Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
To say Isaac was nervous coming to work the following day was an understatement. He probably should’ve had a more in-depth conversation with Maverick before he left, but at the time, he’d been so conflicted that he didn’t know what to say and just watched the man walk away. Now, he regretted being so quiet.
Drawing in a breath to bolster himself, Isaac stepped off the elevator, his head held high. The potion to help with his pain showed up by delivery, just like Maverick said it would. It helped immensely, both with the headache and the ache in Isaac’s ass. Though he was a little disappointed about that part. Having the ache as a reminder of the previous night was part of the fun.
Isaac got a few looks as he walked past the reception toward Maverick’s office. He’d bet his next paycheck that people were talking about him behind his back, wondering what happened. Offices basically fed off gossip, and getting into a shouting match with his boss was a definite reason to gossip.
Maverick hadn’t arrived yet when Isaac stepped into the office. It gave him a few more minutes to get himself together, and he always liked a quiet office. Maverick wasn’t noisy in general, but still. There was just something nice about having the entire office to yourself. Isaac set to work right away, doing the things he should’ve done the night before if his head hadn’t been screaming at him. He cleared off Maverick’s desk, piling files neatly in the inbox for Maverick to go over when he was ready. Dragons were territorial, even with their offices, so cleaners weren’t allowed in here at the end of the night. It was up to Isaac to empty the trash and make sure things were tidy, but he didn’t mind. Maverick wasn’t messy in the first place.
After making sure the office was how it was supposed to be, he headed for the breakroom to make himself a coffee. There was a 50/50 chance that Maverick would stop at a shop on his way in and bring in his own coffee. If he did want one, Isaac would just make it after he arrived. He was pouring a little sugar into his cup when someone sidled up to him. He sighed.
“Good morning, Jade.”
Isaac still wasn’t happy with her after she called SR without talking to him first, but he didn’t say that to her. He took a sip of his coffee, trying not to wrinkle his nose at the taste. It was fine, but it wasn’t great. If he could afford it, Isaac would’ve preferred to get a coffee from the shop downstairs. But if he did that every day, he wouldn’t be able to afford rent.
“Hey. I’m surprised to see you.”
Isaac frowned, glancing over his shoulder at her. “Why’s that?”
“Well, after everything that happened yesterday, I thought you might not come back. What did happen yesterday?” She gave him an innocent look, but Isaac saw right through her. She was fishing for gossip. Of course she was. Well, Isaac wasn’t going to play that game.
“Nothing happened. We had a disagreement. Shouldn’t you be working right now?”
She pouted, following him out of the breakroom. “It didn’t sound like nothing. And you left early yesterday. What happened with Mr. Brightbeak? Did he help–”
Coming to an abrupt halt, Isaac spun around to face her. “Look. While I appreciate you looking out for me, I don’t appreciate you calling SR without talking to me first. You could’ve caused me a lot of trouble. I’m only a temp here. They could get rid of me whenever they want and I’d have no say in the matter. So the next time you think about helping me, don’t. Please,” he tacked on with forced politeness.
Isaac silently berated himself as he stalked off. She was just being nice. He was sure other people would have appreciated her making that call. He just wasn’t one of them. And he really hated when people tried to speak for him. The assumption that he was weak and needed protection had gone on his entire life. People were shocked when they realized how capable he was. He lost track of the amount of attempts to recruit him to the military as a battle mage because he was powerful enough to cause some serious damage. He shouldn’t have to do a demonstration just to prove to people that he could take care of himself.
Irritated, he dropped into his chair, taking another steadying sip of his coffee. He hoped once he was a lawyer, people would stop underestimating him. Especially if he worked at Spellbound. You didn’t get offered a job here out of pity. You had to freaking earn it.
He was so wrapped up in his thoughts, he almost missed Maverick’s arrival. The door to the terrace rattled a little as Maverick landed, drawing Isaac’s attention. He watched, fascinated. The shift was flawless. If you blinked, you’d miss it. It was a little crazy how Maverick could go from a massive dragon to a grouchy giant stalking towards the terrace door so effortlessly. Isaac flicked his wrist, opening the door for Maverick, and pushed to his feet. If he flew in, that meant he didn’t stop at a coffee shop beforehand.
“Good morning, Mr. Van Buren. Can I get you a cup of coffee?”
He shook his head with a scowl. For a moment, Isaac worried this was about him until Maverick spoke.
“I need you to grab something to take notes. I have a meeting downstairs.”
Well, that sounded interesting. Though, he could understand that being annoying first thing before coffee.
“How long do we have?”
Maverick made an irritated sound as he hung his coat up on the coat rack. “Fifteen minutes. Less if you consider the damn elevators.”
The elevators were really annoying. The amount of times they stopped was exhausting. Isaac was a little jealous that Maverick could fly in like that and skip the morning elevator traffic.
“Okay. Give me two minutes.”
