by R. J. Dillon
As she sat back down, there was a knock, and then the door opened. Gavin walked in and immediately came to her side.
As he bent down to kiss her on the cheek, he said, “Good morning, beautiful. I was running late this morning, so I haven’t had a chance to get coffee yet. I’ll be right back.”
“No worries,” Faith smiled as he walked back out.
Carter was coming in as Gavin was heading toward the elevator. They barely spoke.
“Morning,” said Carter.
“Carter,” said Gavin, rushing past him, hardly responding.
Carter noticed that Faith’s door was open as he went to his office. He went in and put his stuff down, then turned right back around to go down the hall to talk to her.
He knocked and stood at the door.
As Faith looked up, he asked, “So what’s going on between you and Gavin?”
Faith frowned. “Good morning to you too, Carter.”
“You two have been spending a lot of time together lately. He always comes in here and closes the door. What’s up with that?” he continued, walking in a little bit. He stood with his hands in his pocket, looking at Faith like she was hiding something from him.
“Did we start dating and I didn’t know it?” she asked sarcastically.
“No,” he said. “I was just curious.”
“Oh, in that case, I would say it’s none of your business.” She continued to move files around on her desk. She had piles of work to go through before the trip. Since they were leaving on Friday morning, it was going to be a short week. She looked back up at him, with a question on her face, waiting for him to leave or say something else.
“Did you know that he told me to stay away from you? He said I would lose my job if I even tried to talk to you.”
“Now, why would he do that?” she asked, confused where Carter was going with his statement.
“Maybe he feels threatened. He wants you all to himself, and he’ll do anything to make that happen. To do that, I have to be out of the way,” he said.
Faith carefully said, “Carter, first, I have a hard time believing that Gavin is threatened by anyone. Second, I hate to say this, but I guess it’s time I did. I’m not interested in you. You’re a nice guy, and I’m sure that there’s someone out there for you, but it’s not going to be me. I’m sorry.”
“It would have been you, until he stepped in,” he said, disappointed. “That’s okay. You’re obviously no different than any of the other women he’s been with. They all want the same thing. That’s what he counts on.”
“I’ll tell you like I told Chandler. You don’t know what you’re talking about. Before you start making accusations like that, you’d better know the facts. Until then, I’d appreciate it if you’d leave,” she said, clinching her jaws.
“When you’re tired of playing his game, I’ll be here,” he smirked as he turned to leave.
Faith rolled her eyes, huffed and shook her head. She wondered where everyone was getting their nerve around here. It was starting to get a little old. She shrugged her shoulders and continued working. At least he knew how she felt about him. That was one less thing she’d have to deal with.
Five minutes after Carter left, Gavin walked in and closed the door.
“Here you go, beautiful,” he said handing her coffee to her. “Anything interesting happen while I was gone?” he asked as he sat down.
“Carter stopped by. He had some interesting things to say,” she said, as she continued to plink away at her computer.
Gavin’s face straightened. “What?”
“Yeah, did you tell him to stay away from me, or he’d lose his job?” she asked as she stopped typing to look at him.
“Yes I did,” Gavin said flatly.
“Gavin you can’t do that. We have to work together. You can’t tell someone they’ll lose their job for talking to someone else,” she said, shaking her head and leaning back in her chair.
“I didn’t tell him you couldn’t work together. I told him not to try to ask you out, or go behind my back to ask you out.”
“He mentioned that, too. I broke down and tried to nicely tell him that I wasn’t interested in him. He responded by saying that I was like all the other women you’ve been with,” she said shaking her head. “I told him he didn’t know what he was talking about and asked him to leave. What’s going on with you two? I don’t like being in the middle of it.”
“I’m trying to keep you out of the middle,” Gavin said with tight lips. “There are some things that I’m just not ready to explain, and you’re going to have to trust me. I’ll take care of this.” He started to breathe deeper as his blood pressure increased. His anger increased every second that he thought about how Carter had disrespected her.
Faith could tell that he was highly agitated. It reminded her of other times when she had asked what was wrong and he didn’t want to talk about it. She watched as Gavin squeezed the arms of the chair tightly, almost to the point of breaking them. He couldn’t talk to Carter like this. Whatever the outcome, it would not bode well for Gavin, or the company.
Gavin was standing to leave when Faith pushed herself up from her chair and rushed to the door. She closed it just in time.
“I need to take care of this, Faith. I’ll talk to you later,” he said, trying to walk around her.
Faith grabbed his arms and put them around her waist, pulling him in closer to her. She put her hands on his shoulders. Looking into his eyes she said, “I don’t think that right this minute is a good time for you to do that. I think you should calm down.”
Gavin removed his hands from her and tried to move hers from him. “Not right now. I need to go,” he said impatiently.
Faith shook her head and said, “Unh unh. Stay here for a little while.” She reached back around his neck, pulling him close to kiss his cheek. She continued by gently kissing his neck and his ears, trying to distract his attention. It worked. Gavin sighed as he slowly placed his arms around her, closing his eyes and hugging her.
