"You did great today," Alyssa said over her vegan burrito. It was lunchtime, and she, Phillipa, and Cameron had all went to the Mexican place that had opened up across the street from Ansen. Of course, being a new place there was a long wait, but Cameron actually ended up knowing the owner—an old classmate from Haven University that she'd been roommates with—and was able to get a table quickly.
"Thanks," Cameron said. She took a sip of water. After the meeting had ended, both Selene and Devika had pulled Cameron aside and said that she'd done great. She'd noticed that Quinn had a miffed look on her face as she left the room, but Cameron didn't really care. "It was nerve-wracking. I never had to do this, even at my old job."
"Well," Phillipa said, adding Tabasco sauce to their taco salad, "you did great and we're proud of you."
"I don't know what Quinn was thinking," Alyssa chimed in, "trying to throw you to the wolves like that. Does she not know what a marketing assistant does? Geez."
"She's never liked me," Cameron said. "Since I was hired. But I don't care to know why and I would appreciate if you didn't ask her about it."
"Good call," Phillipa said. "Let sleeping dogs lie. If she continues to be like this, go to Selene, Devika, or HR to have this cleared up."
"And document," Alyssa chimed in. "If she sends you nasty messages, make snide comments, ignore your time-sensitive emails, things like that. If you end up having to go to HR, at least have your ducks in a row."
Phillipa nodded in agreement and the trio continued to eat. It was nice to eat with coworkers that were nice, friendly even. Since Bolt and Akilah were in Atlanta, Cameron didn't really have anyone to hang out with. After they finished, they headed back to the office.
Selene was in Devika's office, huddled over the woman's desk. Gabe hadn't yet come back from lunch—he usually took his later so that at least one person would be at the office—so while Phillipa went to talk to Quinn about something, Cameron sat at her cubicle and started to do her work. That lunch with Phillipa and Alyssa made her feel much better about her day; she felt like she could do anything by this point.
By the time closing time arrived, Cameron had sent updates to all members of the team, organized the office calendar, spoken to various members of the team around the company, and started getting notes from B Team about the new palettes. Quinn, of course, was short with her answers and didn't like being disturbed when she was in the process of creating the updated website, so Cameron didn't get much from her.
Phillipa checked on her throughout the day, and Cameron was grateful for it. Gabe was a good listener, but Phillipa was great at giving advice and getting the ball rolling. They showed Cameron tips on writing better copy and catering toward analytics, and Cameron was thankful for the distraction.
After her day ended, she made her way to the gym as usual, hoping that she wouldn't see Elliot there, or at the very least hope that he wouldn't approach her. The last conversation they had ended in Cameron storming off, and since then the man had made no move to apologize. She saw him around the joined offices, delegating tasks and holding his signature cup of coffee, but she made no move to greet him.
"You look like you could use a pick-me-up."
Cameron's eyes rolled so far into her head she thought they'd disappear. Alex stood at the entrance of the gym, wearing clothes that clearly weren't meant for the gym. Of course, he was probably going to change once he got inside—if he got inside.
"What do you want?" Cameron asked, continuing to walk past him. He sidled up to her and joined her as she walked into the gym.
"Just to talk," Alex said, "without your boyfriend around."
He's not my boyfriend was just on the tip of her tongue, but she refused to say it. Neither she nor Elliot said that they were dating; Alex had made that assumption based on the ambiguous answer Elliot had given before. Her feelings must've shown on her face because Alex chuckled.
"Trouble in paradise?"
"Leave me alone," Cameron said. "Please."
"I just wanted to talk," Alex repeated. "Two minutes. Give me that."
Sighing, Cameron turned toward him. He had a hopeful look on his face, but she wasn't buying it. Alex could pull that expression all he wanted, but she'd seen him around the gym with that same innocent expression, hoping to get a girl into his bed just so he could ghost them the next day. Cameron really didn't feel like dealing with this. Her day had already been rough, and all she wanted to do was work out, go home, and eat her weight in chocolate ice cream.
"Thirty seconds starting now." She adjusted her gym bag and started walking toward the locker rooms.
Alex didn't wait and hurried to catch up. "So there's this new club that opened downtown—it's named Elixir. Real exclusive, hard to get into. Lines circling around the block. Not anyone can get in, but I found a way. I know you have a boyfriend, but if you're in need of a good time, I'm here."
"Don't waste your breath," came Elliot's voice from behind them. Cameron jumped, having not heard his footsteps. He looked down at Cameron; she looked up at him. From the corner of her eye, she noticed Alex's scowl.
"He's right," Cameron conceded, turning to look back at Alex. "I'm not interested. Good try, though."
Alex rolled his eyes, mumbling. Louder, he said, "Well, if you ever need to get away from this guy, here's my number." He pulled a card out from his pocket and stuck it into a slot in Cameron's gym bag. "Call me when you're ready." With a wink at Cameron, he turned and walked away. He was going back to the entrance and Cameron sighed. Did the man show up at the gym just to talk to her? She pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a stress headache coming on.
"He's very annoying," Elliot said.
"And you aren't?" Cameron snapped, looking back at him. "You're hot and cold. You literally accused me of spying on you yesterday and now you're acting like...this. You don't have to defend me against that guy."
"I..." Elliot shifted from side to side. His neck was flushed a deep red, but Cameron could tell that he wasn't angry.
"I'm doing what you asked and staying away," Cameron said, interrupting him. She didn't want to hear what he had to say. "I've already had a rough day today and you, combined with Alex and his bullshit, just made it worse."
"I'm sorry," Elliot said. Cameron reared back, not expecting the apology. "Truly. I've been having a rough time lately, and you always seem to catch me when I'm not in the best mood. I've taken it out on you, and I apologize for that."
Cameron blinked, her mind blank. Elliot, though confident when making his apology, seemed to shrink into himself the longer she was silent.
"Oh," she finally said. "Um. Okay. I wasn't expecting that. Um, apology accepted." She turned toward the women's locker room. "I should..."
"Oh," Elliot said. "Yes. Of course." He paused. "Could I walk you back to your car tonight?"
"Maybe not," Cameron said. After that apology, it was hard to formulate a coherent sentence. She could barely think. "I mean, I accepted your apology, but I'm not that comfortable around you, and I'm not staying for too long."
Elliot nodded. "I get that." He looked back at the gym equipment, and Cameron realized that he was already in his gym clothes and had already been working out, from the slight wetness on his shirt. He must've seen her and Alex when they were walking in. The light sheen of sweat made him look even more attractive, and she hated herself for noticing. He looked back at her. "So I guess I'll see you at work tomorrow?"
Cameron nodded. "Yeah. See you tomorrow."
Edited 6/5/2022
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The Business of Beauty
RomanceWorking as a marketing assistant at beauty and makeup giant Ansen Creative Cosmetics (ACC) was not what twenty-six year old Cameron King wanted. But La Belle, Ansen's rival, wasn't hiring and ACC was the next best thing. So what can she do but accep...