The One who got Away_A Second Chance Romance
Page 95
Chapter Thirteen
Nathan
It had been a month since I started dating Ruby seriously. We never had any kind of relationship talk, but everything fell in line like it was supposed to. She was smart, funny, passionate, and I felt like I could talk to her about my life. We had seen each other in one way or another almost every day. Sometimes we would only have time for lunch dates, while the rest of the time she would come stay the night with me at my apartment at The Avalon. We ate out quite a bit, but I was enjoying the fact that Ruby had started getting into grocery shopping and cooking dinner at home. The place almost felt wrong when she wasn’t there, and home was beginning to include Ruby more and more every day. I wanted her to feel comfortable at my place, and though I knew she probably wanted me to come to her house, she never complained or asked, so I went with the flow. She had brought over some clothes, and I gave her space in the closet, so when she stayed the night, she didn’t have to go home before going into work.
Though I knew that I could talk to Ruby about anything, there were several conversations we had that made me feel a bit apprehensive about bringing up the subject of outsourcing. From her other views on things, most of them being views I myself shared with her, I had a feeling I already knew how she would feel about the concept. I still hadn’t made my mind up one way or another, and I could tell that Chris was starting to get anxious. The market was good, better than it had been in years and it was reaching a point where I needed to capitalize on that and make a decision. The last thing we wanted was an expansion overseas when the market was down, it wouldn’t help anyone.
“I’m excited to see you tonight,” Ruby said on the other end of the phone.
“Me too,” I said smiling. “What do you want to do for dinner?”
“I was going to stop at the market and pick up some food,” she said. “I’m feeling like spaghetti with homemade sauce. I have a delicious recipe that my mother and grandmother used when I was growing up. I’ve never made it myself, but I’m sure I can knock it out of the park.”
“I like that idea,” I said. “And I have the perfect Chardonnay to go with it.”
“I thought that afterward we could curl up and watch a movie,” she said. “Your choice.”
“My choice? What’s the special occasion?”
“Nothing butthead,” she laughed. “I just know you are probably tired of watching romantic comedies and movies about politics.”
“You do have strange taste in movies,” I laughed. “But that just makes it easier for me to get in a boob grab while you’re not paying attention.”
“I distinctly remember you getting in more than a boob grab last time,” she laughed.
“You can’t blame a guy for trying,” I laughed.
“Not at all,” she replied chuckling. “In fact, I encourage it.”
“How’s work today?”
“Okay,” she sighed. “It’s quiet. There are several members of the staff in DC for some of the Congressional decisions on issues we handle. I’ve been catching up on paperwork.”
“You didn’t want to go?”
“I’ve been to about fifty,” she laughed. “Besides, we just hired a round of newbies fresh out of college. It’s their turn to go through that hell, especially since the temps in DC are hot this time of year and the places we stay while we are there are not considered high budget. I don’t know why it seems to always be hotter there than here.”
“The hot air from Capitol Hill,” I laughed.
“Ha,” she said. “Very true.”
I glanced up at the doorway and saw Chris making his way into the office. I sighed quietly, not ready to hang up the phone yet. He looked like he was on a mission, though, and I knew that I needed to get to him before he exploded with Ruby on the phone.
“Hey sweetie,” I said. “I have to let you go, I have a meeting walking in.”
“Okay,” she sighed. “I should probably get back to work anyway. I’ll see you tonight. Text me if you think of anything you want from the store.”
“I will, have a good day,” I said before hanging up the phone.
“Ruby?” Chris looked at me smirking.
“Yeah,” I said taking in a deep breath. “Just planning dinner later.”
“You two are adorable,” he said sarcastically.
“Don’t hate,” I said pointing my finger.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” he said laughing. “So, I have a trip planned for us.”
“A trip?”
“I think that before you can make an educated decision on outsourcing, you should see some of the facilities I have been looking into,” he said. “That way you can see how it’s done first hand instead of going off what you’ve read or heard from the media. I know how you like to explore and educate yourself from the source.”
