Tangled

CHAPTER 2

Damon took a glance at his wrist watch. He straightened back his smooth, sleek hair. His driver was still not back and he wondered what had taken him so long.

Zoey hesitated as she got to the car. A reassuring nod from Jeff propelled her to move further. She looked into the car to meet Damon's piercing gaze. He looked cold as usual.

“Get in. I'll drop you. It's late.” His tone was flat and demanding.

Zoey wore a blank expression on her face. She wondered what made her boss want to give her a ride home. She wouldn't expect such a gesture from him given his cold demeanor, but in the face of this development, she wondered who this man really was.

“Erm, thank you Sir. I’ll manage.”

Damon gave her a piercing look. His eyes turned dark and his jaw hardened.

“Get in. Miss Zoey. I'm not repeating myself.”

Zoey looked back at Jeff. He stood there, watching the scene which was unfolding before him.

“I'm with my boyfriend, sir. We’ll manage.”

Damon immediately scrunched his face up into a frown. His already hardened expression hardened even further, his brows furrowing deeply. He took a hard glance at Jeff and motioned to his driver.

The car sped off immediately, rumbling and leaving clouds of dust in its trail.

“Who was that and what was that about?” Jeff asked with an edge of uneasiness in his voice.

Zoey held Jeff's hand. His eyes were still fixated in the direction of the car. “Erm, that's my boss and that was nothing. He only offered to give me a ride.”

Jeff looked at her.

“Why would he offer you a ride? ”Jeff enquired, clearly uneasy.

“Relax, Jeff. He only offered me a ride, he didn't ask to be my boyfriend.” Zoey stated.

“Well, I hope that's just about it.” Jeff concluded as they walked in the direction of home.

The silence which ensued between them as they walked down the pathway to the apartment they shared was palpable. The brief walk was void of the usual heartiness and lightness they both shared. Both were consumed in their thoughts.

Zoey wondered why Damon offered to give her a ride. He didn't seem like one to do so.She thought back to the cold demeanor he put up at the office all day. His face was hard and he was ever cold to her. She wondered where kind Damon suddenly emerged from.

“How did today go?” Jeff asked breaking the uneasy silence which hung in the air between them.

“It was fine, just a bit hectic.”

“I don't know what it is with your boss, but I think he despises me.” Jeff went ahead.

“Come on, Jeff. That man encountered you just today. What could he possibly have against you?” Zoey scoffed as she turned to face him.

“Well, the look he gave me. For someone who doesn't know me, it spoke volumes.”

“Babe, you wouldn't want to take this far, trust me. That guy is naturally cold. He’s like that with everyone. Would you believe he never smiled at me today? Not even once?” Zoey informed him.

“Not even once?” Jeff laughed slightly at that. What kind of a person is that?”

“Well, that's what I'm trying to say. It's not about you. Don't pay much attention to it.” Zoey reassured him as their hands intertwined.

“I can't wait to hear stories of the cold boss.” Jeff said amidst laughter. “Sounds like something from a movie.”

“He’d be too exhausting to want to talk about.” Zoey laughed with him. Their hands intertwined as they walked and their usual chatty nature re-emerged, as they loudly laughed the night away.

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The morning fog hadn't fully cleared even though it was 7:00am in the morning. Winter proved to be the worst time of the year and she shivered from a palpable cold as she rushed up the stairs to the elevator.

The hot coffee she held in one hand slowed her down. She feared spilling it and staining her clothes or worse, incurring her boss’s wrath.

Zoey didn’t know what to speculate pertaining to what happened the previous night after work. She wondered what Damon’s reaction would be. Would he sack her out of his company for turning him down? He seemed very egoistic and definitely wouldn’t accept any behavior from anyone which was insulting to his self image.

She shivered slightly at the thought of what could prevail. The elevator stopped abruptly, slamming her out of her thoughts. As she made her way to the office, her knees wobbled under her feet. Her heart jumped in her chest and she said a small prayer as she slightly pushed open the office door.

It was around 7:00am in the morning, and so it was naturally slightly cool, but the aura of the man seated across the desk a few steps away from her engulfed the entire room in palpable cold, dropping the temperature even further.

Damon looked up at Zoey from his seat. He narrowed his brows at her and stared her coldly in the face. “You're late.” He barked at her. His gaze pierced through her with a deep frown spread across all of his features, his tone flat and upfront.

“You cannot be lazy. I thought I made it clear yesterday?”

Zoey remained rooted in her spot. She lowered her gaze, tightly holding on to the cup of coffee in one hand and the strap of her bag in the other. “I'm sorry sir.” She stammered.

“You can't dilly-dally around here. You're my assistant. The assistant to the CEO of Black Clothing and Jewelry. Act like it.” He slammed the table as he concluded. His tone was cold and had an angry edge to it which sent shivers down Zoey's spine.

“If you can't handle the role, better submit your resignation. I won't tolerate this kind of behavior in the future.”

Zoey's voice came lightly. “Pardon me sir. I missed the bus and had to wait long for your coffee to be ready. This won't happen again.”

“It better not. Maybe if you considered people's kindness towards you, you wouldn't have to chase the bus everyday.”

He turned his attention back to his screen. Damon's words stung her in the heart. She couldn't fathom if he meant them in good faith or if he meant to be insulting.

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Zoey made her way into the office, panting from exhaustion. It was the third time she went up and down the tall office building in search of some “good” coffee for her boss.

Damon complained of the coffee she had brought with her earlier that morning. He quickly took it away from his mouth as quickly as he had picked it to drink when Zoey placed it on the desk.

His nose scrunched up in a look of disgust. “This coffee is cold, for God’s sake. Miss Zoey, can't you do anything right?”

Ow God, not again. Zoey let out a sigh of frustration as she unhesitatingly muttered an apology. She quickly ran out of the office to grab another cup from the cafeteria.

The second cup of coffee she brought wasn't Damon’s favorite flavor, so she had to return for a third cup.

Damon stared at her with an amusing smirk as she entered the office, panting heavily. He reclined in his chair and crossed his right foot over the left as he watched her place the cup of coffee she held on the table before him. He dusted imaginary dust off his clothes before getting up.

Zoey nervously stared at him as he made his way out of the office.

“We shall leave now, Miss Zoey. It's lunch.” He simply dismissed the presence of the coffee.

Zoey’s body immediately went cold and numb. The tears stung at her eyes and threatened to fall. She wondered why this man would put her through the torture of fetching him three different cups of coffee if he wouldn't have it. She wondered why he would enjoy treating someone in such a manner as she quickly ran after him to keep up with his long strides.