"You've arrived?" asked Julian when Nate got home. "Why didn't you call me? I would go and pick you up."
Nate pouted. ow he said he would when he told her to go home by herself. Nate decided not to respond to him and went straight to the bedroom.
"Mum said you've been home since afternoon, so why did you arrive so late?" asked Julian who followed Nate into the bedroom.
Nate gasped. Oh no, what should she say?
"I went home by bus because I didn't get a train ticket," replied Nate, lying.
"Have you had dinner?"
"I'm not hungry. You can just go eat on your own."
When Nate finished taking a shower, she saw that Julian and his car were gone. Maybe he went out for dinner. Nate pulled out her phone and saw a message from Keith.
From: Keith
Just parted with you and I miss you already.
Nate couldn't help but smile. It felt like this was her first time for her mind filled by a man. She couldn't even remember being this enthusiastic when she first married Julian.
Keith looked a hundred times more handsome than usual when Nate ran into him at work. Even just seeing his smile was able to make her heart almost jump from its place. Keith didn't show his affection for Nate in front of their co-workers. He would still look serious when asking about the marketers' order process, and still reproached her if she made a mistake.
However, Keith would turn into more affectionate when they were alone together. He would stop by Nate's office just to give her a kiss, even when they ran to each other on the stairs, or some other blind spots that no one could see. Those got Nate excited and wanting to meet him all day. She also couldn't take her eyes off Keith when he was leading a meeting with the marketers. She wondered if he was always this handsome, or that merely because Nate was in love.
Wait, in love?
♤♡◇♧
That morning, Nate was flustered because she couldn't find her mobile phone. She had looked under her pillow, in her bag, and in the study upstairs, but she just couldn't find it anywhere. As Nate recalled, she texted Keith in the study last night, then she went straight to bed because Keith was going bowling with his friends.
Nate breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that her phone was in her dresser drawer. Maybe she kept it there when she put on her night cream before bed. Nate immediately put the phone in her bag and went to work.
Nate was playing music on her computer when she saw Keith pass her window and walk into the marketing room. Nate wondered why Keith didn't stop by her office as usual. She looked around for something to take with her, and then went into the marketing room. Keith just glanced at her from inside his office as Nate walked past, then looked back at the files he was holding. Nate pouted. Was this man tired of her already?
"Hi, you must be Matilda, Mrs Carter's successor." said a girl with curly hair who was standing in front of the file storage drawer. "I'm Penny, marketer staff."
"Ah, so you're that Penny," said Nate, shaking Penny's hand. She had heard that there was a marketing staff named Penny who had a long rest because she had an accident last year.
"Yes, how did you know about me? Layla must have told you, huh?"
Nate just grinned. Layla had never met Penny in person, but she knew a lot about her. "Oh, by the way, just call me Nate."
"Nate!" called Harry. Nate went straight to him. "Here's Alicia, a new marketer."
A curvy girl sitting near Jay immediately stood up and shook Nate's hand. She looks younger than Nate, but she's definitely better at dolling herself up.
Nate and Harry turned their heads as Keith knocked on his office window. He peeked through the blind as he gestured for Nate to come into his office. He looked so serious that Nate rushed over to him.
"What happened?" asked Nate as soon as he walked into Keith's office.
"Close the door," said Keith in a commanding tone.
Nate obeyed him and walked over to Keith's desk. If he was behaving like this, she must have made a mistake.
"Have you managed the problem monitors?" asked Keith without taking his eyes off the files on his desk.
"Yes, I've asked to exchange them for new ones." Nate answered.
"Don't forget to follow up again. They have to deliver it this morning because we'll be sending them today."
"I got it."
They both fell silent. Then Keith looked up at Nate.
"Is there anything you'd like to say?" Keith asked.
Nate immediately got nervous. "Well... why did you add a new marketer? Don't you feel this is too much? There are so many marketers when I'm all alone."
Keith looked thoughtful for a moment. "Should I ask Mr Paul to appoint Penny as procurement staff? She has worked here for five years, so she also knows the suppliers well. Or do you want Alicia to help you?"
"I prefer Penny so I don't have to bother teaching her anymore."
"Okay. I'll tell Mr Paul about it."
