“Oh, right… uh—”
“Close the door and come around here.”
He takes the sandwich with him to close the door. I laugh but do so quietly so he can’t see me. Then he comes around the desk.
“Kneel.”
He does, looking up at me with a calmness in his eyes.
“Open it.”
Cassius unwraps the sandwich, and I am grateful to see it isn’t full of grease. I take it from him, take a bite,then hand it back. The bag is stuffed with napkins, so I used those to wipe my hands. He watches me carefully as I turn back to my computer and keep working.
I respond to emails then and work on the letter that I’m putting out to our board members and the investors about the issue at hand. I keep going back and forth because I’m stuck on what to say and don’t want to come across as an asshole. Of course, I won’t send this before there are more eyes on it, but I want this to come from me. Which is why I am the one doing it.
I turn back to Cassius, take the food and another bite, then hand it back. Wipe my hands. Do more work.
We do this until the food is gone, and he stays in his spot, kneeling while I type on the computer. Once the draft of the letter is done, I lean back and reach for him, running my hand through his hair as I read it over. I fix a few things one-handed, not wanting to stop feeling the softness of his hair. I swear it’s the only thing that grounds me.
Despite needing to focus on work and wanting to get the hell out of here, my mind drifts to last night. To the sound of Cassius coming on the phone, begging me to let him, and him actually listening. The fact I called him my slave during hours he shouldn’t be referred to as such…
Sometimes it feels like a word you say in the heat of the moment. It helps him get off. There’s something about it that he likes, and that makes me want to do it even more. Still, it’sanother rule broken. I’m not sure what the point is in having any with him since we don’t follow a single one.
But they need to be there because without rules there is chaos.
After fixing typos and rearranging sentences, I’m satisfied with the letter. I email it to Oliver to look over and get to my feet.
“Up.”
I lead him out of my office and down the hall to the cafeteria where I pull a bottle of iced tea from the fridge and hand it to him. I turn to face him, planting my hands on the counter top behind me.
“What do you think about being here?”
He twists the cap off and takes a sip.
“It’s… interesting.”
“How?”
“Everything about it is foreign to me.”
“Everythingseems like a stretch.”
His eyes narrow. “I don’t think you grasp how different our lives really are, Harmon.” A small smile crosses his lips, and he takes a step closer.
“Oh, there you are,” Oliver blurts as he walks into the room.
Cassius immediately steps away, his cheeks turning pink.
“Oliver,” I greet coolly.
“I looked over the letter, made a few adjustments, and sent it back to you.”
“And telling me this couldn’t wait fiveminutes?”
“I know how important it is to you to get the letter out on time, sir.” His eyes flick to Cassius before coming back to me. “I wanted to make sure you knew that I was finished with it.”
I nod. “Thank you for that. You may go home.”