Page 45 of 12 Days

Chapter 19

Simon

“We’re truly at the cutting edge of something...”

I like to poke fun at the self-seriousness and grandiose statements that are in vogue around here. Alyssa seems to get the joke, giving me an incisive smile and a nod. Since we’re bringing her more into the fold and giving her an insider’s tour, it’s good that she’s enjoying a bit of my banter as well.

“It’s exciting.” Alyssa exclaims with a bit of irony and a shrug. She is sharp.

“Oh, you think it’s exciting now—just wait until we really dive into the deep trenches of this exhilarating corporate headquarters.” Tristan’s unable to keep himself from gazing at Alyssa as we walk, his eyes full of charmed happiness.

“I can’t wait.” Alyssa retorts, still smiling, her voice a bit sing-songy.

I can see where Tristan is coming from—I feel like I’m well under the spell of Alyssa myself. I don’t feel the need to jump in the middle of Tristan and Simon sharing a few lame jokes, but I might be getting just a wee bit envious as Sean gets in on the fun.

“Which part do you think would be most thrilling to see first?”

“Yes, which?” I can’t help myself. “This place is ours, so we can take all the time we need. If you can handle the excitement, that is.”

“Hey, I’ll try.” Alyssa fastens her eyes on me as she answers, and I feel a splendid little charge of excitement myself. “It all sounds quite thrilling. Wherever you guys want to go first is fine, as long as I get to see it all.”

“I don’t think that’ll be a problem,” Sean tells her in his best reassuring tone.

I get the smallest twinge of nervousness as he says that, but only because we never show anybody the entire facility. The tiny, anxious pang passes quickly when I realize that if we’re going to give anyone an honest-to-goodness tour of True Love, there’s no one better than Alyssa.

Corporate espionage runs rampant in this industry, especially with fragrances and with pioneering projects like our current trailblazer.

We are now approaching the bank of elevators by the reception desk. I can tell that we’re all watching Alyssa, appreciating the natural magic of her voluptuous form. Every one’s trying to do it subtly, but we’re powerless to contend with her rare magnetism.

If Sean, Tristan and I have ever been in this situation before, that would be news to me. I’m not thinking about that as much as I’m revelling in my chance to watch Alyssa look around with surprising curiosity.

As the four of us walk down the hallway by the accounting department, with Alyssa trailing just a few inches behind, I can’t stop myself from talking to her.

“I suppose it is exciting,” I say to Alyssa.

We’re in the most boring, generic part of the facility. It looks like the inside of a standard, modern-style office building. I feel like I’m about to fucking fall asleep every time I walk through it.

Yet Alyssa, taking in the drab furniture and absent design, sense like she’s touring the Louvre or something. That’s why I’m commenting along, teasing her a bit since I can’t help it.

“Oh, electrifying,” she jokes half-heartedly as she tries to peer into some bean counter’s office.

“I’ve got to say, Alyssa, I can’t even joke about that being interesting to you,” Sean says, noticing her curiosity.

“Oh.” Alyssa turns her head slowly back towards us as she realizes there isn’t much to see there. “I’m just impressed with all the different styles within this place.”

“Hey, it’s still kind of exciting here.” Naturally, Tristan’s not about to let the two of us talk to Alyssa without having his say. “This is where our DJs work their sorcery.”

“DJs?” She asks, half-interested.

“Disk jockeys.”

“Ah.” Alyssa vaguely nods her head. “Sorcery?”

“They’re accountants, they do accounting,” Sean exclaims with a bit of bite, giving Tristan a nice, hard stare. “Tristan’s just being Tristan.”

“That I am, baby!” Tristan pumps his fist in the air for some reason, and I decide that I don’t need to get in on this specific dialog,

Alyssa’s not paying attention, anyway. She’s trailing behind us a little more by now. As I glance back, I see her taking in the hallway and subtly looking around, no doubt just trying to get Tristan, Sean and me to be fair—to stop vying for her attention so openly.

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