Slipperless (7 page)

Amanda made a slow turn of her head and to make certain no one eavesdropped.

“You’re good.” Melissa said in low voice, encouraging her. “No one's listening. Go ahead.”

“Well, I wouldn’t exactly say the fox is in the hen house when it comes to Gabe and the single women around here, but it’s close...”

“I would.” Melissa snorted, interrupting her.

Amanda pressed her index finger to her lips as she hushed her. “Shhh, quiet.”

Melissa nodded and made a zipper motion across her lips.

As she finished, Amanda turned her attention back towards me. “And since all of us girls in the lab are married, we only hear things.”

I let go of my spoon and as I did it clinked against the inside of the bowl. “Things? Like what?”

Over the next several minutes, my jaw drifted open in disbelief as the two of them relayed the tales of Gabe’s conquests. The rumor was he was an
incredible
lover. And, for those women who didn't demand anything beyond that from him, perks aplenty followed his seduction.

I wasn’t sure whether I should feel intrigued or disgusted. I sensed both emotions at various times as they spoke. Office politics, gossip about romance and the boss’ sexual prowess were all new territory for me. Frankly, they seemed to be…
infatuated
with him.

As they finished, Melissa directed a comment at me.

“We both saw the way you looked at him in the conference room the other day. What was that all about?”

Still processing the meaning behind their story, I hesitated for a moment before I answered.

“What? What do you mean?”

“Come on, Fiona.” Amanda added. “If there’s something going on, you can tell us.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I hadn’t given them any reason to be suspicious. And besides, it’s not like he expressed any interest of the kind in me. What had happened so far amounted mostly to him teasing me and being annoyingly charming at the same time. It was hardly the start of a romance. Anyway, I didn’t want to even entertain the notion with them, and so I dismissed it.

“If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather not be involved in office innuendo about him. I need this job.”

The women traded devious glances.

“It’s not gossip if it’s true, Fiona. And anyway, you can trust us,” Melissa chided after a few moments of silence.

“Yeah,” Amanda began. “You mean to tell me you don’t think Gabe is just…
mmm
.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing from them. These were
grown
women, married no less! This was a
professional
lab in a company performing some of the most groundbreaking work anywhere in biotechnology. But right now, it felt as if I was in the midst of a group of silly high school girls crushing on the captain of the football team.

And Gabe… After he’d changed my opinion of him with his eloquent, articulate manner in the conference room the other day, I felt confused. By the looks of things, he did next to nothing to discourage this type of chatter, if it was false. If it was true, well, then that was a whole other thing.

But in any case, I had far too much at risk to get involved in any of this. Whatever it took, I’d have to distance myself from his advances, if they came. But I worried. What if he wasn’t just teasing me for his own amusement? What would I do if he really did try something? What would it mean to reject him?

Especially after what they’d said about ‘not making waves’.

I wasn’t sure how I felt. Technically, he hadn’t done anything wrong. And yes, he was charming. And funny. And flattering. But he was also annoying.

Even so, behavior like this would merit sexual harassment complaints in most circumstances. Was he
so irresistible
these women would put aside their common sense and good judgment for a silly fling with the boss, a chance at it or just a smattering of his attention?

By the way Amanda and Melissa talked, the answer was an unequivocal ‘yes’. They made no mention of harassment or abuse of any kind. In fact, it was the complete opposite. They almost seemed disappointed he hadn't tried anything with them!

I sighed. Without responding, I gathered up my things.

“I have to get back to work.”

With reluctance and a bit of grumbling, they obliged.

Later that same afternoon, I was back at the lab. I happened to be going over some perplexing results when, during a moment of deep thought, I glanced up towards the entrance. As I did, I noticed Gabe enter the room. I looked at him for a fraction of a second before looking back down at my paperwork. It was the first time I’d seen him since he winked at me in the conference room.

I listened as he began to walk around and chat with my coworkers. In addition to rumors about his dalliances, I’d heard other things about him. One of those being that he made a regular habit of doing walkabouts to motivate and encourage his employees.

Which of the two was this visit?

I swallowed hard, hoping he’d ignore me. Afterward, I reached for my pen, determined to not let myself get distracted by his presence. But my resolve didn’t last long. Right away, I fretted my way through a number of scenarios in my mind. All of them ended with me being humiliated as the lone object of his attention.

Usually, solutions to problems came quickly to me, and without fail they were accurate. When it came to him though, my thoughts randomized and failed to follow logic. Just as often, I found myself less sure of my response than when I started.

It was unusual, to be sure. I grimaced at my inability to control it.

The sound of him chatting with my coworkers broke the relative silence of the lab. Hearing the tone of his voice focused my plan of action and sharpened my focus. If he happened to come over to me, I’d have to be ready.

No matter what, I’d keep it professional… no more teasing and flirting. I’d have to put an end to it before it went any further. Not that it would, mind you. He might still press on with his behavior, but I didn’t spend all this time and energy to ‘fool around with the boss’.

This was it.

But then, all of a sudden, Gabe was upon me. I hadn’t even heard him approach. For no sooner had I steeled my resolve than he stood mere feet away.

