⭐ Zachary's POV ⭐

Before my mind could even register what was going on, Rachel pulled away as fast as she placed her lips on mine.

"Oh my God," Rachel said a little breathlessly. "Did I just.." Her hands flew to her mouth as she regarded me with wide eyes.

"You didn't even hesitate," I teased as a flush crept up her face.

"I'm usually not like this."

"Yeah, right."

"It's true!" Rachel insisted and her voice turned an octave higher.

"Okay okay, I believe you. But, I like it." I tried to hide my amused grin.

"You mean the, ahem, or me?"

"Both," I answered and leaned forward for another kiss but she shook her head and placed a finger on my lips. Her eyes twinkling and her lips quirked up into a smile.

"Alright," I said with a chuckle. "But you haven't give me an answer."

Silence fell between us as the smile on her pretty face disappeared and her brows furrowed. My palm began to sweat as I nervously waited for Rachel's answer.

"Yes," Rachel said as she interlaced her fingers with mine.

A grin lifted the corners of my mouth as I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her in for another kiss.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Hey boss?"

"Yeah?"

"Why are you smiling to yourself for the past," Olivia paused to take a look at her watch, "ten minutes?"

I cleared my throat and said, "Didn't you say Ethan's meeting you for lunch? We'll continue after that."

"But it's only eleven thirty."

"I'm feeling generous today and wanna give you an extra 30 minutes of lunch break," I refused to make eye contact with Olivia and kept the files in my briefcase. She narrowed her eyes as if saying she didn't believe me one bit.

"Okay then, thanks for your generosity," Olivia said with a bemused smile.

Once the door closed behind Olivia, I stopped acting busy and turned my chair around to face the floor-to-ceiling window. An image of Rachel flickered in my mind's eye, the smile on her face, the amusement in her soft gray gaze.

As I thought back to our time at the zoo, I couldn't even focus on enjoying myself. I only remembered being nervous and couldn't help but worry about how Rachel would react. I even prepared what I should say if she had rejected me on the spot. Fortunately, things turned out to be way better than I imagined.

My smartphone chirped loudly in the quiet office and I turned my chair back to the table.

Rachel : Hey, my meeting ended earlier than expected. We can meet earlier if you want to? 😊

Zachary : Of course I'd want to, I'll pick you up in 20 mins 😄

Rachel : Great, cya soon!

I was pulling into a parking lot when my smartphone rang through my car's stereo speakers. I answered the call over the Bluetooth.

"Rach?"

"Are you here already?" Rachel asked.

"Yes, why?"

"Mrs Wright suddenly called for a briefing and I don't even know when she'll end!"

"I can wait, and I don't think she'll take forever."

"We can only hope," Rachel mumbled and I could hear the disappointment in her voice.

"Hey, I know you can barely wait to see me, but you have to focus on doing your work."

Soft chuckling sound could be heard from the other end of the line before Rachel said, "Yes, sir!"

I stepped out of my car after parking it and double check if all the doors are locked before proceeding to the elevator. Amelia was sitting behind the receptionist desk when I exited the elevator.

"Hi Amelia," I greeted with a smile.

Her gaze moved from the computer screen to meet my eyes, "Oh hi Zachary."

"I wasn't informed of any meeting this afternoon.." She looked at me with a frown and glanced down to type on the keyboard.

"I'm waiting for Rachel, is it possible for me to go inside and wait instead?"

Before Amelia could answer there was a beep sound and Rachel pushed open the glass door.

"Hey, I thought you could come in and wait," Rachel said.

"Perfect timing," Amelia commented with an amused smile.

"What?"

"Nothing," I chuckled and shook my head.

"You can sit at my desk.." Rachel trailed off and added sheepishly, "even though it's a little messy."

When we get to her desk, I turned to her and raised an eyebrow. But before I could say anything, Rachel quickly rearranged some of her stuff to make it look neater. I settled myself comfortably on her chair and gave her a thumbs up.

