by S J Abbott
“Nope. I’m good.” Aaron looked at Seth. “It’s not over, though. So, for the record, you get to ask that one more time in regard to Julie. Any more than that, I get to punch you.”
Seth laughed deeply. “Deal.”
The moment Shannon’s eagle eyes saw the elevator door shut completely, she jumped at the chance to berate Julie. Pointing at the door as she went off. “That was Aaron? The Aaron. Like, your Aaron! How could you not tell me this before I started working here?”
“I had absolutely no idea.” Julie shook her head. “I can’t believe he’s part of Genesis. It just seems so … unlike him.”
Shannon rolled her eyes. “You’re being so closed-minded. So the dude started an adult toy company. It doesn’t make him a horrible person or a deviant or anything you’re probably thinking.”
“He was just so quiet and clean-cut. Totally not the sex toy type.” Shannon laughed, startling Julie. “Why are you laughing at me?”
“I think the real question is, why wouldn’t I be. You’re being completely ludicrous, and you know it.” She shook her head. “If he’d built a wildly successful company building small scale plastic bears, would you be weirded out?”
Julie raised her eyebrows at her friend. “Small scale plastic bears?”
“Yes.” Shannon tried to be serious.
“Honestly, yeah I think I would be. I mean, who does that?”
“You’re such a bitch. You know what I mean. He’s cute. He’s successful. He seems sweet despite a small incident this morning where he was a tiny douche. Overall, he seems like a catch. So what’s your deal?”
Julie pushed past her friend and went to the elevator, pressing the down button several times in quick succession with her thumb. “You know exactly what my issue is.”
Shannon followed behind her friend a huge smile on her face. “No, actually I don’t.”
Julie huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “He was … he is …” Julie muttered and stumbled. When the elevator arrived, she stepped into it, turned to face Shannon, and finally managed to say, “Everything always seems just out of reach.”
Shannon took the few steps needed to be close to her friend, put an arm on her shoulder and leaned over to push the button that would take them to the main lobby. She let out a small gasp as she straightened and dropped her hand to her side.
Noticing the alarmed look on Shannon’s face, Julie followed her gaze out of the elevator … to a man standing in front of the desk. Where had he come from? How much had he heard?
Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Yummy watched the two of them with a sexy smile plastered across his face. He stared at Shannon. She stared back. Not breaking their eye contact, he pulled his suit jacket closed and buttoned it. He winked just as the door closed.
Complete silence filled the elevator. Julie tried to stay quiet, but she was panicking a little. Whoever that was, she was sure he would tell Aaron all about their conversation.
They made it down to the lobby and out to the street before Julie grabbed Shannon’s arm and spun her to face her. “Who was that?”
Shannon shook her head. “How about we hit Anthony’s. I love their giant salads. I feel like, though they pile it with tons of fresh mozzarella, I’ve still been good because its salad.”
Julie squeezed her friend’s arm. “Shannon. Who was that guy?”
Shannon shook her head again. “I don’t know.”
“Don’t give me that shit. It was more than obvious that you knew him.”
Shannon looked directly at Julie. “Seriously. I’ve never seen him before.”
Julie let out a deep breath, and after searching her friend’s eyes and deciding she was telling the truth, she dropped her arm. “Anthony’s is good.”
They headed off to Anthony’s, and while Julie believed that Shannon had never seen the man, she wasn’t sure that her friend really didn’t know who he was.
“So what’s his name?”
Shannon’s head spun around. “I told you I don’t know.”
“No. You said that you’d never seen him before. I think there’s something more you’re not telling me.”
Shannon shook her head. “It’s nothing, really. If I said anything at all it would be a complete guess, so it’s better if I just shut up.”
Julie smiled. “Ha! I knew it. So who is he?”
Shannon stopped, grabbed Julie’s arm and looked at her friend. “Gideon, one of the partners,” she whispered, an apology in her eyes.
