by Lang, Alice
“He isn’t the kind of person to make mistakes. You know that he is such a perfectionist. So when he does mess up, he doesn’t know how to handle it.” Henry was a jewel, offering his advice after everything that happened. He’s also told her, “He’s confused, and he’s going to wreck his mind with it. Give the genius a little time to discover something new about his heart, he’s not stupid.” This encouragement was given during their trip to the coffee house. Sarah was comforted by his words.
It wasn’t until after Patrick retrieved the conversation tape between the Golden Dome’s former employee and Diana that Patrick tried to talk to her again. He looked like a man with a purpose, walking into the office, sitting the evidence down and moving directly over to her. She looked up at him, for the first time in days.
“I’m sorry,” he said to her. His eyes were full of regret, and there was a slight tremble in his voice. “I chickened out and I left you alone. I’m sorry for treating you like that.”
Sarah’s shoulders sagged in relief, and a deep sigh escaped her throat. Now they could move forward, she thought. She was proud of him for stepping out of his comfort zone.
Looking up at him, she shifted back into her saucy self. “Took you long enough,” she said.
He smiled and then grew serious again, shaking his head before offering, “I should have said that on the first day.”
“Well, you said it now. That’s better than leaving it hanging.” They were silent for a good moment, eyes locked on each other, but not saying a word. It wasn’t necessary. Everything was on the other’s face. They could get through this together.
“What are you going to do next? Have you figured out what you want?” she asked him. One night of passion could not settle anything between them, not for Patrick and Sarah at least. Being a couple, lovers, was more than just sexual desire, and both of them knew that.
“I know this is going to sound like I ask too much after all that has been going on but,” Patrick looked as if he was swallowing something big down his throat. It was his pride. “Please give me a little more time. I just…I need to make sure.”
“Of me?”
“Of myself.”
She finally understood. He doubted himself, not her.
“I need to make sure I’m ready for this. I just need some time to prepare myself for this change. If you will let me.” He looked so sincere, so vulnerable, and so precious to her eyes. Not like the authoritarian Patrick she knew at the beginning and more of the soft man she made love to that night.
She smiled. “What kind of person am I if I don’t give my potential boyfriend time to figure out this stuff?”
Patrick’s face softened as he watched her stand and walk towards him. He held open his arms, and she stepped into them, comforting and being comforted. He needed this; she needed this, the reassurance of being there for each other.
After they had broken the ice, she talked to him about Henry. “He’s waiting for you to come talk to him,” she told Patrick.
It wasn’t hard to see the uneasiness and the mixed emotion in his face when Henry was mentioned. Although most of the bruise had faded, the real damage was the one that wasn’t visible. Patrick felt the distance between him and his brother was too far to be mended. Sarah thought this was a good time to repay back the kindness Henry gave her. She wanted the two brothers to be friends again.
“He misses you, you know? He misses how close you two were once. And when you talked to me on that night, I know how much you miss it too.” Stubbornness seems to run in this family although it varies on different levels. Both brothers were reluctant to be the first one to step forward and so Sarah felt the necessity to push. Patrick just happened to be the one with the lucky straw.
“He’ll never forgive me for what I did.”
“He said that to you?”
“No, but how could he?”
CHAPTER TWELVE
It started with an energetic weekend trip to the theater to see the newest thriller movie together. Their popcorn and Cokes were completely forgotten as both of them were captivated by the sound of gunshots and fist fighting. There was a moment in the theater when the person sitting beside them took out their phone and was about to make a call. Patrick and Sarah both glared at him, and he wisely put the phone away.
The rest of the movie remained undisturbed as they enjoyed the villain being beaten to a pulp by Sarah’s favorite actress.
After the theater, they had a wonderful dinner at a local Chinese restaurant. The Dim Sum was scrumptious, and Sarah could eat the spicy and sour soup every day. They ended up in a friendly argument over that one as Patrick cringed at even the smell.
When they were finished, Patrick walked her home but didn’t ask to visit her room. In his mind this was their official first date, he wanted to take it slow this time.
They went out again the next weekend, to a small Indie bar that had recently opened. The food was delicious, and the ambiance of the place was warm, intimate and inviting. Moon River played in the background, a unique version that played low and sexy in the background. It was during this slow song Patrick asked, and she answered. They officially became a couple, even sealed it with a kiss. Sarah sank into Patrick’s arm as they listened to the music and drank in the romantic atmosphere around them.
Her relationship with Patrick was very unlike her relationship with his brother. Unlike Henry, Patrick didn’t show up on her way to work, didn’t bring her coffee. Instead, she was the one who met Patrick on their way to work with a hot Americano in her hand. She would hand it to Patrick and instruct him to just drink it, not listening to his excuse that the horrible office coffee was fine
“You always drink that coffee. No wonder your taste buds are out of function,” she teased as Patrick took his first sip of the Americano. She enjoyed his look of surprise followed by another quick sip. It was clear her favorite Starbucks was a hit.
“Now you can join me and Henry on our break,” she suggested, enjoying her new role of bossing him around.