“Okay,” he whispered. Gavin appreciated what she was trying to do, but nothing was going to calm the storm that was raging within to get his point across to Carter, who was clearly was not getting it.
Gavin felt his loins stirring. He responded to Faith by kissing her neck and cheek in return. As he got closer to her lips, he stopped, knowing that she wouldn’t let him kiss her. He kissed her chin instead, then her forehead. He cupped her neck with one of his hands, keeping the other arm around her back.
Gazing into her eyes he quietly said, “Thank you. You’re not like anyone that I’ve been with. You’re different,” he said, reassuring her. “I need to go.” He gave her another kiss on the forehead and broke from their embrace. He stepped around her and opened the door, leaving her standing there.
Faith took a deep breath in as she looked up at the ceiling. She returned to her desk, hoping that Gavin would control himself.
Gavin went straight to Carter’s office, walked in, and shut the door.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he exclaimed.
“Let me guess. Your little courtesan told you everything that I said,” Carter calmly said, not even stirred by Gavin’s rage.
“She’s not loose. You shouldn’t have disrespected her the way you did. It was uncalled for.”
“I was merely stating what I’ve observed. The two of you have seemed awfully close lately. I was curious,” he shrugged.
“What happens between us is none of your business,” scowled Gavin, frowning his eyes.
“So I’ve been told. Are you going to fire me now?” he sneered.
“The only reason you’re here is because of Adrian. If it had been up to me, you wouldn’t have even been hired.”
“You just can’t let it go, can you?” Carter asked, shaking his head. He walked around his desk and picked up a file. He looked back at Gavin and waited for an answer.
“Every day that I see you, I’m reminded. Why do yo
u think we send you out of the office on all of these trips? You think it’s because we actually need you in the field?” Gavin shook his head. “No. I can’t stand you here. The very sight of you makes me sick.”
“So you’ve never forgiven me. Nice,” smirked Carter.
“After this morning, with good reason. Faith has made it clear that she’s not interested in you. That should be enough for you to leave her alone. I won’t warn you again,” Gavin said. He walked toward the door to leave when Carter spoke again.
“How many times do I need to apologize?” he asked.
Gavin turned slightly, keeping his hand on the knob, “It doesn’t matter, Carter. I can never forgive you. I haven’t trusted you since, and never will.” He opened the door and left.
He went back to his office and closed the door. He pushed a button on his phone to reach Agnes.
“Yes, Gavin,” said Agnes.
“Please hold all of my calls today,” he said wearily.
Gavin went to sit on his couch, plopping down as if all of his strength had been taken from him. He leaned on the edge resting his head on his fingers. He was looking forward to the trip this Friday. There would be no distractions for him and Faith for two weeks.
His phone vibrated on his desk. Maybe it was Faith. He stood and went to check it.
As he picked it up, he just rolled his eyes and shook his head. It was Chandler. She had been trying to calling him since he told her it was over. He deleted the message and walked back over to the couch with his phone.
Not long after he sat down, his phone buzzed in his hand. This time it was Faith.
“Are you okay?” said the text.
He took a deep breath and slid his fingers over the letters to type.
“I’m fine. Just clearing my head. I’ll emerge soon.”
As he held the phone, he rubbed his eyes with his other hand.
His hand vibrated as the phone received another message.
“Alright. Call me later if you’d like to talk.”
Gavin sat his phone on the table and sat back again, trying to think of nothing.
Faith decided to call Lauren to see if she wanted to go to lunch.
“Hey, what are you doing for lunch today?” she asked.
“No plans. Why?” asked Lauren.
“I need to go shopping for the trip on Friday. Want to go with me?”
“Absolutely,” said Lauren. “I’ll see you in a few minutes.”
Faith got her purse and walked out of her office, going towards Lauren’s. She stopped and waited when she saw Lauren coming down the hall.
“Hi,” said Faith.
“Hey girl,” smiled Lauren.
They left, heading to the mall.
When they reached the stores, they took notice of several good-looking men. They giggled like teenagers, as they commented on their bodies and faces. One in particular held their attention.
“Now he’s lovely,” smiled Lauren. They walked into one of the stores.
“Aren’t you married?” asked Faith.
“Married, not dead!” teased Lauren. “Of course, he’s not as nice as Gavin, is he?”
Faith shook her head. “You promised, no Gavin.”
“Spill it. You know Gavin is hot,” she laughed.
“I’ll give you that. Yes, Gavin is pretty fine,” she grinned as she flipped through some blouses on a rack. “Are you done, Girl Scout? You’re breaking your code.”
“I know, I kind of went through the back door on this one, but I can’t help it. Gavin hasn’t been speaking with Chandler, which I find interesting. Yet, he has been spending a fair amount of time with you. Would you be the reason that Chandler has been kicked to the curb?” prodded Lauren.
“How do you know all of this? Do you run around gathering information?” Faith frowned, shaking her head. She picked up a shirt that looked like her style.