Julie knew in that moment that Shannon had been thinking the exact same thing—that he’d heard their entire conversation and would probably tell Aaron all about it. And if that really was Gideon, Julie had no doubt, because she remembered Aaron mentioning his best friend, Gideon.
“Fuck,” she huffed before moving her feet and marching down the busy sidewalk. The city was always bustling during lunchtime, especially on such a nice day. Julie didn’t care. She ducked and weaved in between and around people, anger splashing the pavement with every step. Shannon hurried to catch up.
Julie yanked open the door to the restaurant, blocking the doorway for everyone else until Shannon finally got there.
“Listen, it might not be that bad. I’ve been thinking about it, and I don’t think you even really said anything that would be worth telling.”
Julie lifted her eyebrows at her. “Okay, yeah, sure.”
They got in line. “Well, they are guys. Maybe guys don’t have that whole BFF code thing going on that girls do. Maybe he won’t say anything because there’s nothing really to say.” Her face lit up like a Christmas tree as her words trailed off and she went into a daze.
“What?”
“Huh? What? … Nothing,” Shannon said as she shook herself.
Julie smiled knowingly. “You were picturing that guy, weren’t you?” She laughed. “You’re such a tramp,” she finished playfully pushing Shannon forward in line.
Shannon pushed her back. “For real though, did you see him? Magnificent.”
Julie laughed. Before she could respond further, it was their turn to order. After ordering their salads and picking up their drinks, they found a table tucked into the far back corner and sat down.
“I admitted to day-dreaming about Mr. Sexy, so it’s your turn to spill. I can tell you like him. The man practically saved your life. Why are you holding back?”
Julie had told Shannon all about what happened after she left the party. Shannon had begged her then to call Aaron. She’d said she would, but never did. She wanted to though. Julie hated to admit it—even to herself—but she found herself thinking about him more often than she should. He was just so …
Julie looked at her friend across the table. “We’re from completely different worlds. It would never work.”
“Okay. First of all, you know you’re not in high school anymore and that you can hang out with and be friends with whomever you want, right? I mean you could have then, but I get that it’s different. Teenage angst and all.” Shannon softened her expression. “But really, it isn’t the same. Plus, you can’t know that it won’t work. And even if it doesn’t, you could have some fun for once.”
Julie looked at the table as one of the girls from behind the counter came over and put their salads down in front of them. “Thank you,” they told her in unison.
“So what’s your excuse going to be?”
Julie shook her head, picked up her fork and stabbed it into the heaping pile of what looked like mostly cheese before her. “I don’t need an excuse. I have reasons.”
“Lame ones that make no sense in the real world.” Shannon stuffed a fork full of food in her mouth.
“What do I have to do to get you to let this go?”
Shannon finished chewing, swallowed and then, while stabbing more of the lettuce, peppers and cheese onto her fork told Julie, “Well, you can start by admitting that you like him. Then you can admit that you’re hiding from your life.” She smiled big and shoved the fork in her mouth.
Julie wanted to slam her palm against the fork so her snotty friend would choke on her lettuce. She set her fork on her plate and leaned in closer so Shannon wouldn’t mistake her seriousness. “Yes, I like Aaron. But no, I am not going to go out with him. And for the record, I’m not hiding from anything. You can now shut up and drop this.”
Shannon let a smile creep across her face as Julie slid back into her seat.
A clearly identifiable male voice floated over Julie’s shoulder.
“She can drop it if she wants. I’ll take it from here.”
Seven
Julie felt her face getting red. She was so hot she thought she might pass out. Her lungs felt tight; she desperately sucked in air as she glared across the table at her friend. She felt a little guilty because Shannon’s smile had flattened out, and her eyes seemed to be searching Julie’s face for understanding. Shannon hadn’t known he was there any more than Julie had.
Julie did everything she could to calm herself as she turned to face Aaron.
“How’s your lunch? Isn’t this place great?” he asked with a smile.
