Overcoming Fear (Growing Pains #2)

by K. F. Breene

  Krista was double-parked in front of her house, dreading getting into the truck. Dreading leaving her friends and her boyfriend behind.

  Kate and Jasmine stepped forward together. Once again, Kate was pissed, not wanting to show emotion, and Jasmine cried her eyes out. She gave each hugs and watched them stand aside.

  Ben told her he would see her in a couple weeks with a giant smile. He was excited to move. Abbey was nowhere to be found.

  The last person to say goodbye was Sean. He stood a little away from the rental truck with his hands in his pockets. He was facing the ocean, the breeze ruffling his hair. Krista went up to stand beside him, tears already in her eyes.

  “Well,” she said quietly.

  Sean turned to her, his eyes glassy, “This sucks Krista.”

  She nodded, tears flowing. Sean stepped closer and put his arms around her. They stood there for a long time, neither of them knowing what to say, but not wanting to say goodbye.

  Finally, Sean backed away. He looked deeply into her eyes, exposing his soul. “I love you so much, Krista. I’ll miss you. Please find someone who will take care of you, okay?” He stopped and looked away out to the ocean. He was losing control.

  He finally shook his head and crushed her to his hard chest. She cried, grabbing onto him, wishing there was some way to make this right, but knowing there wasn’t. They stayed like that for a second, or maybe it was an eternity, until with one final squeeze, Sean loosened his arms and walked away. He didn’t turn towards home; he went straight to the ocean. Straight to his sanctuary.

  Krista watched him walk away. She let him. Maybe because of her own lingering doubts that she wasn’t enough to make him overcome his fears. Or maybe out of pain that he could let her go. She quietly got in the truck and started the slow journey toward her new life, hoping beyond hope that Marcus was right. That this wasn’t really goodbye.

  The End

  ****

  The story continues in:

  Butterflies in Honey, Book 3

  Krista has settled into her new job in L.A. gloriously, moving up the ladder and earning a great reputation for herself. But since she and Sean parted ways, she has felt like half a person; a shell of the girl she was when she left San Francisco. It isn’t until her job takes her back to San Francisco that she sees him again, the one that got away. It’s like looking into her soul as she meets those startling green eyes again. She realizes, without a doubt, that she still loves him as much as she ever did.

  Sean has spent the last couple years working like a demon, achieving and reaching for the stars, but with nothing to look forward to. He let his salvation walk away, and let his own fears and problems keep him from going after her. When he meets her again he is plagued with his love for her, thinking that she has moved on. When he finds out she still loves him, he decides to make matters right, and finally go after her.

  It isn’t until the two are working together again that they realize true love is a winding road that comes at a cost. Sean and Krista will not only struggle with trust and obstacles to be together, they must face the landscape of the company they now work for, an establishment that promotes men over women, and that threatens to pigeonhole Krista from the get-go. It will take the two learning to fight together again to overcome and triumph.

  Excerpt:

  Sean sat at his desk looking out the window. She was coming to San Francisco. She would be here tomorrow. She would be in the same room, breathing the same air, in less than twenty-four hours. Sean’s chest was nearly exploding. He wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it. She had someone else now. She’d had someone else for a whole year. Someone constant. A man that treated her well and bought her things. Sean had seen a picture—the man was attractive.

  She had moved on.

  “Daydreaming?” Ray asked as he walked in.

  Sean startled and looked at Ray. “Just thinking.”

  Ray nodded. “Are we ready for tomorrow?”

  Ray had barely aged in the last two years. Unlike Sean, Ray refused to work crazy hours. He refused to give his free time to an employer. He had a family to get back to at the end of the day. And while Sean had Cassie, she had friends and occasional boyfriends and a life, she was often elsewhere when Sean got home. All that awaited him was an empty house and an occasional unfulfilling lover.

  Sean rubbed his eyes. He was tired, on a great many levels. “As ready as we’ll ever be. I doubt they will use us.”

  “Then why the meeting?”

