Better than I remember

Chapter one hundred and fifty-four

"What do you say, Miss Houston?"

What? What was he saying again? Her mind had drifted far away. What was he asking her?

"About?" She questioned. 

"It scares me sometimes that you lose focus rather too soon. But again, I can't but praise my beautiful face when you do that. Until I met you, I had no idea that the effect my face could bring was this intense." Xander gloated. 

By now, she should have a record of Mr Williams' smugness. She snorted and rolled her eyes at him in reply. She couldn't even find the right words to say. 

"But then, since I'm the cause of your lack of focus, I'll repeat myself. What do you say about going grocery shopping with me?" 

"No, never," came her sharp reply. There was no way in the world that she would go grocery shopping with Mr Williams. She couldn't imagine doing that. She'd rather do that all by herself. His presence would only complicate matters for her. 

"Why?" His voice was calm and somehow, it was soothing. Was he trying to make her mind hazy? One moment, he's cold another moment, his voice made her resolve to crumble and turned her heart into a molten lava cake.

"I- I don't want to. I love shopping alone," she blinked her eyes away, trying to focus. She hoped that he wouldn't pry further. 

"5:00 pm." He said, turning the conversation around. 

Anna was sure that she wasn't in the right frame of mind when she made the deal with him. She worked on weekends at the office. Although, she closed earlier from work, having to go grocery shopping coupled with cooking for Mr Williams after a hectic day at work would be so cumbersome. 

"Well, until she comes back," Anna mumbled.

"Well, I'll decide that," he said, reminding her that he was the one in charge.

This man only wanted to torture her and she knew it.

When he finally let her go, she was drained. She slumped on her chair and rested her head on her desk. She was drained mentally and physically. She decided to cool her head off by taking a walk. It was still during lunch hours, so she was sure that she wouldn't be penalized. She found her way to the rooftop. When she reached there, she took in the beautiful view of the sky and inhaled the fresh air, spreading her arms out wide and shutting her eyes. Somehow, she felt tension dissipate from her body and she exhaled. 

She was too engrossed in her little moment that she didn't notice the presence of someone else beside her.

"Soothing, isn't it?" Anna heard a deep and gruff masculine voice say and her eyes flew open in astonishment at the realisation that it was Mr Hart. 

"Mr Hart!" She exclaimed. "Where have you been? You're hardly seen. It's so good to see you." Anna could not hide the surprise in her voice.

"Did you take a leave or something?" 

"I'm glad that you noticed my absence." Mr Hart said, flashing Anna a grin.

"Of course, who wouldn't? How have you been?" 

"Well, I've been better than I was." His hands were behind him as he spoke. That was Mr Hart's signature pose. He'd often intertwine his fingers and keep them at his behind. 

"That's so glad to hear!" Anna exclaimed again, beaming at him.

"How is it going between you and the CEO? I believe that you must have go8tten accustomed to him by now." 

Had she? Well, she had because she knew him better now, except that no matter how accustomed she'd gotten to him, he still seemed like a hard nut to crack.

"Well, maybe he's not as bad as I thought, but that doesn't mean that I don't see him like a riddle wrapped up in an enigma sometimes." She smiled softly at Mr Hart who chuckled at her choice of words. 

"I see that you've been coping. Well at least, your description of him now is way better than how I remember it." Anna laughed and Mr Hart joined in. 

"Well, you are better than I remember too, Mr Hart." Anna succeeded in using his words against him.

"How?" He said, his curious eyes searching hers.

"The last time I checked, you used to have this stolid expression on your face," Anna said, gesticulating with her hand. 

"But now, I can see that you've loosened up. I mean, you're laughing at my corny jokes now."