The Risk of Falling

Chapter Sixteen: Seeing Red, Seeing Green

A/N: Hello everyone! Here's the newest addition to Luke and Max's story.

Hope you enjoy it! Have a great week!

***

Friday was a freak show starring the Thorny Theodora and her Mush-Brained Minions.

Despite our concerted efforts, we were still running behind on everything, which was kind of silly to be groaning about because really, when has anything ever run perfectly smoothly the day before the big day, right? 

I came to work at five in the morning, dressed in my most comfortable clothes—some loose trousers, a basic white shirt under a blazer I promptly tossed aside and a pair of ballet flats. It was frumpy at best and the haphazard ponytail and makeup-free face didn’t help but I was too busy getting things done to worry about it. I was at a point that I just wanted to get everything in place, zombie my way through the evening of the party and then promptly drop face down on my bed and not wake up until next weekend.

We were doing better just before lunch, thinking we’d be caught up before the day was over despite the back and forth between the office and the venue at a hotel ballroom a few blocks away, but we were foiled by Theodora’s early departure. She was apparently taking the afternoon off, four hours before the end of her shift, because she had some personal appointments at the spa and the salon. That was not the pre-party preparation we needed from her. We actually needed to get everything together so that a party could happen the next day. If we weren’t eyeballs-deep in work, I might have confronted her but I decided against it. We worked better when we weren’t in such a murderous mind frame.

Anyway, at about six in the evening, the other two people I was working with had to go. Andy had an hour and a half drive home and Sal’s wife was starting her night shift at the hospital and someone had to look after their two-year-old son.

There wasn’t much left to do that could be done today other than finish wrapping all the tokens.

I was cross-legged on the paper-and-ribbon covered floor, cutting some decorative paper when a pair of shiny black shoes stopped just in front of me.

“I’m going to have to really look into this whole work-life balance thing for employees,” Luke said dryly. “This can’t be healthy for them. No one’s productive when they’re tired to the bone.”

I looked up and quirked my mouth at him. “Gee, I must look so radiant. Thanks, boss.”

Luke actually grimaced. “Please, don’t call me that. Hearing you say it makes me feel ancient.”

“Sure, boss,” I said with a wink as I grabbed another small box containing a commemorative hockey puck so I could wrap it. “Speaking of overworked employees, what are you still doing here? It’s almost eight at night.”

Luke was at some kind of business meeting all afternoon which was great actually because it meant he wasn’t around to distract me. Since we ‘made up’ a couple of days ago, he’d been extra-attentive. It was actually nice but when I didn’t have the time or energy to return the attention, I felt a little bad. 

“I went to your apartment thinking you’d be home by now but you weren’t and I knew the only other place I’d find you at is here,” he said, turning to pick up a brown paper bag I didn’t notice he’d set down on a desk beside him. No wonder something smelled warm and delicious all of a sudden.  “I brought some take-out. Let’s eat first and then I’ll help you finish up so you can get out of here.”

I opened my mouth to argue but I lost all willpower—first, when Luke rolled up the sleeves of his light blue shirt, showing off those nice, muscular forearms, and second, when he took out a pair of my favorite paper-wrapped chicken burgers.