  Sean looked out the window again. “You know why. Tory is trying to moonlight me.”

  “More money?”

  “Yes.”

  “Better title?”

  Sean nodded.

  “Then take the job and stay in San Francisco. You won’t need to see her that way.”

  Sean’s heart fell, but he nodded. Ray had been increasingly worried about him since Krista left. When Sean started working like a fiend, Ray tried to slow him down. Ray invited him over often, trying to get Cassie to prod him into accepting. It hadn’t worked. Especially since Cassie was still mad at him for letting Krista go. One would think Cassie was the one going through the breakup.

  When they heard Krista had a new boyfriend, Cassie had thrown a plate at Sean’s head. She narrowly missed. Then, she’d started crying. She didn’t blame Krista—she saved all the blame for Sean,and reminded him of it whenever she thought to.

  After a beat, Ray asked, “Why is Tory shoving Krista in your face, I wonder? Why fly her up here? Why not let the San Francisco offices handle it?”

  “Because she’s the best in the company at what she does.” Sean couldn’t help the surge of pride, followed by the familiar pain. “Tory probably wants her to judge me. Judge what I’ve done. If anyone can poke holes in my work, Krista can.”

  Ray nodded. “Are you sure you don’t want me in the meeting?”

  Sean shook his head. “If what I hear is true, she will rip us apart. There’s nothing you can do to help.”

  “It won’t be out of cruelty, Sean,” Ray said quietly. “She was never that kind of girl.”

  Sean felt like crying. If there had been no witnesses he might’ve. “I know, Ray. She’ll just be doing her job. I just wish they were sending someone else.”

  *****

  It was ten in the morning and Krista had a death grip on her lucky mug. She was sitting in the conference room in the San Francisco office waiting for Tory. A small team was sitting with her, including Marcus and Ben, going over the preliminary information from their old company. Krista knew the numbers backward and forward, could see the gaping holes as if they had neon arrows pointed at them, and couldn’t help but highlight all the discrepancies (of which there were a million) for all the team to exploit.

  In short, doing her job. And doing it well, just like Tory taught her.

  Aside from that, which was second nature at this stage in the game, she was trying desperately to control the raging butterflies in her stomach. It felt like the little suckers were battering up against her ribs, punching her heart and other organs, and ultimately making her feel like she had to throw up constantly.

  “Who is giving the presentation?” Ben asked stiffly, interrupting the thumping in Krista’s chest. He and Marcus were wondering if Krista would make it through the day without throwing a tirade or breaking down in tears.

  For herself, she put her money on both. Tirade first. Tears later.

  “Guess,” Marcus said with a smile in his voice. “There are five people.”

  “Okay, will we see John?”

  “Mr. Senior VP? Yes, indeedie.”

  “Judy in marketing.”

  “Right again.”

  “Janice in art?”

  “Ha! No, they went with Phyllis of all people! Phyllis replacing me? No way! Krista, you remember Phyllis—she is the one that made you figure out the book machine on your own!”

  “Ben helped with that, actually. I cheated,” Krista said going over the material they
were given. Not that she needed to—it was all memorized. She stupidly thought it would take her mind off of Sean. She had so wanted to look good in the meeting. Instead, to properly do her job, she would look like the Big Bitch she was rumored to be.

  Sean might have loved her once, but after the meeting, if he had any feelings left, they’d probably veer toward hatred.

  Tears might be first, actually.

  “Sneaky!” Marcus said as he pointed at Ben. “I didn’t know your tendrils were in the company before I met you.”

  Ben smiled. “James Montgomery from Research?”

  “No! You won’t believe this—they are using that little weasel Larry! Since he worked with Krista before, they thought he would know how to work her or something. Montgomery was livid!”

  “They know I’m coming?” Krista asked in a choked voice

  “Of course they do! John is thrilled. He thinks you and him see eye to eye,” Marcus said dryly as he lounged.

  “One more, right?” Ben said, looking at Marcus with a furrowed brow.

