Divorced, But Not Broken
Divorced, but Not broken Chapter 190

"Hey, Theresa, you want to go grab lunch?" I looked up seeing the man that was smiling at me. I think his name was Theo, or maybe it was Ted; I couldn't remember when I made a nod against the bag on my desk with an apologetic smile. I was soo not going anywhere with him. "I'm good but thank you." I wasn't that grateful when he made a slight nod, getting that I was rejecting him or whatever he was doing. He worked on this floor, and I sure didn't want to eat with anyone alone, and that could be considered more intimate than a business lunch. "Right, you are working way harder than Malcolm ever did... I have seen the numbers, and the boss knows you, right? the big dog?" He smiled, pointing up when I followed his finger. Yes, I did know him, but that changed nothing. Joseph wasn't that sentimental when he was around the office. He had never invited me to eat or do anything more than do my job, which was perfectly fine with me. I had no other intention than to show that smug bastard that I wasn't as stupid as he always was telling me to my face. "Mr. Miller? yes. I know him; he is the one that provided me this job, so that means I am not going to f**k this up for anyone...." I made a slight scowl at the end towards the man, he was my age, and he was wearing a suit. They all were when I had made sure nobody showed up for f*****g casual Friday all week. Yeah, they could hate me all they liked for doing that. I was not risking my job for anything!

"That's great! I mean, you are getting this opportunity. Not a lot of girls like you make it in here... I could point out where you want to avoid in the future..." he made a smirk that I didn't get. What was he really telling me? A girl like me? I wasn't a girl. I was a woman and his supervisor that wanted some damn respect no matter how much he was staring at my a*s when he thought I couldn't see him.

"You know Ted, as I said before, I'm good." His smirk dropped when I knew that I had said the wrong name, so maybe it was Theo; then, I noted that he was easily offended and someone to watch out for in the future.

"It's Todd." He groaned when I smiled back, beaming at him, Todd. Fucking Todd. He was so going to get my attention and not in the way he had hoped for.

"Alright... if that was all then, Todd..." I smiled more when he was still standing in my office, another temp girl over by the secretary's desk and giving me a muffled giggle seeing poor Todd walk out again, clearly upset that he hadn't been able to seduce me with that smile that people found attractive.

"Asshole..." I was hissing it when the door closed, looking at my lunch before tossing it. I didn't want what was in it anyway. Buck had messaged me that he wanted to meet up at the end of the week. He wanted Kira to stay with him for a week or two back home with the boys, and to be honest, nothing would make me happier, not just for me, but for Kira. She needed him more than I ever did, f**k... f*****g hell...I don't know how we were staying so fucking civilized, but I was grateful, I was, even if I still hadn't forgiven him, for anything.

"Theresa Larsen..." I said the name more naturally now, answering the phone, I didn't feel like a Theresa, and honestly, I still wasn't sure that I reacted fast enough when somebody said that name; I still was Andrea, no matter how much I didn't want to be, Andrea f*****g Wilson, still f*****g up her life with stupid decisions.

"Please tell me that you look decent today!?" I frowned, hearing the familiar voice, wanting to snap back at him. What did he mean by decent? I was wearing a blouse and skirt, the same as every other woman that wasn't in a pantsuit in this building. "Joseph, shut up. I'm decent and working. Why are you even calling me?" I was about to hang up, knowing that would piss him off, we had snapped a few times when I was off, but he had never called me directly, not during business hours.

"I need you; I have something that I can't trust anyone else with or... well, I don't want anyone else to come along...." I made a frown hearing that. What did that mean? Was it illegal? I mean, I bet it wasn't common knowledge he had worked for the mob. No matter what he had done, it still counted.

"Please don't tell me you did something idiotic?" He made a smirk back, and I know he did like he was having fun mouthing off against me. He missed me, that a*****e.

"No, like I said before, left that life behind me...." He paused when I moaned. What did he need me for anyway? I was just a low-level desk worker in his big-time company.

"No more bullshit. You don't need me, so there is something else. I'm not stupid, Joseph..." I was about to hang up again when he sighed like it was hard to tell when he was lying; it wasn't. He wasn't good at it. Not his strong suit.

"Fine, you got me. I want you for your pretty face, alright? I am going to have dinner with some clients, and I don't want some whore climbing me when she is just there to make sure that I look good." I started to laugh at that, a pretty face, was I? that fucker, he wanted me to put on a dress and show them my tits, was that it!?

