Renleigh Kensington

'Get back to work gradually.'

'Try and not take up as much responsibility as you have before.'

'Lean on us, Miss Kensington.'

'Keep to your hours – nine till five. No earlier no later.'

I was fed up. Of everyone's bullshit. Renleigh, do this. Renleigh, do that. But Renleigh, don't do that! I couldn't catch my breath without someone bossing me, the boss, around. Obviously, they just wanted to look out for me and I appreciated that but it annoyed me at the same time. I knew what I could do and what I couldn't. I felt fine.

I now had breaks at work, though. Which was honestly unnecessary. What was I meant to do for an hour? Who needed an hour-long lunch? Definitely not me. My brother must have sensed my need to cry in boredom because he called me the minute my break was due to start.

"I haven't heard from you in a while, Renny," he told me and I hummed in response. That was pretty spot on. I haven't seen or talked to him in a long time. I just didn't have time. Or if I did, then he didn't. "How have you been?"

"Alive, for the most part," I sighed. "What about you? How's uni?"

"Uni's fine. Can't wait to finish, though," he said. "You know what's so funny? Your man and I are the same age yet he's already a millionaire and here I am with a shit ton of debt over my head and still in education."

"Who's my man?" I asked back, a little laugh erupted from my chest as I patiently waited for his reply. I looked down at my wrist, a gold watch wrapped around it comfortably, the light that came in from behind me caused it to shine.

"Don't play a dumb bitch with me, Sage."

"I don't know anyone named Sage."

"Again, don't play a dumb bitch with me and also don't try to change up the subject," he smarted me out. So, maybe I didn't like my middle name. No one even knew I had one other than my family. Even I forgot about it because I ignored it for so long.

"Look, Styles and I are not together."

"Okay, tell me more lies, please."

"Fuck you, Brandon."

"Please, don't. I'm not sure about you but I am not into incest."

"Don't fucking call me if you just wanna be a smartass."

"I just want to know more about your man who is the same age as me yet in a much more comfortable situation."

"No, it sounds more like you want me to know more about this alleged man of mine," I sighed. "Go on. Tell me whatever you want."

"Okay. So, it kind of intrigued me as to how him and I are the same age and yet he's a millionaire and I barely have a tenner to my name," he began to ramble and I rolled my eyes at what he said already. "It turns out he was born in February and I'm September, right? So, obviously, I was held back a year and when I went to nursery, he was already in reception. Then, this girl I've been seeing was over and she-,"

"Hold on a minute," I laughed as I ignored everything he said until that last sentence. "The girl you've been seeing?"

"What girl seeing who?" he asked back as he tried to make me feel like a dumbass.

"Don't play a dumb bitch with me, Ellis."

"I don't know anyone named Ellis," he copied me from before and I snorted.

"Again, don't play a dumb bitch with me and also don't try to change up the subject."

"Wow, your memory is spot on, is it not, sister?"

I was about to open my mouth to answer but instead, the door to my office opened. Without me even buzzing it open. I assumed Miss Jones was entering, seeing as she was the only one with access but then my eyes landed on the man who had been stirring my life up lately.

"Cat got your tongue or something?" Brandon spoke again when I didn't answer. Perhaps I was too busy looking at Styles.

He wore a pink suit with flowers on it and a white shirt which barely even covered his chest. The birds on his chest were out and his cross necklace was on show, too. His collarbones were prominent and his skin looked soft, my lips ached due to not being attached to the handsome man in front of me. Somehow, his cologne reached me almost right away and my smile widened as he walked closer to me.

"Hey, my break is up, I gotta go," I told my brother who huffed.

"It's not like I was in the middle of chatting, right?" he asked with some annoyance to his voice. "Anyway. I'll just... text me when you're off. We should go for lunch or something this week. I miss you."

"Will do," I let him know and then buttoned him. Styles chuckled as he took a seat across from me and placed his intertwined hands on my desk. "How may I help you?"

"There are a few things I want to chat to you about... is your break – which I am delighted to know you have incorporated into your schedule – really over?"

"No," I huffed. "Just started, actually."

"And you blew whoever was on the phone off for me? How adorable."

"Get to what you wanted to talk about," I rolled my eyes. "It must be important if you couldn't let me know about it through an email."

"First things first, I'd like to take you on a date because we haven't been out in what feels like forever and essentially, our agreement was put in place for this specific reason," he began. The words he had chosen made this whole conversation sound like a professional meeting and it caused me to smirk. "Is that a yes to my question that I didn't even ask yet?"

