18. Escaping For Lunch

I sit at my assigned desk, staring ahead at the elevator. It teases me, showing me a way out, even if it's just an illusion. There's no getting out of this one now. I'm stuck.

The bitch assistant showed me the basics and it was easy enough. Answer emails, schedule meetings, book events and do whatever Leon asks. Looks like I've literally and figuratively become his bitch now. I wonder what's to happen next? He tells me I have to marry him? I chuckle quietly under my breath, my situation may be a little odd but I don't think it would get to that point. This is just a temporary transaction. Three months isn't that long.

I can't wait to tell Rory all the details tomorrow when she's back. She'll go ballistic, maybe we can put our minds together and work our way out of this. She's always got good ideas in that brilliant mind of hers. I pull my phone out to text her and arrange lunch, but the phone beside my desk interrupts me. It's only connected to the other phones within the building, so I can only assume it's my asshole of a boss.

"Good morning, this is Phoebe speaking." I say hesitantly into the phone. Even though I was given the rundown of what to do, I'm still nervous, and feel like everything I'm doing is wrong.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so happy to hear it's you, Phoebe. You've survived the first few hours, congrats!" Cassidy says cheerfully through the phone. I can't lie when I say I'm relieved it's not Leon pestering me to get off my phone and get back to work. I wouldn't be surprised if he's got cameras to watch me and make sure I'm not doing anything that displeases him. Even if I think my whole existence does the job. Which confuses me even more as to why he's making me pretend to be his girlfriend.

"Yes, I've made it longer than expected, unfortunately." I joke, though I'm not really joking.

"Don't be silly, I can tell you'll have a long time ahead of you at the company." I sure hope not.

"Thanks," I say. "Was there a message you wanted me to pass along to Mr. Camdon?"

"Oh, no no, I was calling to ask if you wanted to still get lunch if you haven't yet?" Oh yeah, I forgot about that. I glance at the time and see it's nearing one o'clock. Damn, I didn't even realise I'd been here that long. Time flies I guess.

"Yeah, I'd love to. Let me just check with Mr. Camdon that I'm all good to go to lunch."

"No worries, I'll be in the kitchen in five. Meet me there when you can!" I hang up and tap my finger against my desk. Great, this means I actually have to talk to him. Okay, you can do this Phoebe. It's not that hard, he's just your boss. He's legally obliged to give you a break. But I guess he doesn't really care whether things are legal or not.

Dialing his office number into the work phone, I wait patiently as it rings. Though I don't have to wait long as his smooth voice answers through the speaker. "Yes?"

Okay, how do I approach this? Do I tell him I'm going on lunch, or do I ask? If I ask, he'll probably try to be a smart ass and take away the opportunity saying that I don't need lunch. So it's probably better to just tell him, and maybe I'll sweeten it up a bit. "I'm going to lunch now, is there anything that you would like me to get you while I'm out?" There, how could he possibly say no to that?

"No."

"Okay perfect, I'll be back in an hour." I say quickly, hoping he's saying no to me getting him something.

"No you—" I put the phone down before he can say anything else. I can just pretend I thought the conversation was over. I quickly stand and gather my things, rushing over to the elevator and pressing the button numerous times as if it will make it come any faster. Thankfully it doesn't take long for it to arrive and I jump inside, pressing level ten and the button to close the doors.

When I look up, I see Leon storm out of his office and look directly at me before marching in my direction. I press the button even faster and it begins to close. I catch a glimpse of his expression just before the doors close, and almost shit myself. Terrifying, the man is absolutely terrifying. I don't know how I'm going to explain and lie my way out of this one, especially when I blatantly ran away from him.

I breathe a sigh of relief nonetheless. At least I can go on break peacefully now.

Once I reach the kitchen, I spot Cassidy sitting on a stool at an island. She quickly notices me and jumps up. "Amazing, Mr. Camdon let you go alright?" She asks.

"Yeah, he was totally cool." Not.

"Damn, that's surprising—not that he isn't normally—I need to shut up. Anyway, I thought it would be good to have lunch here since it's free and pretty good. The fridge is stacked with sandwiches and salads, and the cupboards are full of snacks."

I give a silent thanks to Cassidy. While I'm not broke yet, I'm certainly on my way until I get my first pay cheque, and so I need all the help I can get. I pick out a chicken and lettuce sandwich and we head over to one of the tables to eat.

"Are you studying at all?" I ask.