Damn lab booties.

Gabe made his way around my workstation, and  I glanced up to see if anyone happened to be looking. Not only was
everyone
watching but Melissa and Amanda were grinning like idiots.

“Lab coat fits to your liking I see.” Gabe said as he gestured towards my partially covered hands. “And here I thought you'd turned a corner.”

I tried not to smile at his comment. Instead, I twisted my expression into a face of displeasure.

“So this is how it begins…” I muttered.

Gabe paused for a moment and did a double take. “What’s that?”

“Hmm?” I said as I looked up at him. “Oh nothing.”

While a part of me felt a sudden urge to challenge him, my more pragmatic side thought better of it. And anyway, even though our banter had been playful, I had no idea how he’d respond if I accused him of wanting to involve me in an office tryst. In fact, when I realized how close I’d come to being caught at my attempt at an insult, adrenaline coursed through my veins with a fantastic shock.

It
terrified
and
thrilled
me at once.

In spite of my internal reaction, Gabe seemed unaware or unaffected. Either way, he shifted the interaction to the work I’d been doing. We discussed the issue I had with the lab results in good bit of detail. I wasn’t sure why, but once again, Gabe’s knowledge impressed me.

It was going to take some getting used to. You know what they say about first impressions. Still, I’d have to get past it and the sooner the better. After all, he was the CEO.

More so, by the time we’d finished our discussion, he had me doubting my own conclusions about the tests. That just didn’t happen. Not in the lab. Not to me.

Ever.

“Well, all right then, enough of that for now.” Gabe began as he leaned away, pointing at my results in the process. “You know what you've got to do?”

I nodded in agreement as he spoke, making notes in my planner.

As I scribbled, Gabe walked around behind me, disappearing from view.  As best I could, I traced his movements with my peripheral gaze, as I didn’t turn my head to follow. Perhaps sensing it, once he’d vanished from sight, he stopped.

“How are things going so far?” he asked. I stopped breathing as he paused. “Are you enjoying it here?”

I nodded but didn’t dare turn. I had the strange sensation he was looking me up and down. Searching my mouth for moisture, I flicked my tongue across my lips before I replied.

“Yes. Thank you.”

“Mmm, hmm,” he replied.

Gabe lingered behind me for a moment or two longer. If this had been
any
other man in
any
other situation, I would have spun around and gotten to the bottom of his disappearing act. The seconds crept by. I froze in place as uneasiness came over me. What the hell was he doing?

Suddenly, he spoke once more.

“Seems as if you’ve attracted some attention from the other ladies in the lab.”

As he finished, I drew my eyes from the charts filled with numbers and looked in the direction of Amanda and Melissa. But no sooner had I done so than they looked away. Gabe reappeared in my peripheral vision. I turned my head in his direction as he entered my line of sight, smirking.

“Everything okay, Fiona?” he said as he narrowed his eyes at me. “You seem… tense.”

I swallowed and tugging a strand of hair behind my ear, I broke eye contact with him and looked back down at my lab work.

“Yes,” I muttered. “Everything is fine.”

“Lying again, I see.”

My eyes darted towards Gabe. His flickered with a mischievous glimmer.

“I can always tell when you are, Fiona. So, don’t make a habit of it.”

As he finished speaking, Gabe turned and began to stroll away from me. Lifting my eyebrows, but not my head, I watched as he meandered through the lab workstations until eventually he reached the doorway and exited the room.

FIONA

Gabe hadn’t been gone for the lab for more than ten or fifteen seconds before Amanda and Melissa descended on me. Weak kneed, I collapsed into my lab stool as they surrounded me on both sides.

“What. The. Hell. Was. That?” Melissa demanded.

“Yeah,” Amanda said as she nodded her head in agreement. “Gabe made a beeline for you. What did he say?”

As they peppered me with questions, I felt the room start to spin. I didn’t want any of this. I just wanted to do my job and be left alone.
Nothing
was happening between us. I wasn’t
encouraging him
to do anything. After propping my elbows up on my workstation, I dropped my head in my hands.

My eyes fluttered closed.

“Please stop,” I mumbled.

They cackled at my request. I felt indignation rise up inside of me. Even though I didn’t suspect they were trying to be cruel per se, the situation was more than I wanted to deal with at the moment. I fell silent and drew inward, squeezing my fingernails hard into my scalp. They chuckled and carried on for a few more seconds until they went quiet as well.

“Fiona honey?” Amanda said after another moment or two. “What’s wrong?”

“Yeah,” Melissa added. “We were only teasing you. Are you okay?”

“Mmm, hmm.”  I muttered as I allowed my hands to fall away from my head. Afterward, I began to stand from my lab stool, scooting it with a groan across the floor. Amanda and Melissa moved aside, giving me room to make my way.

“Are you sure?” Amanda asked. “You don’t look so great.”

It was the last thing I remembered.

When consciousness returned, my eyes flickered open. Glancing down, I noticed I lay flat, on what looked to be a leather sofa. Directly overhead, florescent lighting buzzed and illuminated a harsh glow as I squinted up at it.