by Kait Nolan
“I’ll let him go next week.” Chad set his tablet down and gave Drew his smarmiest smile. “Don’t want to lose my best employee over these little tiffs! Let’s just get past the partner dinner and we’ll reconsider the team structure.”
Drew knew that was the best compromise he was going to get out of the man. “Fine. I’m locking him out of the file server in the meantime. He doesn’t need to delete anything else or get us so jacked up by viruses that our whole internal system is damaged.”
“Whatever, do what you need to.” Chad waved absently. “Just get it all taken care of tonight so that things aren’t awkward with Station 8 tomorrow at the dinner.”
“Done.” He turned to leave, still so mad that he didn’t trust himself to speak much more.
“Oh, Bull?” Chad’s voice was almost oily. “I’m looking forward to meeting your little woman tomorrow night. It’s important to put forth a good impression with Station 8, and since they’re so family-oriented it’s good for them to see a sweet young couple together. You’re not just the face of our company when it comes to PR—you’ll be the face of theirs, too. Your bonus is riding on this going smoothly, so make sure she knows that.”
He didn’t turn back around because he knew if he did, he’d quit his job on the spot, and all his hard work would be for nothing.
“Fine.”
He was in a haze of anger and frustration as he collected his briefcase and laptop, stopped by the IT department, and drove over to the backup facility to get the files he needed to restore. He couldn’t afford many more things like this to go wrong, since he knew Station 8 was already touchy about the leak to Entertainment Express.
And where the hell was he going to find a date to the dinner at such short notice? Virtual Match had failed spectacularly at throwing work off his single trail, and Chad’s thinly veiled threat seemed to insinuate that he needed to put on a front of a happy couple in order to press palms and make them feel good about the acquisition.
He stopped by Java Jones to use their wi-fi, get a drink, and try to calm down. The smell of the coffee was like a soothing balm as soon as he walked through the door, bringing his pulse closer to normal. By the time he placed his order and settled in at his favorite table in front of the window, he could think more clearly again.
He inhaled the rich, sweet aroma of caramel and mocha before taking the first sip of his drink. The corners of his lips tugged up as he thought about Caramel Girl—Caroline, he corrected himself. She was something else. If he had a girl like that in his life, he wouldn’t have to worry about stupid partner dinners or anything else. He’d have a built-in date who would make every moment special.
Drew logged onto the coffee shop’s wireless network and sent the errant files Station 8 along with a smooth apology, taking the precaution of making another backup of the folder before unplugging the external hard drive. At least that way he’d have a little insurance if someone else decided to mess with the server again.
He couldn’t go back into the office that day, or else he was liable to quit on the spot. He thought about heading to his apartment, but before he realized it, he was halfway to the women’s center to see his mother. She’d make him feel better if nothing else…that was her way. It was just them growing up after his dad left, but he never saw his mom flag or be negative. He wished he could say the same about himself, but he knew that the fighting spirit that made him want to go out on his own and live his dreams was instilled in him by her.
The center was relatively quiet, the volunteers mostly gone for the day. Drew found her sorting through donations for the career closet, where she collected gently used business clothes for women who might not be able to afford them. When she saw him, she didn’t even say a word, just walked to him and folded him into her arms. Even at 28, sometimes it still felt good to get his mother’s hug.
“Hey, Mom.” He wasn’t able to keep the weight of the last few hours out of his voice. “I just needed to see a friendly face.”
“What happened, honey? Is everything okay?” Monica cleared a few stacks of hangers off two chairs and motioned for him to sit. “Not that you’re not welcome to stop by anytime unannounced, but you look like someone just kicked your puppy.”
“Today was a trial at work of epic proportions. Someone deleted important client files, and then Chad was on my case about making a good impression on this new company we’re acquiring. He thinks I need to have a date to impress them, since they apparently look down on the perpetually single douchebaggery that he enjoys so much.”
“Can’t you just take Ava?”
Drew cringed, reaching to rub the back of his neck. “I wish. They already know Ava too well, and I kinda convinced everyone I was seeing someone else. Now they expect me to produce a girlfriend out of thin air.”
“Can’t you just make excuses for why she isn’t there? Sick grandmother, work emergency, something?”
“Chad made it pretty clear that this was my personal reputation on the line and I better act accordingly. He said that I won’t just be Strong Man’s PR rep, but this new company’s too, and that involves fitting this image of me they’ve apparently sold them.” He pinched the bridge of his nose to stave off the oncoming headache. “It’s all just a bill of goods. I should quit the damn job, but I was counting on this year’s bonus to help me open up my agency.”
“You should, and you should do it soon. But in the meantime, I might have an idea.” Monica’s eyes started to gleam in a way that Drew didn’t really like—one he’d seen too many times before she hatched a plan that he might or might not like, yet would go along with anyway. “I’m going to go make a quick call, why don’t you meet me in my office in a few minutes?”
He knew he was resigned to whatever solution she put in front of him. It wasn’t like he had any better options.
“Fine, I’m going to send a few texts and check in with Macy, then I’ll be right behind you.”
