The Wedding Plan

Chapter 17

 Everyone had already left for work, including Miss Clark, and yet Eleanor was still at her desk as the moon shined outside and as the silence echoed through the empty corridors of the building.

Even though time flew by as they were away from the office; enjoying each other's company; her coffee break with Sebastian was much longer than it should have been. So, now there was still work to be done, and she refused to leave it unattended.

Eleanor usually finished her assignments a lot faster, but she wasn't as focused, and her distraction had a name. Sebastian. The handsome wall. Spending time with him felt so good, but her curiosity was getting the best of her. The interest in him was growing each day. We should probably keep some distance. That thought played on repeat inside her head as she stared at the spreadsheets on the computer screen, with tired eyes, and tried to make sense of the numbers that didn't seem to end.

Almost every day, Sebastian left his office late, after everyone had already left and the lights were out. Work needed to be done and there was no one waiting for him at home, so there was no point in going there. Besides, he was more focused in his office, where there were no distractions.

Since he was always the last one to leave, he could not have been more surprised to see that all the lights were still on and that Eleanor was at her desk, glued to the screen in front of her.

'Still here?'

Eleanor raised her eyes and saw Sebastian standing in front of her.

'Are you trying to beat my record?'

'I didn't realize it was this late, or that we were keeping score. What's your record?'

'Falling asleep on my desk and waking up with Larissa shouting at me the next morning. Trust me, you do not want to have that woman yelling anywhere near you. Her voice just gets right to your eardrum and echoes inside your head for a while.'

She chuckled as she pictured Miss Clarke yelling at him.

'Then I definitely will not be breaking that record.'

'I can see that neither of us listened to our own words from this afternoon,' he said with a sad smile. 'We are hypocrites, aren't we?'

'I guess we are.'

She had a soft expression and a small smile on her lips.

'You should wrap up things for today and go home.'

'I'm almost done. Might as well finish this today.'

'Then, let me give you a ride home.'

'You don't have to do that.'

'Yes, I do. It's really late. And I don't think it's safe for you to go alone at this hour. My conscience will be nagging me all night if I let you go alone.'

'So, you have a conscience after all.'

'Shut up. I'm not always a jerk,' he said with a grin. 'Come on, let's go. Interns don't get paid extra hours, anyway. So, I don't even know what you are still doing here.'

'Thank you. But I don't think that it is a good idea.'

'And why is that?'

As Eleanor got up, she started to pack her things without looking at him.

'Eleanor?'

'For no particular reason. You just don't need to that for me.'

'You are lying.'

'Do you know me that well already? Do you know me enough to know when I'm lying?' she asked with sarcasm.

'No. I don't. But you are a terrible liar.'

She sighed as she put her jacket on.

'I had a really odd conversation with Miss Clark. And her words have been on my mind. I wasn't going to bring it up but, but I don't seem to be able to forget it.'

'What did Larissa tell you?' he asked, worried about what his friend might have said.

'Not to fall for you.'

'You're joking, right?'

He was feeling anxious about the route this conversation was heading towards.

'No. I'm not. I wasn't going to say anything to you about it, but I got curious about why she would warn me about it. Why would she think I would fall for you?'

She asked such a question, not because she didn't know the answer, but because she didn't want to believe in the possibility of it being true. Even though deep down she knew that every second she spent beside him was making it more real, bringing them closer.

'Ouch. I'm I that despicable?' he asked, not knowing why that had hurt him as much as it did.

Somehow, the woman sensed the pain in his voice and quickly replied. 'Is not that. You know I don't think that. But how would someone think they are in love with someone they just met? Even in our situation, I understand that someone could get confused by pretending, but still.'

'Love at first sight,' he said, feeling even more unsettled.