DAWN
"Well, what was that about?" Julie paces around the room and then steps next to me, setting the two cups on the table. "He looks like he knew you or something. He stood right there in the middle of the office and watched you for like a minute, I swear." She points at the space between the desks and the door. "Do you know him from somewhere, Dawn?"Pulling the mug by the cup handle gingerly towards me, I shake my head."I don't think so." Then I present my opposition to the idea with more zeal. "Of course not! What business do I have to rub elbows with the firm's CEO? I got to be crazy or something in the head for even entertaining the idea.""Geez. Calm down." Julie rolls her eyes. "I was just asking, Dawny. You don't have to take everything I say to heart.""Oh, okay, fine," I add in a dismissive tone, and Julie takes the hint. "I got to concentrate on work. Fiona needs these graphics in like an hour or two."In the back of my mind, I turn the idea of Kyle knowing me from somewhere over in my head.He couldn't have known me before.It's just not possible.Maybe I'm thinking way too much.It's just a bloody coincidence.I need to wrap my head around this.Shaking my head, I sigh as I blow over the mouth of the hot coffee mug."Hey, wait," Julie speaks softly. "Don't you have to see the guy in five minutes or whatever?" She stares at me. "The new CEO sure seems thoughtful. He might have given you those extra ten minutes because he saw me entering the office with the coffee mugs." Then she smiles dreamily again at her coffee. "Don't we love a thoughtful and handsome man?"I roll my eyes hearing that, but I nod at her after taking another long gulp of the hot coffee."You're right." I clear my throat as I rise up from my seat and collect my files for submission of the annual appraisal. "I'll see you in a bit.""Good luck with it." Julie doesn't seem to notice my change in mood or the intonation of my words. "He was really kind to me during our meeting and asked me inquisitive questions. Didn't I tell you that he was thoughtful?"She smiles again at me, waiting for my acknowledgement."He sure seems like it." I huff as I pivot on my feet to leave the workroom. I say the last part more to myself than to Julie, not knowing how awkward getting the performance review from my husband would be in real life. "Let's hope he's thoughtful when he's evaluating me."After saying that, I walk out of the office, pacing towards the elevators to see Kyle in his natural habitat.***After I make a series of knocks on his office door, I hear him clear his throat and weakly say some words that travel around the room."Come on in," he speaks a bit louder this time. "Ms Brooks, right?""Yeah, that's me." I slowly walk through the door, making my way to his sprawling work desk. "I'm here for my appraisals." I hand over my files to him. "You said I should be here in the next ten minutes, so here I am."Kyle has a steely expression on his handsome face, and he seems out of my world sitting behind this large mulberry-wood accent desk. He doesn't spare me a glance as he goes through the details I have put on the file.What the fuck is he doing right now ignoring me?Is this how he's going to treat me as his wife?Is that who he is in reality?Have I married a cold-hearted man who cares about nothing but himself?And he is not afraid to hurt me?After a long minute, he talks."Things seem okay on your file." Then he finally takes a good look at me. "So, what are your long-term plans while you work for the company?""My plans, huh?" I clear my throat. "What about yours, Kyle?"He presses his lips into a thin line, gazing keenly at me as he mulls over my words in the back of his brain."We need to remain professionals for this meeting, Ms Brooks, since we are at work if you haven't noticed." Then for the first time since I entered the room, his gaze softens while he peers at me. "You can direct your questions at me at a later time, and I will happily answer all of them." Then he clears his throat. "Now, for the purposes of this meeting, what do you think you want to do at this company? Any roles you want to fulfil in this organisation? I'm all ears."Running a hand over my cheek, I straighten my back and stand up straighter."For the past three years, I have been investing in myself and taking up online courses and workshops in graphic and creative design and have also become proficient in the art of creating graphics from scratch for the company's different marketing strategies." Then I slowly exhale. "In the long term, I would like to be a senior creative manager or graphic editor for the parent firm."As he hears my answer to his question, he runs a finger over his lower lip."That's quite interesting. Good for you." He picks up my file again and goes through some of the old campaign graphics I have designed for the parent company. I can see him flipping the pages after considering the materials for a long minute. Then he looks up from the file. "This has given me enough information for your annual appraisal. I'll see you again for your upcoming review in the next six months. We are successfully done, for now, Ms Brooks."Nodding at his words, I find myself thanking him despite everything."Thank you, Mr Waugh."How come I didn't see his surname on his government ID when we were at the community court?Well, how didn't I notice anything?Why didn't they call me Mrs Waugh at the marriage registrar's office?Was it because I decided to keep my old surname?How ignorant I was to everything because I was stressed to get to work on time?Weighing all the questions in my head, I slowly meander out of his office. Something he says softly makes me stop right in my tracks. I'm not sure if I heard him correctly or if it's something that the voices in my subconscious have entirely made up. But the words make me question the meaning behind them."You are going to get what you deserve, anyhow."Exhaling another harsh breath, I regain my composure as I step out of the room.DAWNI punch the send 'button' on my email, and it sends the folder with the newly designed graphics to the team lead, Fiona's business email. She needs the folder for the afternoon meeting. Just processing the thought of showing up to the business meeting in the back of my mind, knowing that Kyle will be there, sends shivers down my spine.Why did he have to work for my company?Well, scratch that.Why did I have to work for his firm?Why couldn't I have found a better job elsewhere?And why does my new husband also have to be my new boss?As I'm busy formulating these thoughts in my head, Fiona knocks on my door, putting her steely gaze on me. My eyes snap from my computer's screen to meet hers."What's going on, Dawn?" She clears her throat. "Didn't I ask you to go and see the new CEO soon?" Then she shakes her head, looking down at me as she crosses her arms across her chest. "What are you going to do about your bad memory? I had reminded you to see the new CEO in his office for a