  “Sean,” Krista whispered.

  “Oh yeah.” Ben suddenly found something else to focus on. They were silent until Tory walked in a couple minutes later.

  Tory was a busy man, but made a point to walk at a measured pace. When he spoke to you he never belayed his rush, never lost his patience, and always held you in the highest respect. Well, he did everyone Krista knew. He probably lost his cool down the road somewhere.

  “Okay gang, the car is out front. Krista, please walk with me.” Tory watched as his team of high powered suits filed out in front of him. They were a crew of Ivy League stars. They all had the same haircut, the same suit, even the same body type. They also had the same thoughts. But those thoughts made millions, so Tory must’ve known what he was doing. Krista, Ben, and Marcus called them Tory’s Circus.

  Krista grabbed her laptop and stuffed it into her computer case. She caught up with him and matched his stride.

  “Have you talked to Mr. McAdams since you left San Francisco?” Tory asked.

  “Wow, Tory. Right for the jugular, huh? No, I haven’t.”

  “How will he affect you today?”

  “Honestly, I’m not sure. I have my notes on their written materials bulletined, but I’m not sure how much he’ll scramble my thoughts once I see him. It’s been a long time.”

  Tory nodded thoughtfully. “I appreciate your honesty. It is a breath of fresh air from my ‘Yes Men.’ Well Krista, you are only human. I am going to sit you next to me today so I can keep an eye on you. Use your laptop—just ping me with whatever you need. I can always arrange for you to meet with their Research Analyst separately if you need to.”

  “Sean won’t let that happen.”

  “Hmm. Yes, that might be right. Well, we’ll figure something out.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Don’t call me ‘sir,’ it makes me feel old.”

  “Yes, Mister,” Krista said with a smirk.

  They got into the town car together. As Krista always did, she started to prep the team with what she would expect from the numbers they gave. Then they were walking into the lobby. Her hands were sweating and her legs felt weak. Thanks to Sean’s example once upon a time, she had an array of tailored, high-powered suits for these meetings, so she knew she looked good, but she still felt vulnerable. She fell back behind the Circus.

  They waited in clusters, Ben and Marcus joking next to her. Everyone fell silent when they heard what was unmistakably John’s voice: “Tory, nice to see you again! It’s been a while. Too long!”

  “Hello John. Nice to see you.”

  “Please, follow me,” John said. The procession started.

  Krista couldn’t see over their group, so she didn’t know who was up front with John, if anyone. Her stomach was in knots as she made the familiar way through the corridors and into the elevator. They went up the elevator in shifts since they wouldn’t all fit in one. John and Tory were gone by the time she got there.

  “Relax,” Marcus said in Krista’s ear. He grinned like the Cheshire Cat. He was excited and anxious to be back in his old stomping grounds.

  “Be nice to them today,” Krista gave Marcus a poignant look. She got the feeling he couldn’t wait to make mincemeat of Phyllis.

  “Me be nice? You’re the one with the reputation of Big Bad Bitch!” Marcus laughed as they got in the elevator. “I’ll have to stop you from blowing their whole house…down.”

  One of the Circus smirked. Krista scowled at him. He went back to being straight faced.

  The Circus was all a bunch of nerds in a former life. Money they might have now, but they still remembered their high school years as geeks. Krista would’ve been nice to them in high school, but she bullied them now. It was fun.

  “You’ve been waiting for this moment for two years, whereas I have been dreading it,” she said to Marcus, keeping an eye on the members of the Circus. She hated when they listened in. They were as bad as a sewing circle.

  “True. Okay, I won’t make Phyllis look as stupid as she’ll sound. But that’s all I can guarantee.”

  Krista smiled tightly as her stomach did flips. Two more floors. One. God!

  They followed the Circus to the largest conference room. As they walked in she looked around in wonder. They had completely revamped all their electronics and redecorated. Everything, including the chairs and phones, were new. The room looked sleek and modern. Everything was fresh, impressive. If she didn’t know their staff, the look of their facilities would lend a positive spin to their credibility.

