CORAL (A Romance Trilogy, Book 1) (4 page)

I turn around and try not to
march away too quickly - as would be my usual response to anyone who threatens
my equilibrium - but as my right foot takes the first step on the stairs I
notice he’s at my side, taking the steps at the same time as me. I instantly
get a whiff of aftershave and something else – but I can't work out what it is?
He smells so good!

I take a cautious look across at
him, just as he looks at me –
Fuck!
We both look away as quickly as we
can. I feel like a complete idiot!
Oh Rob’s going to have so much fun with
this, I know he is.

“Did you know Mr Garland well?”
What,
did he just ask me something?

As we reach the top of the
stairs, I stop and look up at him. Leggy blonde has to take a step round me, so
she doesn’t bump into me.

“Sorry?” I answer a little
bewildered.

“I asked, did you know Mr Garland
well?” I frown at the reminder.

“Um yes, he was like an uncle to
me.” His eyebrows shoot up in response.

“An Uncle?”
Was that a
question?
I guess I better explain.

“Joyce, Mrs Garland, her best
friend is my adoptive Mother.” I offer feeling myself pale a little. “We all
spent a lot of time together,” I add.

“Ah,” his frown deepens. Then he
turns from me and stares straight ahead as though he’s deep in thought. “My
condolences,” he adds.

I nod, look away from him and
continue walking down the hallway, only this time I don’t stop. I silently walk
all the way up the first flight of stairs and straight into the board room. I
check everyone has what they need, tea, coffee etc and try not to watch as Mr
Mogul takes his suit jacket off, revealing the body I pretty much thought would
exist. I quickly turn to leave so I can let Joyce know they are ready and
waiting.

“Coral, may I accompany you?” His
voice stops me. I feel my legs go to jelly again. I slowly turn and nod
silently to him.
What does he want? Please leave me alone, oh this is not a
good start, not a good start at all!

We walk silently down the stairs,
turn to the left and head towards my desk.

“This is where you work?” He asks
looking around the room.

It’s a nice room with a big bay
window letting in lots of light. Ok it’s old and nothing like his buildings and
simply oozing with wonderful architecture, but I love it, I love its charm.
Built in the 1820’s this three story house was bought by John and Joyce with a
view to converting the first floor to offices, which they did, and used the
next two floors as living accommodation.

As the years went by the company
grew, and eventually the whole place was converted into office space. With the
added perks of two bathrooms with showers, a large rest area with comfy sofas
and a fully blown modern kitchen, Joyce likes to eat fresh every-day. And there
have been plenty of occasions when someone has had a big case on and they have
slept at the office.

“Interesting.” He murmurs, then
turns and smiles at me -
Holy mother of God!

His teeth are perfect as is his
smile. I think he’s finding my gobsmacked expression amusing because his grin
widens, making his nose and eyes crinkle in the most delectable way. I hear my
breathe catch and quickly sit down in my chair before my legs give way.
Jesus,
I could stare at that face all day.

“Coral?” I hear, rather than see
Joyce standing in her doorway, but I can’t take my eyes of Mr Mogul.

“Err…yes. Sorry Joyce, Mr Mo’ –
Shit!
– ‘Mr Freeman wanted to see’ – “Joyce, how are you?” he interrupts, saving me.

I watch him greet Joyce, softly
kissing each of her cheeks and I'm amazed to see a slight blush appear.
So
it’s not just me?

As I sit there, totally
mesmerised by him, I'm drawn to the track that Classic FM have started playing
– James Lasts, Cavalleria Rusticana Intermezzo – It’s one of my favourite
classical pieces. I close my eyes for a moment, imagining myself dancing and
swaying with him, his strong arms holding me close to his delectable body.

But who am I kidding? Yes I want
something mind blowing and amazing, especially with someone like him, but it’s
not on the cards for me, I realised that a long time ago. People who are in
love are open, intimate, they are not afraid to show their vulnerability to
each other, and that, unfortunately, is something I cannot and will not ever do
- It’s too scary to even think about.

I push the stupid thought aside
and as I open my eyes, I see they are talking in hushed voices. He has hold of
her arms, she has her hands resting on his forearms. Joyce glances across at
me, giving me a look that speaks volumes.

