Chapter 28: Her Lovers' Touch, Part 10, Richard's Question

RICHARD

My mouth is dry....

Come on man. You're not scared of one little girl....

Liar....

I suck around my teeth and gums trying, fruitlessly, to work up some saliva, then settle for popping a mint and sucking it for a minute before knocking on the door.

"Come in."

She's there, looking out of the window. It's a view worth looking at, a vast cityscape, over old and new, demolished and rebuilt, my vision and James' for the new City.

This isn't the average trainee's office. Charlotte has earned, more than earned her privileges, and I made sure that in our new office building, built after the last one was gutted by fire, that she was given an appropriate working space.

She reacts as I enter....

Not expected the Boss to drop by....

"Hello, Richard. I didn't expect to see you here." She shifts from one foot to the other. "Um, is there something I can do for you?"

"Hello, Charlotte...."

Oh, God... Where to start...?

My nerve fails. "You like your new office?"