“I’m good. Just looking for Cora, actually. Have you seen her?”

“She’s in her office, but…” Lauren lowered her voice. “Alec’s in there.”

Of course he was. Frazer was really in no mood to speak with her boss. At all, actually. It was his fault she was even here. But she also didn’t want to speak to Lauren. Rock, hard place, Frazer.

Choosing hard place, Frazer turned her attention to the woman who was still looking up at her with a soft look in her eye. “How long ago did he arrive?”

“About ten minutes.”

Maybe they were canoodling. A smirk played at her lips at that thought. Cora didn’t seem the type. Alec also didn’t seem like a rule breaker.

“I’d take that look off your face. They won’t be doing that.” Lauren’s voice lowered again. “They were yelling before.”

Interesting.

* * *

It was one of those situations in which Cora didn’t feel like she was in her own life.

How was it that she was sitting on the ‘power’ side of the desk, yet Alec was standing across from her, and it felt as if he was towering over her? No one wins in these situations.

“For God’s sakes, Cora, if you just thought sometimes!”

The anger glinting in his eyes still took her by surprise every time she saw it. Which was all too often lately. Cora really didn’t want to be doing this at work, but when Alec wanted to talk about something, it couldn’t wait.

With an internal wince, she really wished he would lower his voice.

“It would be easier, if I knew everything that was actually involved, Alec.” She hated the tone of her voice. Placating. Soothing. Yet raised a touch too high.

“Don’t you try to turn this around on me.” And with those words, he spun on his heel and left the room.

He closed the door too loudly for a work environment, and Cora had to resist the urge to throw something after him. She took a long, deep breath. Cora wasn’t five. She didn’t throw things.

How had that even started? Something about some words Cora had said wrong to Alec’s parents? Or had it been about the tone of an e-mail Cora had sent?

If they had been at home, it would have escalated, but at least only the neighbours and not a building full of their colleagues would have overheard. How did they both become people she really didn’t like the minute they were left alone together? How did two mature adults fight like such children? How was it that it was always her soothing Alec’s hot temper, apologising when most of the time she didn’t really know what for?

It was becoming exhausting.

Her cheeks hot, Cora clicked open her e-mail and promptly closed it again when she saw her inbox. When had her mother figured out e-mail? She glared at the screen, huffing. Had someone given her Cora’s address? It must have been Alec. Damn. Just another way her mother could be constantly involved in her life, leaving Cora with no way left to dodge her. There was a time Cora had thought mobiles were a fantastic invention. Now everybody expected everyone else to be constantly contactable. Half of the time, her mobile was dead, left in the bottom of her bag. Usually with five missed calls from her mum.