“Did you follow us?”
He shook his head. “No. Lucky coincidence. See, we do have things in common.”
Julie just stared at him, still unsure how to respond. What does one say to someone who overheard a confession like that?
Aaron saved her the trouble. He leaned in close to her ear. She was sure no one would hear him, except maybe Shannon. “I like you too. I may not have been brave enough to ask you out when we were in school, but I know better now. I’m not going anywhere, and you can’t shake me.”
Julie’s insides turned into puddles of goo. Her heart was beating so hard it matched the helicopter sound in her head. His words echoed around the whooshing, making her face get even hotter. She took slow breaths as he stood, looked at Shannon and said, “See you in a few.” And then he walked away.
Shannon turned and watched him go while Julie slid down in her chair, wishing she could slide right into the floor and disappear. How could she have caved? She’d given into Shannon and told her, and he’d heard the entire thing. She tried to absorb the words he’d whispered to her, but her heart was still pounding, and the sound had moved to her ears.
She never picked her fork back up. Her stomach was doing flips, making her feel nauseated. Julie watched Shannon eat for a minute, then gave up and went to the counter to get a box for her salad. She’d eat it for dinner, hours from this moment, when she could pretend this horrible lunch had never happened.
After tipping her plate into the Styrofoam container Julie looked at Shannon. “Ready?”
Shannon didn’t answer right away. She just studied her friend’s face.
“Are you sure? We can stay and talk about this.”
Julie shook her head. “There’s nothing to talk about.”
Getting to their feet, they exchanged one last look where Shannon pleaded with her eyes.
Julie shut her down with a glare, turning for the door, and heading out into the sun.
Aaron was having mixed feelings about the trip to Anthony’s. On the one hand—the happy hand—he now knew that Julie had wanted to call but didn’t, for a reason he didn’t fully understand but had every intention of figuring out. On the other hand, he knew that Seth had heard Shannon talking about someone the girls were calling Mr. Sexy, whom he knew could only be Gideon. No one else was ever on their floor unless they had an appointment … and if there’d been an appointment, Shannon would have known.
“So what exactly are you wanting to do down in design today?”
Aaron was a bit surprised at Seth’s line of questioning. “Nothing in particular. I just can’t look at another purchase order.” He saw his opening to bring up Shannon. “Plus, I thought it would be good to help you show Shannon around. She needs to meet everyone and see how the place works.”
Seth nodded. “Well if that’s all then I might have to let you to show her around. Amanda says that the Lily and Oak thing could become an issue, so I’m thinking it might be time to dig out those old contracts.”
Aaron wasn’t fooled. “I thought Amanda already looked them over. This is about the Mr. Sexy thing, isn’t it?”
Seth’s shoulders tightened, and his teeth clashed together. “Who?” he asked through gritted teeth. Aaron had hit the nail on the head.
“Dude. I know you have a little thing for Shannon … and I also know that you heard all the same shit I heard back there at Anthony’s.”
Seth looked at Aaron. “Little is an overstatement. She’s hot. That’s all. It’s not a big deal.”
Not completely sure he believed him, Aaron decided to push the matter. “Why are you so on edge and suddenly tense then?”
Seth clenched and unclenched his fists. “Fucking Gideon.”
He didn’t have to say anymore. Aaron completely understood. The guy was a walking cock-block. It was annoying as hell how every female seemed to fall at his feet the moment they saw him. The worst part of it was that, though Gideon enjoyed it and took advantage of it, he didn’t even have to try. He put next to no effort into being him. He just … was.
“Yeah he can be a fucker. He doesn’t mean to be though,” Aaron said.
“I know. Doesn’t change the fact that he is.”
Aaron smiled and nodded. “No, it doesn’t. But it does give us more ammo.”
Seth laughed as they pushed their way through the revolving door to head back up to their offices. “That it does.”
