BXBX NOVEL Chapter 71 - Acting Up
"Did you eventually meet the CEO today?" Tom asked, turning to spare her a glance, but her face was turned away from him, so he couldn't see it.
She had been so eager to talk to him about what she thought of the CEO earlier, but right now she didn't see any reason to do that, "Yes, I did."
"And what do you think about him now that you have met him?" Tom asked curiously.
"I don't think anything," Lucy said dourly.
"Nothing at all?" Tom asked, sounding slightly surprised.
"Yeah."
"Are you okay?" Tom asked in a concerned tone, wondering why it seemed like he was forcing herself to talk to him. Did he do something wrong? Was she angry with him? Could it possibly be because he had failed to show up for lunch as they agreed?
"Shouldn't I be okay?" Lucy asked, turning to look at him with a slightly raised brow.
Even she was wondering what was wrong with her. She had been in a good mood when she left her office some minutes ago, but her mood seemed to have suddenly plummeted once she got into the car with Tom.
"Are you sure? Did someone piss you off? Did the CEO or Mr. Harry say something that made you unhappy?" Tom asked again.
"I said I'm FINE!" Lucy snapped at him irritably. And then took in a deep breath when she realized she had just overreacted, "I'm fine," Lucy repeated more calmly, and Tom gave her a nod even though he didn't exactly believe her.
They both remained quiet during the rest of the drive home and once he drove into the driveway and parked the car Lucy turned to look at him, "I heard you had lunch with a lady... Was it the lady?"
Anita? How was he supposed to answer that question? He reasoned it would be best to say Anita was the one since it was highly unlikely that Lucy had seen Anita. Using Anita as his love interest would better serve his purpose than using a random stranger, since neither he nor Anita was interested in each other, and Anita didn't work directly in the company.
"Yes," Tom said, and Lucy gave him a nod before getting out of the car.
Lucy disappeared into her apartment before Tom get out of the car. Once she got inside she walked straight to her bedroom, took a hairband, and twisted her hair into a ponytail before walking into the bathroom to wash her hands so she could take off her contact lens.
Why was she so upset? Lucy asked herself as she took off her clothes. Once she had stripped down to her undies, she lay on her bed with the pillow under her head and decided to take a walk through everything that had happened in the office to find out what was upsetting her. By the time she was done, she had a big frown of disapproval on her face.
'How can I be upset because he failed to show up for lunch, but chose to have lunch with his love interest instead?' She asked herself in disbelief. This wasn't logical. It didn't even make any sense. She had no right to be upset about something like that, especially not when she had wanted to call off the lunch in the first place. It was just her stupid ego that was bruised.
Anita was not only very beautiful but she had also sounded intelligent, so she could understand why someone like Tom would have a thing for her. Since Anita was the person Tom wanted, she was going to try her best to help him get her.
She sat upright when she heard her doorbell. Wondering what he wanted this time, she quickly pulled out a short Mickey mouse dress and wore it over her head before taking her glasses from the dressing table. She checked her reflection in the mirror before walking out of the room.
"Yes?" She asked when she opened the door and saw Tom standing there holding the wineglass and plate he had taken with him the previous evening. He was still dressed as he had been dressed earlier. What? Did he want to continue from where he stopped the previous evening?
"Here, I came to return these," Tom said handing them to her while looking at her and trying to guess what was wrong with her.
"Thank you," Lucy said as she reached out to take the glass and plate from him, but Tom pulled his hands back.
"Why does it look like you don't want me inside your house? Am I not welcome?" Tom asked, looking at her curiously, wondering why she was blocking the entrance. Although he had no intention of going into her house since he was on his way to his real home, he didn't like that she was acting this way, and he needed to clear it up before leaving.
She gave him a stiff smile, "What do you mean by that? Of course, you're always welcome, I'm just very busy right now. So I can't do company right now," Lucy explained without meeting his gaze.
The last thing she wanted was to let him inside her house after the stunt he had pulled the previous evening. He definitely didn't think he could flirt with her in the evening, have lunch with his love interest during the day, and then return to flirt again at night, or did he?
"Are you mad at me over something?" Tom asked, making her blink at him before she looked away.
"Mad? Why should I be mad at you? I'm just very busy at the moment," Lucy lied.
