Mr. Lawson's Assistant

Chapter 19

Damon leaned back against the counter in front of me and sipped his drink, while I ate the pizza in silence.
When I finished, I stood up to clear my plate, but he set down his cup and cleared the dish before I could.
"Thanks." I sat back down hesitantly. After he'd finished putting the plate in the washer Damon turned his attention back to me.
"It's late-" Damon started, but he paused when I looked at him quickly. Setting down his glass, he leaned back against the counter again, focusing his gaze on me.
"I can't stay here." I began, clasping my hands in front of me, underneath the counter where Damon couldn't see them. Damon raised his eyebrows, but kept his eyes trained on me. "Why's that?"
"What am I supposed to tell my familiy-- that is if they're even alive!" I burst, "If I tell them the truth, they might as well be the ones who read the letter, and if I don't-" I stopped midsentence, closing my mouth and pursing my lips. My voice had raised slightly, so I took the moment to calm myself down.
"What?" Damon asked me, crossing his arms over his chest, and watching me expectantly. Exchanging a quick look with him, I saw that he knew exactly what I was about to say.
"Then they will think, that I- that we are...together." I forced the words out, not at all enjoying the falsely innocent look on Damon's face as he listened.
Silence fell between us, and Damon continued to look at me without expression, before he pushed himself into a standing position, and put his cup into the dish washer.
"I see how you think your options are limited, but I don't think the decision is as hard as you're making it seem." Damon glanced up at me, as he bent down to close the washer door.
"How's that?" It was my turn to look skeptical, and cross my arms.
"Either you tell the truth and put your family in danger, or you make something up, and you risk your family thinking that you're dating me." Damon said the last part, with a shadow of amusement crossing his eyes, before he stood to his full height and crossed his arms again.
"So you're saying I should let them think I'm- we're," I corrected with a quick flick of my head, "together?" I asked him, my gaze growing colder as I looked across the counter at him. He raised an eyebrow.
"Not at all." He shook his head slightly, and I raised my own eyebrows skeptically.
"Really? Then what do you think I should do?"
He didn't answer right away, because he was looking into my eyes, an unreadable expression on his face, before he pressed both his hands on the counter in front of him and leaned forward towards me.
"You're a terrible lair." Damon started, his tone calm, as he looked at me.
"Excuse me?" I frowned, and he raised his eyebrows, knowing I heard what he said. "What does that have to do with anything?" I pursed my lips, glaring at him.
"You said that if you make something up your family will assume we're together." Damon reminded me, and my frown deepened. "Personally, I'd prefer to keep my family alive, and let them think I was dating you." Damon smiled slightly, but continued, "But, obviously that's not an option for you." He finished, and I pursed my lips.
"No, it isn't."
"Then you're going to have to make something up." He shrugged one of his shoulders.
"They won't believe me." I repeated, exasperated that he was being so elusive.
Damon let out a small chuckle.
"Probably because you're a terrible liar." He cocked an eyebrow.
I wasn't amused.
"But I'm not." He paused, raising an eyebrow at me. I held his heavy gaze, my mind spinning in search for other options.
"So, you're going to lie for me?" I frowned. He nodded.
"I don't mean to be rude," I re-crossed my arms, "But I don't even know your middle name- much less would I let you lie to my family about something this important." I scoffed, looking at him with my arms still crossed.
Damon smiled a little, standing up once more, before he looked at me again.
"You're out of options and short on time, Oana."
"Short on time, yes. Out of options, no." I responded, pushing out my bar stool, and standing to my feet. Giving him one last look, I uncrossed my arms and walked towards the living room. "Thank you for your hospitality, but I won't be spending the night here." I said over my shoulder, as I passed under the archway.
"Aaron." Damon said after me, and I paused.
"Excuse me?"
"My middle name is Aaron." He said, and I stared at him.
Shaking my head, I turned back around, and headed for the stairs.
Grabbing my phone, and changing into my clothes, I fixed anything that I might have messed up inside the bedroom, before I shut the door behind me, and made my way down to the front door. Damon was no longer in the kitchen, and most of the lights were off, but I noticed that the light outside the front doors, and the living room lights had been left on. Sighing, I opened the front door, and headed down the sidewalk, passing Damon's car, and making my way onto the neighborhood sidewalk. Pulling out my phone, I dialed the number for Soma, and waited for her to pick up.
"Hello?" Her cheery voice echoed on the other end of the phone, and I managed a small smile. I hadn't heard her bubbly voice in a while.
"Hey, Soma, I'm sorry for calling so late, especially since you're out of town-" I started, and she laughed.
"I won't be able to fall asleep for another two hours anyways." She laughed, and I let out a relived sigh.
"I ran into a problem at home, and I'm going to have to get get a hotel for the night, but I don't have any clothes, and I can't tell David or Mom what's going on yet." I began. Soma fell silent.
"It's not a big deal, and I'll have it figured out in a few days, but I was wondering if you still had your clothes in the storage unit on main." I continued.
"Yeah, of course, but is everything ok?" Soma asked quickly, and I laughed.
"No, but I'm fine, and it'll be ok in a few days, I just need to figure some things out."
"Right, uhm yeah, the key for the unit is under the mat." She told me, and I heard someone talking to her in the background.
"Thanks- would you do me one more favor?" I asked, biting my lower lip.
"Of course, what do you need?"
"Would you text David and tell him my phone died, and that the meeting ran over? Say that I didn't want to wake him or mom up, so I got a hotel for the night near Lawson's and I'll call him in the morning on my way to work." I rushed, hearing the person calling Soma.
"No problem, just let me know if you need anything else." Soma said, but I could hear the underlying worry in her voice, as she shushed the person behind her.
I let out a small breath. "I will, thanks again, you're a life-saver." I smiled into the phone, before I wished her goodnight and hung up.
*
After I got a cab, I rented a hotel room for the night, and settled into the bed, sometime around eleven. But I couldn't fall asleep. Any time I heard the slightest noise outside, I would be wide awake again, anxious that I was going to be shot in my sleep or something. I knew it was ridiculous, but I couldn't help it.
Finally, I was too tired to stay awake any longer, and I drifted off to sleep.
*
The blaring alarm woke me at seven in the morning, and I groggily rolled out of the hotel bed, pulling on my clothes from yesterday. Checking my wallet, I decided that I had enough money for a bus ticket, and I combed out my hair, before I hurried out to the bus stop.
I took the bus to Soma's storage unit, and picked out a pair of khakis and a plain shirt, that matched my shoes, before I took the bus back to Lawson's. My phone started lighting up with messages from David and Mom, the moment I walked into the building for work, but I shut it off, and stepped into the elevator. I wondered if Damon had told his brother about the incident, and as I made my way into my office, I prayed I didn't see either of them. The stack of papers was already sitting on my desk waiting, but Mr. Lawson's office seemed empty.
Sighing, I sat down and began my work, shoving my phone into the desk drawer, hoping to forget about the ever-growing amount of problems I had.