~*~
Caroline resisted the urge to beat her head into the weathered surface of the antique desk in the back room of Limited Edition. She’d been trying to outline the Virtual Match article for days, but the best hook she could come up with was a simple entrepreneurial story about how the service was taking the country by storm. Problem was at least a handful of other outlets had already run similar stories, and she knew that it wasn’t what Shelby intended for them to publish.
Bigger problem? There wasn’t a shady lead to be had—not from her manager at the service, not from any of the fellow virtual dates she’d spoken with, and certainly not from Oliver…unless their repeated phone calls counted. Since that first conversation, they’d spoken on the phone almost every night, except for the last few. Oliver was super busy with a big project at his job, and she knew he was stressing out big time.
Almost as if on cue, her phone chirped an alert and she picked it up to see a message from him.
This day sucks.
Why, what’s going on? She typed. I’m sorry you’re not having a good day. :(
I’m pretty sure I have one of the dumbest coworkers on the planet. And my boss is being a total ass about the event we’re throwing this week. Won’t stop bugging me about bringing my girl. I thought Virtual Match would be enough to get them off my case, but they’re even worse now.
I wish I could be there to shut them up.
You and me both. I’d rather sell all my rare variant covers than go to this thing alone, but that’s what I’m going to do. Don’t worry, I’ll make your excuse sound good.
She didn’t know why the idea of him lying to his coworkers about her and why she wouldn’t be accompanying him bothered her so much. It was the entire point of what she was doing, and how they met.
Maybe that was the problem. Things were starting to feel less like pretend and more like she had skin in the game.
I’m almost sorry I won’t be meeting these Neanderthals you work with. I’d definitely make an impression they wouldn’t forget.
I do
ubt I would forget it, either.
I wish I could help you feel better, but I’ve got to get back to work.
Don’t worry, you’ve helped. :-) Talk to you later?
Can’t wait.
Caroline slipped her phone in her pocket and went back out onto the retail floor. It was a relatively quiet day, so she hoped that she might be able to slip out a little early and stop by Java Jones on her way to the center. She was putting in extra hours to help Monica with the career program fundraiser, so she needed the extra boost…and maybe she also gave passing thought to running into Drew at the coffee shop.
He wasn’t what she pictured from Monica’s descriptions, not at all, and she certainly hadn’t expected him to be the Coffee Hottie from Java Jones. It wasn’t that big of a coincidence—Stanleyville was a college town after all, the kind where everyone seemed to know everyone else—but it had thrown her for a loop nonetheless. That, and him offering to bring her a coffee sometime. It almost sounded like he wanted to see her again.
“Earth to Caroline. Hello, Caroline.” Max thumped her shoulder with the graphic novel that was in his hand, looking amused. “You almost walked into the new display that took you all morning to set up.”
She looked up and he was right—she was inches away from taking out the meticulously ordered and stacked volumes that she spent over an hour on, getting just right.
“Sorry, Max. I’m just distracted today. I’m completely stressed out about my article for Modern, and I still don’t know what to do about it.”
Brent poked his head out from behind the comic he was reading on the big, overstuffed couch in the lounge area. “Still no lead?”
“Nothing,” Caroline said, flopping down on the couch next to him. “The business is on the up and up, my manager is actually awesome, nobody’s got any shady clients…it’s all above board. Shelby is going to be so pissed.”
“Have you pitched her anything else?”
“That would imply I have something else to pitch.” She leaned back into the soft cushions and threw her arm over her eyes. “Goodbye journalism career, I hardly knew ye.”
“A good editor will be glad you didn’t write a story that isn’t there,” Brent said. “Trust me, trying to force a story only backfires for everyone.”
“Well, Shelby isn’t a good editor, she’s a ruthless editor. So I’m pretty sure she’d be happier with me making it up than me just not giving her what she’s asking for.”
“It’ll come to you, I promise. I’ve had stories that didn’t gel until the last possible moment. Sometimes I think part of being a journalist is learning how to be a successful professional procrastinator.”
“Well, and we all know that Care is really good at that.” Max’s teasing tone made Caroline move her arm so she could glare at him. “I mean she’s been procrastinating doing the weekly inventory all morning! Witness a master at work.”
“Shut it, Anderson,” she said, wiggling off the too-soft couch until she could stand on her feet. “I’m just about to get started on it, at the time that I planned to do it, thank you very much.” She snatched the proffered clipboard out of Max’s hands and marched over to the front displays, focusing her mind on the task at hand to try and get the story off her mind. Of course, that left Oliver still on it.
Caroline didn’t know what kind of job he had, exactly, only that he was unhappy, overworked, and in the company of people she wouldn’t spit on if they were on fire. He knew who she lost her virginity to in the 11th grade and her biggest fear in life, but he didn’t know a lot about her situation either. She hated feeling more open with him than basically any other guy she’d ever been in a relationship with, yet she had to be guarded about sharing details that could break the anonymity of their agreement—something she was starting to hate a little bit, if she was being completely honest.