“I hear things. I pretty much know everything that’s going on in the office. Except what’s going on with you and Gavin. Come on, Faith. I’m dying to know. Has he approached you yet?” she asked as she shook Faith’s arm gently, pleading for answers.
“There’s nothing to tell, Lauren. We just finished all of our meetings, and now we’re getting ready for our trip. That’s why you and I are here.”
“You’re no fun. Okay, tell me this. If he approached you, would you say yes? I mean, with him being fine and all,” Lauren said, walking to a rack nearby.
“Lauren, nothing is going on,” said Faith. “What do you think of this one?” she asked holding up a shirt. She was trying to change the subject.
“I didn’t ask you that. I asked what you would do. You’re avoiding the question, aren’t you?”
“No, I’m reserving my right not to answer a question that shouldn’t be getting asked in the first place. Girl Scout,” Faith snickered.
“Okay, I’ll let it go. If I find something out, you have to promise to tell me everything. Deal?” said Lauren.
“No deal. What I do in my private time is my business. Gavin’s private life is his business. If I share something with you, it will have nothing to do with him. Okay?”
Lauren nodded. “Okay.”
They continued to shop around for another hour. Faith picked out a couple of shirts, a few pairs of capris, two skirts, and a dress. She also bought a pair of shoes.
When they got back, Faith gave Lauren a hug. “I won’t see you for two weeks. We’ll get together when I get back.”
Lauren nodded. “Be good,” she teased.
Faith shook her head and laughed. “You’re a mess. I’ll stop by on Thursday before I leave for the day.”
“Bye. Have a good afternoon.”
They went in separate directions to their offices.
Later that afternoon, Gavin finally opened his door. He preferred not to have anymore drama for the day. He returned to his desk, flipping through mounds of paper that had to be reviewed and signed. Just as he had started to come out of his funk, Chandler appeared at his door.
“We need to talk,” she said, walking in.
Gavin moved his eyes upward to look at her, and back down at his work. He didn’t need this right now.
“I’m really not in the mood, Chandler,” he said without emotion.
“I tried to call you all weekend. Why haven’t you returned any of my calls?” she asked, standing there with her hands on her hips.
“Because I told you it was over. I don’t want to have sex with you anymore. There’s no reason for me to call you back.” He took a deep breath and sat back without looking at her, anticipating an argument.
“It’s not over until I say it’s over,” she snapped.
Gavin tightened his jaws, looked up and said, “Chandler, my day has already been rough. I don’t need this from you right now. You were never in control of what we were doing and you aren’t now. We both had the right to walk away whenever we felt like it. I walked away. It’s over. I will not say it again.” He shook his head, amazed at his day. “As you can see,” he continued, motioning to his desk, “I’ve got a lot of work to get done before Friday. If you’re done, please let me be.”
She scrunched one side of her face, and said, “I’m done for now. If that little woman down the hall thinks that she’s going to steal you from me, she’s wrong. You’ll know the truth about her soon enough, and you’ll realize how much you need me. I’ll be waiting for you.”
Gavin just shook his head as she walked out. Faith said she didn’t want to be caught up in his mess when she started, and now she was smashed right in the middle of it. He had done everything he could to keep her out of it, but Carter and Chandler had proven to be quite persistent. It was hard to fathom how delusional they seemed to be.
He buried himself in his work, successfully diverting his mind from the earlier events of the day. Faith stopped by on her way out.
“You didn’t call. Are you okay?” she asked as she stood in the doorway.
Her voice was soothin
g to him. “It’s good to hear your voice,” he said, looking up.
She smiled, leaning her head against the door. “Rough day?” She straightened up and walked in.
“Unbelievably rough. First Carter, then Chandler. I’m afraid that I’ve done a hell of job making your life here worse without even trying. I’m sorry,” he sighed.
“I’m a big girl, Gavin. I’ve been around worse. Trust me, there’s nothing like the media. They can be really nasty,” she smiled.
“Can you close the door?” he asked.
“Sure,” she said, going to do as he asked.
As she walked back, he said, “Come here.”
She slowly went around his desk. He turned his chair around to face her as she approached. He reached up and pulled her close, burying his head in her stomach. Faith wrapped her arms around him, and leaned down to kiss his head. He looked up at her, pleading with his eyes for a kiss on the lips. She smiled warmly, wanting to comply, but couldn’t. She kissed his cheek as closely to his lips as she could. ‘This will have to do,’ he thought.
He stood up and stroked her cheek, looking into her eyes. He smiled and said, “I wish I could make love to you.” Because of the way she tried to care for him earlier, Gavin desired to be with Faith more than usual. No one had ever done that for him before. In fact, no one would have cared. Her actions were extremely sexy to him. He wanted her, more than he had before.
She smiled back. “You know we can’t do that. We’ve had this discussion.” She stroked his back gently.
“I know. Just saying what I want. That will never change. One day you’ll say yes,” he teased.
“Perhaps. Are you going to be okay?” she asked. She pulled away from him to hold his hands, standing back and looking up at him.
“I’m better now that you’re here.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” She walked back around his desk and sat down.