Nate came out of Keith's office a little disappointed since he didn't seem to have anything else to talk about. He didn't even text all day, and they couldn't have lunch together. Devi didn't show up for work, so Penny was in charge of the front desk, and Nate had to fill in for her while Penny had lunch. Nate also saw Keith out on his scooter earlier with Ms Miranda, they might had lunch together. However, she saw Ms Miranda returns to work all by herself. Where's Keith?
The telephone rang at the reception desk. Apparently Mr Paul's sister called and wanted to talk to Ms Miranda. Nate kept passed the call to Ms Miranda's office, but no one answered it.
"I think I saw Ms. Miranda went to the toilet," said Ms Irene whose room was next to Ms Miranda's.
Nate conveyed it to Mr Paul's sister and she said she would call again later. Shortly after Nate ended the call, Ms Miranda called the reception desk. She threw a fit because Nate wasn't passing the phone.
"I did, but you weren't in your office," said Nate defensively.
"Rubbish! I'm here all the time!" Ms. Miranda cursed. "Next time, don't sit at that desk if you can't handle the phone properly!"
Ms Miranda slammed the phone down before Nate could answer. Nate was exasperated. She really couldn't put up with someone interrupts her words, let alone not allowing her to speak. What an unmannered woman.
Then Nate saw Keith's scooter enter the office yards. Seeing Keith infuriated her even more. The man came in with a bag in his hand and he pushed open the glass door.
"Why are you frowning like that?" asked Keith as he approached Nate.
Nate blew a fuse when she told Keith about her incident with Ms Miranda earlier.
"Pay her no mind. You know what kind of person Ms Miranda is," said Keith after Nate finished with her story.
"You also take no notice of me all day. Didn't you go with Ms Miranda earlier?" asked Nate, unable to hide the irritation in her voice.
Keith raised his eyebrows. "Are you jealous with her?"
"No! Why should I?"
The corners of Keith's lips lifted. Nate saw the guy smile for the first time today.
"Do you want me to make you feel better?" Keith took Nate to the procurement room. After closing the door, he sat her on the desk, and kissed her on the lips.
"Will no one come later?" Nate whispered worriedly.
"No."
Nate put her arm around Keith's neck as he pressed his lips together. Nate was wearing a blouse today, so Keith pushed her blouse up, and ran his hands over her skin. Nate started to feel enthusiastic when she felt his hands on her chest.
"I like your scent." Keith murmured into Nate's neck.
Nate closed her eyes holding on to the edge of the desk. A moan left her mouth from his touch.
"Nate, I'm back!"
Keith hastily pulled away from Nate, while she rushed off the desk, and straightened her clothes.
"Ah, Mr. Watson, you're here too?" Penny asked as Keith opened the door to Nate's office.
"Yeah, I brought snacks for you guys," replied Keith, pointing to a bag placed on Nate's desk. He turned to Nate. "Don't forget to remind Lily to prepare the monitors that will be sent later, okay?"
"Okay!" Nate replied.
Penny immediately checked the snack bag after Keith left. He knew Nate liked chocolate and savory food so he bought her lots of snacks.
"I heard it," said Penny all of sudden.
"What?" Nate's heart pounded fast immediately. Did Penny hear what she and Keith were doing earlier?
"I heard Ms Miranda threw a fit at you," said Penny. "I'm sorry that I took so long."
Then Penny told her that Ms Miranda known for a bit bitchy towards the female staffs. Especially those who were young, and whom she thought were beautiful. Moreover, even though Penny had only been back at work for a day, she had already heard about Nate's reputation as an oasis from the male staffs. Besides, it was an open secret that Keith was Ms Miranda's favourite. Nate proved it herself when Ms Miranda shared the cake she had just bought. While other staff—especially female staffs—had to share a box of cake all together, Keith got a big one for himself.
Nate also admitted that Ms Miranda was showed a more spiteful attitude toward her. The old hag once reprimanded Nate just because she was wearing sandals when she was heading to the toilet. Ms Miranda also kept popped up on Nate's office and roasted her over her staring at her computer screen. She would also make a fuss of Nate not holding her phone, or even when she wasn't holding it. Nate was ticked off and she kept the door to her office closed. However, Ms Miranda would get angry if she saw it and threw it open every time she appeared—even though Nate would close it again after she left.
"She's just jealous of you because you're beautiful."
That's what Keith always said every time Nate told him about Ms. Miranda. And he managed to make her blush every time she recalled it. However, Keith's words were different this time.
