Page 44 of Untroubled Heart

“Why don’t you just bring her in?”

“You want me to bring my five-month-old into the office?”

“Why not? It’s only us on the third floor. You can take the day off to get sorted if you’d rather. But, seriously, she can hang here for the week.”

So here I am, baby in tow, forty-five minutes late. I forgot my lunch, and I’ve had zero caffeine, but at least we’re here.

The whole morning has been a disaster that I didn’t have on my bingo card, but even more unexpected is the scene I’m greeted with when I finally step into the office. Not only has my office been rearranged, but Mason’s standing in front of a highchair, reading a manual.

“Umm, hi?”

He spins around, cheeks flooding with blush as he says a breathy “Hey.”

I’m certain I’ve never seen a man blush as much as he does. Of course, it just makes him look even cuter. His whole demeanour is on guard until his eyes drop to my daughter and he seems to… melt? His shoulders drop from where they were hiked up to his ears, his mouth parts slightly, and his eyes soften.

Navie starts kicking her little legs as Mason approaches us. I get it, girl.

“Hey, Blue.” Navie squeals in response, earning a chuckle from Mason while I take in the space again, noting all the new changes.

The desk used to sit towards the back of the long, semi-open space. A three-seater couch was the first thing to greet you, with the kitchen nook built into the right and Mason’s office doors to the left. Now, the desk is the first thing you see when you approach the room, swapped from the original long shape to a wide U-shaped design.

Two tan leather armchairs have replaced the couch, butting up against the shared wall to Mason’s office, and the back right-hand corner has been divided with a curved partition of wall-to-ceiling timber slats, with little planter boxes full of hanging greenery mounted at varying heights.

“You did some rearranging over the weekend?”

He nods, looking around the room. “I figured with Steven gone, we should make it more accommodating for you.”

“For me?”

“Yeah.” He takes the nappy bag off my shoulder and pops it on the desk before walking further into the room. “Moved the couch out and replaced it with two singles. I don’t really have people waiting in here—that was just for aesthetics, as Beth would say.” I nod as I trail behind him, following as he rounds the front of the desk and over to the kitchen side. “Got a new desk.”

My screens are already arranged in one corner, leaving most of the surface free. There’s a vase full of multicoloured flowers on the opposite corner; they look like wildflowers, bright bursts of varying colours—not the pristine, perfect kind of flowers you’d expect in high-end places like cream roses and lilies. They sit on a stack of home decorating magazines, along with a caramel-scented candle.

“And then there’s this.” Mason squeezes his neck as he leads us around the new partition. Another armchair, this one in a rich, smoky blue velvet with scalloped edges sits in the corner with a matching footrest. A little table is beside it with open shelving stacked with little bottles of water and a basket of fruit and snack bars. “I thought it might be more comfortable for when you need to pump.”

Mason’s form turns blurry before me. “Did you move the whole office around just so I could have this?”

“I’m building one downstairs too,” he hurries to say. “I’m just not rushing that one cos we don’t have anyone on staff currently breastfeeding. Actually, we’ve never had anyone pregnant here either, so I’ve never had to think about it before. Really, you did me a favour. But you’re crying. Why are you crying?”

I fall into his chest. My eyes squeeze shut as my free arm wraps around his lower back. “I’m sorry, it’s been a crazy morning, and I’m due for my period, and everything happening with my mum, it’s just…” I suck in a breath and look up at him. “This is one of the most thoughtful things anyone’s ever done for me.”

His hands are tentative at first as they circle me, then slowly, they tighten as his chest inflates under my cheek. “I’m glad you like it,” he whispers.

After a few breaths, I open my eyes. Navie has also rested her head against Mason’s chest. Her fingers draw over the Two Heart Homes logo on his shirt as she babbles contently to herself. I smile, a warm, comforting feeling simmering in my stomach and dancing up my chest in beautiful, blissful ignorance, until I realise I’m practically snuggling my boss.

I step back, immediately feeling the absence of his touch. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine.” He smiles as his phone starts ringing. Pulling it from his pocket, I see Carmen’s name on the screen. “This will be about settlement for the house.”

“I’m gonna get started.” I point to my desk and make a move to finally get to work while Mason steps into his office.

He leaves the door open, and I watch as he takes a seat behind his desk. The whole time he speaks into the phone, he’s watching me. I hope Navie isn’t too disruptive. I don’t want him to feel as though I’m taking advantage of his kindness by bringing her in. I pop her in the highchair that’s magically appeared during his redesign. He only knew about Navie coming in a few hours ago, so how could he have sorted this so quickly?

I can’t question it for too long; too many fantasies cloud my head as to why. Instead, I reach into my bag to grab a rusk stick for Navie to munch on and a few toys. My glasses sit on the desk just under the screen, so I pop them on before scanning through my emails, responding to the ones I can answer the quickest, or forwarding ones that are specifically for Mason to answer. I only need my glasses when I’m in front of a screen for too long, so they’ve been mostly absent for the last four months since Navie was born. After a few days here, I started getting headaches again. I don’t mind wearing them, though. The thin gold frames make me feel cute.

I’m halfway through compiling Mason’s end-of-month reports when an error sound halts my typing. Looking up, I see a reminder, front and centre: ‘Best behaviour. Remember you love her.’

“What is this?” I mumble to myself as I straighten my glasses.