"No," I replied. "Ask me."

"Renleigh, would you like to go on a date with me?"

"I don't know. I'll get back to you on that," I mumbled with a little bit of innocence to my voice but then my smug smile messed it all up. Styles pulled an offended face at me and I just shrugged. "What else did you want to discuss?"

"So... um, you know how- you know how my friend... is no longer around? Um, turns out, his funeral is pretty... soon," he sighed. The change in topic and atmosphere in my office took a sharp turn and had I not been sat on my arse, I definitely would have collapsed from the strength. "Since no one other than you knows about it, I just wanted to know if you'd come with me? I don't know what to expect... I might be over emotional. I don't know."

"I, uh, I can probably sort it out, sure," I nodded. Although I just got back to work, this could be put down as a family emergency, right? Or did I even need to mark down why I would not be in as a CEO? I was pretty sure my assistants would be able to run this place for a couple of days. "Where and when is it?"

"This weekend and it's back in Manchester."

"Okay... I guess I can do that," I told him reassuringly. A soft smile crept up on his lips as he seemed relieved and I couldn't help but smile, too. "Anything else?"

"Well, this is more of a question than anything else."

"Shoot."

"Um," he let out a nervous chuckle and I raised my eyebrows at him. Sometimes, I found it strange how he was so confident through his day to day life and then grew so fucking shy at certain times. I would have thought he had no problem getting straight to the point.

"Go on... just say it," I encouraged him and he cleared his throat.

"Do you, you know... do you enjoy spending time with me?" his voice sounded and he looked really vulnerable as the question got out into the open. It was a simple yes or no question yet I felt like he wanted to hear more. His green eyes searched for it in my hazel ones as he chewed on his bottom lip and played with his rings. "Like, I am aware your initial reason for this was to get rid of me but I've just been wondering if that had changed at all?"

"Through these past couple of weeks, I have come to the conclusion, that you are the first proper friend I have made since college. I mean, yeah, we do more... intimate stuff sometimes but I guess that is due to how comfortable we are getting around each other," I told him. "I think, in some way, I have trusted you from the beginning which is very weird to say out loud, but essentially, that is the truth. I have not told anyone about my ex but you. I have not let anyone try and take care of me like you do, then again, I never really let you. You just sort of... forced it on me, but in a way that was caring. Plus, the reason why I was able to conclude this was probably because of you. When you called me the other day, or when you asked me to go with you to your cousin's birthday, I felt... wow, this is going to sound very foreign coming from me, but I felt needed, you know?" I tried to explain. I could never truly put my emotions into words, they never translated into what went on in my mind and heart. Maybe that was why it was easier to bottle it up. "Sure, I feel needed at work, people rely on me for orders, clients rely on me for crucial information and whatever else. But when you asked me to go to that party with you... or when you wanted to take me to Paris... but especially the other day, when you were an emotional mess... that just made me feel like I had a purpose. Like I was needed for more than just orders. I don't know... it doesn't make sense, does it? And I haven't really answered your question, either."

"You were so reluctant when it came to Paris, though. And you told me you only came to my uncle's because you were curious... I thought that you just wanted this contract to be over and done with."

"I mean, sure. I was curious. I'm a really nosy person, but I reckon you know that already. Paris... Paris just didn't make sense. Sure, when you said you wanted me to go because you've never been there with a girl, I was surprised. And in all honesty, had no idea how to reply to that. Like, how would you reply to someone if they flat out told you they are taking you to Paris, no questions asked? Especially, if you have trust issues... I don't know. I was just... scared. I've never been anywhere with a man like that. That was the first holiday kind of whatever I have had with anyone in a while, actually. Fuck, I'm rambling. Why aren't you stopping me?"

"Because you are talking to me. You are telling me whatever is going on in your head, everything you are feeling. That's what I want to know. Not your rehearsed sentences. The one where you tell me you are just curious or how I am nothing but a rival," he explained. "I want to know all of the twisted thoughts that you think of. Everything. I had no idea you haven't been anywhere with anyone before... now I feel like an arse for making you come."

I couldn't control my smirk as his last words hit my ears and he chuckled under his breath.

"Don't feel like an arse for giving me two orgasms. They were fine. Solid eight, remember?"

"Kind of pissed off about it even though I was better than your ex."

"We still have about two and a half weeks left of this contract thing, I'm sure you'll have enough time to make it up to a nine, maybe..."

"Do you really not want to see me after it's over?" he questioned suddenly. Again, he sounded pretty shy and unsure. "Like, are you doing this for me to get off of your case? If so, please do let me know so I can stop myself before it's too late."

