Waiting for Us

by Stanton, Dawn

  The law office is about a ten-minute drive from the apartment that I share with Marcus. I leave home making sure I have extra time in case I hit traffic. Boston traffic is no joke and I definitely don't want to be late on my first day. As I pull my silver Honda CRV into a parking space in the attached garage, my phone beeps with a text alert. It's from Marcus.

  Good luck Hails

  Thx I need it

  My girl's gonna give em hell

  xo

  I confidently make my way through the garage and inside the building, taking the elevator to the twentieth floor, where my dad's office is located. I've been here many times before, especially since I have been living in Boston for school. Dad and I try to get together for lunch or dinner at least once a month, but I've had to cancel on him the last few times due to my large school workload. When I get off the elevator I come to the wide open space where Margaret, my dad's secretary's desk is located. She stands and immediately engulfs me in a huge hug. I'm enveloped in a cloud of strong, floral perfume, but I don't mind because I've known her since I was a baby. She's like family to me.

  "I'm so happy I will get to see you every day now. You look so beautiful and grown up."

  "Thank you, it's so great to see you. It will be nice to have a break from school this summer. I was getting a little burned out."

  "Your dad is waiting for you now. You and I will go to lunch soon and catch up."

  "Sounds like a plan," I say with a smile.

  I knock on my dad's darkly stained door and as I enter his office, I notice he's not alone. There's a broad-shouldered, brown haired guy sitting in one of the blue swivel chairs in front of his desk.

  "Oh sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt," I say with chagrin.

  "No honey, you're not interrupting. We were actually just talking about your duties and what my expectations are for you. You will be mentored by Cory for the duration of your internship." Wait, did he just say Cory? What are the chances...After my dad finishes speaking the mystery man stands up and turns around smiling at me. Holy hell, it's Cory Fucking Marshall.

  "What are you doing here?" I ask in a not so nice tone of voice while wearing a large scowl on my face.

  "Hailey." My dad scolds. "That wasn't very nice of you. Say a proper hello to Cory and you better throw in a hug while you're at it. He's practically another brother to you." He's not really like a brother to me, dad. His dick has been inside me.

  "Yeah Hailey, come give me a hug," Cory says with a smirk on his bearded face. The well-trimmed beard is sexy, but it hides his very masculine jawline. I can't decide which I want to do more... punch him in the face or suck his lips off. I settle for walking across the Persian rug to where he is standing and loosely hug him. Cory doesn't seem to get the hint that I don't really want any contact with him and he pulls me in tightly. I gasp in surprise from the press of his body against mine and I know he heard. The bastard. Why does he have to be so freaking sexy? I can feel his toned stomach against mine and I hate that one touch from him still makes my panties uncomfortably wet. How am I going to work with him each day without pathetically throwing myself at him? I push myself away from his chest and take a step back to gain some distance between us.

  "Why don't you guys head down to your office and you can get started on showing Hailey what needs to be done."

  "Yes, sir." Cory promptly replies. Kiss-ass.

  "Hailey honey, let's grab lunch. I will have Margaret contact you when I'm free."

  "Okay, dad. Or should I call you Mr. Morse here?" I ask cheekily. I arch my brow waiting for his reply.

  "You better call me dad always. It's my favorite name." He blows me a kiss and I do the same as I turn and make my way to the door where Cory waits. He steps back and gestures for me to go first. I love when a guy has nice manners but in his case it's probably so he can watch my ass as I walk in front of him.

  Margaret's not at her desk as we pass by so we continue on our way to the elevator in silence. We don't have long to wait before we are back on the nineteenth floor and are making our way to Cory's office. There's a woman who I surmise must be the secretary for him and the other two junior associates. She has bleached blonde hair and her large chest is on display in her red V-neck blouse...she's just Cory's type. He stops to introduce me to her and I learn that her name is Candy. OMG, I can't make this shit up. I can't wait to tell Marcus and Shelby about this. Candy says hello to me with her lips pursed as if she ate something distasteful. The only thing distasteful is her blouse. I'm kind of shocked my dad would employ someone that looks so unprofessional. Then again, one of the other partners may have hired her.

