by Gabbi Wright
He felt pathetic going on vacation by himself. He’d booked this trip for her. He still had her ticket that he hadn’t cancelled. He still hoped she would call and ask to come back.
Come back. He almost snorted out loud. Her closet had been emptied for weeks.
Things hadn’t been that great between the two of them, anyway, this last year, maybe longer than that. Shit, they’d been together almost four years. He almost couldn’t picture being without her. She had said she understood that the company required more and more of his time, especially while things were going so well.
But then she had moved out.
The worst part? He’d been working such crazy hours it was almost a week before he realized she was gone. Before he even called her, wondering where she was.
What was wrong with him? Had he placed her so far behind the company that he couldn’t even tell when she was gone?
And why didn’t he care more? He missed her, but in a weird way, like he’d become accustomed to her, but didn’t really love her.
And that was it. He had fallen out of love somewhere along the way and couldn’t even tell when it had happened.
She had recognized it, even called him on it, in the end. He’d started to deny it, to proclaim he still had feelings for her, but she was right. Their love had been swept out from beneath his feet.
And Hawaii was going to be lonely. He’d told her they could use the trip to rekindle the flame, to fall in love all over again.
She’d told him no.
He couldn’t dwell on it anymore tonight though. They reached the conference room, unrecognizable from its usual layout, with the large table and chairs replaced by many smaller ones. A buffet ran along the wall, and everyone was already in line. He sniffed and smiled. Taco bar.
Everyone loved tacos.
“How’d we end up at the back of the line?” Mike asked.
“Hush, it’s about them, not us.”
“They just want to know who’s getting a two-week paid vacation too. The winner will be the most hated person in the office, come Monday.”
“We’ll be the most hated if we don’t do the drawing.”
“I’ll drink to that.”
Aside from the buffet, an open bar, complete with hired bartender, was set up on the other side of the room. It was probably a mistake having alcohol, but Mike had insisted. Anthony hadn’t argued. Everyone knew there was a cut-off, and drinking required a designated driver or an Uber or Lyft.
Lastly, another table held gifts. Everyone had been assigned a name for the White Elephant gift exchange, weeks in advance, with a maximum price tag of twenty bucks. It was only supposed to be fun, nothing serious.
As their spot at the end of line reached the beginning of the buffet, one of their employees, Brooke, popped out of the elevator, cheeks red, and breathless, her long blond hair a bit of a mess.
He turned, unable to stop himself from grinning. “You okay?”
She looked up at him, blinking, as though suddenly realizing she was stuck behind the boss.
Brooke was an interesting employee – not really one of his hardest workers, but she possessed an enthusiasm that he admired. She was a daydreamer, though, frequently staring off into space. Her numbers were always a bit lower than her peers, and he supposed he’d have to eventually let her go.
“Oh hi!” she said, and her cheeks turned an even redder, brighter than from being out of breath.
I make her nervous, he realized. That wasn’t something he liked in employees. He wanted them to feel like they were a part of the company as much as he was, a family, and not look at him like he was better in any way.
“Don’t worry,” he said, trying to lighten her stress, “There’s still food left.”
The way she eyed the table made him wonder if there would be enough for her. She looked like she was judging everything.
Seriously? he thought, just keeping from saying it aloud, It’s just tacos. You know what you’re getting.
He, on the other hand, had no intention of holding back. He filled his plate with a heaping amount of ground beef and cheese, going light on the veggies. Vegetables took up too much room, making it so that he had less of what he really enjoyed.
But then he made the mistake of looking back.
Where he had loaded up on the meat and cheese, Brooke seemed determined to make up for what he didn’t take. She crumbled up the hard shell into pieces, and covered it to brimming with lettuce, avocado, and tomatoes in a veggie taco salad.
Maybe she was lactose intolerant? That would explain the lack of cheese. But the ground beef? Heresy!
“You not taking any meat?” he asked.
“No,” she replied, not looking at him.
“How come?”
Before she answered, he had an inkling of why not. She was a…
“I’m vegan,” she replied.
“Where do you get your protein?”
“Same place animals do.”
“Cows don’t eat meat.”
“Nope.”
Now it was his turn to turn a little red. She was purposely choosing not to give him a straight answer, leaving him feeling a little defensive in her presence.
He’d never had much patience vegans; his uncle owned a dairy.
After that he chose not to look at her lest she make him more uncomfortable. And damn, these tacos looked delicious. The taco bar had been his idea, after all. But if he had known, maybe he could have come up with some other dietary options.
He and Mike made their way to a table where a few of the supervisors sat. They muttered their greetings before tearing into their meal.
“Damn, Anthony, that Brooke got you all flustered, did she?”
“What? No, not really. She’s vegan. Maybe we should have asked everyone if they had any dietary restrictions.”
Mike snorted. “No, man. Tacos are always a safe bet. Not even vegans can resist tacos, that’s one of nature’s laws.”
“I don’t think that’s really a thing.”
“Of course it is.” He gestured around the room. “I mean, just look. Everyone’s tearing it up. Even Brooke.”