Great now I’m in trouble for
not immediately telling her that he was here, this day just keeps getting
better!

I scowl at my keyboard, wiggling
the mouse to wake up my desktop and pretend that I am typing something, they
move closer to me.

....“Of course,” he coos. “Coral
showed me.” He smiles at Joyce then at me. I look up at him not wanting to seem
like I‘m being rude, and plaster a fake smile across my face –
I will never
go to heaven, no way, hell has a seat waiting for me!

“Shall we begin?” He asks and
holds out his arm for Joyce.
How Gentlemanly of him - How old school!

“Thank you Tristan.” She takes
him arm and he leads her past my desk. I can see she is putting on a brave
face. God, this must be so hard for her to do. I wonder whether John would be
happy with what she’s doing?

“Coral.” I look up at Joyce. “The
meeting may go over, but you can still leave at five.”

“Are you sure?” I answer my voice
a high octave.

I swallow hard trying to get my
normal voice back.

“Yes, I have sent over what needs
completing.” I nod knowing my inbox may be overflowing, but I welcome the work,
anything to take my mind off what’s happening.

“Of course Joyce, I’ll get right
on it.”

I really, really try not to look at
him, at his solid manly body, but as he walks away, I find my head
involuntarily craning over my desk to try and get a good look at him.
Damn
he is one fine specimen!

I AM DEEP IN WORK
, trying
as fast as I can to get all the letters typed up for Joyce, when my mobile
starts buzzing in my top drawer. I quickly pull it out and see that it’s
Debbie, my adoptive sister. She’s blonde, bubbly and flirtatious, and she
hasn’t got a care in the world – I spent most my childhood wishing I could be
more like her.

“Debs,” I answer briskly.

“Hey trouble, how are you?”

“Good, busy.” I answer abruptly.

“Just called to remind you, its
Lily’s birthday party this weekend,” she says.
Damn it, forgot about that!
Debs
married Scott ten years ago, and despite my reservations, they are still
together. They had Lily five years ago, she’s spoilt but sweet.

“Of course I remember!” I offer
as innocently as I can.
Shit, what am I going to get her?

“Ok, well it starts at 12noon,
Saturday.” Oh God, a garden full of screaming five year olds, I have to take
Rob with me for my sanity.

“Can I bring Rob?”

“Of course you can,” she
sniggers. “No new man on the scene then?”

“Debbie.” I growl -
I don’t
need this right now!
She’s always on at me about moving on from Justin. She
has no fucking idea about anything, which winds me up even more!

“Ok, ok! I’ll shut up!” She
sniggers some more.

“So what kind of thing is a five
year old into nowadays?” I casually ask.

“You haven’t got her anything?”
She barks.

“Um...no, not yet, I was going to
ask you about it.” I retort.

“You forgot!” She snaps.

“Did not!” I snap back.

“What’s up with you? You’re not
your usual self?” She asks half-heartedly.

“Nothing...I’m fine, just busy.”
I snap again, feeling agitated she caught me out.

“Coral?” She drawls.

“I’m fine!” I huff.

“Ok, just asking. Right then, as
far as Lily goes anything that’s Arts and Crafts, she loves making things.”

“Oh, ok, well that’s easy enough.
I’ll shop on my lunch tomorrow. I’ll call you to make sure I don’t duplicate
anything.”

“Roger that. Lily misses you we
haven’t seen you in ages.”

“I know I’ve just been really
busy with the move.”

“Coral, that was two years ago!”
She bites.
Ok, so I’m a crap aunty.

“Debs I’m sorry, it’s just...”

“Justin?”

“Yeah...” I sigh in agreement,
although it’s far from the truth. I hate lying, but it’s easier this way. When
Justin and I were together, we would spend a lot off weekends with Debs and
Scott. They became pregnant not long after the split, and even though it’s been
more than five years, it still brings back memories of him; and I will avoid
anything or anyplace that does that.

“That bastard!” Debs spits.

“I know.” I sigh.

“It’ll get easier.” She says.

“Ya think?” I answer sarcastically.

It really annoys me when she says
things like that, Debs never had to endure heartache, she met Scott at College
twenty years ago; and they’ve been together ever since.

