Thanks for the messages! Sooner or later, this platonic relationship between them will explode. I wonder whose going to give in first?
Daphne spent her entire morning at her desk, furiously editing the latest merger proposal. She couldn't believe her luck when her manager, Ricky, handed her the folder containing the Cooper-Finklestein deal. She thought her days of being an associate were finally over, that she can finally move onto bigger and more important projects but her heart quickly dropped when she discovered the completed proposal inside the folder. The papers inside were there for her to review and correct while ensuring that they were up to the company's standard.
It was basically scut work for junior associates joining the company.
She held her tongue when she accepted the folder and marched back to her desk, repeatedly telling herself not to punch the man in the face. While it would have been satisfying, it wasn't worth losing her job for. Not after everything she sacrificed to get here. The last thing she wanted to do was to give her father the satisfaction of knowing that he was right all along.
While deep in her thoughts, her fingers accidentally snapped the quill she was writing with in half. She sighed and threw the quill into the waste basket.
"Did the quill do something to offend you Daphne?"
Daphne looked up in surprise and saw Harry standing there, smirking. Her lips quickly curled up into a smile and she stood up, the frustration from earlier instantly forgotten. "Harry Hi! What are you doing here?"
"I was in the neighborhood and was wondering if you had lunch yet."
Her stomach growled in response and Daphne blushed. She looked at the time and realized that her morning flew by entirely. She was so caught up in reviewing the proposal that she lost tracked of time. "Not yet." She shyly answered.
"Then do you want to grab a bite to eat with me?" Harry asked, his eyes staring at her. "It can be something quick. I don't want to get you into trouble." He quickly added.
Daphne shook her head. "No it's fine. I can take my lunch break now." She stood up and quickly tidied up her desk. As she was cleaning up, she snuck in a few glances at Harry who was casually looking around the office. She noticed that he was no longer sporting the scruffy look that she grew accustomed to seeing. It was a shame though, she really liked it on him but this clean, shaven look worked for her as well.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and forced herself to focus with the task at hand. "So what are you in the mood for Harry? There's a few places around here that we can try."
"I'm good for anything." Harry said, turning around and leaned on the cubicle wall of her desk. "What are you in the mood for? It's only fair that you get to decide since you're the one coming back to the office."
An idea popped into her head and she smiled. "I know just the place!" Daphne announced. "There's this quaint little cafe a few blocks away. They have the best desserts. Do you want to try that?"
"Sure."
As they started walking towards the building exit, a loud voice called out Daphne's name, causing them to momentarily stop. She turned around and saw Ricky briskly walking towards her. She stifled a groan and threw an apologetic look at Harry. "Sorry Harry, it's my manager Ricky. Let me see what he wants."
Harry shrugged, not minding the intrusion. He turned around and stepped aside, giving her some privacy but close enough to be within ear-shot. He didn't mean to be so protective but there was something about this man that he didn't like. It could have been the way her manager carried himself, full of arrogance and bullshit but he shouldn't be too quick to judge. Maybe he was misreading the man. Maybe this man was a kind and caring boss who only looked out for his employees.
"I wasn't aware that you're about to take your lunch break Greengrass. Just make sure that those reports are on my desk by five." Ricky barked. He stopped in front of Daphne and was oblivious to her companion. "And just so you know, I went through a lot of trouble just to get you onto this project. Senior management didn't think it was a wise decision but I convinced them you were the perfect candidate. Do not make me regret my decision."
"It will be on your desk by five sir." Daphne muttered, her face heating up from embarrassment from being told off like that in front of Harry. "I was only taking a quick lunch with my friend..."
"By five." Ricky emphasized once more. "And not a second later." It was then he noticed that someone was standing beside Daphne. His eyes widened when he recognized the man. "Oh Mister Potter! What a surprise! Why didn't you tell me you were here? I would've personally given you the grand tour of our office."
"That's not necessary." Harry dryly answered, noticing that the man's attitude did a complete 180. He wisely took a step back, inching closer to Daphne's side. "I was just leaving."
"Mister Potter please. You've already went through the trouble of coming down here and I promise that this won't take too much of your time. There's a few people that would love to talk to you..."
"I'm not interested." Harry interrupted, the irritation present in his voice. "If I wanted to come here for a meeting, I would have called ahead instead of dropping by unannounced so in this case, did you know that I was coming?"
"No but..."
"Then there you go. Like I told you before, I have no interest in signing with your firm. My only purpose here today is to take Daphne out to lunch, which you are currently hindering. Do you have every intention of wasting my time?"
"Of course not but..." One more look from Harry and Ricky wisely shut his mouth. He knew when the battle was lost and this battle was lost. "Have a good day Mister Potter." Ricky said and he promptly turned around, rushing back to his office.
Harry sighed and turned his attention back to her. "I'm sorry Daphne, I know you can fight your own battles but something about his attitude pissed me off."
She shook her head, her cheeks still flushed from embarrassment. "No-no, It's fine Harry." She mumbled, feeling mortified. She was unable and unwilling to look him in the eyes, it was just too much. To have her boss belittle her in front of Harry, it was humiliating to say the least. All she wanted to do right now is to just disappear into the nearest closet and never come out.
"Are you okay?"
Daphne shook her head again, unable to answer. She stared hard at the tile floor, never once breaking contact because if she did, she knew tears would start and she was not going to cry in front of Harry.
"Don't give him the satisfaction of winning Daphne. People like him have no potential so they take it out on others. It might not be today but I promise you that one day, he's going to regret what he's done."
She could feel the raw emotion behind his words, almost if he was speaking from experience. "You think so?" She whispered.