He was right, everyone was tearing it up. People were in conversation, talking with their mouths full, laughing, and generally seemed to be having a good time. Brooke looked like she was enjoying her tacos, despite the lack of meat and cheese. She sat next to one of her coworkers, Dina.
The two women had their heads together, blocking out the party, deep in a private conversation. Brooke looked up at him, their eyes meeting briefly. She looked away hurriedly, face turning that bright red again.
What was going on with her? Was she discussing him? He felt conspicuously on display.
“What?” Asked Mike, sensing his discomfort.
“I don’t know. Do you think I’ve rubbed her wrong?”
“Who’ve you been rubbing?”
“I’m not rubbing… that Brooke. She’s acting weird around me.”
“Weirder than usual? She’s a bit of a hippy, isn’t she? I mean, she’s not the one with dreads, but weird all the same. Maybe she’s a little crazy. You know it takes a little bit of crazy to get crazy sex.”
“Mike! She’s one of our employees!”
“Just sayin’,” Mike replied with a snort. “You never know though, they’re probably more drunk than me, and are checking you out. Or me! Let me know if you catch them looking our way again. Maybe they’re both interested.”
“So help me, if you get in trouble with an employee…”
“Hey, lighten up, it’s a party. If we’re going to make a mistake, tonight’s the night. Stories will be told, legends will be made. Besides, everyone will be a little crazy tonight. That’s called holiday cheer.”
Anthony sighed heavily. He thought about bringing up how Mike had been a trouble starter in college but thought better of it. Maybe they should have had this party in December, before Christmas…
CHAPTER 3 – BROOKE
Dina c
ould hardly keep from her chin dropping to the table. “Seriously? You got nothing?”
“Just a bath bomb,” Brooke replied dejectedly, “And it’s locked in the office. I can’t even embarrass myself more by giving him that. Everyone knows that I’ve got him.”
“Well I think it’s stupid that the boss even participated. After all, why should we have to spend the paycheck he gives us on him?”
“You don’t have to. Only me. And it’s only twenty bucks.”
“Yeah, but you’re my best friend. Your embarrassment directly affects me. I’ll be right there with you, just as humiliated.”
“Thanks, that doesn’t help in the least. Maybe you should find another seat, remove yourself from me now. There’s no reason you have to go down with this sinking ship.”
“Well, don’t say I never told you to keep up on your email.”
“Yes, I know. And you’re right, it’s stupid that he participated, when you put it like that. I mean, he deserves to not get a present, right? But he keeps looking at me. I think he’s trying to get a hint out of me for what I got him.”
“Yeah,” Dina replied, “Don’t look now, but he’s looking at us again.”
“God, what’s his deal tonight? I can’t even look at him without catching him looking back.”
“Maybe he’s really excited about your present.”
“That doesn’t make me feel any better. I need an idea. I can’t keep eating tacos until the gift exchange.”
“You know, it’s just a white elephant gift. Be creative. Go break into the supply room and give him a stapler. I’m sure he’d find that funny.”
“You think? Maybe I should get drunk.”
“Yes! That’s your best idea tonight! It’ll make the stapler gift even funnier. Good idea.”
The two of them got up and made their way to the bar. They had to walk past the bosses, and Brooke felt like they did a pretty good job not looking at them, until it felt like they were being too obvious by not looking at them, so she pointedly looked at them, primarily Anthony, to make sure their passage was perfectly natural. She even managed a weak smile, which made him arch his eyebrows in confusion.
Dina elbowed her and mouthed, “Stop flirting!”
She mouthed back, “I’m not!” As they reached the bar, she said, “Great, he probably thinks I’m flirting, doesn’t he?”
“If it’s any consolation,” Dina replied, “You’re not very good at it. He probably thinks you’re being hostile.”
“Great, I don’t even know how to flirt anymore.”
Dina snorted as she ordered strawberry margueritas for the two of them. “I keep telling you, you need to let me set you up on a date. How long has it been?”
“It’s been a long, dry six months.”
Dina eyed her skeptically. “Really?”
“Seven,” Brooke corrected, and then confessed, “Seven months, plus two years, actually.”
It had been that long! That was the last of what had almost been a steady relationship, lasting a whopping three months.
“It’s supposed to be the guys who had commitment issues, wasn’t it?” Brooke asked, “Why is it always me?”
Dina didn’t have an answer.
She always got cold feet when things were going too smoothly. Better to break it off than to become a runaway bride, right?
Three margueritas later and Brooke had an idea.
CHAPTER 4 – ANTHONY
The white elephant gift exchange brought a lot of laughs as one by one people opened up their gifts. Coffee mugs with silly holiday sayings were popular, and some of the best were ugly sweaters.
Anthony looked around the room at everyone having fun and couldn’t help but smile himself. He was a little buzzed, thanks to Mike’s influence, but the party seemed to be a hit.
They were a small business, with just over thirty full-time employees, but he liked to believe he was doing good by them, paying them a fair and livable wage, and though there were risks to having parties like this, especially with alcohol, they’d been enthusiastic about the idea, whether they drank or not.
