Bonded and Bred Ch. 01-02

But he would still be able to break free, and that was becoming something quite urgent now.

She really was very efficient though... it was just a shame that she was so - distracting.

As the morning drifted on, he found himself listening out for her, looking towards the half open door, to see her if she moved from her desk.

At the moment though she was planted there, doing - whatever it was that she was doing.

He listened hard, straining to hear anything, but she was just so quiet.

He looked at his computer screen, and reached for his keyboard.

But it was no good, now that the thought was in his mind, he just could not get rid of it.

What was she doing out there?

He closed his eyes to cut out the distractions of his surroundings, and stretched out his other senses.

She was so quiet, almost as though she wasn't even there; but there was the hint of her perfume, and her own personal scent... and there was something else, something subtle, sweet and powdery... what was she doing out there?

Iris was in fact powdering her nose at that moment, to rid it of the shine that she knew was there, which must have developed over the last few hours.

She heard the tell-tale squeak of his chair, and knew that he was heading her way.

She snapped the compact shut and dropped it into her bag, and turned to greet him as he stepped out of his office.

"I'm just off out for an hour - or so," he found himself defending as she looked at him questioningly. "I think I'll grab some lunch while I'm out as well; I'm not sure when I will be back so just go for your lunch, when you are ready and put the answering service on."

"Very well, Mr Atherton."

She was just so politely proper that he wanted to grit his teeth, he wanted to snap and snarl and fluster her calm exterior.

He gave a little non committal grunt as he strode out of the offices. He really did need to get away for a bit - this weekend could not come fast enough for him!

The chance to break free and loose for a bit; yes this weekend was becoming essential to his wellbeing.

*

Iris was just straightening up her desk, and was preparing to go for her dinner break, when her mobile went.

"Hi, Laurie," she grinned as she answered it.

"Hiya, I was wondering if you fancied meeting up for lunch - if you have time?"

Laurie lived about fifteen minutes away from where Iris worked. "Well, I was just about to leave now, could you meet me at Donald's in about... ten minutes or so?"

Donald's was a corner pub about half way between them, so it was perfectly situated, and it served meals throughout the day as well.

"That's that one with the big blue sign isn't it, just on the corner?" Laurie murmured.

"Yes, that's the one, I had lunch there last week, and the food is nice."

"Okay, ten minutes and I'll see you there."

Laurie hung up her phone, and Iris smiled as she dropped her own phone into her bag. Having her sister in town was turning out to be really nice!

They had spent last evening together at Laurie's new place, a very pleasant apartment on the top floor of one of Aunt Trudy's buildings.

"And this is the spare bedroom, come office for me," Laurie grinned as she finished the tour of her new home.

"I must say, Laurie;" Iris nodded approvingly, "that Aunt Trudy really has done very well by you."

"Are you jealous?" Laurie demanded cheekily. "Is my place nicer than yours?"

Iris laughed. "No, not jealous at all; and it is... equivalent to mine - not better... Aunt Trudy would never favour us, one over the other!" she said a little pompously

Aunt Trudy was their father's sister, and a property developer and self made millionaire-ess. She had never married and never had children and so liked to spoil her only brother's children on occasion - much to their delight.

And now that they were grown women and moving out into the world, her first thought had been to putting a roof over each their heads and keeping them safe.

Her nieces had insisted on paying their way though, and so proper agreements had been drawn up for each of them - even if the rent was lower in each case than the apartments deserved. They were what Aunt Trudy referred to as, 'family rates'.

Iris was still smiling as she stepped out of the building where she worked, and then turned to walk briskly down the road, watched by her boss Mr James Atherton had she but known it.