Desires Die Hard (Anya and Evan) by Beryl Occam

Chapter 21 

Anya bit her lips and cursed the man inwardly. After a few moments, she realized how heavy her breasts felt. They hurt. She touched them gently. They were as hard as rocks. 

The young woman let out a quiet whimper. She had to pump the milk out of her breasts right now. They were killing her. 

The elevator arrived at the tenth floor within seconds. 

Anya clutched the file to her chest and rushed back to the office. Jake was still in his office working on some designs. He didn’t notice her 

return. 

She wasn’t in a rush to tell him what had happened in Evan’s office. Anya hurried back to her desk and grabbed her tote bag. She had her pump and empty bags for the milk inside. She headed to the washroom, got two bags filled with breast milk, then headed back to the office and set the milk away in the fridge. 

She grabbed some tissue paper and started dabbing at her blouse. 

After letting those wet patches dry, she grabbed the file and made her way towards Jake’s office to tell him the harsh criticisms Evan had given. 

She knocked lightly at his door thrice. “Come in!” Jake shouted in the room. Anya pushed the door open and entered his office. 

“What did Mr. Welton say about the plans?” Jake asked immediately. 

“He said he wanted more details. The plans don’t seem practical,” Anya said as she placed the file on Jake’s desk. Then, she told him exactly 

what Evan had told her. “He wants us to come up with another proposal and present the revised plans to him again.” 

“Are you saying he’s not happy with the original proposal?” Jake seemed a little taken aback. He had thought the proposal had been perfect. It 

couldn’t have been better. 

Anya nodded. 

It appeared that what he had heard about Evan was true. The man has high expectations and standards to be met. 

Jake realized the kind of boss he had to deal with. He didn’t let his thoughts show on his face though. Instead, he gave Anya a soft smile. There was a note of concern in his voice when he spoke next. “Thanks. I know what to do. Are you going to head back now or do you plan to get more work done?” 

Carol had given her a brief report on how Anya was settling in at work. To ease her into her job, the senior designer had assigned Anya some work. Honestly, Jake thought that was too much work. Anya was new at her job. She shouldn’t be made to go through a mountain of drafts and correct them within a single night. They could have eased her into her job more slowly. 

Then, he realized the silver lining. He was going to be working late for the next few nights. He had fallen in love with Anya. It was love at first sight. This would be a great opportunity for them to get to know each other better. 

With that thought in mind, he had selfishly kept his silence instead of telling Carol she should be giving Anya less work. 

This meant that Anya would be working late alone as well. 

“That’s right,” Anya replied honestly. “I don’t think I’ll be leaving the office any time soon.” 

“I don’t think I’ll be leaving the office any time soon either. I can give you a ride home later,” Jake said smoothly. 

He was the epitome of a caring and gentlemanly boss. What a stark contrast with Evan. They were completely different kinds of bosses. 

One inspired feat. You wanted to stay as far away from him as possible. The other invoked feelings of warmth and behaved like a perfect gentleman. Jake was exactly like the kind of perfect boss you would find in TV dramas. Anya couldn’t help but feel moved by his kindness. She couldn’t believe how lucky she was to have such a boss like him. 

“Thank you, Jake. But don’t worry about me. I can make my way home.” Anya was moved by Jake’s offer to drive her home but she couldn’t possibly trouble him to do that. He was her superior, after all. That was why she had turned his offer down as gently as she possibly could. 

Jake insisted though. “Anya, you’re my staff. It’s late. The bus and train services would have stopped at this hour. It’s not safe for a woman like you to take the cab alone at night. Please let me send you home.” 

“But…” Anya couldn’t help but feel like an inconvenience. 

Jake cut her off then. “You should get back to work and finish whatever you have left. There’s going to be a meeting tomorrow. I don’t want to spot any mistakes.” 

Anya wasn’t done talking yet. But Jake had turned his attention to the proposal that Evan had returned to him. She decided to give in and not to 

say a word.