"Alright," Jace sighed, "Thanks, man."

Just as he hung up, Ariana walked in looking like nothing had happened. He was certain that he wouldn't have found out about her getting shot if Jack hadn't called to ask if he got safely to the company. He'd gotten curious as to why and had asked.

"Sorry, I'm late."

Jace placed his phone on his desk.
"Everything alright?"

"Hmm-hmm. Yea." She looked into his eyes.

That hurt Jace. That she could lie right to his face.

He got up made his around his desk. He stopped in front of his desk and sat down at the edge.
"How can you look me in the eyes and lie to my face?"

Ariana looked away from him and clenched her jaw knowing who he'd found out from.
"The director shouldn't have told you anything."

"I asked him and besides it's not something classified that you have to hide from me," He was hurt, "I don't know when you're going to start trusting me enough to tell me anything that happens to you."

Ariana looked at me then,
"I'm not here to gain or give my trust. I'm here because I have a job to do and I can't be dopey at it by giving inane information that doesn't concern you."

Jace clenched his jaw so hard he thought he'd break his teeth.
"Inane? You think anything that happens to you is unimportant?" He pushed away from his desk and approached her slowly, "As for trust; how would any of this work if we don't trust each other?"

Ariana stayed quiet as he got closer to her. Jace stopped an arm's length away from her.
"Take your jacket off," It came out as a whisper without him intending for it to.

"What?" Ariana blinked a couple of times at the suggestion of what he said,

"I want to see it."

"See what?"
She was able to breathe again when she realized what he was talking about.

"The bullet wound."

"It's not a wound; barely a scratch."

Jace stayed quiet, his eyes on her unwavering and insisting. Ariana sighed when she knew he wasn't going to back off until he saw it. She reached for the lapels of her jacket, keeping her eyes on him as she took it off. Jace caught the flash of pain on her face which was barely a nanosecond. She pulled off her jacket all the way and held it in her left hand. Jace's gaze shifted from her face to her right arm.

"'Barely a scratch' you say. Why is there a bandage then?"

Ariana was quiet for a moment,
"Extra precaution."

Jace almost smiled at her attempt to make light of the situation,
"You might be a good liar when it comes to federal secrets and information but you're not such a good liar when it comes to the real world."

Jace held her arm and rubbed his thumb beneath the bandage.
"Does it hurt?" He looked at her face,

Ariana looked up at him,

"We're back to 'barely'?"

She smiled
"A little."

"First bullet wound?"

"Third."

Jace raised a brow in question.

"The back of my left shoulder."

Jace smiled because she understood what his look meant and he walked around her. Her tank top didn't cover the scar so it was easy to spot. He ran his fingers on it.
"First?"

"Above my left hip."

Jace's gaze traced every single curve from the back of her shoulder to her hip before he stopped on her hip. Ariana's shoulders lifted in a quiet sigh.

"Here?" He asked,

Ariana reached for his hand, placing hers on his and then shifted it up a notch.
"There."

Jace took a step closer, closing the last distance between them. His fingers felt for what might be a scar as he lowered his head and placed a kiss on her nape. Ariana felt that now familiar feeling in her stomach.

"Nothing about you is inane; I want to know what happens to you because I care. I honestly don't know what would happen after all this is over."

Ariana had no idea how to respond to what he just said and instead stood there frozen and speechless. She swallowed hard before she pushed away his hand and walked to her spot without turning around to look at him.

"You can't pretend for long that you don't feel it too," Jace walked towards her, "You say and do a different thing but your body tells another. I'm supposed to stay away but I can't. One look at you and I lose all patience, a slight touch and I want to slowly discover the woman I know is beneath that trained soldier."

"Enough!" Ariana turned, snapping and came face to face with him.

He was standing in front of her.
"You don't know me. You don't know anything about me so stop with all of this because nothing is going to happen." She said through clenched teeth, "Nothing can happen."

"Look at me and tell me you don't feel this thing between us." Jace took one step that felt like she was being crowded.

Silence filled the space between them. Ariana shook her head and lifted her gaze from his chest to his eyes.
"Drop it." She walked away and put on her jacket as she headed out of his office, slamming the door behind her.

Bridget looked at Ariana as soon as she stepped outside Jace's office, her gaze questioning her when she looked up at her. Ariana sighed inwardly, holding her breath before releasing slowly.

The intercom buzzed and Bridget answered quickly.
"Sir?"

"Table for two."

"Yes sir." She didn't need to ask where because he always ate at the same place.

Bridget dialled the front desk of Les Coulisses.
"Hi. I'd like to book a table for two for Mr. Black."

"I'm sorry, the last table just got booked."

"First of all, I don't care. Second of all, this is for Jace Black. You're supposed to have a table set aside for him because he comes there for lunch often. He'll be there in a few minutes."

"I apologize." The lady on the other end said, "We'll make his table available."

"Thank you." Bridget hung up.

Ariana smiled at how Bridget can go from sweet to brutal in a moment. Jace walked out of his office behind Ariana at the exact moment.
"Ready to go?" Jace stopped behind Ariana, looking down at her,

Ariana turned her head to look at him.
"Whenever you are, sir."

Jace clenched his jaw at the title and walked ahead of her before he said or did something that he doubt she would like. But he most definitely would. Jace smiled and headed towards the elevator with Ariana following close behind.

He knows I hate it when he goes out for lunch becausethen I have to sit with him until he's done. Now he only goes out for lunch topush my buttons and she hated him for that.

***************************************************
Hey guys,

Just wanted to wish you all a Happy New Year.

It's 2022 and I'm still editing the rest of the chapters. So bear with me till the end.

Also, for those who don't know, I post song covers on my Instagram and my youtube. You can message me on any platform for a request and I would see to it.

Please do check me on instagram, youtube, tiktok and twitter. (All the same username @janelanett)

I started posting makeup transitions and mini tutorials, you can check those as well.

Love,
Jane Lanett.❤️