  "It's nice to meet you, Candy." I somehow manage to say with a straight face, before following Cory wherever we are going. He walks down a long hallway, painted an earthy taupe color and enters the last door on the left.

  "This is my office...have a seat." He says gesturing to the pair of brown leather club chairs in front of his large wooden desk. I sit myself down, careful to smooth the back of my dress out so it won't be a wrinkled mess. I watch Cory as he picks up a couple of folders, only to put them down again. Is he nervous? I wonder to myself and unknowingly my lip quirks up on one side in a smirk.

  "Why do you look like the cat that ate the canary?" He asks as he sits back in his black leather office chair and crosses his arms in front of his chest.

  "I'm not sure what you mean," I reply haughtily.

  "Okay, let's just get started on what I need you to do first." He opens one of his desk drawers and removes a folder that is overflowing with papers.

  "I need you to file these in those cabinets," he gestures to a wall filled with beautiful wooden drawers. I've never seen filing cabinets that look like these. I was expecting the typical ugly metal ones.

  "It's all organized alphabetically so you shouldn't have any problems. Just find the folder in the drawer that coincides with the name on each paper and place it inside."

  "I'm well aware of how to file Cory. I've been filing paperwork for my dad since I was ten years old." I grab the folder with two hands so no papers will slip out and purposefully walk over to the cabinets to get started. The sooner I begin, the less I’ll have to make nice with Cory.

  It's not too long before I'm able to forget about him and focus solely on my task. I've always had great concentration skills. It must be from all the reading I've done. When I'm truly focused on something, I shut everything else out. I won't even hear someone if they are talking to me.

  The filing takes me about an hour to do. I walk back over to Cory and place the empty folder on the edge of his desk, asking "What's next?" He reaches in another desk drawer and pulls out an even larger folder than the last. He places it on his desk in front of me.

  "This also has to be filed." He doesn't raise his eyes from the paper he’s reading so I pick up the folder without a word and begin placing each paper in the appropriate drawer. I actually enjoy losing myself in repetitive tasks like this. I'm not telling Cory that, though. He probably thinks he's pissing me off by having me do busy work, but little does he know, I'm just happy to be here. Ever since I was a little girl I've dreamed of working with my dad and this is the first step in that direction.

  After about ninety more minutes I drop the now empty folder on his desk and stand with my hands clasped in front of me, waiting for his instructions on what my next task will be. He ignores me at first, so I continue silently standing there as if I have all the time in the world. When he finally raises his head from his paperwork to acknowledge me I make sure my face is calmly composed.

  "It's noon now, so why don't you break for lunch and be back in an hour." I nod my head and give him a thumbs up before walking out of his office. I make my way past Candy, snort, as she glares at me. I smile extra wide just to piss her off and wait for the elevator. When the doors open for me to get on I notice there is already another passenger inside and he is looking over some paperwork. Since his head is lowered, I can't see his face, but he looks to be well
over six feet tall and his well-groomed hair is black. He actually reminds me of my old boyfriend Erik and my heart hurts a bit at the reminder. As I step inside, he looks up from his work and locks eyes with me. Oh, my, holy hotness! He has ice blue eyes and he looks like a younger version of Ian Somerhalder. His well-formed lips slowly form a smile and I unconsciously smile back at him before turning to push the button to the twentieth floor. I notice it's already lit up so that must mean this hottie works for this firm. The doors close and I swear I can feel the heat of his gaze all along my backside. Fortunately, it's only a matter of seconds before the doors are opening and I can quickly make my exit. I blow Margaret a kiss as I pass her. She’s on the telephone and gives me a small wave as I once again, make my way to my dad's office. His door is open and he’s leaning his head back in his brown leather executive style chair.

  "Hey daddy, working hard I see." I tease as I walk over to kiss him on his cheek.

