30 Days of Domestic Fluff Challenge
DAY 9
Story: The Boss and I
Pairing: Harper Miller/Romeo Rodriguez
~
Romeo hated being sick but he had to call in sick Tuesday morning due to his burning fever. Harper had assured him not to worry about anything. She was going to reschedule all his meetings indefinitely and take care of the paperwork that needed to be done. He trusted her a lot and he was confident that she could handle running the office without him for a day or two.
The girl was handling being the executive assistant very well; much better than he had anticipated. She was always ready to do the tasks that he assigned to her and she was able to execute them efficiently and effectively. She was a good secretary.
The day went by slowly as he drifted in and out of sleep. His mother had encouraged him to eat something but the thought of food made his stomach churn unpleasantly. His appetite had the tendency to turn sour whenever he was sick.
Romeo woke up from another restless sleep, his eyes straining to blink away his drowsiness. It was already nighttime, the curtain of his window was drawn to the side, letting the cool air sweep softly inside his room. His lamp was turned on, its faint, warm glow filling the small space and he sighed realizing that he let an entire day pass without touching food. He really should eat something, so Romeo summoned all of his strength to sit up.
However, a pair of delicate hands pushed him back down gently.
"Don't strain yourself." Harper said. She was sitting on his bed while fiddling with the tray of food on his bedside table.
"What are you doing here?" He asked, his voice painfully raspy.
"I'm here to make sure you don't die." She answered, stirring a bowl of soup as she tried to avoid meeting his eyes. She didn't have to be here but she felt like she had to. When she called his mom to ask how he was, she was given a troubling answer and she came to see him as soon as she punched out of work.
The man lying down in front of her didn't resemble the Romeo she knew. Her boss was always put together; clean-shaven, hair constantly styled neatly in place and not a single crease visible on his tailored suit. This man looked like pitiful; his jet black hair was a mess, a five-o-clock shadow visible on his chin and eyes so heavy he was barely able to keep them open.
"You should really eat when you're sick. How will you regain your strength if you keep on refusing food?" Harper said. Romeo looked at her flatly and for a moment, he looked like his condescending self once again.
"Did my mom put you up to this?" He said.
"No, Sir." She answered as she turned to finally face him. "Let me help you sit up." With that, she leaned in closer and placed her hands at the back of his neck. He sat up as she supported his weight, trying to ignore now close he was.
The moment he was upright, everything started spinning and he involuntary rested all of his weight on her, his forehead falling on her shoulder. She didn't say anything or didn't try to push him off. She smelt good, he noted but quickly shook off those thoughts. He pulled away and leaned back on his headboard as she picked up the bowl of soup. "Open up." She said, scooping a spoonful and he vigorously shook his head almost making him dizzy again.
"No, you're not feeding me. Give me the bowl." He commanded and she complied.
"I bought paracetamols and pain killers for you." Harper said, as she fished out the medicine out of her pocket. "Drink this after dinner." She said as she opened two tablets and settled them on the tray beside his glass of water.
"Yes, Ma'am." He mumbled and she rolled her eyes, trying to restrain a smile. Her boss drove her crazy but he was always fair to her, sometimes even encouraging. And the fact that he was so good to his family didn't help her case either. She didn't want to think that she was starting to care about this man but that was what was happening. Harper studied him as he ate his soup, his fingers trembling every time he brought the spoon to his mouth.
"Give that to me, please. You're spilling soup all over your sheets." Harper contended, putting her hands on her waist. She was right though and he sighed in defeat as he handed the bowl back over to her. She started to feed him and he complied without a fight this time.
"Thank you, Harper." He heard himself say. "Thank you for being here. I really appreciate it."
Harper looked at him, unsure how to respond. After a while, she smiled. "Not a problem, Sir. I wanted to take care of you."
Romeo wasn't sure if Harper really meant what he thought she meant but it made his heart flutter nonetheless. This was all too familiar, Romeo thought and he hated where his thoughts were leading him. Harper was a beautiful woman, with her fiery red hair,crisp green eyes and perfect lush mouth. Intelligent too. He knew she was capable of conquering the world if she wanted.
She was so close he could almost feel her warmth. But no, he couldn't let himself be attracted to another assistant. His previous experience with that didn't end well and this won't either. He couldn't let himself go there.
"I'm going to meet the board of directors the day after tomorrow but I'm not sure if I will be feeling better by then. Reschedule my meeting with them on Friday morning." Romeo said and the weird tension between them suddenly dissipated. He felt relief. This was much better; he was her boss and she was his assistant. That's all they will ever be.
"Yes, Sir." Harper said with a nod of acknowledgement, before scooping another spoonful. "I'll take care of it."
