Page 21 of It's Only Make Believe

“She already has an offer on the table,” I say.

“Then find out what it is and beat it,” Karl says.

Once we have finished our discussion – where he confirms that spoiled and lazy are words he would not associate with Louisa in any way - and he has left the office, I find myself thinking about what he said about finding out what her offer is and beating it to keep her here. Would she consider staying? Would Enrique be happy if I did that? Who would I approach first? Her or him? It’s all too complicated to work through at the minute and I decide to shelve the idea for now. I will try and have a conversation or two with Louisa where I hint at the idea of her staying here and see how she reacts and then go from there. There’s no point in me putting the feelers out with Enrique about it if Louisa doesn’t want to work here. It will just risk causing trouble for their family for no reason.

I cross the lobby heading for the elevator after lunch. I call the elevator and get in. I hit the button for the fifth floor, and then I hear running feet behind me, and I press the hold button. I turn as someone else bursts into the elevator and gives me abreathless thank you. I feel my cock twitching when I see the person is Louisa.

“What floor?” I say, managing to sound normal.

“Four please,” she says. “Karl has called a team meeting in one of the smaller conference rooms.”

I nod and hit the button for the fourth floor and the doors close.

“So how is life in web development?” I ask.

“It’s good,” Louisa says. She looks so enthusiastic when she speaks, it’s obvious she loves the work. Her cheeks flush slightly and she can’t stop herself from smiling. Her enthusiasm is infectious, and I find myself smiling back at her. “I love the work so much and the team is all lovely and welcoming.”

“But …?” I say. “Because there’s always a but.”

I’m only joking, but Louisa looks at me and she’s serious now.

“But I miss you,” she blurts out. The slight pink hint of her cheeks darkens to red. “I mean … I miss working with you … for you. You know what I mean.”

I smile and it does nothing to help Louisa regain her composure.

“I know exactly what you mean. And for what it’s worth, I miss having you around too,” I say.

“You only miss me bringing you coffee,” she jokes and then the elevator reaches her floor, and the doors ping open, and she steps out.

The doors start to close.

“Actually, Rachel brings me twice as many cups a day,” I say. “But the view isn’t as good.”

The doors close before she can turn around or reply to me, but I know she heard me, and I just have to hope I didn’t cross a line. I definitely get vibes from her that she is attracted to meand whenever I have flirted with her, she has always joined in. I don’t think I have anything to worry about that way.

The elevator reaches my floor and as I walk towards my office, my cell phone pings in my pocket. I pull it out and smile when I see I have a text message from Louisa.

“It’s good to hear that you enjoyed the view,” the text message says, and I grin to myself. She is into me. I knew it. But nothing has changed. She’s still Enrique’s daughter and doing anything about the way I feel towards her is still massively unprofessional.

I get back to my office and sit down and ponder for a moment. I suppose the time she’s got left here isn’t that long. Two months and one week. And once she’s left here, it wouldn’t be unprofessional to date her, and I can’t see why Enrique would have a problem with it when she’s not working for me. But then I think of the work she’s doing and Karl saying we need to keep her here. That’s what would be best for the company, and I could make it the best option for Louisa by giving her a good offer. But then I can never be with her. I sigh and decide the only thing to do is put her out of my mind. It’s easier said than done, but what’s the point of torturing myself with thoughts of being with someone that I know I can’t let myself have.

My cell phone pings again, and I see it’s Louisa again. I open the message and smile.

“What’s wrong? Have you gone all shy?” her text message reads.

Oh, fuck it, I think to myself, and I type out a reply.

“Actually, I was just wondering which bar to take you to tonight for a drink to officially welcome you to the company,” I write back.

We both know it’s far too late for that, and I’m sure Louisa is bright enough to know that wording it that way is a get out of jail free card for me so if she says no, she’s not rejecting the idea ofa night with me, just saying no to drinks with the boss as such. I need not have bothered covering my bases because her positive reply pings through almost instantly.

“Meeting is starting. Text me the time and place and I’ll be there.”

I smile and send her a text back to meet at eight at my local. I give her the address of the place in case she doesn’t know where it is and then I force myself to focus on my work for the rest of the day. I manage to get a fair bit done somehow, but I do it all with a smile on my face and half a mind on Louisa and where tonight might end up going.

Chapter

Fifteen

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