"Of course Daphne. There was never any doubt in my mind." Harry stated, "In my eyes, I don't see you stopping here. I see big things in your future Daphne Greengrass and something like this is just a stepping stone. There will be much bigger challenges waiting for you."
Challenges... Like you? Her mind thought as she just nodded her head, unable to trust her lips right now. She could feel his words resonating with her heart, and she knew that she wanted more than a platonic relationship with him. She knew it from the first moment she bumped into him.
"So what do you say? Should we go to lunch now?"
"Yes." Both her mind and lips automatically answered. This wasn't the question she was looking to answer but for now, it's a start.
"So how was your day Daphne?" Harry teased as they walked out of the office. "I heard some obvious asshole came into your office acting like some kind of big-shot. Got into an argument with a manager."
"Yeah he was such an asshole, demanding that everyone wait on him hand and feet." Daphne replied, struggling to contain her laughter. "How he got past the front desk is beyond me."
"Maybe he's just that good."
"No one is that good." She pointed out, "So what brings you to my neck of the woods Harry?"
"Just seeing the new therapist that your cousin referred me to." He explained. "Michael Bull. World renowned psychologist. I have to admit, compared to your cousin, Doctor Bull is..."
"Better? Smarter? Experienced?" She wagered. "You can stop me anytime you know."
"Straight-forward." He gave her a weird look to which she stuck her tongue out as a response. "Interesting choice of words Daphne."
"What can I say, my cousin is the black sheep of the family. He's the only one in the family who decided to work with muggles for a living. Everyone else stayed on this side of the fence."
"Do you have a problem with that?" Harry softly asked.
"Gods no." Daphne quickly answered. "To be honest, I actually look up to him. He knew what he wanted and he didn't care what anyone in our family said. Wouldn't take no for an answer and didn't care for anyone's opinion. He just wanted to do what he loved and that was to help people."
"Is that why you chose to become a lawyer instead of working for your father? To forge your own path?"
She looked up in surprised. "You know about that?"
Harry nodded. "I had some free time on my hands after I defeated Voldemort so I made some inquiries about my account and the goblins provided me with a list of my working finances and available investment portfolios. I spent quite some time researching everyone and one of the names that popped up was your father's company. I didn't pay much attention to it at the time and just allowed the goblins to continue to manage my accounts. They've been doing a great job so far so I didn't see a problem with leaving things the way they were."
"Only you would find that acceptable Harry Potter." Daphne teased. "But I am quite surprised to see you today. I thought that after what happened last time, you would be steering clear of me."
And truth be told, that very thought actually crossed her mind after her sister left. She wasn't going to admit it to anyone but she had a little panic attack when she realized that they never exchanged contact information. Even if she wanted to ask him out again, she didn't have a way other than to bother her cousin again and she was not doing that. The last thing she wanted was to have another repeat of what happened when they first met.
"Maybe I'm just a glutton for punishment." Harry replied. "Or maybe I just enjoy your company."
Her eyes lit up, a smile threatening to break out. "Which one is it?" She asked, lightly poking him in the shoulders. "Come on you can tell me. I won't tell, I promise."
"I know." Harry said, "That's why I'm not telling you."
She gasped and then pouted. "You're going to crack eventually Harry. You know I can be very persistent."
Harry chuckled. "Oh I'm sure you are but I'm also very stubborn when I want to be." He saw the determined look in her eyes and then wondered if he was just setting himself for possible failure.
They eventually arrived at the small cafe, the waiter telling them to take a seat anywhere they like. Daphne looked around and picked the table by the window but before she touched her chair, it gently pulled itself out. She took a step back in surprise and saw Harry smirking at her. She giggled, realizing that Harry wandlessly pulled her chair out like a gentleman for her. They quickly sat down and within moments, their orders were placed and resumed their earlier conversation.
"I'll give you credit for showing up like that Harry." Daphne said, "What if I've already eaten? What would you have done then?"
He shrugged his shoulders. "Then I would've just turned around and gotten food myself. I'm a grown man you know."
Daphne saw the impassively look on his face and it struck her that this was her moment. This was the moment that would start all other future moments. She was now in a position where she can decide how her relationship with Harry will turn out. Daphne took a deep breath to steel her nerves and leaned forward, reaching for his hand. As she held his hand, she couldn't help but to notice that it was slightly bigger than her own hand.
She giggled quietly and then with a pen, she scribbled a word onto his palm.
Harry watched as she held onto his hand, wondering what she was doing. He shifted his body to get a better look but Daphne smiled, signaling him to wait. He could feel her gentle touch and he swallowed the lump in his throat. The moment only lasted a few seconds but it was enough for him to want more.
"Okay! Done!" Daphne announced. "You can look now."
He pulled his hand back and found the word Thursday written across his palm. "Thursday?" He asked, "What about Thursday?"
"It's an outstanding lunch date Harry." Daphne explained, a pinkish hue on her cheeks. "From now on, or until you get bored of me, we can meet somewhere for lunch. It doesn't always have to be near my office."
It was just a small gesture but he couldn't help but to smile in return. "That sounds wonderful Daphne."
As he sat there with her, the only thought that crossed his mind was that this wasn't bad at all. He rather enjoyed sitting here with her, making idle conversation about nonsense and just enjoying each other's company. It was completely different from when he did this with Ginny. There was no pressure, no guilt. He was able to just relax and actually have a fun conversation with no strings attached.
There was something different about Daphne that he couldn't exactly put his finger on but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that he didn't care. The only thing that he really wanted right now was to know more about the enigma that is Daphne Greengrass.
Chapter Finito! Hope you enjoy it! Reviews are appreciated.