DAWNDriving home in my car, I have thoughts spinning in my mind.Was marrying Kyle such a great idea?What kind of husband would he be to me?Have I made some mistake marrying a stranger without knowing much about him?Taking the next U-turn as I pull the car up a deserted lane that connects to the highway, I sigh. Kyle had sent me messages after the meeting to invite me. He wants me to come to see him at his home tonight. Moreover, Kyle's words give me a feeling about him wanting to get to know each other better since, in his messages, he asserted that I should stay the night and give this marriage a shot. And like a fool, I replied to his messages while I saved his home address when he sent it to me and looked it up on the online navigation maps. Then I sulked for another hour at my desk before leaving for the night. Now, I'm taking the highway which leads to the house on the outskirts of our city.Maybe I should follow his lead.And give this thing a try.Even if it irks me that h
DAWN“And I’m sorry.”His words grip me with surprise a third time this evening.“What are you sorry for exactly?” With my harsh words, I put my eyes on the floor because I don’t know how to face him. “I just want to know why you are apologising to me.”“Let’s just say that my harsh attitude and how I go about things have been far from appropriate.” He gazes at me with fierceness in his eyes. “I don’t want you to think I don’t care about you or you aren’t important to me. It’s just that things happen at work, and I can barely control everything.”“I can understand that.”He glances at me expectantly.“Can you?”I bob my head a few times, weighing his words in the back of my mind.In a way, I do understand how he feels.And where he's coming from in this situation since he’s also the head of an organisation?There are so many things at play here.He must be troubled about his private life making the rounds in the company.The legitimate fear of his employees spending their free time te
DAWNAfter the quick but enjoyable hot shower, I put on the pyjamas and tread downstairs to the kitchen. I follow Kyle's cooking noises and the noise of him putting a pan over the fire. The moment I step into the kitchen, I see Kyle perched over an electric stove, stirring some sauce in a big pot.Is he a great cook?Have I randomly lucked into a husband that can cook dinners?Even though I lied and made my intentions for helping him out in the kitchen known, I think I have left out some crucial information from the conversation.The fact is I'm not a great cook.I can barely cook anything more than heating eggs and making the random batch of instant noodles that I can find lying in the back of my cupboard."It smells good.""Does it?" Kyle looks up from the simmering pot in front of him. "I just added some cilantro and thyme to the sauce. I settled on making shrimp pasta." Then he brings the sauce ladle to his lips. "Hmm. . .I think the sauce tastes good.""The dish sounds like a nic
DAWN"How are you finding the pasta?" Kyle pushes the plate of side dishes towards me. I didn't know when he found the time to pickle some fresh vegetables, but he did find time to do that. "Would you like some more of the salad? We have more than enough," he passes me the salad bowl and the pesto dish, "so please help yourself."I wrap another string of pasta around my fork and bring it to my mouth. "It tastes delicious. You were not lying about your cooking skills." My comment earns a scoff that slips easily from Kyle's lips. His reaction makes me chuckle. "And to be honest, I'm eating so well tonight. Usually, I'll munch on any leftovers from the lunch I'll hurriedly cook for myself in the mornings or the night before, and I rarely make salads that look like this." I point to the salad bowl. "My salads are rarely this green or appetising." In my head, the word 'impostor' twinkles in bright neon lights as if it's a beer sign since I'm not talking about the absence of my cooking skil
DAWNI lie there nervously in Kyle's bed with my arms around my head, waiting in anticipation of what's about to happen. I know what he said. But is everything going to be okay between us if we sleep in the same bed?Will we be able to control ourselves?Will he be able to keep his hands off of me?Will I be the person who makes the first move?The question hounds me as I twist and turn under the soft duvet to make myself more comfortable. My nerves flare, and I wonder what spending the night in Kyle's room will be like since I haven't spent a night in a man's bed before. Sleep is still a far-fetched dream since my body feels as if it's on fire with want and expectation.I should have slept in the guest room to avoid feeling like a desperate moron.Tossing again under the duvet to adjust my body to a more comfortable position, I hear footsteps coming towards the room. I abruptly close my eyes to fake falling asleep. Kyle shouldn't know that I haven't had a wink of shuteye since I step
DAWNWhile I hear Kyle take another shower in the morning, I can't help but hide under the duvet. I can't bring myself to get out of bed because that means I have to run into Kyle again.Can my life get any more embarrassing?What have I done?How will I be able to face him today?The icing on the cake is that I work with him, and he's my boss.My husband is my goddamned boss.I still cannot believe it.Should I move to the guest room and hide in there?As I'm thinking these thoughts, Kyle comes out of the washroom with a towel wrapped around his chiselled torso. The moment he steps into the room, he stares confidently at me.The air in the room changes and I feel like I'm around no one other than my boss, and the situation reminds me of yesterday's afternoon meeting. The same boss who's also standing in front of me, half-naked. And I don't know how to feel about this.Is he doing this on purpose?"Aren't you going to shower and get ready for work?" He has a spare towel around his nec
DAWNKyle accepts the brown bag in his palm and holds it carefully against his chest with a confused smile playing on his lips. He peers inside the paper bag for a moment before his facial expression changes."You didn't have to do that for me, Dawn." Kyle stares at me with tender eyes. "This is awfully thoughtful and sweet of you. But you don't have to repay me in one way or another because I'm doing some things for you. After all, I want to do them."Shaking my head, I situate my gaze on his face."That's not what it is." I smile, remembering the breakfast he has just made me. And how it made me feel to be taken care of like that. No one I'm involved with has ever done that for me before. "This is me trying to care for you as you were trying to care for me. Don't think of it as repayment, but think about this gesture as my heartfelt consideration. That's all it is."He roughly shoves a hand in his hair, fixing it around the back of his head."But still. . ."G