"Maybe because she knows I'm yours now."
Nate could feel her face heating up. She was at a loss for words while Keith drove her home in his Mini.
"My brother came and took my Ford to meet his friends." Keith replied when Nate asked why he didn't bring his scooter as usual. "You know, that type of car just came out, and not many people have it yet. I'm afraid if something happens to it."
Nate raised her eyebrows. She didn't really understand automotive, so she couldn't say much. However, Nate pointed out several cars that were similar to Keith's when they arrived at a park that Keith said his brother frequents come.
"I don't know your license plate number, but you'd recognize it if you saw it, wouldn't you" asked Nate.
"Ah, it turns out there are many people who have cars like mine, even though I was one of the first people to buy one." Keith muttered as he drove the car.
Since they couldn't find the car they were looking for, Keith finally parked his car in a row of large trees which was quite far from the other cars. He called his brother, while Nate looked out the window a little fearfully. It was quite dark because there were no street lights. The only source of light was the headlights from Keith's car. Nate wasn't afraid of ghosts, but what if a mugger suddenly appears?
"Apparently he has left with his friends," said Keith as he put his phone back down.
"What we gotta do, then?" Nate asked.
Keith turned to Nate and then turned off the car engine. It was completely dark now. He unbuckled his seat belt and leaned over to kiss her on the lips. It was so quiet. Only the sound of Nate's beating heart, and Keith's sucking her lips that filled the car. He unbuckled her seat belt to pull up the blouse she was wearing.
Keith kissed every inch of Nate's chest skin and again left a few red marks. Nate bit her bottom lip nervously as Keith brushed his lips over her body. She was so engrossed in the sensation that Keith was giving her that she didn't realise he had unbuttoned her pants.
"Do you enjoy it?" Keith whispered. "Do you want me to put my finger in there?"
"Do you have big fingers?" Nate asked nervously.
"Not really." Keith showing his slender fingers.
"In that case, I won't feel anything, right?" asked Nate in a slightly mocking tone. Keith snorted.
"Are you sure you won't get hooked after I show you what they can do?" Keith got ready to pull down Nate's pants.
Nate held on to her pants. "But what if someone comes?" She whispered.
"This place is empty. Besides, no one will be able to see us from the outside."
Nate glanced at the windows around her which were covered in window tints. Keith seemed to know Nate's restlessness. He pressed her lips again as he lowered her pants to her ankles. Julian came into Nate's mind all of a sudden. What would he say if he found out his wife was being touched by another man besides him?
However, Nate's body seemed to obey Keith. She had never felt something so pleasurable and made her lose her mind like this. She closed her eyes and enjoyed his finger's skill that he had bragged about earlier.
Keith made Nate squirm that she didn't even notice her seat was reclined. Nate lay down panting with her pants had fallen off completely after he brought her to the height of pleasure over and over. Then Keith had positioned himself between her thighs.
"What are you doing?" asked Nate.
"Have sex with you."
Nate's eyes opened wide. "No, I don't want—"
"Do you want me to use protection?"
Without waiting for Nate's response, Keith had opened the dashboard drawer, and taken a pack of condoms from it. Nate wriggled, and tried to get up. But Keith swiftly pressed her body back.
"You don't wanna do it with me?" asked Keith, holding Nate's hips.
"I can't do this."
"Why?" asked Keith in a gentle voice. "Are you feeling shy? Why should you? Are you afraid someone will see us?"
"That's not it. I—" Nate couldn't get the words out. They had come this far, she couldn't simply say that she couldn't do it because she was married.
"I'll just do the head then. Really," said Keith again. "Come on, Nate. It's not the first time you've done this anyway."
Nate gulped. It was as if her morals were trying to drag her back to her senses, yet her body was betraying her. Nate gave up when Keith's body pressed against hers. He spread her legs wide.
"I want you, Nate," said Keith against Nate's lips. He kept his words by stopping before his hardness slid in completely. "Even though you're still not ready to open your heart for me now, I won't give up."
Nate stared at Keith. Even though it was dark, she could clearly see the curves of his perfect face. His warm eyes stared into her and eventually conquered her. Nate hugged Keith then kissed him on the lips. Her slightly raised hips were enough to make Keith forget his promise.
♤
Update on March 8th, 2023 (Previously published in December 4th, 2019 in Indonesian)