Sarah ordered him coffee with a sandwich and also put his name on the coffee duty list. The moment Henry saw his brother’s name on the list; he laughed hysterically and joked on how Patrick finally succumbed to the power of good coffee. Although he was reluctant at first, he finally joined Sarah and Henry on the caffeine addict club.
His first time as a coffee runner was a hysterical sight to see. No one on the floor could believe it was him. So trained they were to avoid him and his grumpiness, they were loath to be the first to take a cup from his hand.
He was calling out the names on the coffee cup, getting more and more irritated by the minute. Finally, he said,
“You want your coffee or not? I’ve got work to do,” and one by one, everyone on his floor received their brew. He quickly became the joke of Johnson and Smith… Patrick Greenburg, coffee boy, they would say. But truly, everyone was just so surprised he was interacting and speaking to them outside of work. And pleased.
“Am I really that bad? I can’t have been that bad. Right?” Sarah and Henry could only be honest. Yes, yes he was that bad. He was simply floored that he had become such a spectacle. He smiles at someone, and you’d think the world had ended.
“You are that bad Patrick. You just never saw yourself doing it.” Henry answered it for him and gave him a hard pat on his shoulder and a squeeze before going back to his floor. Sarah nodded slowly in agreement and raised her cup to Henry for a quick ‘cheer.'
“Let’s just say that it was the first step to self-development.”
Everyone was uneasy at first. They were still afraid of him a bit. However, whenever he wasn’t working, he started to talk more, and the others began to warm to him.
He even joined people in conversation, added tips and suggestions when he could. When he heard two of their co-works, Nick and Adewale, talk about wanting to join a local gym. Patrick just causally popped in and offered a suggestion before disappearing onto the elevator. There were little things
, but to other, they meant a great deal.
The next day they thanked him for the tip and even invited him to join them on their morning jog. Patrick agreed and even dragged Henry with him. Sarah was so pleased to see him gain other friends.
One day, Patrick complimented the receptionist on her new haircut and received a shocked ‘thank you’ and blush in return. In the elevator, Sarah elbowed him, a bit sharper than she had intended.
“What?” he asked. “I thought you told me to be friendlier to people.”
“You never said that to me.” Sarah was pouting which made Patrick chuckle and give her a quick peck on her cheek.
“That’s because you always look good.” Which only earned him another jab in the ribs. This time it was playful, he gave her a hug.
“C’mon give your girlfriend a little confidence,” Sarah then put Patrick in a quick headlock.
“Okay okay!” Patrick tried to throw up his hand as a sign of surrender. “You look really beautiful today.”
Sarah let him go and gave him a kiss, a soft long kiss like a reward to her sweet hero. They were gazing into each other’s eyes, ready for another kiss, when the elevator bell rang. They let go and stepped apart by the time the door opened, and there stood Henry, who quickly jumped inside.
“You guys,” he said, looking from one to the other. “If you are going to pretend none of those make out sessions happen, please do wipe the lipstick smudge away.”
Life was good at Johnson and Smith. In fact, Patrick could easily describe what he was feeling right now as perfect. He had never felt this happy as an adult or felt as close with Henry until this moment. Maybe, if he had a chance, he could re-forge the relationship he had with Jane too. His world was full of possibilities.
His work was going smoothly too. Golden Dome didn’t have a chance when they were facing both Sarah and himself. It seemed that everything changed in his life ever since he and Sarah admitted their feelings for each other openly. It felt good to know she was there to love and be loved unconditionally. Patrick wasn’t the kind of person who would scream to the top of the world when he was happy. He enjoyed that happiness silently, quietly with the people he loved and cared about.
On their next date, Patrick surprised Sarah with a birdcage with a small bird sitting inside. Sarah’s eyes seemed to sparkle like a thousand Christmas lights when she saw the beautiful bird inside. It was a male bluebird. She decided to name him “Turquoise” to match its color. It was a gift from Patrick to her that symbolized what she also gave to him: happiness.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Overall, life was treating Sarah very well since her move to Chicago. She could get used to the traffic and the killing rush hour. She could get used to some loud neighbors. She was happy working here and more importantly; she was happy with Patrick.
Sure, he could still be a grump and his trust issues still seemed to haunt him at times, but Sarah accepted that part of him. He was a great man. He kept his word and could be sincere if he wanted to. He was also a good gentleman just like Henry described him. She just needed to get him opened up, and he wouldn’t stop talking.
Henry and Patrick seemed to be inseparable now. She often saw the two brothers hanging around whenever Patrick wasn’t with her. They seemed comfortable with each other as they taunted and teased as brothers do. Sarah hoped Patrick could do the same with his sister. Someday perhaps. After all, Jane was a woman who loved a challenge after all.
Every day, she woke to the song sung softly by Turquoise, her little bluebird. Turquoise was as accurate as her alarm clock in waking her, and she loved opening her eyes to his sweet song. Turquoise seemed to be singing a love song reminding her that today, she would see her lover again. The bird would chirp as it hopped around its cage and bathed itself in the little tub she made for him. Once in a while, she would open the cage so that it could fly around her room for a short exercise. Happiness was supposed to be free after all.
