Khloe sat on the couch dejectedly staring at the notebook in her hand in great disbelief.
No, Nathan could not have written this, there has to be a mix up somewhere
"It has to be a mistake, he may not be the owner of the book" I tried to convince myself for the twentieth times today but it is still not adding up, my eyes blurred as I stared at the familiar handwriting of the man I married six years ago.
A marriage I single-handedly sponsored down to the fucking ring!
This has to be a joke!
"Khloe is my plan c….if i can't get May.. My beautiful plan A… or even Joy.. My curvy plan B…she is a bit curvy and easy"
I blinked so hard as if to erase what I have just read, as my hand tightened around the book as I felt something stabbed me in the chest- a pain that can not be described with words and fresh tears rolled down my eyes as I have flashbacks of how I met him, maybe I really did threw myself at him….shamelessly.
Nathan was newly employed as one of the editors in the publishing company where I work, he was part of my team and I was the team leader, I became the team leader at twenty-seven, two years after joining the company, the first female and young team leader in the company, of course I put in a lot of work to get there.
I fell for him the day he was introduced to me by the manager, who wouldn't?
He is tall, broad- shouldered, his face carries the rare balance of sharpness and warmth- defined jawline, straight nose, and eyes that held a quiet spark of amusement, oh… how beautiful he is when he smiled, it is effortless and disarming, the kind of smile that made me feel like I already know him- like he is mine, I didn't stop admiring him until the manager's voice jolted me back to reality.
" Khloe… Khloe!" She scrunched up her face, puzzled.
"Yes, Kate" I answered quickly.
" This is Nathan....I want you to show him around and help him get familiar with the job and please don't be too hard on the guy… he is new" she said with a smirk on her face and gave me a quick wink before walking away.
I cringed, did she notice?
I have always been known as the ruthless team leader, I don't tolerate mistakes, and I push my team members to their absolute limits.
I was even nicknamed evil K- those silly fools.
My methods has never been approved by the company- of course but I am their best employee, hence, the preferential treatment but after the last year incident when one of my team members ended up in the hospital and sued the company.
The company had to compensate Sawyer, and since then, I've become someone people fear, the only reason I wasn't sacked is because I am capable but I was penalized…pffft since then Kate always finds a way to slip in a warning or a bit of advice whenever someone new joins the team or when I'm reported to her.
"Welcome to my team, Nathan" I said as we walked down the hallway, side by side, I got close to him so close that I felt his finger brush my hand….or did I imagine it?
"So, how was the interview with Kate? She can be a bit difficult yunno" I said and laughed lightly
"No, it went smoothly, she is really nice" he said and smiled.
Oh..his beautiful smile is going to be the death of me.
"Kate? Wow..no one has ever said that about her but enough about her…she is still my bosss yunno… How old are you?" I asked suddenly which made him stop in his tracks and stare at me for a moment before answering.
" I am twenty-six…uhm.. I am sorry but is this part of the orientation?" He asked frowning his face
Wow, he is younger… a year… but it's okay.
"No..no, I was just curious, I am sorry" I said quickly, forcing a professional smile.
Don't scare him off, khloe.
As we entered the office, everyone scurried off to their cubicle, they are slacking off at work again but they are not going to get any reaction from me- at least not now but then I saw Rose casually strolling out of the lunch room with a cup in her hands, "not now you menace" I said under my breath before I cracked.
"Miss Lorain! That's your fourth cup today! I guess the coffee is doing all the work today and you are just here to supervise it" I said in a loud voice
" I guess so too, Miss Richard, things one has to do at this job so as not to end up in asylum" she said as she rolled her eyes at me and strolled down to her seat… slowly.
I hate her audacity, Rose is the only one on my team that actually talks back and is not afraid of me, she is too bold and confident but there is nothing I can do because she is actually good at her work. But now that she has ruin my first impression, I will get back at her!
"Okay…" I clapped my hands " Attention everyone, we have a new member on the team, Mr Nathan, would you like to introduce yourself, please?"
" uhm hum…" he cleared his throat " good afternoon everyone, I am Nathan" he gave a small nod " .. and I am the new addition to the team, and hopefully not the one who breaks anything on the first day" he smiled nervously.
Everyone laughed "we would understand if you do" Rose said amidst the laughter and applause.
I rolled my eyes at her.
"Okay, that's enough, let's get back to what we were doing before the…uhm..little entertainment " I said in a firm tone "okay, Mr Nathan, that will be your work space" I said pointing at the cubicle at the opposite direction of my office.
"Okay ma'am" he said as he walked past me.
Ma'am, Ma'am?! Oh please, don't, Being called ma'am by someone I am crushing on sets boundaries , call me by my name...kiss me with those perfect lips and set my soul on fire....damn...intrusive thoughts.
"Mr Nathan, call me by my name-Khloe ,please" I said
Everyone gasped, I ignored them as I started going to my office, no sooner had I entered my office that I heard a knock on the door.
"Khloeeeee…May I come in with the file now?"
Laughter.
Rose! That little devil.
"Yes" I mumbled
"Khloeee…..?" She stretched
"Come in!!!" I shouted