by Kat Long
By early afternoon, my stomach was rumbling, all traces of my lunch eaten, gone. With no more excuses, I grabbed the bank bag and headed out. The drive didn’t take long enough, and the First Bank got too close too fast. Parking, I took in the older brick building with two drive-through lanes. The work order said some idiot hit a support beam, revealing rotted wood. My team had to replace everything before the drive-through collapsed.
I walked around and zipped up my jacket in the icy wind. Someone did a piss-poor job taping off the area, and they were damn lucky the beam hadn’t already snapped. I checked over it all, making notes along the way, before heading inside.
The teller, Amy, greeted me with a smile, and I grunted, taking off my gloves to hand her the bag. Purposely, I didn’t glance at the corner office where I knew she was sitting. Hopefully, my posture was relaxed, but I was grinding my teeth so hard they might not make it to my next dentist appointment.
“How’s it going, Mads?”
“Good, thanks,” I said, tensing my whole body and hoping no one noticed.
I despised small talk, so I pulled out my phone and plugged in the estimations for the repairs while Amy handled the deposit.
“Ice Queen just opened her door. Watch it,” she said, motioning to the other teller. Pete, I think that’s his name, nodded and straightened his shoulders.
“I wish she would go back from where she came. No one likes her,” Pete muttered, visibly disgusted at the open door. Amy nodded in agreement, and they both peered past me like I was in on some big secret.
I slowly turned around, feeling the back of my neck tingle. She was at her desk, staring right at us as if she had overheard the conversation. The most curious expression was on her face. Almost sadness? But she couldn’t hear them, right?
“Ice Queen?” I said, drawing attention from them both and hating that I was getting sucked into the gossip. I had heard the name Ice Queen before. Maybe I could gossip a little, and these two could help me unravel her mystery. Here we were, the three of us clucking away like hens. Goddamnit, I might as well go for a manicure next.
“Oh, you know the rumors, Mads. She came in, all the employees were fired, and now she runs this place with an iron fist. I’m afraid to ask for a day off,” Amy said.
“Remember when she first hired us? Brought us those donuts, as if she didn’t just fire three of our friends?” Pete added, rolling his eyes and glancing back at the still, open door.
“Did y’all give her a chance?” I asked.
“We’re still here, aren’t we?” Pete said with a smile, passing back my receipt and bag. Well damn, that shut them down quick. So much for gossiping. At least I can forgo the manicure now.
“Right,” I waved. “Bye, guys.”
“Bye, Mads,” they echoed.
Confused, I turned and headed to the door. It didn’t seem like they had given her much of a chance. But what did I know? My reputation revolved around being an unyielding dick seventy-five percent of the time. She was still staring but had moved around her desk to stand in her doorway, right by the exit and in my line of sight.
“Hey, Lily. Sorry again about this morning. I hope you have a good day.”
“Are you stalking me now?”
“You wish, pretty lady.” Smirking with a wink, I used the opportunity to take another uninterrupted peruse of her body, taking in her luscious curves and white-blonde hair all over again.
A flash of amusement crossed her face, and I swear her lips turned up in the smallest smile, and her eyes sparkled before she schooled her features and the ice wall returned.
“Holy shit, Maddox, I just rolled my eyes so hard I checked out my own ass,” she said.
Comments like that made my hand twitch, thinking of how pink I could make her hot little ass. I swear this woman would have me wrapped completely around her pinky finger with just a few sweet whispered words. Still, with each sharp barb and thinly veiled insult, she slipped deeper beneath my usually thick skin. She’s not a conquest. She’s a reward, a reward that should be treasured, savored, worshipped.
“Wow. I sure am glad I have boobs because I’d hate for you to have to look me in the eye while I’m insulting you.”
I purposely took my eyes away from hers to stare directly at her tits, especially since she already thought I was. “You know, Lily, I feel like you wouldn’t even be able to be nice if a unicorn shoved a fairy wand up your ass while Judy Garland stood there singing Somewhere Over The Rainbow.”
“Then I suggest you move right along, you flying monkey.”
“You…Lily… Later.” I stuttered like an idiot but did as she asked, walking out the door without a glance back.
I let her words roll off of me until I got to my truck. Slamming the door, I ran my hands through my hair, and I threw the bank bag on the seat, looking back. I could see straight through Lily’s window. She was standing by her desk, staring out but not seeing anything. Her expression was unreadable, and her features were soft with worry. She reached up, and I watched her wipe underneath those baby-blue eyes and lower her head.
What was with that crying gesture? The Ice Queen, huh. I think the hard-ass act was a front, and I knew just a smidge about putting on a hard-ass front.
Screw this. There were two more sites to visit and at least a few hours of paperwork back at the office. Attempting to remove the stick from her ass would have to wait, and it wasn’t like she wanted anything to do with me. And, honestly, I didn’t think I could handle another rejection of my softer side. The grumpy, hard-ass vibe worked, and it guarded my heart. It was better that way. Turning left out of the bank, I hit a drive-through for some food, knowing I’ll be lucky to be home before dark.