Care to Command

17 Ice Cream

Chapter 17

***

"Aren't you going to have lunch?" Lucas asks, stopped at my office door. He's in a sinfully black t-shirt today with matching slim jeans that outline his long legs and narrow hips with invitation.

The fuck did you just say?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

"Um." I blush and violently type a nonexistent email. "My lunch takes twenty to twenty-five minutes, including a bathroom break."

"Uh, why?" His dark eyebrows knit together like I'm speaking a foreign language.

"Uh, because." I roll my eyes. "Why waste time on mandatory tasks when they can be done efficiently?"

Lucas stares for what feels like forever, and the longer it lasts, the stupider it makes me feel.

"What?" I snap.

"Were you serious? I was waiting for you to reboot and correct yourself." He smirks when I glare at him and steps inside to take a seat across from me. "Have I mentioned..." He drawls, bringing the straw of his iced coffee to his lips. "That you're really weird?"

"Have I mentioned that your opinion is irrelevant?" I retort. A dramatic gasp leaves me as the idiot tries to place his cup on my beautiful wooden table. I throw my arms over it protectively. "Are you insane? We have coasters, you savage."

I pull out a marble coaster from one of the drawers and slide it across to him. Lucas gives me a deadpan look, but sets the cup down.

Before he opens his mouth to make another useless remark, I pull out a sheet of paper I printed this morning and hand it to him.

"What's this?" He asks, taking to read it.

"It's a contract." I say proudly.

"Did you seriously make a friendship contract?"

"Obviously." I get up to shut the door from potential listeners. "You didn't think I'd let you near me without covering my bases, did you?"

"'To whom it may concern'- who the fuck are you writing this letter to?!" He scowls, holding the paper like it offends him.

"The judge, who else." I state, crossing my arms. "If things go wrong, this contract will protect us both from retaliating at work."

"This is bullshit." Lucas drops it on my desk and gets up to leave.

"Wait." I call after him. "Lucas, hold on." I quickly put my hand on the door just as he wraps his fingers around the handle. "Jesus, why did you get so pissed about that?"

"If I need to explain it to you, then forget it." He snaps, not moving.

I scoff and put my hand on his shoulder, turning him to face me. The intensity in his chestnut eyes stun me for a moment, and I find myself with parted lips, scrambling for words.

"I-I'm just trying to say... that-"

"That what?" He clips with rough impatience. "I showed you something personal. Private. And you drew a contract, Layla? What part of I'm trying to help do you not understand?"