  It was all Sean’s doing, Krista knew it just by the look. John was the money man, Sean was the closer. He had an eye for flair.

  Tory was shaking hands with Larry, and then with Phyllis. He gave a warm hello to Judy. The Circus was finding their seats. John was setting up the projector. Where was Sean? He wasn’t in the room. Maybe they thought he shouldn’t be in the presentation since she and he had history?

  Krista walked over to Judy, the marketing person Krista had worked with when she’d been in the company. “Hi Judy. Really good to see you.”

  She smiled. “You, too, Krista. Give ‘em hell. They deserve it!” she said quietly.

  “Krista.” Tory wanted to get started. She went to him and took her seat. She set up her computer promptly, positioned her lucky mug just so—though behind her computer because she didn’t want Sean to see it—and opened her IM. She then joined the rest of her team so they could pass notes without getting caught. All that done (and done quickly since she had done it a million times in a million different cities), she got ready to wait patiently for the show to start.

  John was talking to Marcus. He caught Krista’s eye and gave her a big smile and small wave. It was not the John she remembered. All sarcasm was gone. She was now the client. The enemy. He was trying to schmooze.

  She smiled back, nodded, and then looked away. Suddenly she wasn’t all that impressed. This wasn’t how she saw her homecoming at all. In fact, it put a different light on her tenure there. Compared to what she was used to, this company was small potatoes; poorly set-up, small staff, small minded people, and limited resources. It surprised Krista that Tory took the account the first time around. But then, he stole everyone that made it great—Krista nearly shined her finger nails on her suit with that thought.

  He’d taken everyone except one. The most important one at that.

  At least she moved on career-wise. She might not have been as good, or as experienced, but at least she moved up to bigger and better things. She at least beat Sean in that.

  That was if it were a contest. And being that it was all she had to focus on to ease the pain, it’s what she went with.

  She heard the doors closing and looked up lazily, ready for all this to be over. That was when the world flipped upside down.

  It was Sean.

  He was wearing a suit that was glued to his perfect body. Those big broad shoulders, that upper body vee going do
wn into the thin hips. His tight butt atop strong, defined thighs. She licked those thighs once. She moved against that washboard stomach. She felt those large hands cup her breasts and tease her nipples.

  The room got dense and her face was burning. Her breathing sped up, but she couldn’t seem to get enough air.

  “Help!” she pinged Tory.

  Tory glanced at her, saw the crisis, and smoothly got out of his seat to greet Sean personally. He steered Sean toward John.

  “Water?!” Ben pinged.

  “RELAX. BREATHE. BREATHE. BREATHE.” Marcus typed.

  The Circus was looking around in confusion and anxiety—it didn’t take much to rile them up. At the moment, they clearly had no idea what was going on, but were ready to bail anyway. They would be ideal in an emergency, because like rats, they’d find the quickest way out, women and children be damned.

  She followed Marcus’s advice as she nodded to Ben. She kept herself from bracing her hands on the table as she filled her lungs with air. She bent over to get a pencil out of her bag to hide her face until she was sure it wasn’t red anymore, and then she looked up.

  Straight into the fathomless green eyes of Sean McAdams.

  His hair was longer and lighter, and his face was tanner, but it was the same high cheek bones, the same strong jaw, and the same sensuous lips she spent hour after glorious hour kissing. His beauty more than took her breath away. Her memories didn’t do him justice. All the hours she spent sitting on her surf board daydreaming couldn’t compare to this one moment. Her memories were cookie cutter cut outs of the real thing.

  She didn’t realize the pain could be this acute. In two years, it wasn’t just his beauty she’d forgotten. It was how much their separation still hurt. How much she still loved him. How that love—still so fresh, still feeling so right—hadn’t diminished in the slightest.

  John started talking about their great new ideas for the latest product. He talked about their successes, how they reached their audiences, their goals as a company, and how all of that would create the perfect arena to house this campaign. It was a load of crap. All of it.