Mina got to the office at exactly nine-fifteen the next day.
She entered her office, closed the door behind her and walked slowly to her desk, her heels clicking softly against the marble floors.
The blinds were already up-definitely the work of the cleaners.
Sunlight poured in like it owned the place, lighting up every inch of her office.
She sighed, wishing she could go back to sleep for some time, at least.
She barely got any sleep last night.
"Because of the jerk." She muttered as she dropped her bag on the desk.
"How could he just show up like that?" She grumbled, lowering herself into her chair.
"Who's the jerk, if I may ask?" A masculine voice said suddenly, causing her to jerk violently, hitting her knee hard against the desk.
"Ow, what the.." She hissed and looked up.
Lo and behold, there he was. Standing quietly in one corner of her wide office, Jared Onfroy, in full flesh.
She groaned, quite relieved.
But then a sudden anger shot through her veins. "Oh? So that's what we're doing now, huh?"
He stepped forward, carefully. "Mina..."
"Move another step forward and I'm calling security." She grabbed the office telephone on her desk for emphasis.
He stood for the briefest second, then took a step. Backward.
"How dare you sneak up on me like that?" She yelled, releasing her hold on the telephone.
"I didn't mean to scare you. I got here at nine and didn't want to sit so I... looked around. Opened the blinds. You've got a nice collection of books." He said, quietly.
"I heard you come in and was going to say hi but you seemed... lost in thought so I decided to wait a bit and..."
"Just shut up, Jared." Her voice softened but was still sharp, her initial anger clearly dissipated. "What are you doing here?"
"You got the contract. The client said to start the project today." He said, managing a small smile. The thought of having annoyed her made his knees a little weak.
She smiled despite herself. "I forgot for a sec you were the project manager."
"Sit." She commanded, pointing at the chair opposite her.
He did, obediently, relieved. Then his brow furrowed.
"You look tired. Did you get enough sleep last night?"
He asked, visibly concerned.
"Uh-uh, don't. " Mina shot out, shaking her head. She wasn't going to let him get to her anymore.
"Don't what?"
"Don't pretend you care. Save your fake concern for Mark." She shunned, bringing out her laptop and placing it gently on her desk.
"Touché." he winced.
She picked up the telephone, punched some keys and dialed without meeting his eyes.
"Janice? It's me.
Gather everyone in the conference room. I'll be there shortly."
Click.
Then silence.
She looked at him, her gaze unreadable.
"You ready to work under me, Jared?"
His mouth curved a little. "Always have been, Mina."
Her heart did a little flip thing which she immediately subdued. His voice, damn. It always had her on an edge of falling for him again. But this time, she was ready to fall off Mount Everest instead.
"Good." She stood up, straightening her skirt. "Let's get this over with."
The meeting room was filled with the soft hum of laptops and a faint scent of air freshener. The team- five of her best staff- sat waiting.
Conversations died down as she walked in. Everyone sensed it. The tension.
Jared walked in after her, trying his best to not be noticeable. Where was his confidence when he needed it?
He sat opposite her at the long table. The nameplate in front of him read "Jared Onfroy - Project Manager (SK Group)". These people were fast. He showed up only yesterday and they already had a nameplate for him. He wondered who ordered it.
"Good morning, everyone." Mina's voice was crisp, professional.
"As you all know, SK Group officially begins work with us today. Mr. Onfroy here will be our point of contact from their end.
A hum of polite murmurs swept through the office. Jared nodded, his lips pressed tightly into a straight line.
One of the interns, a bubbly staff(who was very smart she quickly became loved by all including Mina), Nia, whispered to the person closest to her, "he's kinda cute, no cap."
Mina's sharp ears caught it immediately and she almost smiled. "He was. Now he's management."
They all chuckled.
Jared didn't smile. But his eyes held a hint of admiration. Mina still had that commanding presence that was impossible to ignore.
"Now, let's dive into the derivables." She said, clicking through slides.
While Jared spoke, explaining projections, aligning timelines and suggesting adjustments, Mina found herself looking at his hands, his gestures calm and deliberate.. like he was still the man who fixed her dinner when she worked late.
Once or twice, he caught her staring and she looked away quickly, her eyes unreadable.
After forty-five long minutes, the meeting finally wrapped up.
Mina gathered her notes. "Thanks, everyone. We reconvene Friday to review progress."
As the staff filed out, Jared lingered.
"You handled that.. like a pro." he said carefully.
Mina rolled her eyes. "I am a pro."
"I know." He smiled faintly. "I used to be part of the reason why you stayed up late working, perfecting your pitches."
"Yeah, true." She said, sliding her laptop into her bag. "You're also part of the reason I started drinking expresso at midnight."
"Fair enough." He chuckled.
She turned to leave, but he said quietly, "i meant what I said yesterday though."
Her hand froze at the door handle.
"I never stopped thinking about you."
She just stood there with her back to him, her heart pounding in her ears. Dear God, could it get any worse?
Then she turned slightly, her hand tightening on the door handle. "Well, you should've done something more useful with your time."
"Maybe this project is my way of doing that." He said, hopefully.
"Good. Then let's keep it strictly business, Mr. Onfroy. I don't mix the two anymore." She turned the knob.
Jared took two steps forward. "You did before."
"Yeah, and look where it got me." She walked out quickly and shut the door behind her before her knees, already weak, would give in in front of her regret.
Jared rubbed his face with his palms, guilt creeping up his throat.
She was different now. Colder.
"And it's all my fault." He muttered.
"I never stopped thinking about you." He whispered again, to the silence. "And I don't think i ever will."
Outside, Mina walked down the hallway, trying her best to steady herself. With the corner of her eyes, she caught another intern, Bernice, disappearing into a room, as if trying to hide, and guessed she had been eavesdropping.
"Focus, Mi. This is work. He's work. Nothing more."
Then why did his voice still sound like home?