“Hmm,” I said nodding my head. “Where would we be going.”
“India,” he said. “Hyderabad to be exact. It has a solid infrastructure, city like aspects, and is ranked number three in the top outsourcing destinations in the country, and has some reputable facilities. I can say it might make you feel a bit better because it gives us the cheaper labor while maintaining a modicum of employee rights.”
“Alright,” I said with a deep breath. “Let’s do it. When do we leave?”
“Very early Wednesday morning so we can get there by evening,” he explained.
I liked the idea that Chris brought me, seeing the process with my own eyes. It didn’t take away the fact that I would have to lay off thousands of my own workers, but at least I could see what was happening before making a decision one way or another. This was a very tricky topic for me, and I felt like it was partly emotional as well since I had always seen my company going in a different direction. However, with the market crash a decade before, and the ebb and flow of the financial industry, I had to go with the tides. We were one of the very few financial institutions that had maintained our morality and had never been investigated for any type of crime by the federal government. I took the integrity of my company very seriously, and that was the thing pulling at me the most. I couldn’t quite figure out where outsourcing fell within those lines.
“I promise this is going to help you make the decision that is best for the company,” he said.
I nodded my head as Chris stood up and walked out of the office. I was excited to do this and even felt it could be a bit of a vacation, something I hadn’t taken in a long time. I had been dedicated to my work, building my company, and felt vacations were useless until I met Ruby. She had already started to show me there was another side of life outside of the daily drum of business. I hadn’t worked a weekend since I met her and that alone was a huge step for me. I could tell Chris wasn’t too fond of the idea of me having a girlfriend, but it wasn’t his choice. He had an insatiable need to succeed which was one of the reasons why I hired him in the first place. However, sometimes he tended to forget it was my company, not his. I knew he had nothing personal against Ruby, but my time was taken away, and his eye rolls and snide comments were very telling.
Speaking of Ruby, if I was going to take a vacation there was no way I was going to leave her behind. I figured it would be the perfect time for her and me to shake things up a bit and add some culture to our relationship. I knew she loved to travel, but didn’t get to do it very often. I would ask her to accompany me to India over dinner, I was sure it would be amazing fantastic surprise for her. I picked up the phone and called Chris’s office.
“Yeah boss,” he said answering.
“I am going to bring Ruby along,” I said.
“Alright,” he replied in a monotone voice. “I’ll make the arrangements.”
“Thank you,” I replied. “And Chris, I’d like to keep the reason for our trip between us, I’m not sure how she will react, and I’d like to avoid any awkward conflict.”
“You’re the boss,” he replied before hanging up.
Hopefully, she would be as excited about thi
s as I was.
Chapter Fourteen
Ruby
Walking through The Avalon by myself always made me feel self-conscious. When I arrived, I wasn’t sure where to go since I didn’t have a card for the elevator. There was a lovely man at the front named George, and he seemed especially excited when I told him I was there to see Nathan. He called up to the apartment and then personally escorted me to his floor, helping me carry the groceries I was lugging. Nathan tipped him generously and then helped me inside. I went to work straight away, making the sauce that I had seen my mother prepare so many times before. I loved cooking, I just never had anyone to cook for, and I thought it was stupid to put that much work in for just me. I glanced over at Nathan as I stirred the noodles, noticing that he looked like he had something on his mind. I figured it was probably a long day at work for him and if he wanted to talk about it, he would. He wasn’t one to hold back very often.
I set the table as he flipped through his phone, finishing up answering emails he didn’t get done at work. I realized quickly that I no longer felt lost at his place, and knew where things were that he didn’t even know were there. It was humorous to me. I had been there enough that the place was like home to me. When I finally sat down, I smiled over at him, watching him finish up his typing and put his phone away. He smiled at me and looked down at the food.
“Looks delicious,” he said smiling.
“Thank you,” I said with pride. “So, how was your day?”
