Page 41 of Tangled Sanctuary

He waved, stopping her in her tracks again. “The cameras have sound as well as video, and from what I heard, there’s nothing to misunderstand. Get into my officenow.”

She didn’t fight him, her shoulders slumping as she dragged her feet the whole way. Just before the door closed behind them, she shot me a truly venomous look, and I sighed internally.

Those types would never take responsibility for their own actions; it would always be someone else’s fault. I hadn’t wanted to bring this to Mr. Hern, but without a doubt, Emily would have kept escalating until I couldn’t ignore her anymore.

I enjoyed my work, and I didn’t want to give that up because of her or Diana.

Looking down at my coffee stained uniform top, I pulled myself back to the present and sighed. First things first, I needed to change. Pulling aside one of the other waitresses, I offered her a tired smile.

“I need to change really quick, but I’ll be right back to help with the lunch rush.”

She nodded, sympathy warming her eyes before she hustled off to clear another table. With that done, I moved further back into the building where the employee area was. Mr. Hern had extra uniforms on hand just for this reason, and I took a shirt in my size before heading to the bathroom.

Thankfully the coffee hadn’t touched me for long so while the skin underneath was tender; it wasn’t burnt as badly as it could have been. Lifting my shirt, I eyed the pink area with a grimace. Hopefully it’d heal before Oliver saw it tonight. The poor man was already guilty over Diana and her scratch; he’d absolutely try to put the blame for this on himself.

Affection and frustration welled at the thought and I changed my shirt with a fond shake of my head. I adored that man but we really needed to work on that. Once I was changed and ready to continue working, I snuck a glance at my phone and saw the message he’d left.

Hey gorgeous, how is your day?

Biting my lip, I considered just how to answer that both truthfully and without setting off his over protectiveness.After a minute, I settled on.

Not going very well, to be honest. It’ll be better when I’m back home and cuddled in bed with you, though.

Was it sickeningly sweet of me to say so? Yes. Did I care? Not in the slightest. I could use some sweetness after the mess today had turned into.

His response was nearly immediate.

Is Diana bothering you again?

I should’ve known he would jump straight to that. Biting back a sigh, I responded.

No, it was Emily again, but on the bright side it seems like my boss is handling it. I have to go back to work now, but I promise that I’m fine. I’ll be thinking of you until I’m off.

I put a kiss emoji at the end, feeling every bit like a teenager again as he answered.

You haven’t left my thoughts yet, so you won’t be the only one.

Letting a blissful sigh slip past my lips, I turned my phone to silent and put it away. It was amazing how talking to Oliver for just a few minutes could drastically change my mood. I was already feeling worlds better and when I walked back out to the rush, a genuine smile curled my lips.

Today might just be okay after all.

Chapter 19

The rest of my shift passed smoothly, and in no time I was on my way home. I hadn’t seen Emily again after she’d been pulled aside, and Mr. Hern assured me that she wouldn’t be a problem anymore. I hoped so; I didn’t need any more stress in my life right now.

Oliver hadn’t appeared to pick me up from work, to my surprise. After earlier, I’d half expected him to show up before my shift was even over, but maybe I’d done a better job of reassuring him than I’d thought.

When I walked through the door to my apartment, the last thing I expected was the sight waiting for me.

The lights were all dimmed, and in the center of the living room was a table. It was covered by a dark red cloth, and on top of it sat candles and two plates.

The scent of my favorite dinner hit me and my stomach growled, pulling me closer as if I were in a trance. A single flower sat by what I assumed was my plate and when I looked up, I caught Oliver’s eyes.

He was leaned against the wall of the kitchen, his gaze warm with affection and heavy with something I couldn’t put my finger on. When he realized I was watching him, he smiled and moved to pull out my chair.

“It seemed like you weren’t having the best time at work lately, so I decided a surprise was in order.” I sat, waiting until he’d taken the seat across from me before grabbing one of his hands and beaming.

“Thank you. I didn’t expect this, but it definitely made my day leaps and bounds better.”

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