by Laura Briggs
It was a former client, all right. But the last one on earth she expected.
“Hi,” said Ryan, softly. “Gwendolen, right?” He shifted his weight awkwardly as he spoke. “Not Grace. I know that much.”
“Right,” she whispered. “Please, I’m so sorry–” Her voice cut off, unable to finish. A strong feeling that she was going to cry was choking off her speech.
“No, no,” he said, his fingers touching her hand. “That’s not what I meant. I–I wanted to apologize for your being fired.”
“You don’t think I deserved it?” She released a short laugh, despite her tears. “I think most places of employment fire office assistants who pose as the boss.”
He took her elbow and drew her a little ways away from the group conversation. “You did exactly what you were supposed to do,” he answered. “No matter what name you were using. And the wedding you planned would have been perfect.”
Was he going to ask her to do it again? Re-hire her for the new wedding? She had a fleeting thought of herself trailing behind Julie and Mrs. Harlett for months, catching an occasional glimpse of Ryan as he lingered in the background of her life.
He was silent for a moment, his hand lingering on hers. “There’s something I wanted to say to you,” he began. Her heart pounding, she drew towards the safety of the group again.
“I’m sorry,” she said, “but I have a business thing. Tonight, I mean,” she said. “Perhaps some other time we can talk.” She gave him a polite smile, although her thoughts were far from pleasant. Please, please don’t let him ask me to do this.
He nodded. “I see,” he said, his eyes drifting towards the group of businessmen. “Later, then.” He took a few steps away, towards a group of guests near the buffet.
She sighed with relief, her eyes drifting closed for a second. Her knees were trembling, forcing her to remain in one spot when she wanted desperately to hide somewhere.
Surely she was safe now. He barely knew her, he didn’t know the name of her business. In the months to come, they would forget all about her and hire someone else. She would never again be forced to watch him disappear in a sea of wedding details, while her heart slowly crumbled.
“So, about your rates, Miss Lynch,” said the man standing at her elbow. “I have this idea for my wife’s birthday party.” He took a sip from the glass in his hand.
“Really? Tell me all about it,” she answered. Forcing a smile to her face as she turned away from the sight of Ryan disappearing into the crowd.
*****
The sound of dogs yapping issued from Gwendolen’s rented office as she climbed the back stairs to the door. The space was only temporary, since she needed a place to meet with a part-time staff of college students helping coordinate a fundraiser for a local business.
“Is that a golden retriever?” she asked, closing the door behind her. She took a few swift steps to the side to avoid a cloud of golden hairs wafting towards her business skirt.
“It is,” Mindy answered, who was seated at a folding table that served as a receptionist’s post. “Alan and Therese are taking it to the photographer’s in an hour. For the fundraiser‘s posters.”
“I guess dogs and animal shelters go hand in hand,” Gwen answered, pulling off her blazer and steering around a table filled with charity auction items.
“There’s a guy in your office, waiting to see you,” Mindy added. She pointed to a partitioned-off space designed to give Gwen privacy when making phone calls to their client.
“Who?” she asked. “Sutherland and his board aren’t scheduled to meet with us until tomorrow. And as for the charity auctioneer...”
“Oh, it’s not any of them,” said Mindy. “It’s some guy who says he knows you. Miller something.”
Gwen’s heart skipped a beat. “Ryan Miller?” she asked. There was no answer from Mindy, who was now trying to untangle the dog’s leash from the nearest table leg. Gwendolen moved slowly towards the folding screen, swinging its panel open to reveal Ryan seated at her makeshift desk. One foot resting casually on the opposite knee, his fingers tossing a toy dog ball that somehow wound up on her table.
“Hi there,” he said. She hesitated for a moment, before entering.
“Hi,” she said. A slight tremor had crept into her voice. She moved around the table to her chair, shoving aside a stack of business forms.
“It took me a little while to find out where you were,” he laughed. “I finally wheedled an address out of the secretary at Taylor’s agency. She told me you have your own business now. Special events, weddings, birthday parties–you do it all.”
“That’s me,” Gwen answered. She was trying to look busy by re-stacking her client files, but the movement made her feel more nervous. “I guess I thought it was time I made my own future.”
“Like your friend the office assistant,” he said. “Remember, the night we were in the dry cleaners? You told me that story.” He tossed the ball lightly into the air.
She shrugged. “I guess you figured out that was me we were talking about.” With a sheepish smile, she shoved a stack of files into a box next to the table.
His expression clouded. “I don’t think you were the only one we were talking about that night,” he answered. “Since then, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking. About the past year or so of my life, that is. You said some things to me that I couldn’t get out of my head, Gwen.”
It was the second time she had heard him say her name. Her real name. Her hands trembled as she let go of the files.
“I needed to make some hard decisions and face up to some mistakes,” he continued. He stood and paced the room, running a hand through his short hair. “And after things fell apart at the hotel that afternoon, I knew I had to come see you.”
Here it came. She shoved aside her chair and climbed to her feet before he could say anything.
“Ryan,” she began, “I can’t do it. I know it worked out fine last time. I made Julie and her mother happy by doing everything they asked. But this time–” she drew a deep breath, “–I can’t go through with it. There were things that just made me too unhappy.” Her eyes filled with tears as she brushed aside strands of gold from her face.
His dark eyes locked onto hers as he moved towards her. “You don’t understand,” he whispered. “I’m not here to hire you. I’m not getting married. What Julie and I had–”
“You’re not getting married?” she repeated. “But I thought Taylor’s agency just broke the wedding date. Not the engagement.”
He shook his head. “The differences between me and Julie are just too much. The wedding proved it, instead of making them all go away. When we finally fought about what our future would look like, I remembered what you said about losing yourself in trying to please other people. So I let her go.”
Gwen stared at him, uncomprehendingly. “Then what are you doing here?” she asked. She felt his fingers closing around her hand.
“I’m here for you.” Leaning forward, he pressed his lips against hers.
Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back. The distance between them vanished as she felt his arms around her, holding her close.
“So, are you free this week?” he whispered, as their lips parted. She shook her head.
“I’ll have to check with my secretary before I can answer for sure,” she teased. “But I think there’s a pretty good chance I can squeeze you in for a lunch.”
“That’s the curse of dating the city’s best wedding planner, isn’t it?” he said. “Hours of trailing around behind her, carrying bolts of fabric and bags of pasty little candies until your feet are killing you.”
Laughing, she pulled him closer, pressing her face against his. “Now that’s something I can promise you will never happen.” As she shoved her digital planner out of sight, its palm tree and ocean screen vanishing beneath a sea of paper white.
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