Mr. Lawson's Assistant

Chapter 46

I woke up earlier than I needed to the next morning, so I had time to apply makeup to my bruises and pick out an outfit from Soma's room. After I finished showering and getting ready, I ate breakfast and cleaned a couple more things around the apartment before I had to leave. 
*
As I climbed out of my car and clicked the lock into place, I let my eyes wander to the top of the shining Lawson Company building. Approaching the doors, I heard heels clicking on the sidewalk behind me and glanced back. Amy was holding a phone to her ear, shaking her head and frowning at whatever the person on the other side of her call was saying. I smiled at her when she looked up, and her expression changed immediately. Saying something hastily to whoever was on the other line, she hung up the phone and rushed over to meet me.
"Oana! It's so good to see you back! How are you?" She exclaimed, scooping me into a quick embrace. I tensed, but slowly embraced her back, before stepping back and tucking some of my loose curls behind my ear.
"It's been a rough past few days, but I'm much better now." I told her. There was no point in pretending that things were better than they had been, I was sure the entire office already knew everything anyways. Amy smiled and chatted with me as we walked inside, but as we entered, I felt the all-too glare coming from the welcome desk. Glancing over, I saw Rachel staring at me with the same disgusted snarl on her face, but I just smiled and kept walking, tuning back in to what Amy was saying.
Maybe that's just her way of saying hello.
I thought with a snort. Amy paused talking and looked at me curiously, but when I waved her forward, she plunged back into a detailed description of the most recent office drama. Something about a woman from floor one and a guy from floor four.
Amy and I rode the elevator up to Mr. Lawson's level, where I bid her goodbye.
"Maybe we can catch up some more at lunch?" Amy asked me as I stepped out of the elevator.
Ugh.
"Sure."
Amy grinned and hugged me quickly, before she hurried back into the elevator and pushed the button for her floor. I moved down the hallway, pausing momentarily to check and see if the water pitcher was in its place. It was. That meant that Greyson- Mr. Lawson- wasn't in a meeting. Letting out a breath, I passed his office as quietly as I could, stopping only to open my own office door. As I entered, I noticed that my office was as pristine as I'd left it, the only exceptions were the three large stacks of paper on the end of the desk.
Finally.
It felt odd to have missed working as much as I realized I had, but I knew it was partially because of the normalcy it brought. Waking up on time, dressing up, and working through the day were things that provided a calm to my day. They were things that fit a pattern. Running away on a two week vacation, finding my brother unconscience in my apartment, and going on a date with my boss's brother did not fit the pattern.
I hung my purse on the hook near the door and moved around the desk to sit down. Turning on the computer, I pulled the first stack of paper towards me and scanned the top page. They were notes that needed to be typed out.
Once the computer was logged on, I started typing.
Only a few minutes later, I heard a familiar knock on the office door that separated my office from Mr. Lawson's, and a smile tugged at the corners of my lips.
"Come in." I paused typing and looked up as Mr. Lawson opened the door. His blue eyes scanned my desk, then me, before a hint of a smile flitted across his own face. 
"I wanted to welcome you back, and see if you needed anything?" He said, straightening his figure against the doorframe.
I offered him a tight smile and nodded. "Thank you. Page four of your notes from meeting three is missing." Lifting up the current page I was working on, I pointed at the page number that was scribbled near the bottom of the sheet.
Mr. Lawson lifted his chin a notch. "I'll bring it over." He turned and left, but soon appeared back in the open doorway with another sheet of paper in his hand. Striding across the room, he handed me the paper and took a step back from my desk. For only a moment, I saw indecision flash across his features, before it disappeared.
"It's good to have you back, Oana." And with that, he left me alone to work.
*
For lunch, I ran downtown and bought a sandwich from Subway and ate it with Amy outside the Lawson building at one of the provided tables, then I returned to work. My first day back, Mr. Lawson did not have any meetings scheduled, so I was able to catch up on anything that Rachel or Amy hadn't done while I was away. Obviously, after my lunch hour with Amy, I realized that they'd both thought I'd been away on  vacation the whole time. The only truth they knew, was that my brother had been attacked during a house invasion. According to Amy, Mr. Lawson hadn't said a word about Pedro or my father. In a way, that made me feel much more relaxed when speaking to any of my co-workers. At the same time, I wondered if any of them suspected that they were being lied to.
Thank God it was Mr. Lawson telling them and not me. 
I thought with a quiet breath, pausing to switch the page I was typing.
Almost too soon, my work time was finished, and I began to move around my office, tidying things for tomorrow's day of work. Not forgetting my purse, I left my office and took the elevator down to the ground floor. I'd thought about taking the stairs, but after a small moment spent reminiscing my past few weeks, I decidedly took the elevator. I wasn't sure I'd ever take the stairs again.
*
"You actually showed up," David raised his eyebrows, as I stepped into the hospital lobby.
"Unfortunately. I tried to forget, but it didn't work." I retorted.
David chuckled, "You weren't too busy with your new office romance?" He asked, and I froze. Seeing the look on my face, David grinned. "Soma doesn't know how to keep a secret," He shrugged.
"It's not an office romance-" I started quickly, but David just cocked his head and nodded, not about to believe a word that came from my mouth. "I'm going to kill Soma." I muttered, reaching over and grabbing David's bag from the nurse who appeared.
"I'm going to kill your boss."
"Boss's brother," I corrected, turning on my heel and letting David follow me out to the car.
He rolled his eyes and slid into the passenger seat, groaning quietly as he reached over to close the door. "Is that even allowed?" David asked me, once I'd stowed his bag in the back and took my place at the wheel.
"There is no that! It was one lunch outing and he called it a date!" I shoved the key into the ignition and backed out of the parking space.
"Right..."