“Ok smartarse, I’m going, see you
Saturday.” Debs says.

I grit my teeth in frustration -
I hate taking things out on Debs. “Sorry Debs.”

“Don’t worry about it.” I can
tell she’s smiling.

“Talk tomoz?” I ask.

“Yep, see you.” I hang up, put my
mobile back in my desk drawer, and continue with the tasks at hand.

IT’S 5.20PM AND I’VE JUST FINISHED
typing up the last letter for Joyce. I print it off, add it to the
pile, take them into her office and place them on her desk, ready for her to
sign. I stop for a moment and take a look around the large room - It’s going to
be so strange not seeing her every day...

My stomach twists with anxiety. I
know this is really going to take its toll on me, at least for a while. I don’t
do change. I make a mental note to ask George to schedule me in for two
sessions a week. I don’t think one is going to be enough, for the meantime
anyway.

I head back to my desk, shut down
my computer and throw my bag over my shoulder ready for the long walk home. As
I head down to reception, I see that Joe has already gone - can't wait to get
out the door that one. I smile and wave at Tom the security guard, and push the
double doors open to the outside world.
Whoa! It’s hot!

I didn’t realise how nice it had
been out today, and in that moment I am thankful I am wearing my strappy
wedges, I don’t think my feet would take the heat in stilettos. It’s been an
usual summer so far, last year all we had was rain, rain and more rain, this
year, it seems as though the sunny days are going to just keep on coming. I
smile at the thought and find my Oakley sunglasses out of my bag (a present
from Gladys for my 30th last year) and slip them on.

As I start my usual walk down
Eastern Street, I find my Cowon MP3 player out of my bag, and pop the
headphones in. I really feel summery tonight, so I choose Rihanna.

Diamonds start pumping through my
ears, and as I keep walking I pull the pins and hair band out of my hair, and
run my fingers through it - it feels so good to be out of the bun - finally
letting it cascade down my back and across my shoulders.

As I pick up walking speed, I
feel the warm breeze blowing through my hair and across my skin, I take a deep
breath in, the intoxicating combination of city traffic, the food from the
cafés and pub’s, and the smell of the sea make me smile, I love this place so
much. I look up above me and see several seagulls circling the café’s just
waiting for their opportunity to get some more food – Gannets!

I feel a sudden rush of
excitement knowing I am out tonight with Rob; we always have such a good time
together. And I know he’ll help me make sense of everything, if there’s one
thing Rob’s good at doing it’s not taking life too seriously, and I do he tells
me, way too seriously.

Just as I’m passing the County
Hospital, I have a strange creeping sensation come over me, making all the
hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. I frown trying to work out why I’m
suddenly feeling like this, when I notice in my peripheral vision that a shiny
black car is slowly crawling next to me, I can hear its throaty engine bouncing
off the tall buildings.

Someone is stalking me, holy crap!

My heart starts rapidly beating,
my hands start to shake, and I feel a cold layer of sweat cover my body. I try
to swallow but my throat is tight, and my mouth feels like all moisture has
been extracted from it –
Fuck!
I wonder whether I should dash into the
nearest store and hide until it disappears?

Damn it, that will make me late
for Will - he doesn’t do late - being ex Military makes you very disciplined
about time keeping.
Shit, shit, shit what do I do?

I think of George’s words of
wisdom, ‘face the problem head on don’t keep running’ so I take a deep breath
and stop walking, turning slowly to see if the car stops too. But when I turn
my head, the last thing I expect to see is Mr Mogul sat in a brand new Jaguar
F-Type. I instantly know it’s the V8 5.0 litre, supercharged model.
Damn
bastard, he has my dream car!

He stops the car, having no
reservations about holding up any traffic, yet he just sits there, roof down,
aviator sunglasses on, looking as sexy as hell.
Oh no!

I swallow hard and turn to walk
away, but he holds his hand up in a sort of weird wave thing, he looks dead
serious, his jaw set, his brow furrowed. So I replicate his action, turn around
and continue walking at an even more hurried pace, desperate to get away from
him.

I expect to see him pass me,
there’s not much traffic to stop him, so when he doesn’t, I decide to be brave.
Taking a quick peek behind me, I see he’s pulled into a parking space and is
getting out of the car, and he hasn’t taken his eyes off me.
Oh holy crap!
What does he want?

