Breathe
by;michimichiro
Chapter 27
Time flies, and I didn't expect that Sarah and I would become close to each other, and to my surprise, she and Oli are friends. Now we decided to visit her at Brielle Industry's headquarters. I couldn't stifle a small smirk as we approached—of course, Sarah would work in aggressively modern as this. I said to myself as I simply observed the surroundings.
"Home sweet home for your new favourite person, eh Eli?"
Oli's low timbre rumbled besides me, her bemused gaze trained on me rather than the imposing structure before us. I could practically hear the sly smile curving those full lips of hers.
After schooling my features, I turned to face my friend directly. "Whatever are you insinuating, Oli?"
"Oh, please, like you don't know." She cocked one dark brow in a lazy, knowing gesture. "I saw the way you were devouring little Miss Brielle at that wine bar like she was the last rib-eye in the butcher's case."
I felt my cheeks flare with a scandalised flush at her indelicate phrasing, despite the undeniable kernel of truth behind her words. Squaring my shoulders, I drew myself up to my full height and levelled her with my most imperious stare.
"That's quite enough from you. I'll thank you not to make crass insinuations about a respected colleague and myself."
Oli held up her hands in mock surrender, utterly unfazed by my withering look. "Easy there, Eli. No need to get mad."
"You're insufferable, you know that?" I attempted a haughty sniff, though the effect was rather undermined by the slight twitch at the corner of my lips.
"It's part of my roguish charm," she supplied with an impish waggle of her brows. "Speaking of charm, does our favourite silver-spooned heiress know we'll be gracing her industrial playground today?"
My steps slowed to a reluctant halt outside the main entrance as I debated whether I should have reached out to Sarah ahead of time. The last time we'd seen each other in the flesh, things had ended on a rather charged note, to put it mildly.
I could still so vividly recall the way Sarah's hand had skimmed over mine in that lingering caress, her voice dropping into that low, husky timbre that had flooded my senses with an intoxicating warmth. The sudden, dizzying awareness that had sparked between us was electric and loaded with unspoken possibilities.
Just as suddenly, my carefully reconstructed walls had come crumbling down, and I'd found myself retreating behind that familiar emotional barrier once more. Leaving things unresolved yet again.
Perhaps showing up unannounced to Sarah's place of business was ill-advised on my part. The last thing I wanted was to put her in an awkward position or make her uncomfortable in her domain. She deserved far better than that after sharing her vulnerabilities with me.
"Earth to Eli?"
Oli's voice pulled me back to the present moment. I blinked owlishly at her, trying to rein in my wayward contemplations.
"Hm? Oh, no, I didn't give Sarah any warning." I gnawed the plump edge of my lower lip. "Do you think I should have? I don't want to cause any undue disruption or impropriety."
True to form, Oli swiftly put a stop to my needless fretting with an airy wave of her hand. "Please. If there's one thing I know intimately about our dear Miss Brielle, it's that she loathes anything stuffier than a lavish state luncheon."
Oli's impish grin widened slyly. "Popping in unannounced should be right up her thrill-seeking alley, if you catch my drift."
I wasn't remotely convinced, fixing her with a sardonic look even as I felt those insidious little tendrils of doubt dissipate. Oli had an uncanny knack for making anyone feel at ease, no matter how uptight. Perhaps that was the reasoning behind her words—simply putting me at ease as only she could.