"No." I hung up now, ignoring the signals that were coming inside and the girl by the desk that was coming inside with angry messages for me to pick up that I was tearing up into the trashcan before looking at the screen again, not giving a shit about Joseph and his problems.

The door came open when I could hear him cursing from a mile ahead, people hiding or trying to say hi, seeing the man running this place. He was after my head, stepping inside the small office and slamming the door behind him.

"Why the fuck aren't you were taking my calls, I'm your boss!?" he was snarking when I leaned back to look at him. He was sweating, looking not as flawless when I did a snicker, fumbling the pen in my hand around. He really was desperate, wasn't he? "Sure you are babe, and I'm still telling you now... having dinner and showing off my tits, no matter how great they are, is not part of my job discretion...." Joseph stopped half-pacing the small office, staring at me like I was crazy. What? Didn't he miss me and the good times we had told the other one to go to hell?

"I hate you." He leaned forward, looking even scarier. No doubt that if I didn't know him, I would have been scared shitless by now, but I did. He was freaking out, and he wanted me to help clean up something that I didn't want to be, a whore that just was there to make sure some guys had something to stare at.

"I love you too... now, boss, get out and let me work, my sitter gets off at four, and she is expensive on overtime...." I was nodding towards the door when Joseph made a growl like he couldn't believe I was so stubborn; well, maybe he didn't know me then... "Alright, you want the truth, I am meeting my parents, and I don't want them to know I'm gay, okay? That's the big fucking secret, and I don't want to spend money on some call girl, getting some fucking expensive agency to believe I want their services! You owe me, Andrea, big time!" He was now down on the small chair, uncomfortable when I raised my eyebrows; his parents didn't know he was gay? Oh god, please don't let them be catholic, at least... I had enough of that to last a lifetime.... F*****g headache. "You want me to be your girlfriend, is that it?" I was smirking now, not caring that he clearly needed me too, so what? He was never nice to me when I was in pain; he showed me he was nice when I was about to break down.

"Yes. I want your sorry ass that still looks okay for having three kids to pretend to be my girlfriend and make my mother happy. Is that so hard?" He sounded more annoyed when I nodded okay, so he did want me to be his pretend girlfriend; at least he was honest

now.

"Joseph, you are twenty-four... Can't you just get some girl, ask her out and tell he whatever she wants to hear? Plenty of younger girls out there wouldn't mind doing whatever for you if you made it worth their time?" I was smirking more because I knew he was hating that, hating me telling him to go get some girl that didn't know his rules, he didn't want to be touched and he didn't want to be friendly unless he was having something to gain at it, that much was still clear, even if he had gained some social skills. "Who the fuck said I was twenty-four? I'm twenty-six!" He made an offended face like there was a big difference in my world, but there wasn't. Funny how shit like that was important in your twenties.

"Oh, I see... you thought that I was just as old as your stupid boyfriend? I'm not." He looked even more offended when I shrugged. Okay, so he was two years older than Jonah, and clearly, that was my mistake. He did have a babyface, and nothing could change that. He could still tell me he was nineteen, and I would believe him behind his glasses.

"He is not my boyfriend; he is nothing to me!" I was the one grinding my teeth now, after what Buck had told me, Jonah paying him to keep track of me, making sure I didn't disappear or do something stupid. Jonah was the last man I wanted to see in the entire world!

"Fine! baby daddy then, whatever you called him...." I sighed hearing that baby daddy... yeah, I guess that was the closest thing he could have been, seeing that he was engaged half the time and married the other half when we had a relationship. "Can't you just reach into your cold heart and put on a goddam dress and help me out?!" Joseph was up again, staring at me like he could make me do anything that I didn't want, or maybe he was putting on a show for the whole floor that was watching us, whispering why the CEO of the company was in my office and yelling at me for reasons that they didn't know, but oh were going to speculate about.

"I want a raise, and you are paying my babysitter. The agency I'm using isn't cheap, Joseph, but you are!" I was still sitting down, seeing him soften the slightest, the panic over his eyes starting to fade, and we were finally negotiating.

"Deal. it better be a nice dress and not too fucking slutty!" He was just about to get out, sick of my floor that handled private and small-time sales. Nothing he was even interested in, me either, but I was good at it, I was, and there was nothing to be ashamed over. "Oh, and I want some new furniture on this floor! I hate the sofas, and this chair is not fucking ergonomic for anyone!" I was yelling it to his back when I knew he heard me and didn't care, f**k him! I made a victorious smile when he was already gone, stepping inside one of the two elevators and having his PA by his side again, looking nervous. I bet he was the one that had made an escort suggestion, poor bastard.