Maverick frowned at him, but Isaac didn’t give him a chance to argue before he scurried to the breakroom. A caffeinated dragon was a more patient dragon. If Isaac wanted to spare the world from Maverick’s wrath, getting him coffee was a necessity. He got two paper cups, dumping his coffee into one before doctoring another for Maverick. Thankfully, the break room was empty, otherwise he would’ve had to nudge people out of his way to get it done quickly. No one would complain, since they knew who he worked for, but he didn’t want to stir up any more rumors. Isaac was a grouch without coffee, too. There was nothing weird about that.
When he got back to the office, Maverick was scowling at the stack of files Isaac had cleared.
“Where is the paperwork for the thunderbird project?”
“Third from the top,” Isaac answered automatically. “You have meetings scheduled today for the two on top. I ordered them according to what I thought would be a priority.” It normally worked that way, but unscheduled meetings came up every once in a while. The one they were going to now wasn’t scheduled. He would’ve known if it was.
Maverick grunted, which Isaac figured out after the past few days was dragon for thank you. Such a grouch. Coffee might help. He handed the cup to Maverick, who took it with another grunt. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
Tucking a notebook under his arm for notes, Isaac followed Maverick out of the office, shutting the door behind him. He was lucky enough to have full access to the dragon’s office, but if anyone else went in there without permission, there would be hell to pay. Isaac wanted to avoid another confrontation.
He could feel the stares as they walked past the main area. Jade was practically leaning over the reception desk to watch. Isaac shook off his irritation and plastered a professional smile onto his face. It was just office gossip. No reason to get so bent out of shape. He didn’t want to end up as grouchy as Maverick.
While they were stuck in the elevator, Isaac took the time to calm himself. He was too tense and he couldn’t do his job well if he was this stressed out. He took deep breaths with his eyes closed, focusing on the tension in his body and slowly forcing it to relax. By the time they made it to the floor where the meeting was being held, the caffeine had started to kick in as well, and Isaac felt more like himself. He let out a sigh of relief, only to nearly collide into Maverick’s back when he stopped suddenly.
“Wha–”
Maverick turned around with a frown. “What did you just do?”
Isaac’s eyebrows shot up, and he looked around. “What?”
“Explain what you just did.” He sounded a little suspicious, but Isaac couldn’t figure out why. If Maverick had started this before Isaac had gotten himself under control, it might’ve led to another ‘disagreement’. Thankfully, he felt better and could summon the patience to figure out what was bothering the dragon now.
“I’m going to need you to be more specific. I haven’t done anything.”
“You cast a spell on me,” Maverick accused. Isaac’s mouth dropped open.
“Excuse me? I did not!”
Maverick growled out a warning, stepping closer to him. “You did. Don't lie to me.”
Tension thickened in the air between them, and Isaac sucked in a sharp breath. The last time things felt this way, Maverick ended up fucking his brains out. They couldn’t do that here. He’d definitely get fired if they did.
“Mr. Van Buren, I’m not sure what you’re talking about, but I promise I didn’t cast a spell on you. If I did, you’d definitely know it. What exactly happened to make you think that?”
Maverick opened his mouth to respond, but before he got a chance, someone called out to him.
“Mav! My friend! How are you on this fine morning?” The man speaking clapped Maverick’s shoulder, ignoring the growl that followed, a big smile on his face. His gaze shifted to Isaac and narrowed thoughtfully for a moment before his face lit up. “You must be the new assistant! I’ve heard a lot about you!” He thrust a hand out to shake. “Taron Cunningham.”
Isaac made an attempt to hide the surprise on his face. As a temp, he never thought he’d have the opportunity to meet both owners of the company. If he played this right, he might gain some powerful connections for when he eventually started job hunting. He shook hands with the man, matching his firm grip.
“Isaac Silverbreeze. It’s nice to meet you.”
A low growl filled the air, which made Isaac frown, but Taron’s grin turned wicked and when he turned to Maverick, he seemed to be vibrating with excitement.
“What’s the matter, my friend? Is something bothering you?”
Maverick scowled at him, and if looks could kill, Taron would probably be on the ground already. Isaac wasn’t sure what was going on, but Taron didn’t seem to be the least bit intimidated about poking at a dragon. He either had balls of steel or he was bat crap crazy. Isaac assumed the latter.
Before things could get too heated, they were joined by none other than Ozen Hawksley. He joined their little cluster, his eyes narrowed on Maverick for a moment before he turned to Isaac.
“Good morning, Isaac. How are you?”
“He’s fine. We have a meeting to get to,” Maverick answered for him. For a second, Isaac wasn’t sure why, but then it clicked. If SR was suspicious in any way, they might’ve called Mr. Hawksley. Which meant Isaac had to tread very lightly to not draw any attention to himself.
Mr. Hawksley shot Maverick a flat look, but before they could get into it, Isaac stepped in. “I’m great, Mr. Hawksley. The only thing that could make the day better would be decent coffee.” He gestured to his cup with a grimace. “I might start bringing coffee from home.”
Taron barked out a laugh. “I second that. The coffee in the breakroom really is awful. My secretary brings it to me when she’s angry with me.”
“So, daily then,” Mr. Hawksley said blandly. He glanced at Isaac again and sighed. “Alright, let’s head inside. They won’t start without us.”
Success. For now, anyway. He really needed to talk to Maverick about what happens next. People would only accept the ‘disagreement’ story for so long.