A Man's Guilt, A Woman's Saving Grace 3

A Man's Guilt, A Woman's Saving Grace
Part One
Chapter Three

"Mr. Branson?" The question came tentatively behind Edward's office door, which was cut out of a nice piece of dark mahogany and muffled sound quite horribly. Edward himself had been counting on an uninterrupted morning in which to organize and fill out the already neatly compiled stacks of paperwork that sat in front of him, seemingly mocking him with their unstained uniformity. He sighed, leaning on the desk with his elbows and rubbing his temples gingerly.

"Yes, Niels?"

A head full of dark hair peeked into the well-kempt room before allowing the rest of its body to enter hesitantly, holding another handful of the dreaded stuff that thankfully didn't appear to be related to anything Edward was concocting. He folded his hands and looked at his secretary, who was slightly hunched over with his characteristic nervousness that followed him seemingly everywhere except the fish market.

"S-sir, the addresses you requested have been mailed in along with the catalogue you wished to order the children's shoes from," he stammered, approaching his desk to hand him the items in question. Edward perked up at this, taking the catalouge silently and rifling through it until he came to a page which sported the daintiest girl's boots in fashion, trimmed with lace and coloured a light pink. He ran his thumb over the illustration delicately, then held it up for Niels to see.

"These would look fetching on Virginia, yes?" he asked very cordially. He always liked to include his right arm in personal affairs, especially when said arm had so little of that which should embrace every person when they return home from a day's work. Niels leant forward tentatively and squinted at the picture, then nodded with vigor.

"Yes, I think so! She always looks so lovely in pink like that, sir."

"I agree." He flipped through it for a little while longer, hardly even considering the prices such name brands called for and carried like a haughty posture. After a few minutes he picked up a pen and circled the trappings he saw as fit and fashionable for his youngsters to sport, tacking a note like a bookmark on each page so that it stuck outside the magazine. Donning his wire spectacles he rifled through the addresses that had been cautiously placed on his business calendar, also taking notes and placing each individual paper in a file all its own in one of the desk's knee-high drawers.

A soft cough sounded across the room, causing Edward to glance up. He had forgotten that his secretary was even in his company, who stood on one foot with the other tucked neatly behind it.

"Ah! Forgive me, Niels, you can go now."

The slight man sighed, obviously relieved. "Thank you, sir. Is there anything else you need before the meeting?"

He glanced up again between writing lines. "No, I am quite alright. I will be down presently."

Niels nodded respectfully and closed the door quietly behind him. Edward sighed mentally and finished his notes, sitting his glasses on their stand next to his nameplate. He rose and dusted off his jacket, straightened it, and slicked back his already slicked-back hair with one hand while the other adjusted his necktie. Turning, he studied himself in the full-length mirror that hung on the west wall of his workspace. He looked like any proper and respectable busniess man should; tall, well muscled underneath his crisp, black suit, and pale with a slight peachy flush to him. His blue eyes took all of this in while wishing he had a comb to run through his blonde strands. He sighed, an actual sound this time.

He began to think of the guests he would be recieving in a few moments. One in particular had been hiding in the back of his mind all morning and the night before, almost taunting him with his handsome smirk and confindent manner, which, to be honest, Edward had only witnessed a select few times. The thought of witnessing that torturous gleam in those iced, gleaming orbs caused his handsome face to flush violently, and the guilt set in once more, his limbs beginning to tremble in a way that had he had become used to even though it was new.

His head bowed and slowly he pulled himself together, clenching his fists tightly. He raised it again and silently looked at himself once more. He seemed smaller than before, slightly hunched over and sweaty. Turning on his heel he grabbed his gloves and his briefcase, shutting the door behind him almost as discreetly as Niels.