Page 103 of When The Night Falls

I shook my head. ‘It’s not that I don’t expect it. I just don’t expect it from Will. It’s not my impression of him.’

The curve of her brow disclosed her disagreement. ‘Well, what do you think they’ll do? Talk? They don’t need to meet up in person for that, especially not during work hours. Besides, had you seen what I have – the state of her when she’s left his office in the past – you’d suspect the same. It’s clear as day they’ve had sex.’

Hearing that, I found myself quite appalled at his lack of work ethics. What sort of professional would have sex in their office? And furthermore in the middle of the day when they had work to do?

‘Just seems a bit unprofessional. I hadn’t thought Will was like that.’

‘Hey,’ she frowned, ‘don’t be so sanctimonious. Cut the man some slack. Honestly, he deserves it. He practically lives in his office – I’m sure that’s the only reason. I’ve often wondered why he won’t just invest in a bed. That way, he’d never have to leave. Though, on second thoughts, that’s probably why he hasn’t. If he did, he’d actually never leave. This way, he’s got to.’

I didn’t want to talk about this anymore, so I got back to work. Gossip was definitely not my thing, but it was clearly Ellie’s. Still, she hadn’t lied. Francesca walked out twenty minutes later, and the whole time she had been in there, I had struggled to remain focused. I had so many questions.

My eyes dashed to her figure. Her long, wavy hair cascaded down to her shoulders now. He had obviously made a mess of her ponytail.

Ellie struggled to stifle a giggle and shook her head, clearly humoured by William’s lascivious behaviour. I didn’t share her amusement. I was disappointed in him, and I was also slightly gutted that he had evidently moved on.

When he suddenly rang, my heart bolted to my mouth. After a moment’s hesitation, I accepted the call. ‘Yes?’

‘You can come back now.’ He sounded a bit strange, but I wasn’t sure why I thought that. He didn’t seem stressed, but he didn’t seem calm either.

I swallowed. ‘All right.’

He hung up.

I couldn’t think of anything less tempting than returning to his office right then. I was certain I would imagine the two of them naked. The scene was already awakening in my mind. Had he fucked her on his desk, for instance? Where I was supposed to work? Despite how nauseated I felt, I closed my laptop to go back.

Since he was expecting me, I didn’t bother to knock. Opening the door, I found him near one of the windows, facing away from me. It was open, probably to ventilate the room so I wouldn’t smell the sex that had been in the air.

He turned toward me, eyes fleeting. His lips were slightly swollen and redder than usual, no doubt due to the things he had been using them for. The more I studied him, the surer I was that Ellie had been right. They must have had sex.

Unsure of what to make of the situation, I shut the door and approached his desk without a word. I was appalled he would fuck someone while at work, essentially right in front of me, and then order me to work in here straight afterwards. It was incredibly inconsiderate of him, not to mention insensitive.

First and foremost, I was upset at his lack of work ethics, but I felt too intimidated to speak up since it was only my third day here. I also didn’t want him to think that I was only complaining because I was jealous. While it was true that a part of me was hurt, I wasn’t jealous. I was upset only because it had been that easy for him to move on. By contrast, I wasn’t over him at all. When he focused on me, I heard only him. When he walked into the room, I saw only him. And yet, despite this, I thought that if he was actually happy with Francesca, he deserved to be. Indeed, he deserved to be happy, and he deserved to have his feelings reciprocated by someone worthy of him – someone who wasn’t me – because he was a wonderful man.

‘Sorry about that,’ he said.

I stared out of the windows behind him. The traffic of London droned in the background, and above the pulsating metropolis, I saw the smog, tainting the blue sky and reminding me why I had never really preferred cities. The summer breeze played with the white curtains, and I closed my eyes to savour its dance across my cheeks.

For the first time since I had started here, a moment of sadness gripped me. On the face of it, losing William seemed trivial, but I couldn’t ignore the way my heart ached.

‘No worries,’ I eventually said and, somewhat reluctantly, put my laptop back on his desk. ‘Do I need to clean this surface?’

He blinked at my bold question. ‘No, that’s not necessary.’

At least they hadn’t fucked on his desk.

Giving him a vague nod, I found my seat again. As he returned to his own, I felt him peering at me.

One question kept bothering me while I tried to concentrate on my screen. To get rid of it, I might as well ask, I thought. Besides, it wasn’t unusual for colleagues to discuss this sort of thing, was it? In the end, it was rather obvious what he had done. Even Ellie suspected, so would I be speaking out of turn if I asked?

I decided to bite the bullet. ‘So, are you two seeing each other now or...?’

When I looked up, he was regarding me with an arched brow.

‘With all due respect, Cara, I’m not inclined to discuss my love life with you.’

Since he immediately focused on his screen again, it was apparent that trying to dig further would get me nowhere.

‘I’m sorry I asked,’ I said embarrassedly. While I felt robbed of the satisfaction of knowing the answer, I returned my attention to my laptop to respect his boundaries.

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