“It was long,” he said holding out his plate as I served him some of the spaghetti and bread. “I had to get a lot done today that I didn’t think I would have on my plate.”
“Why?”
“Well, I’m taking a work vacation of sorts,” he said looking up at me.
“What exactly is a work vacation? It sounds like no fun,” I laughed.
“I have one small thing to take care of in India on Thursday, so I figured why not make it a vacation, I haven’t ever taken one,” he said smiling.
“Oh, wow,” I replied. “That sounds fabulous. I have always wanted to go to India. Their culture is so beautiful.”
“I hoped you would feel that way,” he laughed. “I want you to go with me. We would leave tomorrow night, well early Wednesday morning, but we would have to be at the airport a couple hours early.”
“That sounds amazing,” I said excitedly. “I’m sure I could get time off for that, especially since everyone is coming back from DC tonight.”
“Good,” he said proudly. “Then it’s settled. After dinner, we will go to your house and pack some clothes for you.”
“I’m so excited,” I said, standing up and leaning over the table to kiss him.
We spent the rest of dinner talking about the trip, where it was, what we could do there. It was a short trip, just a few days, but it was the first time I was going to get to travel outside of the country. Well, except for when I went to Mexico but that was more of an alcohol-infused blur at the time. He looked giddy almost, like me saying I would go with him made his day. Part of me started to wonder what kind of business an American company would have in India, but I quickly shoved it out of my mind, too excited about everything else to give it much thought.
When dinner was done Nathan helped clear the table. He rinsed dishes while I put the leftovers in containers and stuck them in the fridge. We had gotten ourselves into a rhythm where I didn’t even think about it when dinner was over. He helped me clear the table and then one of us washed while the other took care of the food. It was kind of cute when I thought about it, but I didn’t say anything, not wanting to upset the smooth rhythm we’d developed. When we were done, Nathan changed out of his work clothes, and we headed over to my house.
It was nice being there with him, we didn’t spend much time at my place. I didn’t mind, but sometimes it was nice to be home. He followed me upstairs to the bed, patting me on the ass and winking as he walked by. I could feel my cheeks getting hot, and I walked into the closet and pulled down my suitcase. I hadn’t packed for a trip in so long I didn’t even know where to start. I looked up the weather in India in April and was surprised to see that it was going to be hotter than hell, over a hundred degrees some places. Where we were going was a tad bit cooler but only because it was on the coast. I pulled down my summer clothes bins and started going through them.
“You should just wear that bikini the whole time,” he said glancing down at the red bikini in the box.
“Yeah, right,” I laughed. “I want to have a good time not get chased down with pitchforks and torches.”
“You are ridiculous,” he said walking over behind me. “You are absolutely gorgeous.”
I turned around and kissed him passionately, feeling his arms around my waist. When we pulled away, I kissed him on the nose and smiled. He looked at me dreamily, and I knew what was on his mind, but I needed to get packed.
“Calm down, sir,” I laughed, slapping him on the chest. “I have to pack.”
“Okay, okay,” he said, walking over to the bed and falling on it. “This is comfortable.”
“Yeah, my dad got it for me when I moved in,” I said.
I went through all of my clothes, asking Nathan his opinion, putting items back, switching pieces out, and for the first time in my life wishing, I didn’t have so many clothes. When I was finished, I went into the bathroom and loosely packed my toiletries, knowing that I would need them the next morning. I walked into the bedroom holding my hairspray bottle.
“Will they allow this on the plane?”
“We are taking the company jet,” he said nonchalantly. “You can bring whatever you like.”
“Oh, well la-de-da,” I laughed. “Taking the private jet to India for a small weekend away.”
I walked back in the bathroom and packed it, listening to him cracking up laughing at my sassiness. When I was done, I sighed, thankful that the hard part was over. I turned off the bathroom light and plopped down on the bed beside him, curling up with my head on his chest. I was so comfortable and didn’t want to move.
“Why don’t we stay here tonight?”
