chapter 7

Cassey (P.O.V)

"Do you like it?" Andrea asked again.

I couldn't believe this was happening. Today's photo was more complex than the one from yesterday. It was the one from the day we realized we were more than just friends. This one was larger, framed and almost filling two-fifths of the wall above my desk.

A smaller version sat on my desk, a different photo from the day we won the basketball tournament. We were grinning like fools with Andrea kissing my cheek in the picture.

That was the day my heart felt like it might burst. The day I realized I loved her, not just as a friend, but in a romantic way. And beyond our victory, it was a day that marked something even deeper. More importantly, it was the day we gave ourselves to each other. The nervous fumbling, the kisses as we discovered each other, all of it. The day I had felt the greatest sense of freedom and euphoria.

But now, all I could do was stare at the photo. With my heart drumming in my chest and my breathing coming out shallow pants. Why this picture? Of all the moments we shared, why this one? It made me remember how happy we were, and how happy we could still be if she had never left.

"What's the meaning of this?" I asked, my voice dangerously low. The memories where now flooding back full force. Memories I had tried sending hard to forget.

"Cass..."

"No! Stop!" I cut her off sharply.

This was too much. The walls around seemed to close in on me. I couldn't stay in the same room as her. Not with her this close. She could tell when I was breaking, and I knew it. So, I did what I knew best. I stood up and walked out, leaving her and all the memories behind.

I wandered blindly, my thoughts spinning, until I found myself in the showroom's master bedroom. I paced back and forth, trying to calm my nerves, but it was futile. My mouth felt dry, my body was on fire, and it was as if the unease only kept on intensifying. My mind was chaotic, and the thought of quitting crept to the forefront. But I pushed it away quickly. I wasn't going to run from a job I needed. I wouldn't be like her, abandoning something important to me. Andrea couldn't make me walk away. I just had to endure it until I could find something else.

The sound of the door opening made me freeze. Andrea was here. This time, I had a feeling Andrea wouldn't let it go until I acknowledged her, or until we faced whatever was left between us

"I don't know what you aim to get from this, Cassey," Andrea said seriously. "But it has to end today."

"Nothing's ending," I replied coldly " And you can't just hang a picture like that in your office. What's wrong with you—" I stopped myself before I cursed Andrea out.

Standing before me, Andrea looked intimidating but undeniably hot in her casual official outfit. The dark skinny jean paired well with her blue blazer as it accentuated her frame. "No! Not beautiful," I chastised myself under my breath.

"Cass, please, let's talk," Andrea said pleadingly.

I shook my head. "Look, Ma'am, I don't know why you keep insisting I'm someone I'm not! This whole thing—this cycle—we keep going over it, over and over, and frankly, it's becoming annoying," I gestured at her antics.

"I could never confuse you with anyone else," she said, voice soft but firm. "I don't know why you're pretending you don't remember me or us, but I know you do. I remember us."

"Please stop."

"And your face told me everything when you looked at the picture. You can't avoid the truth anymore, Cass."

I stepped back, trying to push away the rising emotions. "I don't have to pretend or remember something that never happened, Ma'am," I snapped. "You... you," I pointed my finger at her, but it felt weak, as if I wasn't even convincing myself anymore. "You're wrong."

"Then why did you walk out after seeing the picture?" she asked softly, moving closer.

"Stop! Damn it! I don't want to talk about this anymore! What's so hard about that," I shouted, my frustrations finally bubbling over. "I'm speaking Greek or something. What's so hard to understand! I don't know you!"

"Liar. Why did you walk out then?" Andrea pressed, unwilling to let it go. She slammed her fist into the wall in pure anger. I knew she would never hurt me, Andrea wouldn't dare, but her anger still scared me.

"I don't know what you mean," I lied. "I just came here to arrange some things in here. We might have some prospective buyers later. Miss Reya Davies is coming to see it. You know, the show house. We should get back to work, Ma'am."

I tried to push past her, but Andrea swirled in front of me, locking the door and planting herself in my path.

"Move."

"No!" she fiercely countered back. "You're not leaving until you drop this stupid act. Not until you tell me why you hate me so much."

Was she serious? She needed to know why I hated her? She knew why. She had made me hate her.

"Just drop it already, Andrea!" I shouted, all my anger spilling out. "Why can't you leave it alone?"

"I won't," she said firmly. "Not this time. You're not going anywhere until you admit it. You can't keep on pretending anymore. It's killing me. I know you feel it, Cass. The truth that is right in front of you."

"I won't accept shit!" I shouted, feeling the heat rise in my chest. "You can go fuck yourself, Andy. I'm leaving this room whether you like it or not."

I stormed toward the door, but before I could reach it, she shoved me back. I stumbled, taking a step back, then another, until the back of my knees hit the bedpost.

"Get out of my way, Andy," I warned, feeling the tension thick in the air. "I'm serious. Move!"

She didn't move. I tried to muscle my way past her again, but this time she pushed me harder, forcing me closer to the bed. My heart raced as a wave of tension flooded the room

"Enough," Andrea murmured.

Then, it sounded. The whack.

The slap was so sudden, I didn't have time to think. It wasn't much, but it was enough to make Andrea's head snap to the side, her face turning sharply.

Andrea stared at me, her eyes burning with fury. Then, without warning, she shoved me onto the bed. With her following soon after as she moved over me, all fire and force.

"Get off me, Andy!" I murmured, struggling to break free. Drawing attention to ourselves would only raise questions among our colleagues, questions I wasn't ready to face.

She straddled me instead, her hands pinning my arms above my head. There was no escaping this. I could tell from the look in Andrea's eyes. I went still, my breath coming faster from our earlier struggle.

"Andy please."

"So now I'm not Ma'am now?" Andrea taunted, her voice dripping with amusement.

I glared up at her, my heart pounding in my chest. What was happening? Why was my body reacting like this? Her grey eyes locked onto mine, as if reading me, seeing right through me.

Andrea leaned down, her hot breath fanning my ear. "I want an apology, Cass. For being a spoiled brat and... and for slapping me."

"In your dreams, Andy," I spat defiantly despite the tremble in my voice. "You had it coming. Now get off me."

Her sweet scent flooded my senses, and for a moment, I lost myself in it. No matter how hard I fought, my body ached for her as she pressed closer. It felt wrong, but it also felt so right.

I couldn't fight it. Fight her. Her touch, her voice, it was like poison, addicting and impossible to ignore. The feelings I'd try to forget rushing back, overwhelming me.

My fingers gripped her hair, pulling Andrea even closer as my mind spiraled out of control.

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