CONTRACT LOVE

My obnoxious roommate knocked on my door to wake me up for work, and that's when I woke up.

He throws a pillow at where I was curled up in my covers, screaming, "El, get the hell up before were late, you little b*tch,"

I groggily murmur, "Mm, five more minutes."

The warm covers were snatched from my half-naked body in a split second. When the chilly air touched my flesh, I winced. "Nate," I cried.

My roommate Nate is also my best buddy in the entire world. No, this isn't one of those sappy romance books where the lady secretly loves her best friend and he feels the same way. Nate isn't attracted to women sexually. When we first met, I'll admit that I was a little disappointed to learn that Nate was gay. But hey, I still adore the dork.

After we received our undergraduate degrees, Nate and I moved in together. We have a cute modest flat in Manhattan's streets. We were employed as interns at Olivia Global over a year ago with the expectation of being shortly promoted to full-time employees.

He puts an outfit on the bed for me and says, "Up and at 'em, Ella. We're going to be late if you don't hop in the shower. I'll spit in the deliciously prepared breakfast I made you.

I jumped out of the bed and stormed out of the room, but not before glaring at Nate the entire time. Quickly, the warm water gushing from the shower head soothed my stiff muscles. I washed my hair, which I would shortly blow dry after taking a shower, and scrubbed my body clean.

I quickly dried myself after the shower and put on the lovely outfits my roommate had chosen for the day.

I took my heels out of my room and set them on the bar stool before sitting down next to them. The French toast Nate had made for me sat in front of me, looking better than ever. I wasted no time in diving into the delicious food, despite not having eaten in days.

Nate hummed amusingly, "Hm." I groaned back, and he laughed, "You'd die without me in your life, El." We need to get to the office quickly before the CEO, the hot Michael Olivia, reprimands us.

I smirk, "Wouldn't mind that at all."

He responds dreamily, "Hmm, me neither. If I say so myself, that dude is a magnificent piece of art. "I wouldn't mind kissing every square inch of that man's body underneath his suits."

I teased him, "Hmm." "Too bad his straight then, aye?"

Nate gave me a sneering look as he snatched his fancy wallet off the kitchen table. Saying, "Shut it Ella. I know he wants to play for my team but his obviously too scared to admit his feelings for me."

As I sipped my juice, I laughed at my friend who was still in denial. Nate couldn't wait any longer, so he dragged me out of our apartment and toward our workplace. I gave him the side-eye as he hurried us into Olivia Global. When we arrived, the elevators dinged to let us know.

As soon as I exited the elevator, I noticed all of my other students hurrying about and appearing to be focused on the specific assignment that Mr. Olivia had assigned.

Nate alerted me about the upcoming board meeting before I could enter my tiny office, and I appreciate him for doing so. I carried the papers into the tiny room I use for my office and grabbed my MacBook Pro so I could make notes. I made sure to stop at the break room and pour myself a vanilla latte before heading over to the board meeting room.

Nate growled at Isabella, "Get moving." I want to sit close to Mr. Olivia's nice *ss, please.

Nate's excitement to see our boss, who resembled a goddamn runway model, made me giggle. We sped over to the boardroom and noticed a few individuals standing around talking carelessly. Nate virtually pushed me under the table in the direction of Mr. Olivia's usual seat. As he took a seat next to me, I frowned at him and did the same.

While we waited for Mr. Olivia, I opened Microsoft Word on my Mac and created a blank page so that I could make any necessary notes.

I was sipping my coffee and listening to Nate chat about this handsome guy he met at Starbucks the other day when the goddess herself entered the board room through the large, dark doors. Mr. Olivia was attired in a dark blue tie, a tailored white dress shirt, and a grey suit. His hair was fashioned in a David Beckham-inspired jellied back look, which I simply wanted to run my fingers over.

Every lady in the room, including Nate and I, virtually swooned at the young Chief in editor. His shoulders were drawn back in a confident manner as he walked, his jaw clinched to show off his exquisite jaw structure and his eyes glared ahead of him. I got up and fixed my clothes as he moved to his seat. I then approached him, pulled out his seat, and placed his customary coffee in front of him.

Mr. Olivia's perpetually somber expression brightened as he acknowledged my gifts. I stepped out from behind the chair to sit next to Nate as he grinned and sat down.

He warmly smiled at me and said, "Well, well, well, if isn't my trusty little intern," which caused my ovaries to swell up.

His smile was most likely the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. His teeth were as white and evenly spaced as the people in the Colgate advertisements. He had the most stunning soft brown eyes, and his dimple—also known as my weakness—peaked on the side of his face.

When he called me by my name, I flushed and looked down at my lap.

He grinned and said "adorable" to himself, but I overheard him clearly, and my cheeks grew even redder as a result. I caught a glimpse of Nate smirking to himself as he watched me act timidly out of the corner of my eye.

Nate said, "You innocent soul," and I punched him beneath the table.

With the icy CEO's expression returning to his immaculate face, Mr. Michael Olivia demands in a stern voice, "Alright, everyone settle into your seats, please." We must calm down and talk over everyone's monthly assignments.

Around the room, there was muttering about their upcoming tasks. He commanded, "Quiet down." Everyone in the room grew silent and returned their focus to Mr. Michael Olivia. Now go ahead and shoot me some ideas folks, what do you all have for me? "Now everybody shoot out some of your ideas and if I like it I'll assign it to you or give it to somebody else who I think can handle the job better."