“I’m sorry, what?”
“You seem distant lately. And then last night you acted like you were so disgusted with me.”
Yeah, because I was. “Was that outburst really necessary?”
“That was not an outburst,” he said, matter-of-factly. “I was trying to tell you the rules and regulations of the company you work for as you seemed to have forgotten.”
I’d been referring to the outburst with the waitress. How could I have forgotten the outburst over the way I talk to Javolo too much?
The heat was creeping into my face. Sometimes, he could be so... so arrogant. I managed to keep my voice level. “I know the rules. You don’t need to point them out. You were—”
“Don’t make this about me.”
“What? But it is about you. You didn’t just lecture me in front of everyone; you insulted that poor waitress too. I was—”
“She deserved a dressing down. My meal was slightly cold.”
I rolled my eyes at him and he scowled. “That’s no reason to—”
“A Nav Operator is not permitted to become emotionally involved with her Digger as it can put lives at risk in an emergency situation. The Digger’s job is dangerous and—”
“I know. You don’t have to keep telling me.”
“Don’t interrupt me. It’s rude.”
“But you keep doing it to—”
“I am trying to get a point across to you and you’re not listening.”
“What?” I sat there staring at him with my mouth hanging open. My stomach churned as it tied itself in knots.
He leaned closer. “You never were a good listener.”
And you don’t listen at all...
I sighed again. “I know the rules. I’ve worked here long enough. I’m not ‘involved’ with my Digger. I’m not breaking any rules. You were being stupid and ridiculous.” His eyes darkened. “You weren’t listening to me and you were putting Javolo down by calling him a Neanderthal and—”
“Oh, it’s always about him!” he scoffed. “You never shut up about him. Why do you even talk to him?”
I couldn’t believe he’d said that. “It’s part of my job, for a start!” I snapped. “If I don’t talk to him, he could die down there on the planet!”
My chest felt tight and I seemed to only be able to take small breaths. I could feel the beginnings of a headache too.
“That is not what I meant,” he snapped back. “I mean, why do you talk to him any more than you have to — like, about social things?”
I felt the heat flood through my body as I watched the anger building in his eyes. “Well, for one, it would get pretty boring if we didn’t talk. Two, it’s common courtesy. And three, he’s my friend!”
I was getting worked up and I knew it, but I couldn’t help it. I was fed up. Javolo didn’t deserve his crap.
“Oh, I see.” His narrowed eyes were cold steel. “It is all crystal clear now. You talk about him all the time.” He counted it off on his fingers. “You talk to him too much while you should be working. You’ve been warned about talking to him too much and it hasn’t stopped you. You and this... Javolo are getting it on together, eh? Eh? It all makes sense now...”
I felt my eyes go wide. “What?”
Where was this coming from? How could he even think that? It was the most ridiculous thing I’d ever heard. Javolo may have been my friend, but we could never meet, so it was impossible for us to be ‘getting it on together.’
Was Malvolio serious? Surely he wasn’t serious.
He snorted. “You heard me.” There was no humour in his dark eyes.
I gasped. My heart pounded against my ribcage. “How could we be— How could I— I’ve never met him. I can never meet him. You know that.”
“No. I don’t know that.” The wild look in his eyes was unnerving.
My eyes widened again. “What, you mean it’s possible for a Digger to get into the Navs’ Section?”
“It has happened in the past.”
“Oh...” I was speechless for a few moments. “But even if Javolo could do that, he doesn’t know what I look like. I don’t even know if he knows my full name.”
“What do you mean? Is he really that much of a simpleton? You’ve been working with him for months.”
I gritted my teeth. “No. He’s not stupid. We only call each other by our surnames at work. It’s the same with all the Navs and Diggers. Javolo is his last name.”
I wasn’t about to tell Malvolio I’d actually forgotten Javolo’s first name.
He looked down his nose at me. “How primitive. You lot can’t even be civilised.”
Primitive? Seriously? I let out a growl of frustration.
“Really, Lennina. That’s not very ladylike.”
“I don’t care.”
“You should care. Why do you think I’ve been trying so hard to help you? You need to set aside your upbringing and learn to act like a lady.”
I ignored that. I didn’t want to get into a bigger argument right now.
He sniffed. “So. How long has this been going on?”
I balled my hands into fists. “We are not ‘getting it on’ together!” I said, using air quotes as I spoke. “We’re just—”
“You know it’s against Katoa’s policies.” His eyes were cutting into me, like he was trying to see right into my soul.
I know! I sighed. “We’re just fr—”
“You could lose your job over this!” He moved closer to me again.
My breaths came out in short gasps and it was hard stay in my seat. “Just stop being such a—”
“It is my duty to report you to the HR Unit at Katoa.”
Shut up and let me talk! “I said we’re just friends!”
I remembered that we were in the cafeteria and looked around. Most people had finished their lunch and had gone back to work. The few that were left looked decidedly uncomfortable and were suddenly fascinated with their food.
Malvolio leaned back in his seat and sighed like I hadn’t said anything at all. I didn’t want to be near him right now. In fact, I wanted him to leave. I sat still and stared down at my uneaten food. My stomach felt like I’d swallowed a brick. I couldn’t eat anything.
It felt like being in an out-of-control hovercar and I found it harder to breathe. I was full of nervous energy and fidgeted with the gift box.
I should tell him it’s over right now, I thought to myself.
I stopped fidgeting. Was that what I wanted? To stop seeing him? Was I overreacting?
I needed to think. I didn’t want a relationship when I’d first arrived here. Wasn’t planning on finding love. I was here to work. But somehow, Malvolio managed to get into my heart. He’d made me so happy. I’d tried to forget all my misgivings about love and enjoy feeling wanted.
Was this ridiculous accusation enough for me end our relationship?
I didn’t want to give up so easily. So quickly. I couldn’t make a hasty decision. I really needed to wait till things had calmed down. Think things through on my own. Maybe tonight when I got home I’d be able to think straight.
“Yes, well, you would say that,” he continued. “It’s a weak defence at best. You’ll have to think of something better than that...”
I frowned at him. I really couldn’t believe he was serious about this. He seemed to really believe what he was saying.
“What I don’t understand is, why are you seeing him when you’re my girl?” he asked in a strained voice.
Oh, my stars! “I’m not see—”
“What do you see in him?” he asked me. “He’s just a Digger. He doesn’t have any of the wealth and standing that I have.”
Get over yourself! I thought.
Then his face changed as he turned to face me again. It kind of twitched and contorted into a weird kind of frown. A cold feeling inched its way down my spine.
He grabbed my arm. Hard. His voice was low and deadly. “Are you fucking him?”23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNLhau6PMHB
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Author's Note: This is the end of the free sample of TOUCH OF LIGHTNING. If you’re loving this story and want to find out what happens next, you can choose to pay for the entire story, pay by chapter (the story is 52 chapters and is complete), or you can subscribe to support me. Subscribers get access to all my paid content.
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