“Really?” I popped my head up in surprise.
“Yeah,” he chuckled slipping his shoes off onto the floor. “We’re already here. We will have time tomorrow to go back to my place so I can change and grab my bags. I’ve been on so many trips that I have three drawers of just clothes for trips. Makes packing easier.”
“You are so spoiled,” I laughed.
I reached over and clicked the lights off, grabbing the remote and turning on the television. Nathan sat up and took his shirt and pants off, and I did the same, getting comfortable under the covers. I laid my head back on his chest and watched the old black and white movie on the screen, feeling his chest rise and fall as he breathed. I could hear his heart beating in his chest, and it was almost like a lullaby comforting me even more than I already was. This man made me feel at home no matter where we were. I was nervous about visiting a new country, but knowing that Nathan was going to be there was all the comfort I needed.
We watched the movie and when it was over flipped on another one. I could tell he was distracted by other things on his mind, so I just laid there listening to his heart and feeling his hand stroking my back. I didn’t know where any of this was going, but for the first time in my life, I felt okay with not being in control of it. I knew that whether it turned out alright or not, I would have some beautiful memories and a bunch of once-in-a-lifetime adventures. With those thoughts trapped carefully in my mind, I yawned and let his breathing lull me into a deep, unhindered sleep.
Chapter Fifteen
Nathan
Falling asleep with Ruby on my chest was the best thing I could have imagined for last night. We both slept soundly in her bed, waking up to the chirping of birds outside the window. We gathered her things and headed back to my place, stopping and having breakfast at a coffee shop on the way. She was quiet but content, and I couldn’t help but think about how
beautiful she was. I was getting ready to go on my first vacation in I don’t know how long, and I was getting to do it with this woman who was changing my life for the better.
When we had finished packing everything up, I got a call from Chris that if we wanted to leave early, the plane was free and ready to go. So, we went ahead and loaded our luggage into the limo and headed to the airport. It was a 19-hour flight from New York to Hyderabad so it would be late in the evening by the time we arrived there. I wanted to have time to take Ruby on a date, so I thought this change in itinerary worked out well.
When we boarded the plane, I could see how impressed Ruby was by the accommodations. It was obvious she had never been on a private jet before. Chris took a seat on the right, and Ruby and I sat comfortably in my usual area to the left. At the back of the plane was a bedroom we would sleep in later on and at the front was a bar in case anyone needed a drink.
“This is better than I even imagined,” she gawked. “I could live on the jet.”
“That would be an expensive house,” Chris chuckled. “It costs about five grand an hour to use one of these.”
“Wow,” she said turning to me. “A one-way trip to India costs $100,000?”
“Yeah,” I chuckled. “But it’s not so bad because we own it and when we aren’t using it, it is rented out to private parties. It kind of pays for itself in a way.”
“Oh,” she said. Suddenly she did not seem as enthusiastic about the plane.
After we took off and it was safe to unbuckle our seatbelts, the flight attendant made us some drinks, and we sat back, watching the clouds fly by the windows. We talked and laughed while Chris flirted with the flight attendant and kept to himself. Our dinner was served on silver platters, and we ate watching the sun sink below the horizon. When it was late enough, we retired to the bedroom, and I found that Ruby was out before I could even climb in the bed. It was cute, and I realized that she didn’t know alcohol affected you differently on a plane than it did on the ground. She slept through the night and late into the morning.
When she awoke, we had breakfast and then settled into watching movies, trying to pass the time. It was an extremely long flight, but it was worth it. When we landed, her eyes grew wider still, and we drove through the streets of Hyderabad. There were so many people, more than I had ever seen on New York’s streets. They walked along, road bikes, and zoomed around us in small cars. We were staying at the hotel Daspalla which was one of the most luxurious hotels in the city. The penthouse had been booked for Ruby and me, and a luxury suite for Chris. We checked in and made our way up, smiling kindly at the employees who were ten times friendlier than those in America.