walk away.

"Are you saying you have somewhere to stay?" He asked her from behind, which made her eventually come to a halt. She slightly turned to him and stared for a second, thinking of a responsible reply. Enrico stood with both hands buried within the pockets of his trouser, as he waited for her perfect reply.

"No. Not yet, but I eventually will... Somehow, I'll get it." She stated before turning away once more to leave, while Enrico gave a strange continuous nod at her comment.

"What if I tell you that I have a proposal just perfect for you? Would you take it?" He asked, causing her to come to halt once more. She let out a silent sigh before turning to him.

"What proposal?" She asked, a bit interested. Enrico gave a simple smile before he walked up to the stool by the kitchen counter, a few steps away from where Kiana stood. He had his seat on one of them.

"I just need to let you know that this isn't my style... You need a place to stay and I... Well, I need a maid, someone I know and not a stranger, so would you work for me as a maid and in return, you get to stay here for free." He explained with his eyes fixated on her, trying to understand what she was thinking.

Kiana's eyes slightly widened as she stared at him. Her brows slightly furrowed in confusion. She looked away from him for a minute trying to understand why he would want to help her. Didn't he hate her? Was he over the past? Why is he doing this?

"Why are you... helping me?" She asked as she looked up to him. Her eyes held so many emotions at once. Enrico noticed how serious she had suddenly got. She wasn't supposed to see things that way. She was just supposed to accept his proposal and move on. He looked away for a second as he chuckled.