"No need," Catherine said quickly. "I can go on my own. Or hitch a ride with some of the others."
The last thing she wanted was for him to pick her up. Everyone else would be arriving in groups—what would it look like if she showed up alone, with him?
Catherine was still desperately resisting the spread of that ambiguous tension between them, even though deep down she already knew she wasn't going to win.
But he simply lifted a brow and replied,
"Do I not count as your colleague?"
Catherine: "..."
In her eyes, he was absolutely not her colleague.
He was her boss.
He continued,
"Tomorrow's party requires a lot of prep. Especially the food. I'm not familiar with Burg Eltz. You'll come with me to buy everything."
It was half a request, half a command. Catherine muttered,
"Then how did you manage ingredients for all the previous parties?"
