Over the weekend, I was wondering how Monday would go. I wasn't sure if Dante was going to talk to me or even acknowledge that Saturday night even happened. I thought that it was a good night and he seemed to enjoy it too but the ending was kind of dull.

Not that I'm complaining because that was the first and last time I'll ever spend time with the guy outside of work. Even though he doesn't realize it, we are complete enemies and it'll stay that way. I just have to have an excuse prepared if he asks me to go out again to deny him.

At my desk on Monday morning, Denise won't stop staring at me with an eager look on her face but she doesn't say anything, she just stares at me for a very long time.

"How was your weekend?" I ask her awkwardly, not really knowing what I should say to her right now.

"Not as good as yours, I hope," She responds. "How was Dante?"

"How was he?" I repeat her question because I don't really understand it.

"Yeah, come on, I'm dying to know."

I shrug at her as I'm logging into my desktop. "Nice, I guess."

"That's it?" She wonders incredulously. Should I be more descriptive of my weekend? Why does she want to know so badly? Maybe being so interested in other people's business is normal but I never got that memo. I try to hide how weirded out and confused I am by her curiosity by pushing myself closer to my desk to hide my face with the divider.

"What kind of details would you like?" I wonder because I'm obviously clueless.

"Was he a good kisser?" Denise fires at me but that's just the first of a long line of questions like I'm being interrogated by the freaking FBI or something. "Did he treat you well in the sack? Is he packing? I've always thought that he was but he might act all huff and tuff just to overcompensate so I've never been sure. Where'd you go? Did you even make it out of the house?"

"We didn't even kiss," I tell her which should answer most of her incredibly inappropriate questions. I really need to read up on how people communicate with each other because I feel like I'm at a total loss here. "We just went to dinner."

"You're serious," She says in disbelief.

"As a heart attack. If you want to know how big his dick is then just sleep with him yourself," I suggest as I'm getting to work on my computer.

"Yeah, I've tried many times," Denise mumbles with a bitter laugh. "Shamelessly too, I'll add, but he's not interested. I think I'm too old. He likes 'em young, I guess."

"I'm only three years younger than him," I point out because the way she said that made him sound like some kind of pedophile. Not that I'm defending him because I don't really care what people think about him. That's a lie anyway—he's actually four years older than me but I made Elisa 21 despite me only being 20, mostly just for fun.

"But I'm only two years older," She points out. "But it's okay, I'm at peace with it now but that doesn't mean that I don't wonder what it would be like."

"Well, I can't help you there," I tell her and it makes her scoff but she doesn't respond so I'm hoping that I can actually get some work done now instead of this useless gossip about Dante. The weekend is over, he's unnecessary now and I need to refocus on getting into Giovanni's office. The faster that I can hack his database, the faster I can get back home. Although having my own apartment is pretty nice, I would prefer not working in this scum hole.

At lunch, I grab an apple and head up to the roof. I moved my lunch an hour late so that I won't run into Dante up there because I really like going up to the roof. It's very peaceful and quiet and lonely.

With my personal laptop in hand, I set up shop with my Bluetooth in my ear to listen to the security team and I get my laptop logged in and ready to do some more digging. I have to eat my apple slowly so that the crunch doesn't overpower the sound in my Bluetooth but other than focusing on eating my apple at a good pace, I'm trying to get a login screen to Giovanni's clientele. I don't know if that's what my father wants but I'd assume it'd be useful.

I just need to give him something to prove that I'm making progress, especially after him freaking out about me hanging out with Dante on Saturday night.

I'm working on the hack for at least thirty minutes and my apple is long gone when the rooftop door swings open. Quickly, I tear the Bluetooth out of my ear and shove it into my bag because my hair is up in a bun today and I don't know how to explain to somebody that a poor girl like me has a fancy Bluetooth or why I'd even need one anyway.

After it's safely hidden in my bag, I look up to see that it's Dante coming onto the roof. I don't know how to react to that. We haven't talked since we said goodbye two nights ago. I don't want to say anything to him but I feel like I should. Or maybe he should say something to me. Maybe, if I just give him the cold shoulder, he'll just not talk to me ever again which would be ideal. I don't need to get close to him to do my job so he's not a necessary part of this mission and I need to stay away from him.

"Hey," I greet him before my brain can even catch up. Even though I want to just stop talking to him, I guess that it wouldn't be like my character to just ignore him. I have to play the part.

"Hey," He returns my greeting, walking toward me. I start thinking of ways that I can turn him down politely. I'm just not that into you, I don't want anything serious right now, I just got out of a serious relationship. Anything to give him a legitimate reason to not want a second date other than the fact that I'm a Pantera and I've been taught all my live to want to slit his throat at the first given chance just because he's a Berardi. I can't really open with that one.

However, when he gets a few meters away from me, he stops at a small plastic table and picks up a pair of sunglasses sitting there. "Forgot my glasses," He tells me as an explanation as to why he's up here and then he puts them in his pocket and leaves.

I stare at the closing rooftop door in shock for a few moments, shocked that that's all he had to say. Nothing about Saturday, nothing about another date, just nothing.

I keep telling myself that that's what I wanted and that I should just move on but I can't stop thinking about it. Is he trying to play hard to get or something? Does he think that I'll come crawling back, begging for a second date or something just because I made the first move?

What the fuck is his problem?

I know that I shouldn't care, and I don't. But what the fuck.

If he is trying to play hard to get, it won't work, because I don't want to get him. I don't want to get the fact that he's been through practically everything that I have and he's the only person that really can understand me. I don't want to get his smile or his laugh or his confident demeanor. I don't want to get his dark eyes, his leather jackets. I don't want to get his insane ability to put thoughts onto paper or the way he reads me so well... to a point.

He's Dante fucking Berardi and I don't want him. I don't want him to want me. I don't want anything to do with him. He's the enemy. His Italian blood makes mine curdle with disgust and the shorter amount of time that I'm stuck here in the same building as him, the better. The fuck with him.

I don't mean to get so wound up but I realize how irritated I am when I realize that my lunch is almost over and I slam my laptop shut. I slam it so hard that I'm afraid I might have damaged it but I'm too irritated to even care so I shove it back into my bag and I head for the door to get back to my desk. I'll deal with that later.

"What's got your panties in a bunch?" Denise asks me when I get back to my desk.

"What?" I ask her in confusion. "Nothing, I'm fine."

"You look totally pissed off."

"Nope," I deny with a shake of my head. "Just tired I guess."

"Bad lunch or something?"

"It was fine, I'm just not used to waking up so goddam early in the morning and dealing with people all day," I mutter irritatedly and I don't mean to aim that at Denise because I know that she means well and she's relatively innocent but I can't help it, I know I probably sounded a little bitchy. She's a grown up, I'm sure she'll be fine.

"Nobody ever gets used to the mornings," She tells me, apparently completely unaffected by my sour attitude. "You just have to drink a shit ton of coffee. And get laid when you can."

That last part almost makes me laugh but I don't because I'm still thinking about Dante and what a bitch he is. And how excited I am that I don't have to deal with that scumbag anymore. 

_____

So we didn't get to 50 votes last time but I'll keep the offer going. If this chapter gets 50 votes by Thursday, I'll start updating every week instead of every other week. 

And happy new year!!