Quote of the day: I Just found out that the only thing that hurts more than getting hurt yourself is watching your loved ones get hurt, knowing there is nothing you can do about it...
Ashley watched as Greg stalked towards her. She fought the urge to move back. She had really done bad by eavesdropping on him and his father. This conversation had been really sensitive to them, especially Greg. She felt bad, and very guilty, and more so, she was shocked. She knew Nora was important to Greg but she wouldn't have believed that she was his sister, Greg was known as the only child of Marshall.
Even more, the guilt was tearing her apart. It took everything in her not to break down in front of Greg. Their family was this way because of her father, everything was because her father had wanted something he couldn't have. She knew she and her father had done damage to this family, but she didn't know the gravity until now. She felt so sorry for Greg, and Nora, and even more their mother who had to endure so much pain all because of her father's brutal lies.
Ashley felt really ashamed at herself, she remembered how relieved she had felt when she heard that Nora wasn't Greg's wife, but she had no right to even feel anything for Greg, not a person like her who had been a great accomplice in ruining his family.
She looked at him as he stood in front of her reading her expression, she knew he could see every expression, sometimes she just couldn't help it. She searched his face but his face was emotionless, she was scared she didn't know what he would do now. An hour ago he had been really proud of her and now he must be really disappointed with her eavesdropping, and he would be even more disappointed if he found out who she really was.
"I'm really sorry Greg..." Ashley was cut off when Greg enveloped her in a hug. She didn't know what to feel she hadn't expected him to hug her. At that point she broke down in tears crying into his chest. She knew how embarrassed she will be later, but she didn't care right now. In his arms she felt comforted, and she didn't care about any other thing. She wrapped her arms around him.
Greg's hug held so much words and promises. She wondered if she was allowed to get so much from him.
"Why are you feeling so guilty Ashley?" Greg asked. Ashley could feel his chest rumble as he said those words. She didn't know how to reply to do that, she felt guilty for a lot of things, and moreover right now, she wasn't sure she could talk without her voice breaking. "Its okay you know. I know how curious you can be, and you've always wanted to know who Nora was to me."
"I'm sorry," she said into his chest. He laughed at that. She really wasn't expecting him to take things so slightly. "You always wanted to keep her hidden for a reason and I had no right to eavesdrop on you."
Greg raised her from his chest and looked at her face. He had a smile on his lips, he cleaned her tears with his fingers which felt so beautiful. "I have always wanted to keep her hidden because of my father, but now he knows..."
"How do you feel?" Ashley asked the question that had been tugging at the back of her mind.
"I felt angry at first, then you walked right through the door chasing all my anger and hatred away," he said this with a sweet smile. She couldn't describe how she felt, there were butterflies playing around in the pit of her stomach, and her silly heart just kept on doing stupid flips.
"I had no idea I wielded so much power," she said with a sarcastic tone.
"Oh you do Miss Wells, now do me a Favour and get back to work..." He said in a dismissive tone. Ashley wasn't able to hide the hurt look from her face. "Now don't look so hurt I might be forced to ignore all work and pay attention to you alone, which I would love so much but the company Ashley, won't run itself."
Ashley had a smile on her lips when he said this, she stepped out of his half embrace. "When you do need me don't forget to beep me Mr Marshall."
"I told you not to call me Mr Marshall, its brutal, and it just hurts my heart," he said this feigning hurt. She laughed and turned her back on him.
"Do beep me Mr Marshall," she said one last time and went out of his office. She could hear him grumbling words along the lines of 'don't call me Mr Marshall its brutal,' she won't deny that she loved calling him 'Mr Marshall' only because he doesn't like it, and she wasn't going to stop anytime soon.
When Ashley finally settled down in her seat, she went back to what she had been doing before the old Mr Marshall arrival. She plugged in her earpiece, and continued listening to her song whilst working, the song that was playing now was 'wolves by Selena Gomez' and she couldn't help but bop her head to the beat.
Ashley was so engrossed in what she was doing that she didn't know how much time had flown by. She was right now so into the song she was listening to, but a familiar and hated sound drew her out of her reverie, the sound of her phone ringing and vibrating.
She checked the Id and saw that it was Chloe.
"Chloe doesn't call at work unless it is 6:30 pm," she thought and checked the time, and it was indeed 6:45 pm.
"Hey babe," Ashley said picking up the call.
"What the heck are you doing with your boss?" Chloe yelled into the phone immediately. Ashley wasn't shocked at Chloe's silly assumption, she was by now used to it.
"Sometimes I can't help but admire how your brain work," Ashley said with a smile tugging at her lips.
"Like that of Einstein, right?" Chloe said. Ashley scoffed at that, Chloe sure loves to praise herself. "Anyway its time to go home and I'm waiting for you, or should I leave maybe you and your boss still wanna..."
"Shut up Chloe, I will be downstairs in a jiffy just let me tell Greg."
"I have a feeling he is gon tell you to wait and ride with him," Chloe said wistfully. Ashley couldn't help but laugh at this.
"I'm not sure," Ashley said and hung up the phone. She packed her stuffs and walked up to Greg's office. She didn't know what he would say, usually for the past week before the trip he wouldn't even give a flying fuck if she left early. She was scared that he might act that way, or if the heavens are involved, he could get her to wait with him, by giving her unnecessary work.