Aaron headed out of his office, extremely nervous. Arriving at Shannon’s desk he wasn’t sure how to approach her. He knew he should keep things professional and not ask about Julie, but he was having a hard time following his own advice.
Shannon looked up and smiled. “One and that’s it.”
“Excuse me?”
“I said, one. You get to ask me one question about Julie, and then we’re not talking about it.”
“Okay,” Aaron sighed in relief while nodding. Then he perked up. “Shall we head out then? I think you’ll find the design process interesting. Not many people get to see all the technical aspects of how developing these types of products happen.”
Shannon shuffled some things around on her desk before starting to stand. “Shouldn’t we wait for Seth?”
Aaron smiled. “Seth isn’t going to be able to join us. Something came up with our attorneys, and he needed to take of it.”
She actually looked a little sad as his words registered. “Oh. Okay. Let’s go then.”
They waited in silence for the elevator, but once inside Shannon spoke. “So, you’re really not going to ask?”
Aaron studied her face. She really was classically beautiful; high cheekbones, full shapely lips and bright sharp blue eyes. She seemed intelligent, too. Even though Aaron wasn’t attracted to her, he could see why Seth would be.
“Oh, I plan to ask. I’m just taking my time to decide what to ask. I only get one question. I want to make it count.”
Shannon laughed as the elevator doors opened to the design floor. Aaron immediately let his eyes span over the wide-open space. He loved it on the design floor. The energy seemed to be infectious.
“Sorry about that. I just think it would be easier for us to work together if we weren’t majorly involved in one another’s personal lives.”
“I couldn’t agree more. There’s one problem though.” Aaron shot her his million-dollar winning smile as they stepped out of the elevator. “If I get my way—no when I get my way—we will be involved in each other’s personal lives. Because you’re Julie’s best friend.”
Shannon responded to his smile with an amazing one of her own. “We’ll cross that bridge when we need to. It’s the best I can do at the moment. As far as the best friend thing goes … why do you think I’m giving you one question?”
Point taken.” Aaron was impressed. This girl was sharp. She was also protective and caring. Those attributes combined with her looks made her a dange
rous human being. Maybe her and Gideon did have a lot in common. “You care about her.”
Shannon froze and turned toward him. She stared at him fiercely. “Hear this: Julie is the closest thing I have ever had to a sister. I love that girl, and if you hurt her, I will hurt you.”
Aaron really liked her. Seth had done a fabulous job in choosing her for their new assistant. They needed someone fierce. And she seemed up to the task. “I like you. I think you’re going to do amazing things here at Genesis.”
That comment rocked Shannon. Aaron could tell by the confusion in her eyes that she’d been expecting him to make some sort of promise about his intentions, that he’d try to prove he was worthy. That wasn’t how he operated, and she needed to know that sooner rather than later.
He smiled at her. “Shall we?” he asked as he swept his hand outward, indicating the expanse of the floor in front of them.
With a quiet, “Yes,” from Shannon, they started walking as Aaron explained everything they did at Genesis, from step one to the final product that ended up in stores and on the website.
“What took you so long?” Julie asked the moment she opened the door.
“Traffic was horrible. Getting out of the center of the city at rush hour always is,” Shannon answered as she pushed her way into the house, trying not to spill the coffees she had in her hands.
Julie closed the door behind her friend and leaned against it. “What did he say when you got back from lunch?”
Shannon thrust one of the cups out toward her friend. “Not wasting any time, are we?” She laughed as she sipped at her own. “We came to an agreement.”
Julie pushed off the door and rushed toward Shannon. “What kind of agreement?”
Shannon giggled and went to sit on the couch. “You’re funny when you squirm.”
Julie was not enjoying herself. She felt like she was losing control. Ever since Anthony’s she’d been a wreck—thinking about him and what he would say to Shannon. To try and get her mind off it, she’d spent the last couple of hours scrubbing the oven. She was pretty sure she’d scrubbed off some of the enamel.
