The Arrangement | Book 2 | Completed

18

Matty's POV

"Let's go out tonight." Evan says, leaning against my desk.

"You want to go out tonight? It's Saturday night, though." I say, signing off on each paper that he hands my way.

"Exactly. Who goes out on weekdays?" He asks like it's the most obvious thing in the world. Realistically, I go out on the weekdays. The crowds are low and the drinks are cheap. On the weekends these bars are crowded as hell and you can rack up one hell of a tab.

"I go out on the weekdays." I defend.

"I'm sure you do, Matty. I'm sure you do. But, we're not doing that. We're going to go out tonight. You're going to get piss drunk tonight." He laughs.

"I have work in the morning!" I exclaim.

"No you don't. Take the day off, man. You literally are working yourself to death." He groans.

"No I'm not!"

"Yes, you are. You've signed the same piece of paper three times now." He says, pointing down at the page below me. I look down and see my signature scribbled over the other multiple times. I groan and run my hands over my face. Why the fuck am I so stressed out right now?

"Damn." I mumble with a sarcastic laugh.

"Yeah, we're definitely going out tonight." He says, handing my a new file.

"I don't know." I say, very unsure.

"Why?" He laughs, "What's stopping you? There shouldn't be anything stopping you." He tells me.

"I mean...Melissa will probably be pissed off if she finds out I'm going out. Especially with you." I say honestly. God, I don't even want to imagine that argument.

"Why would she care if you go out with me?"

"Because she'll automatically assume that we're...I don't know. Trying to hook up with every girl imaginable." I shrug.

"Okay, well that's definitely not going to happen." He says, shaking his head in confused disbelief.

"What's not going to happen?" Clarissa says in the doorway.

"Oh, hey." Evan says, straightening up at the sight of her. She looks him up and down and seems completely uninterested. This poor kid sees it too, but he still tries.

"What's not going to happen?" She asks again, nosy as ever.

"I'm trying to convince Matty to going out tonight." He tells her with a smile. She cocks an eyebrow at me.

"Good luck with that one. Matty is practically an old man." She laughs, coming over to the desk and leaning against it with Evan. He blushes lightly and scoots over far enough to give her room.

"I'm starting to pick up on that one. I have to get out, though. I can't spend another weekend in my quarters." He tells her.

"In your what?" She asks, looking at him as if he just spoke a foreign language.

"My...quarters?" He asks, equally as confused.

"What the hell are you talking about." She laughs.

"My house? My apartment? My living quarters." He informs her with a laugh. Realization covers her face and she lets out a laugh, covering her red face with the stack of folders in her hand. Evan smiles at this, pleased to see her laughing for once. I don't think he's ever really seen her laugh. Especially when it involves him.

"I can't go out tonight. Melissa would freak, and she knows that." I say, pointing at Clarissa.

"Oh who cares. She needs to learn how to chill the hell out." Clarissa says, surprising the both of us.

"I agree." Evan says, causing Clarissa to roll her eyes.

"I don't know." I mumble.

"I think you should go. It sounds fun." Clarissa shrugs.

I can see Evan's ears practically perk up from this comment. "Well you know...you should go out with us." He tells me, nudging her gently.

"Hell no." She laughs with a shake of her head.

"Why not?" He asks, genuinely interested as to why she wouldn't want to go.

"Because I'm too old to be going out with a bunch of kids." She says, hitting his shoulder gently with the folders.

"We aren't kids. We're men." He says, defending himself.

"You're...what? Twenty three? Twenty four?"

"Twenty five." He tells her with a chuckle.

"Yeah, so you're a kid."

"You're like what? Twenty eight?" He asks, flattering her, I'm sure. He knows her age.

"I'm thirty two." She tells him.

"Ahh, so you're practically a kid, too." He smiles.

"I'm practically ten years older than you." She laughs.

"Well, better not let your age show. I think it's best if you go out with us tonight." He teases.

She ponders this for a second before answering. "I'll go if Matty goes." She says, turning to me.

"Yeah, Matty. She'll go if you go. So, you have to go. We wouldn't want her sitting alone on a Saturday night all alone." He says, giving me those eyes that say, 'If you don't do this for me then I will never forgive you.'

"Okay, I'll go. Just stop flirting with each other right in front of me, please. I can't take it much longer."

"We're not flirting!" Clarissa defends like a school girl.

"Mhmm." I hum, jotting my signature on the last document.

"We're not!" She defends again and then shoves Evan. "Tell him!"

"You're both going out tonight. Let's say...ten?" He says, leaning up from his spot on my desk and backing out of the room.

"Ten at night? Why so late?" Clarissa asks.

"Because I absolutely refuse to go out before then." He informs her. "Think you can manage, granny?" He teases her. She rolls her eyes and hands me the stack of files in her hand.

"These are from HR in Vancouver. Just skim over them and make sure it's all correct. I already checked them but I'll have you double check it." She tells me. If she already checked them, then odds are they are correct.

"Will do." I tell her with a smile. "Now go home. I'll see you tonight." I tell her.

"You know, I should probably get your number. For...safety reasons. Plus, I need to know where to send the Uber." He calls after her as she begins to leave.

"Not happening!" She calls back and leaves the room.

When the door closes, Evan turns to me with a smirk.

"Did you see that?" He asks.

"See what?" I laugh.

"She was flirting. That was flirting, I know it. I know when someone is flirting with me, and she definitely was doing it." He tells me with a large smile.

"Yeah, she was. She would never admit that, though." I laugh.

"You have to go out tonight. You have to do this for me, man." He tells me with pleading eyes.

"I told you I was going to go out." I remind him.

"Yeah, but I really need you to commit to this one. For me, you know. Oh, and my future wife." He smirks.

"You are absolutely insane. I'll go. I'll text you later tonight and we'll figure everything out. Now go home. Enjoy your Saturday." I tell him, shooing him out of my office.

"I owe you!" He calls out as he leaves the room.

I honestly have no idea what I just signed myself up for.