Love's Bitter Edge (Eva and Leonard)

"Sleep?" I almost choked after I heard what he said. My face turned red as I raised my head and looked at him.

Jack chuckled helplessly. "What's on your mind, Eva?"

He plopped down on the couch and checked his watch. "We only have about five hours, Eva. I booked an 8:00 am flight. So, we have to sleep while we can." Jack didn't look at me afterward. Instead, he draped a coat over himself. I stared at him in a daze for a long time before I slowly made my way to the bed.

It was just that I just couldn't fall asleep when I listened to his breathing.

"Do you need me to tell you a bedtime story, Eva? Once upon a time..."

I couldn't hold it in anymore. I laughed and said, "That's enough. You don't have to do it."

I hid myself under the blanket and thought about some fairy tales before I drifted off to sleep. It was a restful sleep, and I slept all the way to the next morning.

I had to cancel some of my plans for the day before I could follow Jack to the airport. He was extremely busy; he kept talking on the phone and reading reports during our journey.

For several times now, I had wanted to talk to Jack about work. However, I remained quiet when I saw how busy he was. After we got onto the plane, he didn't have any free time either; he was still reading documents on his laptop. Jack seemed to sense my gaze. He turned around and looked at me. "Is there anything you want to talk to me about?"

"Not really. Go ahead and focus on your work." I smiled with embarrassment.

Compared to him, I looked like an employee who wasn't serious about her job. So, I also took out my laptop. I wanted to check if there was any issue with my design.

The next thing I knew, someone closed my laptop.

"Get some rest. We'll be there soon. It's very tiring to look at these documents on the plane."

"Aren't you doing the same?" I mumbled.

Jack chuckled and closed his laptop as well. "Alright. We'll both stop looking at documents. Let's catch a nap, alright?"

I stared into Jack's affectionate

gaze and felt as if my face was

I

burning up. So, I quickly closed my eyes. With that said, I seemed to be able to sleep faster with him around. Case in point, I fell asleep in less

than five minutes. Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

By the time Jack called out my name, the plane had already touched down at the airport. "It's time for us to go back, Eva. If you're tired, how about I send you back to the apartment?"

I wiped the saliva at the corner of my lips and quickly shook my head. There was an uphill battle waiting for me today. If I took the offer and went back to my apartment, Jack would have to fight the battle in my stead.

When Jack and I went back to the company, I preemptively stopped him and said, "Um... Can you stay out here for a couple of minutes? All I need is a couple of minutes. If they find out that I walked in with you, they probably won't make things difficult for me."

"Don't you want that?" Jack looked at me, feeling puzzled.

I hurriedly shook my head. "They wouldn't be able to do anything to me. I just want to know how it feels when they have to beg me for something after learning that they can't get rid of me. Is that alright?"

I smiled at Jack somewhat flatteringly while his lips curled into a charming grin.

"Alright. I'll give you three minutes, okay?"

I immediately nodded and quickly headed to the elevator. I wasn't sure why, but I didn't want my colleagues to know about my relationship with Jack. At the same time, I was aware that we weren't in any sort of relationship right now.

When the elevator arrived at the floor, I heard Mr. Finnley's guttural roar.

"It's just a simple design. How is it that no one in the entire department can finish it? Why do I even keep you morons around?"

Several of my colleagues lowered their heads, and no one dared to look at Mr. Finnley. I walked over to the office door and knocked gently. "So, do you need my help?"