Tatum looked up at Aiden, her usual guarded expression slipping just slightly. He stood there, clearly as someone who'd rushed straight from work, carrying a sense of tension that she couldn't ignore. His shirt was slightly wrinkled, his tie loose, and his dark hair was a little messy like he'd run his fingers through it several times on the drive over. Somehow, seeing him like this—less put-together than usual—made him seem more real, more present.
It made him feel less like a boss and more like... just Aiden.
She noticed the subtle way his throat tightened, the movement softening his sharp features in a way that contrasted with his office look. His gaze stayed on her, steady and intense, and there was something about his presence—his height, his broad shoulders, the quiet determination on his face—that caught her off guard.
Tatum smirked as her gaze settled on him. "It's early for you, sir. Can I help you with something?"
Aiden's eyes flicked to her hair, taking in her casual look, and he felt himself relax a little.
"Well, maybe not keeping me at the door would be a start," he replied, raising an eyebrow.
Tatum stepped back and opened the door wider, giving him space to enter.
"Normally," he began as he slipped off his jacket, draping it over the arm of her sofa, "I wouldn't be here, since my employees usually let me know when they're taking days off." She moved a little closer, her expression both casual and guarded. "But you didn't tell me."
"I told Kyle," she replied with a shrug, almost daring him.
Aiden's jaw tightened as he shot her a look.
What's wrong with them calling eachother by their names?
"Well, Mr. Kyle," he said, emphasizing his assistant's name with a hint of correction, "isn't your boss."
She huffed, crossing her arms, her gaze flicking to him with a mix of defiance and curiosity.
What's with his attitude? And why is he looking at me like he'd actually kill me if he could? For a second, she almost believed it.
But killing her wasn't what Aiden wanted. Punishing her, though? That, he could admit, was tempting. She'd shut him out so thoroughly that it was driving him mad. He felt an almost physical need to wrench the truth out of her, like digging up answers would be easier than enduring her silent treatment. He couldn't take another day off her walls, her refusal to let him in. He needed to know what was going on with her—and he needed to know now.
And if that wasn't enough, Kyle seemed to be one step ahead of him in every way that mattered to her. Kyle seemed to know why she'd been feeling off lately—Kyle, not him. The idea gnawed at Aiden, filling him with a mix of frustration and some other kind of feeling that he couldn't quite name, but he hadn't expected.
Tatum tilted her head, raising a brow.
"Do I get bonus points if I pretend to care? I'm off work, Mr. Aiden," she said, leaning against the wall, stretching her legs out and bending slightly forward. The move was casual, almost lazy, but it made Aiden instinctively step closer, gripping the edge of his phone in frustration.
Aiden took a steadying breath, his eyes narrowing as he took in Tatum's posture, her arms crossed, that hint of a smirk on her lips. She was pushing him, testing him, and he knew it. But he'd already left his pride back at the office; he wasn't here to play her games.
"Maybe if you cared, we wouldn't be in this situation," he replied, voice low but firm. He crossed his arms as well, mirroring her position, holding her gaze without flinching.
Tatum's eyes rolled as she let out a soft sigh. She couldn't take this thing anymore. And she didn't understand why this was such a big deal to begin with.
Her expression flickered, just for a second, but she quickly recovered, shrugging.
"Maybe I just needed some time to myself. Is that such a bad thing? I can't always walk around protecting your ass - women need a break too, you know?"
He took a step closer, closing the distance between them. "Look, Tatum, I get it—you don't want people worrying about you, and you certainly don't want anyone close enough to see the real you. But I'm here. And I'm not leaving until you tell me what's really going on."
He called me by my name. That sounds really good, coming from him. Why does it though?
She let out a short, humourless laugh, shaking her head trying to vanish off the thoughts she just had.
"You're wasting your time. I'm fine. I don't need anyone 'checking in' on me like I'm some charity case."
"Good," he said, unfazed. "Because that's not what this is." He ran a hand through his curly hair, his frustration obvious. "It's you and me, right here, right now. So tell me the truth."
The green eyes of hers melt into his green eyes as well. Shivers went up her spine and she would lie if she said she didn't like that line.
It's you and me, right here, right now.
"You're irresistible when you're mad at me" she blurted that out, with a smirk.
Aiden's mouth tightened, caught off guard by her response. Her smirk was playful, and challenging, as if she were daring him to keep his cool. It was infuriating—and yet, he couldn't deny the pull she had on him. She knew exactly how to get under his skin, and she was using it now to deflect, to distract him from the conversation he was determined to have.
He clenched his jaw, steadying himself.
"You think this is a joke?" he asked, voice low, but there was a flicker of something else in his gaze, something softer beneath the frustration.
She shrugged, her smirk lingering as she held his gaze.
"I think it's funny watching you get all worked up. You don't need to worry about me, sir. I'm not your responsibility."
"That's not the point," he said, stepping even closer. There was barely any space between them now. "Maybe you're fine with brushing this off, but I'm not. I'm not going to let you pretend everything's fine when it's not. And if Kyle knows, then I sure as hell have a right to know too."
Tatum's smirk faltered, her expression shifting as his words hit her. She glanced away, her usual confidence slipping just for a moment. The intensity in his voice, in his eyes, shook her more than she wanted to admit. She hadn't expected him to push this far, hadn't expected him to look at her like that—like he actually cared.
"Why do you even care?" she said, her voice softer now, almost vulnerable. "Why can't you just let this go?"
"Because I can't," he replied simply, the frustration fading from his voice, replaced by something calmer, steadier. "Because it matters."
For a moment, they stood there, her green eyes locked with his. Tatum opened her mouth, almost ready to say something, but she hesitated, feeling the weight of his words settle over her.
"How did the contract go?" she asked all of a sudden, trying to change the topic.
Aiden sighed touching his neck and unbuttoning his shirt, leaving his cleavage in sight. His shoulders fell slightly, clearly exasperated by her sudden change of subject, but he played along.
"The contract?" he repeated, his hand lingering near his collar as he unfastened another button, revealing a hint of his chest. "It went great. We will have a small trip next week in Italy."
Tatum glanced down, her gaze betraying a flicker of something more, something she tried to suppress. She could admit that he was attractive—too attractive, really. The open collar, the tired but determined look in his eyes, the way he stood so close. But that didn't mean she liked him. No, definitely not.
And yet, her thoughts lingered longer than she wanted, imagining what it would be like to reach out and close the remaining distance between them. She wanted to tell herself it was just a physical attraction. Just the urge to get a reaction out of him, to push the boundaries and see where it went—not because it mattered.
But as his gaze softened, and he looked at her with unexpected patience, she felt a small crack in her own defences. It was as if he could see right through the walls she put up, and that unsettled her.
Aiden watched her closely, a slight smirk tugging at his lips as if he could sense her thoughts.
"You don't get to dodge this that easily, Tatum," he said, his voice gentle. "You can bring up all the business you want, but we both know that's not what's going on here."
She rolled her eyes, trying to regain control of the situation. "Maybe I just don't feel like getting into my personal issues with my boss," she said with a hint of sarcasm, leaning against the wall and crossing her arms, trying to deflect again.
Aiden leaned in just a little, closing the space between them with a calm but insistent intensity.
"I'm Aiden", he said "Outside of work, I am not your boss."
"Then what are you? A pigeon?" she replied, her voice laced with sarcasm.
"Just Aiden", he said staring into her eyes.