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He had forced me to go climbing again, despite my numerous protests. While I didn’t end up with another injured eye, Imanaged to climb the wall with as much grace as a fish flopping around for air. He also dragged me on several challenging hikes—one of which, I twisted my ankle. I also had a gnarly scrape up my right leg from when we went mountain biking before the season ended.
He was either trying to bond with me or trying to kill me. I couldn’t tell at this point.
“Try these.” Oliver set down another pair of boots in front of me.
“Look, I’m not so sure this is a good idea.”
“It’s a terrible idea,” Harrison piped up from the next aisle over. Why he had continued to tag along on all of our outings was beyond me.
“For once we agree on something,” I mumbled.
“Nathan, you’ve got to do this with me. I’m an instructor. I got you.”
“You’re also a rock climbing instructor,” I pointed out.
“And you’re showing improvement!” he exclaimed.
Harrison chuckled. “I don’t think managing to avoid bodily harm is the same as showing improvement.”
“Sure it is,” Oliver insisted. “That’s the first step to any of these sports.”
“Why can’t I have a brother that just wants to grab dinner?” I grumbled as I stuffed my foot into yet another uncomfortable casing.
“How boring would that be? You’re lucky to have me or all you’d do is work.”
“What’s wrong with that?” I stood, rocking back and forth. While still tight, my toe was not scrunched up against the tip of the boot in these.
“It’s idiotic to waste your life like that,” Oliver said. “What are you doing after this?”
“Probably going to head to the office to check on—”
“See?” Oliver threw his hands up exasperatedly, looking to Harrison for support. Harrison stared at him blankly.
“Maybe Nathan isn’t cut out for a social life. It’s hard to find friends when you’re that disagreeable.”
“You’re one to talk,” I shot back.
“Just because I don’t like you, doesn’t mean I’m disagreeable,” Harrison pointed out.
Oliver ignored our incessant bickering like he always did. “What about Charlie?” he asked. “From trivia.”
“What about her?” I ignored the sharp pang in my chest at the mention of her name.
I had effectively removed her from my mind these past few weeks. If I didn’t think about her, I couldn’t think how badly I wanted a repeat of that night. One that involved me grabbing her face and kissing her back fiercely instead of pushing her away. Normally it was easy for me to forget about women and focus on work. But with Charlie, I had to see her every day in the office. I had to watch as her hair bounced every time she rushed to a meeting. I had to try to ignore her intoxicating scent as she leaned over me to point something out on my computer.
It irritated me to admit that she was driving me mad.
“She seemed cool, and best of all—she seemed to actually like you.”
Harrison rolled his eyes. “Debatable.”
“I’m her boss,” I said.
“Who cares?”
“The company. The board,” I pointed out.
“Who gives a shit?” Oliver pressed. “For once, be Nathan first and your weird corporate alter ego second. You liked her, I could tell.”
