CHAPTER 27
Unaware of Rian's presence, Laura waved her hand in Riley's face and with a raised brow asked, "You sounded so worried back there, why aren't you saying anything now?"
"Actually, I was just trying to pull your legs." Riley said with a wink trying to act natural before Rian who was resting against the wall with his hands tucked in his pockets and his gaze fixed on her.
"It's high time you grow up. You made me worried for no reason." Laura scoffed, glaring angrily at her. A while ago, she was thinking Riley had something serious to say to her only to hear it was all a prank.
"Come on Laura, you shouldn't be overreacting. Moreover, it's not a big deal." She joked stealing glances at Rian who still maintained his position.
"Overreacting you say, get your hand off me." She said, playfully pushing her hands off. They engaged in a little argument and that was when Rian decided to announce his presence.
Taking his back off the wall, he straightened up and then cleared his throat and immediately, three pairs of eyes turned in his direction.
Not wanting Laura to suspect anything, Riley acted as if she was just seeing him.
"I'm sorry, I need to leave now." She said in a rush and before Laura could say anything to her, she was gone.
Smiling brightly, Rian said, "Welcome back to work."
"Thank you."
"Why are you here? Please come with me, let's head to my office." He said, patting Alex's head who didn't bother to look in his direction. He was busy playing games on his iPad.
A few minutes later, Laura was sitting across Rian in his office while Alex occupied the couch, engrossed in his games.
"I'm glad you're finally back to work. There wouldn't be any reason to make a fuss now." He said, drumming his fingers against the table while she let out a soft chuckle.
"You don't understand my plight since you aren't in my place. It's difficult staying somewhere for long, you know. Bored out of my life and having the company of humming machines and nothing more." She said, allowing her shoulders to slump before returning her gaze to him.
The couples spoke for a while before Rian pressed the intercom on his table and a second later, Riley, who was on the other end received the call.
"Sir, what can I do for you?" She asked, her heart beating rapidly. After she left earlier, she had been pacing about with her head bent. She only stopped when the call came through.
"I need a cup of coffee brewed perfectly." He said and she nodded.
"Yes sir, I'll be there in five minutes." She said immediately.
"Laura, you need a cup?" He asked, his gaze on Laura who was scrolling through her phone.
"No thanks, I'm okay." She replied and he in turn said, "Be quick."
"Yes sir." Riley replied and the lines disconnected.
Scared, Riley made her way to the office kitchen to brew a cup of coffee for him. She had barely taken the cup off the rack when the door creaked open and then was banged shut.
Slowly, she turned in the direction of the door only to see Rian staring back at her with a smirk on his lips.
Staring wide eyed at him, she tried to speak but words refused to form. The moment he took a step, her finger slipped and the cup she was holding made contact with the floor.
"You think you're smart, huh?" Rian chuckled, closing in on her.
"I wasn't going to tell her. You were there when I said it was all a prank." She rapped, trying to calm herself.
"A prank?" He asked, sarcasm dripping from his tone and she nodded in response, unable to say anything.
Rian in turn, tossed his head to the side and the next second he was laughing dryly, making the already tensed air more tense.
"Sir, I swear, I wasn't going to tell her. I promised you the last time, didn't I?" She rapped. To strengthen her claim, she added, "If I wanted to spill, I would have done that two weeks ago and not today. I have her contact information and even her home address so it's easy for me to reach out to her."
At the end of her mini speech, she was breathing heavily.
Rian on the other hand discarded all what she had said as he continued making his way towards her. When only a few inches separated them, he asked, "What did I tell you last time about this if she gets to hear?"
"You would hurt me." She gulped, her eyes never leaving his own.
"Good. That's exactly what I'm going to do now." He said and before she could realize what was happening, Rian's large palm was around her neck.
Grabbing his hand, she tried to push him off but he held on as if his life depended on it.
"Sir… please…" she managed to say as she gasped for air. Instead of responding to her plea, Rian tightened his grip. He only let go of her when tears began to roll down her cheeks and she was unable to struggle anymore.
"Don't try acting smart because you are not." He spat at her and then tossed her to the other end of the kitchen.
After arranging his clothings, he spoke with a stern voice, "Get me coffee in two minutes."
"Yes sir." She said after and he banged the door shut.
On his return to the office, he met Laura conversing with Alex who obviously wasn't interested.
"I'm sorry I took longer than expected." He apologized quickly before taking his seat.
"It's fine." She replied. Just as she was about to resume the conversation they were having before he left earlier, the door creaked open and Riley stepped in, holding a small tray containing his cup of coffee.
"I will go brew your coffee immediately." Riley said on seeing Laura. In her haste to leave, her fingers slipped and the hot coffee poured on the Rian's hand.
"Oops, I'm so sorry sir. I didn't…" She was trying to apologize when he snapped, "You didn't what? I have already told you several times already to always remain focused." He yelled.
"I'm sorry sir." She replied with a bowed head.
"Get out this minute." He snapped and she turned around. Before grabbing the handle of the door, she said, "I'll be back with your coffee in a minute."
"You don't have to worry Riley, I'm fine." Laura replied.
"Alright then." She replied and then grabbed the handle but before she could turn it, Laura called out to her.
"I would need your help." Laura said.
"Okay, on what exactly?"
"Please take these documents to Christian. You remember the floor he occupies, right?" Christian was Alex's father.
"Yeah, I do." She replied as she received the documents from her.
"Thank you so much."
After dropping off the tray at the kitchen, Riley decided to deliver Laura's message but before doing so, she reapplied her lipstick and applied a little makeup to her face.
Satisfied with her look, she grabbed the file which continued the documents and stepped out of her office.
She had adjusted her look because Damien, whom she was hitting on, worked under Christian who was his manager. Meeting with Christian also means meeting with Damien.
Reaching her destination, she knocked on the door twice but didn't get any response. A few seconds later, she held the knob and then pushed the door in.
She was about to step into his office when she discovered he wasn't on seat and so, and turned around to leave.
Already heading towards the elevator, Damien, who was walking in the opposite direction, caught sight of her and he immediately called out to her.
With her cheeks burning crimson red, Riley turned in his direction.
"Looking for someone?" He asked, closing the space that separated both of them.
"Yeah, Mr Christian" She replied, brushing her hair from her face. "It seems he is not on seat." She added, hoping this would make the conversation longer.
"He stepped out a while ago. Seems you have something for him." He noted, nodding at her hand.
"Yeah."
"I'll have it. I'll deliver it on your behalf, you don't have to worry about that." He said reassuringly and at once, Riley pushed the file towards him.
"Thank you so much, I appreciate your kind gesture."
"It's nothing." He replied, waving her off as he headed for Christian's office. After placing the file on his table, he returned to the hallway only to see Riley still standing there.
"Something else?" He asked with a raised brow but she shook her head and then turned around.
Grining, she turned around to leave but she was barely able to take her first step when her heels broke, throwing her unbalanced.
Damien, who had noticed it, quickly caught her, preventing her from making contact with the floor and at the same time locking eyes with her.