And overall, people were having a good time.
Except for that one woman, Brooke. He couldn’t make heads or tails out of the way she kept looking at him. All nervous. Cheeks turning red when they made eye contact. When he mentioned it to Mike, Mike shrugged and replied, “She’s got a crush on you, obviously, and she’d been drinking, so she’s loosening up to her feelings. Maybe you should see if she’s doing anything after the party.”
“Yes, except that she’s an employee. And you and I both agreed we wouldn’t date any of them. They’re all off limits. Can you imagine being stuck in the office with any of your exes?”
“Fuck no.”
“Exactly. Besides, when I get back, she’ll be over it. She can pretend she never got so drunk that she entertained any thoughts of me, and we can pretend it was just another everyday Holiday party.”
The large conference room windows looked out at downtown Boise, and the street was a steady stream of headlights heading to and from their destinations, and Boise had enough of a nightlife that traffic would remain steady late into the night.
Snowflakes had begun to fall.
Not much snow was expected tonight, but he hoped the roads wouldn’t be too slick.
He looked up again, and Brooke had disappeared.
He didn’t want to admit that he was even curios about her interest, or what she was up to, but she perplexed him. Had he done something to anger her, maybe?
“She’s by the door,” Mike said.
“What? No, I wasn’t looking…”
“Whatever.”
Yep, there she was, by the exit. She sealed an envelope, licking it shut. The brief play of her tongue against the envelope caused him to stir. That simple innocent act was mildly sexy.
Damn, I’ve spent the whole night staring at her. Now I’m starting to entertain thoughts too. If he ever let Mike know, he’d never let him live it down.
And it wasn’t that Brooke wasn’t attractive, but he’d lived by his strict code to not be interested in any of his employees. And here he was, noticing her curves, the way her shoulder length blond hair bounced about her shoulders when she turned her head. And those blue eyes were large and deep. He was drawn to eyes, especially when accentuated with just a touch of eyeliner. They were the kind of eyes a guy could drown in.
And her breast…
Anthony elbowed him. He held a silly Christmas mug filled with candy canes that somebody had just given him. Even though Christmas was two weeks ago, many were still referring to this as a Christmas party, and not a holiday one. They had one Jewish employee and one Muslim. He’d tried hard to keep this from being about Christmas, out of fairness.
“It’s your turn,” Anthony said.
Who had his name?
He looked around. He’d never intended to participate, but the secretary had thought it would be funny to include him, too, and by the time he tried to get out of it, it was too late.
Brooke walked toward him; an envelope clutched in slightly trembling hands. He tried to ignore her, to see who had drawn his name.
But Brooke seemed intent on confronting him, now of all moments. Was she quitting? Was she so angry at him for some reason that she was resigning now?
Was it because of the lack of vegan options?
And then it sank in.
“Oh shit,” he murmured to Mike behind his hand, “Brooke has me.”
Mike snorted out loud.
Brooke held the envelope to her chest, glancing nervously at Mike and then back at him. Her cheeks were flush, and he wondered if she were going to be sick. He’d seen her at the bar. He knew she’d been drinking.
How could he avoid her when she was the one giving him the gift? How could this night get any more uncomfortable?
“Merry Christmas,” she muttered, handing him the envelope.
Their fingers touched for the briefest of seconds before
she jerked her hand back as though she’d touched a hot stove and her cheeks flamed up.
Either she liked him or she hated him. He couldn’t tell.
“Thank you, Brooke,” he said, trying to act as nonchalant as possible – just an employee and her employer at a party. Holiday party, he corrected himself.
He stared at the envelope. She got me a gift card. That’s nice. Where would she get him a card to? Probably someplace like Starbucks.
He ripped the envelope open, but there wasn’t a gift card. Just a folded sheet of paper.
“What is it?” Mike asked.
Many of the crowd had lost interest, but a few still leaned forward, curious.
Like Mike.
He unfolded the paper. It was a handwritten note in Brooke’s neat and curvy handwriting.
For Anthony:
This certificate entitles you to one day of I, Brooke Rogers, doing anything and everything you want.
Signed,
Brooke
She’d scribbled her phone number beneath her name.
“What? Umm, thanks,” he told her as she forced a smile and walked away, cheeks still bright red.
“What does it say?” Mike asked.
“Nothing… err… it’s a handwritten gift certificate.”
He hurriedly folded the note and shoved it into his pocket.
“Like to what? An Etsy store?”
“Something like that.”
Okay, so she was really into him.
CHAPTER 5 -BROOKE
“So what did you give him?” Dina asked, grabbing her forearm and dragging her away. “It looks like you really floored him. His mouth is hanging open and everything.”
Brooke shrugged. She felt drunk. A little too drunk. And drunk on victory. She thought he liked the idea.
“I gave him a note that said I’ll do anything for him for one whole day. I’ll bring him his coffee and do photocopies and stuff. Heck, maybe it’ll get me out of sitting at the computer all day.”