"What do you mean?" I asked in confusion. "You said something like that when you were drunk and in the waiting room– fuck, you weren't meant to know about that."

"Stuff did come back to me after that day... like, I sort of remember a few things here and there and... yes. I did say something like that," he nodded, a big sigh caused his chest to heave up and then slump back down. "I really do care about you, Renleigh. I have for a while now. That care I feel for you just gets deeper every day and it genuinely worries me that my feelings will never be reciprocated."

"Harry..."

"I know, I know, I know," he sighed. "You haven't been with anyone in years and you can't love someone in a romantic way, or more so don't know how to. But that's not what I'm asking of you... I'm not asking for anything."

"Well, then what is the point of this whole agreement? I thought your mission was to get me to like you enough to carry on with whatever we'll end up with once this month comes to an end."

"Essentially, yes, that would be lovely. But I don't want to force you into it. I don't want to do all these things if you are not willing."

"So far, I would say I have been pretty willing to do everything."

"Which is why I feel as though you are trying to get this month over and done with," he admitted. "You have not cancelled on me once, you have said yes to everything, you came running when I needed you... I just feel like you are making this month one of the best months of my life so you can wave me goodbye with the contract in the air once the first of the next month arrives."

"Is that really what you think I'm doing?" I asked him with my head tilted. I would have lied if I said it didn't rub me the wrong way. Then again, he had every right to think that may have been my plan. It didn't surprise me that he doubted me, that he didn't believe me. No one ever believed me so I guess I pretty much should have expected this, no matter how he had the power to make me think he was different. "Look, I don't want to discuss this anymore. Not here, at least. I need to get my head together, I'm not sure what else to tell you. I have a meeting to overlook in half an hour so I should prepare for that."

"Are you kicking me out?"

"I'm not one to use violence in order to get what I want. I'm simply telling you I have things to do."

"Meaning you are kicking me out," he repeated. I bit down on the inside of my cheek as I watched him look at me then eventually, he stood up. "Listen. I didn't mean for anything I said to come out rude. I know you have had a shit past, I know you don't open up easily and I know you just need time but... I don't want to get my hopes up for nothing, okay? If... if you think you can spare me a heartbreak or something, please don't lead me on. You can be as mean as you want to be, I know it's your coping mechanism. Just... just please, don't let me fall too far without something or someone catching me at the end, yeah?"

His sad smile engraved itself into my mind.

When I was in the meeting, I saw nothing but his sad eyes and his sorry excuse of a smile. It was so bad that I couldn't focus on my work. It kind of annoyed me, too.

I felt like he expected too much of me but then again, it was what a relationship required in order to work, right? Honesty, time, all of that stuff. I could give honesty. Time? That was questionable. If I worked on it hard enough, it could have worked. But after all these years, my business was all I knew. I had a pretty set life. Wake up and work. That was so fine with me. I was pretty much obsessed with succeeding because it meant I had the chance to get nice things.

And when I had the chance to get nice things, I went all out.

I changed my family's life and I have no regrets. But this meant I had to work so hard to keep this dream life reality.

"Miss Kensington, just a reminder that you are to be in Italy by Monday morning. The manager of the store is still having problems and they need to be sorted as soon as possible," my PA told me after the meeting. I had completely forgotten about this. "The private jet will be ready for you from 6PM on Sunday and the same hotel as last time is booked already. A car from your address to the airport then from the airport to your hotel is sorted. Obviously, this goes for your way back as well."

"I'm not sure I'll be able to leave on Sunday night. I'm going to have to check... I'm going to sort it, don't worry about it," I said as I remembered I was to go to the funeral with Styles. I just had no idea what day because all he said was the weekend.

"Sure, no problem," he smiled at me. "Is there anything I can get you?"

"Directions to what to do with my personal life, would be great, actually."

"I'm afraid I don't have those for you, Miss."

"Yeah, I didn't think you would," I chuckled under my breath. "Actually," I rubbed my forehead as I remembered something for him to do. "If you could please go over to the HR department and ask them for the file I need to take with me..."

"Of course," he nodded. "Will that be all, Miss Kensington?"

"Yes, that will be all. Thank you, Liam."

"My pleasure."

• • •

a.n.
harry really had no idea what he jumped into when he decided he wanted to get with renleigh lmao

also this is really random but the other day i found someone recommending this book to someone else on twitter and i cried like that's so amazing and it made me proper happy hdhshhshshsh

please keep voting and commenting, i love seeing you's interact w me and the story!!! x