  "How is your day going so far honey?"

  "Well I'd say I'm already a pro at filing." I say with a giggle.

  "You've had that down since you were ten years old." He laughs, slapping his knee.

  "Chris, here's that brief you were asking for." The elevator hottie briskly walks in, just now looking up from the paperwork he is holding.

  "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt." He apologizes.

  "No, you're not interrupting us at all. Sean, this is my daughter Hailey.... Hailey, Sean is one of our junior associates."

  "It's wonderful to meet you, Hailey," He says with a dazzling smile as he steps forward to shake my hand. His grip is firm and I like that.

  "Hi Sean. It's so nice to meet you." I smile back at him and hope that he finds my smile as attractive as I find his.

  "Hailey is doing an internship here this summer." My dad interjects.

  "Well, I'd be happy to assist her in her learning in any way I can." I bet I could learn a few things from you.

  "Thank you, Sean. I actually have Cory mentoring her since they've known one another for so long, I knew Hailey would be comfortable asking him questions." Can Sean be my mentor, please?

  "Daddy, I don't want to take up anymore of your time. I just wanted to see if you were free to grab lunch now since you mentioned it, earlier this morning."

  "No, now is not a good time for me but maybe we can do tomorrow instead?"

  "Sure," I say with a smile.

  "I'd be happy to escort Hailey to lunch, sir." Sean says.

  "That's a great idea and this way I won't feel so bad about backing out on you." My dad mentions.

  The walk to the sandwich shop is quick and uneventful. He orders a turkey and cheese sub and I ask for a Greek salad. There was no way I was going to eat a big messy sub in front of him. Trying to cram a foot-long sub in my mouth for a bite would be all kinds of awkward. Sean grabs two bottles of water from the cooler and heads my way.

  "Is water okay or do you want something else?"

  "Water is great." I reply as I look for an empty table. I find one in the corner and start to move towards it before someone else snatches it up. Sean is right behind me and he pulls my chair out for me to sit down. Nice manners. He sits in the seat across from me, taking a sip from his water bottle. I watch his throat as he swallows. He has a nice Adam's apple. It doesn't stick out too much. I find that to be a big turn off for me. Who wants to see a lump sticking out of some hot guy’s neck? Gross! I love the way your Adam's apple sexily protrudes from your neck, said no one ever.

  Our food is placed on our table by a teenage server. She flushed a little when she caught sight of Sean and all his hotness. The poor girl.

  "So you must still be in school if you're only with us for the summer."

  'Yeah, I'm going into my second year of law school at Beacon University."

  "Nice. So you and Cory are friends?" He asks.

  "I don't know if I'd use the word friends to describe us. He is my older brother Jake's best friend."

  "Oh, I get it now. He likes to play the big brother card with you, right?"

  "Yeah, something like that," is all I reply because what else could I say? I've had a crush on him for ten years now and he fucked me against a lifeguard shack without telling me he had a girlfriend. No thanks.

  "I was thinking about warning you away from Cory and his spiel, but I'm glad I don't have to. He is quite the Casanova and he leaves a trail of broken hearts behind him. Yeah, tell me about it.

  "No need to worry about me Sean, my eyes are wide open to what Cory is like." I take a bite of my salad savoring the tanginess of the feta cheese and Greek dressing. If only I hadn’t fallen for his bull five years ago.

  When we return from lunch and are getting on the elevator Cory enters it at the same time. I'm giggling at something funny Sean said and Cory doesn't look happy about it. He catches my eye and taps his watch as if to say, you're late but I still have five minutes to spare. I give him my best "piss off" look and turn back to Sean.

  "Thanks for lunch Sean. It was really nice of you to take me."

  "It was my pleasure and I'm looking forward to making a habit of it," He says with a wink. At this point, we've reached our floor and the three of us are heading past Candy's now empty seat and down the hallway toward Cory's office. Sean stops at the door directly across the hall.

  "This is me," he gestures at the door with his head. "Don't be a stranger. He says with a smile before walking inside and shutting his door.