Ashley knocked the door quietly and opened when she heard a soft come in from inside. She walked in and saw that Greg was indeed very busy, he had discarded his suit and his shirt was unbuttoned half way, the sleeves of the shirt had also been rolled up. His hair looked rough like he had been running his hands through it, what made him look funny and almost made her laughed was his tie. His tie was on his head, it was hanging down from his right cheek, this look of his reminded her of the movie 'boss baby.'
He didn't even look up as she got in, he was way too busy.
"I'm leaving Greg," Ashley said quietly. His head shot up as she said so. He looked at her with a questioning gaze in his eyes. "Its 6:45 Greg." She laughed.
"Ohh..." Greg looked at her. Ashley wished he would just give her one of those silly excuses he gave her before whenever he wanted her to stay longer. She watched him and saw that very familiar look on his face, she knew what was coming next, he was going to tell her something along the line of 'there is a file you need to work on,' or 'you still have more work,' and she clearly wouldn't mind. Before she hated it but now, she just wanted to spend time with him. "Can you wait a little bit till I'm done... I'll drop you home once I'm done."
This was different from what she had expected but it made her happy all the same. Greg looked at her with uncertainty, he must think she doesn't want to wait with him. "Ok I'll just go let Chloe know."
Ashley walked out of the office, and decided to call Chloe. She wished there was a way to just not call her. That girl would be in over her head if she told her that Greg would be dropping her home, but she just have too. She brought out her phone from her bag and dialed Chloe's number.
"Lemme guess, you suddenly have an unfinished task?" Chloe said and Ashley could hear the smile in her voice.
"No Greg asked me to wait with him," she said, and knew exactly what to expect from Chloe.
"You know you have to start paying me for being the perfect fortuneteller," Chloe bragged and Ashley mentally rolled her eyes. So typical Of Chloe.
"Of course my personal fortuneteller," Ashley said with fake enthusiasm.
"Do make sure you come home, I will be waiting to get the full gist as usual," Chloe said. That had actually became a tradition, even when there was practically nothing to say Chloe still wanted to know everything that happened with Greg.
"Aye aye captain," Ashley said jokingly and hung up the phone. She sat for a while and decided it would be better to just go into Greg's office and watch him work. She picked up her bag and walked into his office without knocking.
She walked up to one of the couches in the room and sat down, placing her bag on the table.
"What are you doing?" Greg asked her, she then turned towards him and could see the look of utter bewilderment on his face, she wondered why though.
"What does it look like, sitting of course," she said with an eye roll.
"And why are you sitting?" Greg asked that stupid look still plastered on his face. She wondered what was wrong with him, did he kinda forget that he asked her to wait, she was really getting pissed now.
"Well you asked me to wait, so I decided why not wait here with you since I have no particular work to do."
"You can't do that!" Greg said sharply.
"Do you want me to go home?" Ashley asked with hurt evident in her voice, she really couldn't believe him.
"No, but you can't sit in my office with me," Greg said and she was utterly confused.
"Why?"
"You know why," he said running his hand through his hair, that bad habit of his. "I really won't be able to get any work done with you in the same room Ashley, you are a distraction to me."
"Distraction.... I promise not to distract you, I will be very quiet, in fact you won't feel my presence here," she said holding up a pinky promise finger.
"Not feeling your presence is actually impossible," he said staring at her. Ashley wanted to laugh at his look, he still had that tie of his on his head, but she won't, she needed him to let her stay.
"I will be really scared been the only one outside," she said giving him the puppy eyes.
"Okay... Don't talk," he said and returned to his work.
She watched him for a while and couldn't help but laugh, she laughed so hard this made Greg stop what he was doing and stare at her.
"Is there anything that is uniquely funny?" Greg asked with a straight face, and she still couldn't help it, she continued laughing, Greg's face started turning into a scowl she knew she had to stop now. "Ashley Wells." In a dead serious voice.
"Its just...your...your tie," she said covering her mouth to stop herself from laughing.
"Well What can I do, I think better if it is up there, but it kills me if it stays on my neck," he said taking it off. He dumped the tie on the desk and continued what he was doing. She kinda felt bad for him, he had a lot of work now especially with the launch and all, it will be the first product launch that would be done under him and she knew he was definitely pressured to make it the best. She wished she could just reduce the weight on his shoulders.
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"Good night Greg," Ashley said as Greg parked in front of her apartment. It wasn't until past nine before Greg finished what he was doing, by then she had successfully dozed off. He had been the one to carry her to his car although she woke up when he lifted her, but she enjoyed been in his arms too much and didn't talk until he dropped her in his car.
"Ashley," Greg called holding onto her hand as she made to come down from his car. "There is something I would like to tell you." He sounded nervous which was weird because Greg was never nervous.
Ashley looked at him curiously, she wanted to know what he wanted to say that had him so quiet. "What Greg?"
"I want you so much...but lately I think its not just about wanting you in my bed...I think I'm beginning to get a little bit attached to you and." He was talking like a broken record saying every word one after the other.
"And," Ashley said a little bit too eager to know where he was going with the whole talk.
"I think I might want to have something more serious than a flimsy fling with you, like..."
"Are you trying to ask me to be your girlfriend?" Ashley blurted out and oh lord she regretted it immediately. Greg had a look of shock on his face, what was he going to think of her now? She jumped into conclusion way too fast.
Chapter twenty one.
Mary Aden.