The Advances of One, The Love of Another {Elaine Markinson / Reader}

02

Sunday morning, the sun streams through the windows, illuminating the kitchen as I cook. The heat pump can be heard, buzzing softly, from the opposite side of the room. The aroma of the coffee I've not long brewed dominates the kitchen. I hum along to some Taylor Swift as I reach for a mug. The steam from the coffee burns my skin slightly as I fill the mug. I take in a large mouthful of the drink before attending to my eggs. When they're just about done, I put two oversized pieces of bread in the toaster.

The minutes leading up to midday tick by relatively quickly. As soon as my wrist watch hits eleven-thirty, I grab my handbag and head down to my car. Despite the busyness of the streets, I somehow manage to park several cars down from Richard. I enter the small restaurant Richard said they'd be in and scan the room. My eyes stop on him. He looks up, his eyes meeting mine. I wander over to him.

"Hey." I say as I take a seat. "Hey. How was finding a park? It was mental out there fifteen minutes ago." he tells. I shrug slightly. "Wasn't too bad." He nods, looking back to the entrance. A crowd of men wander in. He glances down at his watch. "Elaine shouldn't be long." he tells. I don't reply. Suddenly a man appears at our table. "Hey guys, I've got a few menus. Will anyone else be joining you two?" he questions. I look at him, smiling softly. "Yes, one more." Richard answers. The man nods, placing down three menus. "Here we are. I'll bring over a bottle of water in a moment." Richard nods. "Thank you." I respond, still smiling.

As the waiter approaches with the water, Richard looks back to the restaurant entrance. "Here she is." he tells. I thank the waiter once again then look in the direction of his gaze. My eyes stop on a blonde, naturally taller than myself, wearing heels that guarantee her the ability to tower over me. She removes her sunglasses and places them in her handbag. Richard and I stand at once, him to pull out her chair and me to greet her.

"You must be Y/n." she says once she reaches the table. She has to be a solid six inches taller than I with the heels. I nod, smiling softly. "I am, and you must be Elaine, or do you prefer Miss Markinson?" I respond. Her lips pull into a small smile. "Elaine is perfectly fine." She offers her hand which I gladly take. Her skin is soft but cold and her rings add to the chill. We pull away in sync and she walks around to Richard. Her smile fades. "Richard." she says. Her and I sit at the same time. "Hello, Elaine." Richard responds, sitting after us.

After about ten minutes, the same waiter as before comes over for our drink order, then once we have our drinks, he takes our food orders. "Well, Y/n, how long have you been a corporate lawyer?" Elaine questions. I take a quick moment to count in my head. "Five years." She nods. "Good. That's more than enough time to gather more than decent experience and skill." she tells. I nod. "She's amazing at her job." Richard chips in. Elaine looks at him. "I don't doubt that, but I'd love to hear it from her." Richard leans back in his chair as Elaine looks back to me. "Would you say you're good at your job, Y/n?" she questions. I nod. "I would, yes." Her lips, once again, pull into a small smile. "Good to hear."

We chat right through our meals, continuing once the three of us have finished. Elaine glances at her watch. "Do either of you have anything you'd like to talk about before I head off?" she questions. I shake my head as does Richard. "Alright, I'm going to go then." she tells as she stands. "I'm going to follow you out." I say. Her soft smile appears on her face again. I stand. Richard watches the both of us. "I'll see you tomorrow, Richard." I say, following a few feet behind Elaine. She stops outside of the restaurant and turns to me. "It was lovely meeting you, Y/n." she says, still smiling. "As it was meeting you." I reply. She glances across the street. "Like I said, I'm going to head off. I'll see you tomorrow." she tells. I nod with a smile. "See you tomorrow."

That evening as I'm readying for bed, my mind flicks over a mental image of Elaine's appearance. Tall, blonde, and gorgeous is the quick way to describe it. Her eyes most definitely have the ability to pierce through one like a spear. Her mouth has a voice that could send pain coursing through one and a tongue that could soothe that pain almost instantly. A jawline that could slice the skin of one's finger with ease just by tracing it lightly.