  We're not even all the way through the door before Cory is grabbing my hand and yanking me inside. He closes the door with too much force and the sound reverberates through the room. I yank my hand free from his grasp and snap at him, “what the hell Cory?"

  "What were you thinking, going out to lunch with him?" He barks at me.

  "I was thinking that I wanted to go to lunch with him. He's fucking hot."

  "He is a manwhore that uses girls."

  "That's just rich because he pretty much told me the same thing about you. I told him I already knew what a disgusting pig you are so he doesn't need to be concerned about me. I should have told him it was too late; I'd already fallen for your bullshit once before." I pause and take a couple of deep breaths to calm myself down.

  "Hailey, I don't want to see you get hurt."

  "Isn't it ironic that the person who made me feel the worst I've ever felt, is the one concerned with my feelings now. Pfft!"

  " Hailey, I'm sorry, I never," I cut him off before he can say another word.

  "Enough!" I yell out. "Don't you dare apologize to me now. You've had over five years to make amends and you haven't even tried. So spare me your concern about Sean. I don't need another brother and I certainly don't want or need your opinion on anything to do with my personal life. Maybe you should put more energy into thinking about how your fucked up actions have consequences and less into who I spend my time with."

  "Let's get back to work," is all he says before sitting in his chair behind his walnut desk.

  His six foot plus frame and broad shoulders make him appear large and imposing, but he isn't going to intimidate me. I've bitten my tongue for too long about what happened all those years ago. What we did made me feel like a bad person. I felt horrible about myself for more time than I care to think about and really he's the one that should feel shameful. In that moment, I didn't even know about his girlfriend, Lulu.

  The rest of the day passes by with Cory giving me instructions and me speaking only when he directly asks me a question. At the end of the workday I’m practically running to the elevator to get away from him. Sean is leaving at the same time as me so he walks me to my car.

  "How did your day go?"

  "It was fine...lots of filing and highlighting...nothing I haven't done for my dad hundreds of times." He laughs. "I'm sure there will be more challenging work coming your way soon."

  "I can hope anyway," I say with a smile.

  "I'll tell you what," he says leaning in close to me, “if things don't improve
for you I can find some work that will be much more fun for you."

  Is this guy hitting on me?

  And with those parting words he walks away. And he looks just as hot from the back view.

  By the time I negotiate my way through downtown Boston traffic and finally make it home, Shelby has called me and let me know she's going to a frat party and then back to her place. We won't see her until tomorrow, at some point. Marcus also texted that he is already home and waiting for me. Of course he is. He's the most thoughtful guy I've ever been around.

  My heels come off with a groan and a sigh of relief as soon as I'm through the door. As I walk towards the kitchen, Marcus meets me with a glass of white wine and a kiss on the cheek.

  "Have I ever told you that you're the best friend I could ever ask for?" I say, happily taking the wine from his hand.

  "You will spoil me for any other boyfriend."

  "It's all part of my master plan to keep you to myself forever. One of these days you’ll come to your senses and realize that we’re made for each other Hails." He says this with a wink, but I know that deep down he hopes this will happen. I know our relationship is weird and we cross lines we shouldn't by sleeping together on a regular basis, but he's hot and willing and I care for him. Our arrangement seems to be beneficial for both of us.

  We sit on the sofa facing one another and he pulls my feet into his lap and begins to rub my arches. My head falls back on the arm of the couch with a moan.

  "I love your hands."

  "My hands love every inch of you." He says with a glint in his eye and I know what that means. He's feeling frisky.

  "Hold up there a minute buddy. Don't go getting any ideas of stopping my foot massage. I need to tell you about my day and then I may or may not let you have your wicked way with me."

  "Okay, but make it quick, because I'm already hard as a rock from looking at your sexy ass in this dress."

  "Pfft, it doesn't take much for you to get excited. Anyway, I'm supposed to be telling you about my first day at the firm. Guess who works for my dad?"