Patrick would sometimes visit just so that he could come and watch the little bird. She teased that Turquoise was their love child for now.
One day, she woke at her usual time but could not hear her little bird singing. The quiet of the apartment was too loud. She rushed to check on him, but he appeared fine. He was still eating his little pellets of bird food just like before. But he was different. Turquoise was quiet all morning, and she worried that her little friend was ill. He refused to come out of the cage for a bit of freedom. When she opened his cage, the little bird retracted back into the corner of his cage. Sarah swore for a moment he was shaking his head. She left her apartment that day with an uneasy feeling in her gut.
As she walked to the office, she looked for Patrick, who normally met her on the corner. He was never late, usually early, but she waited for him just the same.
As she stood on the corner, she reflected back to the first day she had walked this same path. She’s been so nervous, so star-struck at the idea of working with Patrick. Now they were dating, had a solid businesses relationship too. She was happy, and he appeared to be as well.
She glanced at her watch and begin to worry. Patrick was much later than usual, which wasn’t his way. The morning was filled with concerns it seemed, first Turquoise and now Patrick. She was about to pull out her phone to call him when a voice was calling her name.
“Ms. Blake” The woman was unfamiliar, certainly not from her floor or Henry’s. “Please come to the managing partner’s office on the 24th floor. The director wants to meet you right away.”
Sarah thought for a second that there was a loud thud caused by the sudden stopping of her heart. Automatically, she started out a list of questions, wondering what she had done in the past few days to get called by the director. She was late once, but it was only by ten minutes. She didn’t leak out any important information about the case to the media. Patrick assured her that she was doing more than fine with everything.
The 24th floor was the quietest floor in the building. There were only a few people on this floor, and everything looked so wide and empty with glass walls and carpeted floors. Sarah thought the hallways looked forbidding, the carpet runner more of a path leading an employee to their doom. Or perhaps it led to heaven, she reminded herself, trying to pull all these feeling of uncertainty from her brain.
The director was a dark skinned woman in her fifties with dark brown eyes hiding a glint of sharpness that seemed able to cut through lies. She reminded Sarah of Jane Hunt in many ways. A nameplate at the corner of her desk had her name etched on it: Susanna Smith.
Sarah knew her right way. Director Smith was the person who coordinated the merging of the two law firms, the starting point of Sarah’s journey. She was the one in charge of the partner program that brought her and Patrick together. What could she possibly want with her?
“Ms. Blake, please sit down. This might not take long, but I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.” She gestured Sarah to a seat in the room. The atmosphere in the room shifted as she sat down. Even with only her and the director, she felt as if there were hundreds of eyes on her. This feeling of being the center of attention was the same feeling that she had while she was in the court. How could one person emit this level of pressure?
“I know you are surprised by the sudden call and from the look, you still have no idea why. So let me be very direct,” she looked intently at Sarah with her sharp brown eyes. “Not long after you moved here, Patrick Greenburg submitted a letter concerning your partnership with him.”
Sarah was certain that she and Patrick had created an excellent business partnership. Even their personal relationship did not stop Patrick from being strict with her quality of work. If anything, Patrick was even stricter, scrutinized every detail. She returned the favor and observed his moves as well.
“Patrick asked me to transfer you back to Richmond. I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this. The transfer will be effective in about two weeks. We will pay for your moving expenses and anything else for your convenience.
” The words slipped from Susanna’s lips so easily; it was as if she had said them many times. Sarah’s throat became parched; all the energy in her body seemed to drift with those sentences.
What did she mean by transferring? She had just started her life here. She was about to make her name with her first high profile case. She just made friends with Diana and Henry and had just started a beautiful and complicated relationship with Patrick. This was supposed a happy time of her life. And this woman was trying to take it away so easily.
“Wait, there must be a mistake,” Sarah began. “At least, I need to know why I’m being forced to move. I did everything according to company policy. I followed ever rule to the letter. Surely a letter written days upon arrival could hardly be evidence enough to warrant a transfer today.”
Sarah took a deep breath, waiting for an answer but was secretly hoping this was all a bad dream. Maybe that was why Turquoise didn’t sing that morning. Maybe she was still lying in the bed waiting for morning to come and banish her from this nightmare.
“Of course, a tremendous benefit to the firm. This isn’t a punishment or demotion, Ms. Blake. Although…”
“Although what?” Sarah asked.
The director ignored her and went on. “Your salary will remain the same and so will your position. You must understand that we are still in a transition process. We are not looking for whose doing right or wrong yet. We are simply looking for partners with the best compatibility.”
“Although what?” Sarah asked her again. “I don’t feel I need to remind you that I’m the only person able to work with Patrick. We not only work well, we work exceptionally well together. You’re making a mistake in terminating an effective partnership which is the main focus of this partnership program.”
“And you’re making a mistake by sleeping with your partner, Ms. Blake.”
The breath punched out of Sarah’s lung as effectively as if she’d been hit. The weight of the director’s words seems to swallow her mind whole. So that’s it, she finally understood the depth of the situation she was in. She’d known developing a personal relationship within office teams could lead to serious consequences, she’s seen enough lawsuits and divorces to know that could be the case.