Her phone stayed quiet for a few hours as she worked, completing the inventory and then moving on to some bookkeeping. She was slowly moving Max’s books from hard copies to a computer program, which was easier said than done considering Max was the biggest Luddite this side of the Y2K crisis. Just the fact that he owned and operated a smartphone was a minor miracle. She was deep in the weeds of translating a very specific ledger format to Excel when her text message alerts went off twice, and then the ringtone for her other boss split the air.
“Hey Monica, what did you break?” Monica rarely called unless it was a real emergency, and her emergencies usually consisted of the tech variety.
“Hi Caroline, are you free right now?”
“Well, I’m at work at the moment, but not doing anything critical, why?”
“I need to talk to you…There’s something I need your help with, a favor of sorts. Can you come by the center later?”
She could feel her eyebrow raise at Monica’s wording. “My shift at Limited Edition ends in about thirty minutes, so I can be over after that. What do you need me to do?”
“The favor isn’t for me. See you soon!”
Before Caroline could say anything else, the line went dead. It wasn’t like Monica to be so mysterious. But she couldn’t deny that her interest was piqued, so she started saving her work on the spreadsheet and going through her end-of-day routines.
Her text message alert pinged again, so she picked up her phone to see that Oliver had texted her twice.
Hope your day has gotten better. Mine was crazy but tonight might not be so bad.
The worst part of today was not getting to talk to you much. Phone date later?
That would be great. Glad your evening has the potential to be better. :-) Talk to you soon!
Caroline finished her paperwork, booted down the work machine, and quickly packed up her laptop, mentally steeling herself against an extra assignment for the fundraiser or having to chat up a donor in Monica’s absence.
Max was in the front of the store going through closing, and when he saw her come out of the back room he looked surprised.
“You’re usually the last one out the door when you close. Got a hot date tonight?”
She snorted. “If by ‘hot date’ you mean ‘too much work to do compared to the amount of sleep I get,’ then yes, it’s the hottest.”
He laughed. “I worry about you, you know. You have no reason to be all lonely and bitter about relationships like I do. I wish you’d get out and meet someone nice. It’s not like you can do that when you’re holed up working all the time.”
“Maybe when Mom’s out of rehab and her medical bills are all straightened out. And you never know, I could meet someone online or something.”
“Virtual Match hasn’t soured you on online dating forever?”
Caroline felt the weight of her phone in her pocket like a heated brand against her skin. “Let’s just say it’s given me new hope that people can still find ways to connect with each other.”
He shot her a skeptical look. “Even when it’s a fake relationship? That doesn’t quite add up.”
“Just because the relationship is fake doesn’t mean the connection isn’t real!”
Her voice was louder than she intended, and Max held up his hands in surrender, eyes wide.
“I’m sorry! Really. I’m not judging you, Care, I’m just concerned about you and I want you to be happy.”
“I am as happy as I think I’m going to get,” she said softly. “I appreciate that you care, Max. But there’s nothing to be concerned about. It’s just a job, and it’ll be over soon.” Her stomach clenched at the thought. “I’ve got to get to the center. Monica needs a favor.”
The walk across the town square cleared her head a little bit, but she was still thinking about what Max had said when she stepped through the double doors and headed down the hallway to Monica’s office. When she pushed open the door, she was surprised to see Drew sitting in her usual seat.
“Sorry, am I early? I can wait until you guys are done.” Drew looked disheveled and stressed, and Caroline didn’t want to interrupt a mother-son bonding
moment.
“No, please, come in,” Monica said. “We were waiting for you.”
Drew’s eyes got wide and he started shaking his head. “Nope. No way. Absolutely not. I am not going to drag her into this.”
“Drag her into what?” Caroline asked, sitting down next to him and crossing her arms. “She makes decisions for herself, thank you very much.”
Monica looked like the cat who swallowed the canary. “Drew needs a date to a work function to make his boss happy, someone his office mates have never met. I was hoping you might be able to help him out.”
The man in question dropped his head into his hands. “I don’t need my mom to set me up on a date, especially not one that has the potential to be a disaster.”
“But your mom is the only one who knows a beautiful, eligible young woman who might be open to saving your ass for the night.” Monica was using her no-nonsense mom tone. “Caroline, I know this is a lot to ask, and you’re under no pressure to say yes. You were just the first person I thought of who might be able to be Drew’s date for the evening. You deserve a night off, anyway. I can get Angela to help with the packets instead.”
“Well, I…” Caroline opened her mouth to make her excuses and refuse, but then she thought of Max and his worry that she was too much of a loner, too tangled up in a virtual connection that could never be real. Then she caught sight of Drew’s miserable face and her heart softened.
“Sure. Why not? I’m sure you can show me a nice time, right Drew? And it’ll give me something to hold over your mom’s head when she tries to get me to work on yet another extra project.”
Monica actually clapped her hands in glee, while Drew gave her a weaker version of his killer grin. “You’ll have something to hold over my head now, too. And I promise I will pay back this favor with interest.”
“Don’t think I won’t collect,” she said. “I hope you enjoy being my one-man caffeine dealer for a while if this evening goes as poorly as you seem to think it will.”
