Chapter 198: Chapter 198

Violet

The next day I spent on my desk as usual, forgetting when day began or when the sun was replaced by night while I hunched over my designs like usual.

The light above me flickered faintly like it was reminding me it was still there, working with me.

I got a call from Cassie unexpectedly.

“Hey” I said to her without taking my eyes off the screen.

“Its been a long time since we hung out. Wanna catch up this weekend?”

“No Cass. The launch is already too close. Maybe after the gala” I mumbled as I retouched the designs.

“Um sure. Just wanted to check on you. We haven’t really talked about…” she began but I cut her abruptly.

“I am getting another call. Talk to you later. Bye” I quickly disconnected the call when I noticed movement on the left.

I looked up to see Dane leaning by the door of his cabin, watching me.

“You don't want to go home?”

I straightened up and immediately felt pain shoot up my neck so rubbed it slightly as I answered.

“I’ll be leaving soon.”

He smiled. “Looks like I put too much pressure on you.”

I shook my head. “No, no. I just want to…get the Lunar Gala to be a hit.”

He approached my desk. “I understand and appreciate the enthusiasm. But I don’t want you to ignore your personal life for work.”

His glance slid to my phone that lit up because of a text message from Cassie that I ignored.

“Somebody is putting efforts to get you to live. After a while, they will stop trying. Trust me.” He said, adding softly as he pulled a chair to sit directly in front of me.

I pushed the phone away, under the piles of sheets spread across my desk.

“I…will meet my friend after the launch.” I said and he added when the phone beeped again.

“Your friend seems very persuasive.”

“Yeah, that’s one thing about her”

His shoulders relaxed. “Her? I thought it was a him for certain.”

Well she was connected to him. She had respected my request to not talk about Elijah at all and accompanied me to the journey back home, let me stare into oblivion for the entire journey and then promised to meet soon.

But I had been avoiding her ever since returning to my home, my city.

Because, I knew exactly how persuasive she was and I didn’t want my emotions to betray me.

“Nope. I dont have a ‘him’ in my life” I admitted. Saying the words out loud made it feel weird.

The light above me started flickering again.

Dane didn’t say anything to that but simply got up from the chair and began gathering the sheets of paper from my desk.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Clearing this avalanche while you work to death.”

I quickly got up as well, trying to grab the sheets from him. They had rough sketches of the designs I worked on and discarded, my desk buried under piles of crumpled papers and retouches.

“Relax, it's fine” He urged but I tried to grab the sheets from him and accidentally brushed his hand.

He stilled for a second and I immediately pulled my hand back.

“Sorry. But I’ll do it. You are my boss’s boss.”

He looked up at me for a second, his eyes unreadable and then shook his head. “I thought we were friends”

Unsure of what to say to that, I froze for a second and he chuckled. “Relax, I was joking.”

I simply nodded at that and started clearing my desk as well.

He looked up at the flickering light and I muttered nervously. “It does that sometimes”

“Remind someone to get it changed tomorrow.”

We worked in silence for the next few minutes, throwing the crumpled pages in the trash can.

I noticed it would start to overflow so I bent to pick it up at the same time a pen rolled off the table and Dane bent to pick it up as well.

Our heads bumped and he rubbed his forehead slightly while still squatting on the floor.

“Sorry” I said again.

He reached for the trash can I had picked up and his fingers brushed mine slightly again, not overly pushy, just a brush as he held my gaze.

“I wasn’t joking about the friendship” He added and I gave him a wry smile.

“I know”

I looked away because the conversation was getting awkward and pushed the chair behind me a bit farther back to give myself room in teh space that suddenly felt cramped.

“Violet…” He took my name so softly it sounded like a whisper.

I looked up at him again. “If you can…if you will…I mean if you wish to…to be…more than fr…”

He was fumbling for words and let out a breath.

“Forget it” He said and straightened, not looking at me.

I got up as well and we looked anywhere else but at each other.

“I am sorry, I was just…” He trailed off as I grabbed my stuff and shoved it in my bag.

I needed to get it out to him before he started hoping.

“Dane, you are an amazing person. You are kind and compassionate. And you have been very gracious with me, giving me a chance to work here, to fulfill my childhood dreams but…”

He laughed but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “There is always a but”

“But I am not in the right space currently. I am sure any girl would be lucky to have you in her life.”

I finished, trying to find the right words.

“Any girl but you” Dane said, and I hated that dejected tone of his, especially when he had given me the perfect distraction at work.

I tried again. “I mean it, Dane.”

He played with the paperweight on my table, twirling it as he muttered.

“I know you do. I just wish I had met you sooner..” his eyes found mine again. “...before your ex thawed your heart.”

He thought this was about Nate. And I didn’t want to correct him.

“Goodnight Dane” I grabbed my bag and walked out, getting into the car to drive away before it got anymore awkward.

I was driving mindlessly, wondering if I should have said something else, and if this would make it awkward for me to continue working with him when a bright light flashed on my rearview mirror.

I looked up to see the same sleek black car that had started following me every night. No matter what time I left, it would always appear on the road behind me like a ritual except for when Dane dropped me once.

I tried switching times, leaving an hour late, two hours late but it was always there, like a persistent memory I badly wanted to forget.

But the car would maintain its distance, just tailing behind me until I reached my gate and drive off without stopping.

“Leave me alone!” I screamed at the car as it drove past me the second I reached home, telling myself I was just being paranoid.