Bit of a trigger warning: ✨✨ Some vulgar language ahead. Things are about to get interesting.
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I knew one thing for sure:

It wasn't a good idea to take Cole on his word. Or his actions.

Months ago, I would have ignored him altogether and attended work no matter the circumstances.

What was happening to me?

I managed to evade Brendan as he attended to a call on his intercom.

Slipping into my office I saw that it was as tidy as could be.

There wasn't much to do, though the dry desk was nagging at the back of my brain. 

Picking through the janitors cart near the front desk, I took ahold of the  All-Purpose Cleaner and a roll of paper towels. I smiled as the lemon scent wafted through my nostrils.

There was nothing better than having a freshly sanitized station. It made me feel more orderly and organized.

Like I had my life together. 

As I disposed of the soggy towels, a knock sounded on my open door. 

Cole entered, eyeing my clean space. He kept his eyes down as he spoke. 

"I'm sorry for getting you into trouble." 

I shook my head.

"No, it was my choice to call out. Plus, it looked like you got a worse reprimanding than I did." 

For a moment, Cole looked like he wanted to deny this but he nodded, accepting the truth. 

"Yeah, I guess that's true. I'm supposed to be your superior. I should be telling you what's right and wrong, not leading you into the trap."

I pressed my lips into a thin line. 

"It's okay. Really. You helped me with my license and car. I didn't have to spend a dime. Knowing that you spent your own money means so much more." 

Cole turned to close the door. 

"How much does it mean to you exactly?" He breathed, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

"A lot," I replied, looking at the print on the walls.
 
The room suddenly seemed tighter and stuffy. 

"You're off the clock, I'm off the clock," Cole said, resting his hands on a chair. "I thought I'd talk off the record... did your boyfriend never think about buying you these things? His family comes from money after all." 

I sighed. I really didn't want to get into the loans Hero was recieving. 

"He doesn't care about the money." I replied. "He never thought about it. I never thought about it. Time took us by surprise and flew." 

"Trust me," Cole assured. "In my line of work, I can't seem to catch a break, but I couldn't bare to see you without such a thing." 

I nodded, clearing my throat as he made his way around the desk. 

"It was thoughtful of you, Cole." 

"I want to prove to you that I care about you." He went on, now looming over me. 

As I stared into his eyes, it became harder to steel myself away. 

"You don't need to say a thing," he whispered, "I just need to do this." 

As he thumbed my bottom lip and started closing his eyes, I began to panic. 

No. No. He couldn't do this. 

This wasn't happening. This wasn't happening. 

before I could force myself to pull away, Cole pressed his lips to mine.

It wasn't hard and passionate like I was used to. It was soft and lingering. 

I wanted to push him away, I really did, but I let him continue for much longer than necessary. 

Fuck. No. 

I quickly patted Cole on the shoulder. When he drew away, I backed up.  

"I can't do this." I trembled. "This is wrong." 

Cole raised a brow. "Why should it be wrong?"

This infuriated me. Did he have no shame? 

"Because you mean nothing to me," I hissed, "Hero's my boyfriend. I love him more than anything. Why did you do that?" 

Cole finally lowered his eyes, displaying regret. 

"I don't know... I was reading between the lines and thought-" 

I glowered.

"There was nothing to read. I'll never be into you." 

I didn't realize how harsh my words had been until I saw a blush form on his face. 

"Look," I continued, lowering my voice, "I didn't mean for it to come out that way. I'm just not interested." 

After a moment of silence, I decided to change the subject.

"Cole?" 

He looked up still mortified.

"Yes?" 

I sighed.

"I made a promise to a friend and I intend to keep it. You know Brendan? The guy that works the front desk?" 

Cole immediately smiled.

"Oh, yeah. The cool guy." 

"Please don't act weird after hearing this," I went on, "but he... kind of has a thing for you." 

When I saw Cole's jaw drop, I didn't allow him to speak. 

"He's gay. I know you're not but... he's been in love with you for so long. He told me he wanted a first kiss and...I think you should let him down easy. Even if you're not interested, you need to wish him well." 

It went silent for a minute until Cole nodded in acknowledgement. 

"You're right. I'm not gay at all, but thank you for telling me." 

I let out a deep breath when he finally opened the door and left.

A pang of remorse hit me like a train. 

Why did I feel so guilty? He was the one that kissed me after all.

As I turned back towards my desk, I heard the door click. 

"Hello, Kristina." 

I swiveled around already remembering the sharp voice. 

Diedre. 

"Oh my god!" I gasped. "How did you get in here?" 

"Relax," she laughed, smoothing her hands down the latex covering her legs, "They regard me as a family friend. I'm practically royalty." 

I wanted to laugh at this. Yeah. Right. 

"Sit. Let's talk." She said. 

I straightened. "As much as I'd like to stay and chat, I have better things to do." 

As I started for the door, Diedre slammed my door shut.

"I believe I told you to sit down!"

I jumped, taken aback by this aggressive demand. 

I scoffed.

"I'm sorry, Diedre- actually I'm not sorry. I'm not scared of you. What gave you the impression that I was ever going to do what you say?" 

"I never thought that." Diedre smirked. "But I was always taught that you can break a stallion as long as you persevere." 

"I don't have time for your games." I replied. "My boyfriend is waiting for me." 

As I went to wipe my chair, Diedre spoke. 

"He wasn't last night." 

This made me turn, instantly worried.

Had he gone to see this witch? 

"H-how do you know that?" I stuttered. 

Seeing me break under her stare, Diedre continued. 

"He and I had a long talk. Had a lot on his mind. I would know this. I know him better than anyone."

I grinded my teeth, sincerely wanting to punch her in the mouth. 

"I'm sure you do." I mumbled. 

"Another thing," Diedre snapped, "I want you to steer clear of my daughter." 

I furrowed my brows genuinely confused. 

"Um... Dorinda...?" 

Diedre narrowed her eyes. 

"Don't play stupid. I saw how you worked her the last few times with that mother of yours. You have good pussy and that may be why I can't keep my Hero away from you, but I will not allow my daughter to associate with the likes of you." 

I snorted.

"I know exactly how you treat her. You can't control her. She's an adult."

"She means the world to me," Diedre went on. "I spent her entire life raising her how I wanted and I won't let her do things any other way. It's dangerous for a woman to think for herself. It gets her into trouble." 

I didn't allow her to barricade me any longer; I pushed past her, opening my office door. I then looked back. 

"You seriously have issues."

Thank you all for reading ❤❤

Diedre is losing her mind 👌😝

Please don't forget to comment and vote ✨

P.S I know a lot of you want a book with Hero's POV (Don't worry it's on its way) but do you want anyone else's?

Though they are vile I thought Diedre or even Kylie or someone from the crew would be interesting.