The office is getting quieter now since everybody is preparing to head out for lunch. The chair creaked as I leaned back, letting my gaze roam around the place which overlooked the entire working area. The room that my eyes landed on used to be Evangeline's office and a sad smile found its way to my mouth.

I've never seen or heard from her ever since she'd apologized to me outside my apartment building. Once in a while, I would wonder how is she doing. For quite some time after the incident, whenever I think of her, I could feel the anger and shame. Afterwards, when the anger subside, I just felt like there's no point hating on someone. It would take up your energy and time, which you could use it for other meaningful things.

What she'd done to me was wrong. There's no excuse for that. But that doesn't mean I should just focus on her mistakes. There are other good qualities about her.

Well, that's the problem. When you've done something wrong, people would simply remember that one thing. Whatever good things you've done before, it didn't matter. Just because, you've made a mistake. That one mistake is enough to cover up all the good qualities you possess.

No matter how hard it is, we have to accept what had happened and move on. It's for the sake of both parties.

A chirp sound from my smartphone broke my train of thought. I unlocked my phone and saw there was a message from Dylan.

I was typing a reply to Dylan's message when someone knocked on the table. I looked up to find Gregory standing in front of me.

"What are you doing here?" Greg asked, surprise evident in his tone. He was gesturing to where I was seated.

"Rachel and I are having lunch together."

Greg stared at me for a second and closed his eyes. Neither of us said anything for awhile. To my surprise Greg held out a hand for me to shake it. "I guess I should say congratulations."

"I knew Rachel will choose you over me. But I still wanna try. I just wish the outcome would be different. I'm happy for the both of you," Greg continued after he noticed the confusion on my face.

"Oh, thank you, I guess?" I said with a laugh and gave his hand a firm shake.

"Well then, if you'll excuse me. I've got a broken heart to nurse," Greg said as he walked back into his office.

"Hey, what were the two of you talking about?" Rachel enquired in a hushed voice as she pulled me aside.

"We were talking about how beautiful you look today," I answered with a cheeky grin.

"I'm being serious right now, Zach!" Rachel smacked my arm playfully.

"So am I," I murmured and reached up to tuck a piece of stray hair behind her ear.

"Okay fine, then what else have you both talked about?" A slow smile twisted her lips and added a twinkle to her eyes.

"He's happy for the both of us."

"How did he.. I haven't told anyone about us, yet!"

I laughed out loud at the surprise look on her pretty face. "It doesn't matter," I started and linked my fingers with hers, "because everyone will know soon enough."

Rachel held out her other free hand and asked, "Can you please pass me your wallet?"

"What for?"

"For something.."

I slipped my hand into my pocket and felt for my wallet, but didn't take it out yet. "What are you trying to do?"

"Oh come on, do you think I'd take all your money and run away?" Rachel questioned with an eye roll.

"Of course not," I replied, wallet out of my pocket and placed it on her hand.

"Alright then, let's go!" Rachel put my wallet into her handbag and lead me towards the elevator.

"Why are you keeping my wallet?"

"You do remember I said the next time we meet, it'll be my treat, right?"

"You did?" I joked.

"Yes," she emphasised, "and you wouldn't let me pay everytime we met."

"Alright, alright, then I'll order the most expensive item on the menu. Since it'll your treat today," I declared with a grin.

When we're inside the elevator, Rachel punched the button. It stopped twice, picking up passengers before landing on the basement floor.

"So how are your preparations going for the interview tomorrow?"

"Doing okay so far.. You know I don't really consider myself as the 'confident, I'll definitely ace it' type of person. I don't want to set my expectations too high, in case..." Rachel pointed out as she buckled her seat belt.

"Hey, I believe in you, and you should too."

"I will, thank you," Rachel murmured as she placed her hand on mine.

Author's note:
Hi everybody!! 😊 I know I always take a looooong time between each updates 😅 That's why I'm super thankful for your patience and understanding! 💕 I will finish this story even if it's taking longer than I expected 😁

Hope all of you have enjoyed this chapter! It means the world to me to have your support! ❤ Don't be shy to tap the vote, comment or share button👇, if you like it! 😉 Stay tuned for the next update!