A White Lie

Chapter 8: Say What?

CHAPTER EIGHT: Say What?

I carefully plopped the chopped potatoes into the boiling pot and just before I could add in the other ingredients needed for my mashed potatoes, I felt strong and muscular arms wrap around my waist.

“Hey baby,” a deep, velvety voice said into the crook of my neck. I felt the corners of my mouth tug up into a smile while the butterflies in my stomach seemed to have been let out of their cage, fluttering around. “I love you,” the same voice murmured and just before I could turn around to my mysterious lover, an annoyingly loud alarm sounded.

I woke up with a jolt and sighed as I realized it was just another dream. With my eyes still closed, my left hand hit the top of my alarm clock on the bedside table, effectively silencing it. I groggily opened my eyes, but the ray of sunshine peeking through the closed curtain of my windows caused me to immediately shut my eyes again. With great effort, I forced my body to sit up and I turned away from the window as I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. Once I was sure I wouldn’t fall asleep again, I slowly padded into the bathroom and bathed in cold water to wake up myself up. Once I rinsed the soap off my body and shampoo off my hair, I got out of the shower and dried myself.

After dressing myself and brushing my teeth, I went back into my bedroom and chucked the things I would need for a day at work into my purse. After applying light make up, I adjusted my black pencil skirt and white frilly blouse before exiting the room and going to the kitchen.

“Morning,” I muttered to Cassandra who was reading the newspaper while chewing her croissant. She turned to me and I grinned when she nodded her head in approval. She liked my outfit!

“Good morning. You look very professional today,” she told me, smiling. I thanked her and took a seat next to her on the bar. “There’s your set of keys and keycard and for the condo.” She pointed her finger in the direction of the dining table.

“Okay, thanks.” I walked over and swiped the keys and keycard off the table and deposited them in my bag. After making myself a simple peanut butter sandwich and pouring myself a cup of orange juice, I settled into the bar stool next to Cassandra. I checked my Facebook newsfeed as I sipped my drink. I nearly choked on my juice when I noticed it was Cassandra’s birthday today. Shit, how could I have forgotten? I surreptitiously glanced at Cassandra who was still reading the newspaper, as if it was a normal day. Quickly, I sent a text to Jennifer and Xavier, informing them that it was Cassandra’s birthday.

They replied a few seconds later and a few dozen texts later, we had successfully planned a party after work for Cassandra’s birthday. I was still grinning from the excitement when Cassandra ushered me to her car in the car park. My grin didn’t even falter even when Cassandra started her crazy driving to the office.

“Why are you smiling like that?” Cassandra asked, her eyes still glued to the road.

“Nothing,” I replied, trying my best not to give anything away.

“It’s nothing, trust me. Now please concentrate on the road before you get the both of us killed.” This effectively stopped the chatter between the two of us as Cassandra put her full concentration into driving.

Cassandra started on her designs the moment we got to her office. I let out a soft sigh and plopped myself down on the chair. What do I do now? I twiddled my thumbs and started whistling. Cassandra looked up from her work and glared at me, causing me to immediately stop my whistling. Just as I was about to turn my laptop on, Cassandra’s door flew open. “Don’t you know how to kn-?” Cassandra stopped mid-yell. I looked up to see our intruder and saw Jason glaring at Cassandra.