"With what?" Tom asked, raising a brow.
"Work. The CEO gave me an assignment I need to finish before tomorrow, so I'm going to spend the evening doing it," Lucy lied, confirming Tom's suspicion that she was probably angry with him since he knew Harry hadn't given her any assignment.
What other CEO was she referring to? If indeed she was upset, what was she so angry about to make her lie just to avoid having him in her apartment? Was it because he had lunch with someone else and not her? It couldn't be that either, since he knew she didn't care about him. Or maybe she wasn't angry with him? Perhaps she was just in need of space? If that was the case why couldn't she just say that?
"Alright then. I was on my way out but decided to return these first. I will be back in the morning," Tom said as he let her have the plate and glass.
Hearing that he won't be spending the night in his apartment, Lucy felt something uncomfortable in her chest, and the pit of her belly, "Where are you going to?" She asked reluctantly after taking the glass and plate from him. Even though he made her uncomfortable, he was the only 'friend' she had in the city for the time being, and she felt safe knowing he was next door.
"Work. I have to spend the night doing some plumbing and fixing some other stuff," Tom said before turning around to leave.
"Wait," Lucy called out, making Tom stop. A minute ago she had seemed like she couldn't wait for him to leave, and now that he was leaving she was acting like she didn't want him to leave. What was going on?
Tom turned around to give her a questioning look, but she walked inside the house and came out a moment later with her phone, "Can... Can I have your number?" She asked, making the corner of his lips tug.
"Are you asking for my number now, after refusing to give me yours the other day?" He asked with a flirty smile, cocking his head to one side as he looked at her.
"We weren't friends then. Friends should have each other's number, that way you can easily reach me when you're unavailable."
"Are you sure it's not because you're already missing me?" Tom asked with a teasing smile.
"Why would I miss you? I just thought maybe if you had my number today you would have called to tell me you can't have lunch with me, instead of sending someone," Lucy said, making Tom's brow arch.
"So that was the reason you were upset?" Tom asked, narrowing his eyes at her as he returned to stand in front of her.
"I was not upset," Lucy denied.
"Yes, you were. I know for a fact that you were upset. I was just going to leave quietly earlier, but now I want you to tell me what bee got into your bonnet," Tom said as he leaned forward so their eyes would be on the same level.
"Forget about the phone number if you're going to act this way. You can leave," Lucy said, turning around to get inside the house but Tom placed his arm around her waist and pulled her back. She gasped in surprise at the sudden pull and placed her left hand on his chest to keep her balance, while she held on to her phone with her right hand.
"What do you think you are doing?" She asked breathlessly as color rose on her face, "Let me go," she said, trying to wriggle free, but he didn't budge.
"I will release you once you tell me why you're acting up and..." His words trailed off and his lips curved in a smile when something else occurred to him. Was it possible that she was stopping him from entering her house because of what he told her the previous evening?
Tom raised his left hand to her face and placed a finger under her chin so she would meet his gaze, "Why were you upset?"
Lucy gulped nervously at the closeness. With every breath she drew, she inhaled his scent, and it made her want to lean closer into him, "I wasn't upset," she said as she turned her face away from him.
"Okay. Why don't you want me inside your house?" Tom asked instead.
"I never said I didn't want you inside my house," Lucy pointed out defensively as she tried to free herself from him.
"Is that right? Let's go inside then," Tom said with a suggestive smile as he let go of her waist.
"I thought you were going somewhere?" Lucy asked, nervously.
"I should spend some time with you before I leave," Tom said, jerking his head towards the door for her to get in.
Reasoning that the sooner she let him into the house, the sooner he would leave, Lucy walked inside and held out the door for him to go in.
Tom took a step forward, and stopped in front of her, "Thanks. I just wanted to be sure we were on the same page. I will leave now," Tom said with a wink.
Before she could guess what he snatched her phone from her and input his number. He dialed his line with it, and once his phone rang out he hung up and returned her phone to her, "That's it, save my number."
While Lucy was trying to save his number, he leaned forward and brushed his lips on her cheek before stepping back, "Don't forget to think about all I told you yesterday, Lu.. Have a lovely evening," he said with a wave before he walking away, leaving a red-faced Lucy staring after him in surprise.