“Coral!” I hear him shout my name
over Rihanna blasting in my ears, and because he’s soon to be my new boss, I
feel I have no choice but to stop and turn to him.

I stand stock still watching him
approach me, a man of purpose and poise, his steps determined. He is every inch
the cool, confident alpha male -
No doubt gozillionaire!

But I can't help feeling really
annoyed and antagonistic towards him. Why can't he leave me alone? I have
nothing to give him.

Finally he reaches me, stopping
about a foot away. It’s like he knows not to invade my space, then he takes off
his aviators. I take one of my headphones out, push my sunglasses up onto my
head and stand staring at him, not knowing what the hell to say.

“You have lovely hair,” he
offers. “You should wear it down more often, it really suit’s you like that.”
Ok that threw me. I wasn’t expecting that at all.

“Um....thanks,” I mumble quickly
looking away, feeling shy and exposed.

“Sorry,” he frowns. “I didn’t
mean to make you feel’– “Did you need something Mr Freeman?” I interrupt.
Will’s going to kill me.

“Don’t you have a car?” He asks
throwing me again.

I frown back at him -
What the
hell has that got to do with him?

“No.” I sigh and wrap my arms
around myself. My foot starts tapping involuntarily.

“Would you like a lift?” He asks,
his voice high pitched and light, though his face is still deadpan.

I try as hard as I can to hide
the fact that I would love nothing more than a spin in that racy little number,
but I know it means he will see where I live, and I don’t want him to. So how
do I say thanks but no thanks, without it coming out wrong?

“No thank you, I like to walk.”
There that should pacify him.

“Do you have far to go?” His
expression looks bleak as he scans the street ahead.
What is his problem?

“Why?” I ask, frowning up at him.

“I just thought...” He stops, and
runs a hand through his hair, he looks a little lost.

“I need to get going,” I tell
him. “I have an appointment.”

His eyes pop open in wonder. “An
appointment?”

“Yes.”

“Where is it?”

“Excuse me?”

“Maybe I could drop you there?”
He offers warmly.

“Um no, it’s ok thanks, I have to
get home first.”

“Please, let me take you?” He
says, his expression bleak, his eyes penetrating all the way down to my dark
soul. What the hell is with this guy? Why is he being so nice? Then it dawns on
me, maybe Joyce has told him a few things, maybe he is being extra nice because
he wants me to see he’s a nice guy, and nice guys make sure you get home ok.

Well I don’t need or want that, I
have lived in this city since I was five and nothing bad has ever happened to
me, except for that one incident and besides that I feel safe here. I am safe
here. I don’t need anyone looking after me. I can look after myself.

“I’m fine Mr Freeman.” I say
staring down at the ground.

“Tristan, call me Tristan...” He
says.

I look up into his warm chocolate
eyes feeling mesmerised for a moment.

“Ok.....Tristan.” I get a very
odd feeling as I say his name.

“So, no lift?” He asks again.

I shake my head at him.

“Maybe another time?” He
questions lightly.

I shrug not knowing what to say
to that.
You’re going to be late!

“I have to go,” I tell him. “See
you.”

He nods his head in defeat.

Turning quickly on my heel, I
scurry away, quickening my pace as do. I pull down my sunglasses and pop the
headphone back in. As I’m speed walking away from him, I wonder for a moment if
he’s still stood there watching me walk away. I glance behind me, and see he’s
getting back into his car.
Phew!

My player flips to the next track
- Stay, one of my favourite Rihanna songs. I listen to the words and think how
ironic - they are reflecting my emotions completely. Just as she sings Stay, I
see his car cruise slowly past me, my steps falter, I sneak a peek at him, but
he doesn’t look up at me. I’m instantly filled with a feeling of dread.
Oh
god, what have I done? He’s my new boss and I’ve pissed him off, way to go
Coral!

Then I’m hit with the strangest,
bleakest feeling - that in reality, I did want to get in that car, and that
watching him drive away without even looking back at me was like being stabbed
in the heart with a knife. Like losing something I never even had in the first
place? I clutch my hand to my chest and try to ease the strange aching
sensation.

What the hell is this guy
doing to me?