Cassidy nods her head while taking a bit of her caesar salad. "Yeah, I'm doing business at NYU.How about you?"

"Psychology at NYU."

"Oh, that's so cool, so you can like read my mind?" She laughs. I laugh along with her even though I don't find it that funny. It's a common stereotype of my degree. "Why'd do apply for Mr. Camdon's person assistant?"

"I just wanted a change of pace." I lie. I don't think it would be appropriate if I revealed the circumstances f my employment. Leon might possibly kill me.

"That's fair, I'm hoping to build my way up in the company. That's how a lot of people start, you know?"

We talk about uni, work and life. Cassidy has a second job at an art gallery because she love art. She also likes to paint and has an upcoming art show which she invited me to. I guessed it would be nice to get out and meet new people, so I said I would go next Saturday.

By the time it gets to the end of our break, I feel a little bit better about running away from Leon. If he hasn't come looking for me by now, then he clearly doesn't care enough that I ran off. And what's the worst he could possibly do? It seems he needs me more than I need him, so he wouldn't do anything that would jeopardise our arrangement.

"I better get going back to work." Cassidy says as she stands, gathering up our rubbish to put in the bin.

I nod my head in agreement and bid her goodbye. "See you later!" I walk through the halls till I get back to the elevator. By the time I've reached the top level, I feel a little more nervous than I did previously. I need to stop being so stupid and doing things that I know will get me into trouble.

The floor is completely silent and so I assume that Leon went out to his one-thirty lunch with his clients. Thank god for that, I don't want to deal with him right now.

But as soon as I sit down, I receive a call on the work phone. "Good afternoon, this is Phoebe speaking."

"Come to my office." His voice commands. "Right now."

I freeze and look around the corners of the room, trying to find cameras or something. There's no way he could've known I was back without having cameras.

"Okay." I squeak out.

Maybe I do regret my actions.

I open the doors to his office slowly, but slip inside quickly, not wanting to prolong this awful excercise. I look to his desk, but don't expect to find his standing at the window overlooking the cityscape. With his back to me, he looks just as intimidating as when he looks at me with those haunting eyes. I can see the vague muscle poking through his perfectly tailored suit, and my body itches with the need to retreat. I can't think clearly around this man, he makes me so angry and confused for no reason.

"I recall not allowing you to lunch." He says.

"My bad, I though you said it was alright. I'll make sure to listen more carefully next time." Lies.

He turns and I take in a sharp breath. "You aren't very good at lying." He states confidently. "I knew you didn't like to listen, but it's about time you learn that your actions have consequences." He says stepping towards me.

I take a step backwards. "I don't know what you mean, Mr. Camdon." I say with slight annoyance. I don't know what he's insinuation by 'consequences, but I'm not going to keep letting him bully me like this.

"You know perfectly well what I mean. From the very first moment I met you, you've been disobedient and reluctant to do anything I say. I don't like having to use force, but if it is necessary..." He takes confident strides towards me until I'mcornered against a wall. How did he get here so fast?

I like my lips and his gaze flicks down, staring. "This is really quite unprofessional. And did you really think a stranger would bend to your will? You have been an ass since the moment I met you. Why should I treat you with any respect."

He takes in a deep breath and pushes his cheek up against mine. "For this charade to work, you need to do as I say. And the more you fight, the longer you will have to play the part. So will you learn, or will you force my hand?" His breath tickles against my skin and skims my neck. He's so warm, I can smell his woodsy cologne intoxicating my senses.

"You can't expect to control everything I do. If I want to go to lunch, then what are you going to do about it?"

He pauses in contemplation before saying, "I'll bend you over my desk and teach that pert ass of yours a lesson."

My breath shudders and my skin heats. His body is so close to mine, that I swear I can feel something pressing up against me, and something about it feels... familiar?

Did he really just say that? "I'm sorry?"

"Do I need to teach you a lesson right now?" His thick brows raises, a warning. His hand moves, to rest on my waist.

This fucking man.

"How dare you." I scoff, pushing him away from me, but he hardly budges. "I cannot believe you, are you so desperate to find someone to sleep with? You are disgusting." I breathe the last part as he leans in closer, his face almost resting against mine as his hand falls lower.

"Don't be so flattered, Phoebe. I hardly need a fucking as much as you do." He says into my ear. "And besides, I would never go for a girl like you."

He pushes off of me, and moves togo back to his desk. "You're dismissed." I stare at his back with pure frustration and anger. "Oh, and, you'll be having lunch with me from now on."