Page 99 of Hawthorne

We’ve been reduced to lingering touches and heated visual contact. It’s not fucking enough. My body has been on edge, my mood difficult to deal with, and I’m close to looking like a drug addict during withdrawal.

Not even the long hours with my nose buried in document piles are helping time go faster.

I am skimming through a new business deal when a loud bang on the door startles me. The front door of my office slams into the wall after being opened harshly. I place the papers on the desk and look at the person who just stormed in, interrupting my working time.

“I’m sorry for interrupting, and I’m sorry for skipping the formalities, but I can’t take this any longer,” Camilla huffs.

“What’s going on?” I ask, dumbfounded.

“I cannot be followed around like I’m a criminal, being criticised for every breath I take. If the vase is too much to the left or the right. If my shoes aren’t work-appropriate or my nails are chipped. You are my boss and no one else is, so let’s make a deal.”

Camilla closes the door behind her and walks towards my desk with a purpose, sitting right in front of me.

“I haven’t had a vacation.Ever,” she admits. “So, I’ll take some until Her Grace is back in her home.”

“Camilla…” I trail off, but she immediately shakes her head.

“It’s not negotiable, Vincent.”

“I am sorry.” I apologise sincerely. “I warned her, but I’m holed up in here, and she uses that to her–”

“I know,” she cuts me off with a defeated sigh. “And it’s not your duty to monitor her around. I am not here to whine and ask you to fix it. She’s your mother, and she has the right to spend some time in her son’s house and do as she wishes.”

“You’ll still stay here?” I ask, hopeful.

I won’t make it if she stays those two weeks away. It’s already hard as it is to keep my hands to myself and stick to watching her.

“I was thinking of heading to my friend’s house, the one from college. She’s been inviting me to stay at hers ever since we met at the reunion. I already checked with her, and she was thrilled to have me over for as long as I need, and I am seriously considering it. It will give me a break from this, and…it will be good for us, too.”

My jaw ticks in reaction to her words. “What does that mean?”

“Nothing in particular. But you have your life, and I have mine. Sometimes, the distance brings better perspectives. Also, being together all the time is not healthy. It creates co-dependency. Individual time is also important. The next two weeks are that for me.”

Co-dependency? What is she aiming at?

Really? Are you that dense, Vincent? She’s hitting at the impending moment when you’ll break her heart.

Fuck.

Leaning back on my leather chair, I look at the ceiling for a moment, gathering my thoughts. I can’t even think properly. I just...

She wants to go, and I won’t stop her, but this will be torture. I have been missing her for these past few days, and it’s only about to get worse.

Better make it count, then.

“Did you lock the door?”

“What?” She frowns. “Are you listening to me?”

“It’s because I am listening that I asked you the question.”

With a shake of her head, Camilla confirms she hasn’t locked the door.

Standing up, I walk towards the double doors and open them, peeking through the hall. As expected, no one is around, so I close them back up and lock them. Camilla keeps looking at me with a frown on her face, trying to figure out what I’m doing.

Once I am right behind her, I whirl her chair around to face me, lean down, and close the space between our faces, asking with a husky tone, “What can I do to change your mind?”

“Nothing,” she stutters after swallowing.

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