I suppose the hardest part of my day was the end of it. Not the work that I had to do, but to leave it all behind at the office and just relax. I had never been one to sit and do nothing, but this new internship had been draining every ounce of my energy from day one. I was out the door before six in the morning and home sometimes after midnight. I had no time for a social life, and even when I did get time off, I was so exhausted I slept.
It had been yet another killer week at the office and I was just slipping my shoes off when the phone ring. I knew it was work because having just moved here they were the only ones who had the number to my condo.
I answered and listened to the voice on the other end tell me that since I was low man on the totem pole and wanted the position so bad, I got to come in a cover the late shift at the office with only one other person there to help me. Some woman named Elizabeth that I had never heard of.
I shook my head as I hung up the phone and drove all the way back to the office. I suppose the lack of traffic should have given me a smile, but I was so tired I could care less about it. I pulled into the deserted parking lot and walked into the office for twelve hours of monotony.
I walked into the Operations Center and sat down at my desk. I saw a purse on the desk opposite me and was glad that at least the help I was promised was actually in the building, if not at her desk.
"Sir?" The voice sounded as tired as mine and twice as exasperated. "Sir, my name is Elizabeth and I guess we are partners for the evening."
I dropped all the fatigue from my mind and turned around to say hello. After all, a man without manners is not a man at all as my father would say.
I turned with a smile and sat there like an idiot as I saw her. She was a probably about five feet, ten inches tall with raven black hair that cascaded down her back like a wave until it stopped just before her ankles. Her lips were full and pouty and moist from the lipstick she wore. Her eyes were the most beautiful shade of violet I had ever seen.
After a second of being rude, I introduced myself.
"Please, the name is Rick, my father is a Sir, not me." he had hoped for, and received a smile for the lame joke he had just told. "I have never worked the night shift, what do we have to look forward to?"
Elizabeth smiled again, her tongue darting over her teeth before she spoke. "I have worked night shift here for three years and have answered the phone twice in all that time. I suppose that is why I am confused as to why you are here. It isn't exactly busy."
My anger was dissuaded by the melodic tone of her voice, it was so relaxing to listen to.
"I assume it is because I am the new guy, or maybe they just don't like me." I smiled again and sat down in my chair, loosening my tie and cracking my knuckles.
She laughed then, a soft and sensuous sound that seemed to both echo and be directed at me at the same time.
"Well now, maybe it is me they don't like, sticking me with the new guy." Her voice held laughter in in and I noticed when she spoke she constantly moved her hands over the long red skirt she was wearing, constantly smoothing it over and over again.
I laughed loudly. "Well, maybe it is a bit of both, please sit down and we can talk, seeing as we don't seem to have much work to do."
She and I sat for hours and talked about a variety of things. From the latest company gossip to where we liked to eat. Inevitably, as most conversations tend to do, it somehow ended up at sex. We spoke very candidly about what we liked and did not and she finally just stopped talking.
"I am so sorry, I shouldn't have been talking about that at all, it was inappropriate." My voice was angry, at myself, I knew better than to do stupid things like that at work.
