“I should get going,” I said, even though going home to an empty condo didn’t appeal to me. Spending the night here sounded great, even if we cuddled until conking out and slept until the alarm went off in the morning. But I had to go to work tomorrow, and my company laptop and clothes were at home.
“Can I make a request?” Collette asked on the way to the front door.
“Absolutely. Lay it on me.”
“Bring a bag with some extra outfits next time you come over. And a toothbrush and whatever other guy stuff you need, too. Then you won’t have to leave.”
“Brilliant.” I gave her a kiss. “That’s what you are, among many other things.”
“Oh, go on.” She chuckled and looped her arms around my neck. “No, really, go on.”
I laughed and wrapped my arms around her waist. “It would take all night. The list is never-ending.”
“Damn, that was a smooth answer.” She hugged me, resting her head on my chest. “I really wish you would stay.”
Twist my arm when I’m already waffling, why don’t you? Whatever weak resolve I’d had collapsed faster than a house of cards. “Well…if I got up an hour earlier than usual, I should have enough time to drive home and get ready before heading into the office.”
“I’ll reset my alarm clock,” she said, her voice tinged with happiness as we headed to her bedroom.
11
Ryan
“Come to my office when you’re done.”
Fear spiked through me as Darren walked away from my cube. My mind raced, trying to figure out what I could have done to piss him off. But I kept drawing a blank, which only stressed me out more. Had someone complained about me? And if so, about what? I always arrived early at client sites and did my best to follow company rules from dress codes to allotted lunch breaks.
On cue, Diana’s blond head appeared over the divider. “Maybe it isn’t anything bad. He doesn’t always summon you to his lair for an ass-ripping. I actually thought it sounded like he was in a good mood.”
She had a point. My weekly meetings with Darren weren’t as bad as they used to be. And he hadn’t ordered me to stop in the middle of my current task. I relaxed a bit with that thought, some of the tension flowing out of my neck and shoulders. “True, but I can’t figure out what he might want with me.”
“Hurry up and finish whatever you’re working on so you can find out. The suspense is killing me over here.” She clapped her hands together. “Chop-chop!”
“I could be marching straight into pink slip territory, so you’ll have to excuse me if I don’t kick into fifth gear to get there faster.”
“I’m telling you, I have a good feeling about this. You know how accurate my gut predictions have been in the past.”
“About what, exactly?”
“Remember Misty from HR?”
“Vaguely.”
“She was the platinum blonde who dyed the ends of her hair a different color every month.”
“Get to the point, already. I need to concentrate, so I can finish this spreadsheet and get to the bossman’s office.” I shuffled through a stack of documents, looking for a medical supply company’s vendor list.
“I totally called the affair between her and Phil,” she said with a note of pride, as though she had unearthed a scandalous liaison between world leaders instead of two bored office workers.
“So did everyone else. They didn’t exactly try to keep it under wraps with all the closed-door meetings for hours every afternoon.”
“I was the first person to say it out loud. Don’t you remember? We were eating lunch in the break room with–”
“Yeah, sure,” I muttered, not bothering to hide my impatience. “You’re the next Nostradamus. Maybe you’ll get your own TV show like that chick from Long Island.”
“She’s a medium, not a clairvoyant.”
“If you don’t leave me alone so I can get this done, I’m going to…well, you already know what I’ll do since you can see the future,” I said sarcastically, hitting the keys harder than necessary while typing.
She gave me a one-fingered salute and swiveled her chair to face her monitor.
The silence was just what I needed to finish entering data. Scrubbing my face with a hand, I sighed and stood. As I passed Diana’s cube, The Imperial March began to play. “Ha-fucking-ha,” I mumbled, sending a glare in her direction.
Darren glanced up from his desk, waving me inside and motioning to shut the door as he listened to someone speaking on the other end of the phone line. “Yes, yes, I concur. Call my secretary to set up an appointment and we’ll iron out a more detailed plan. Talk to you soon.” He ended the call and removed the wireless headset hooked over his ear. “Excellent timing, Ryan. Have a seat. You’re probably wondering why I called you in here, so I’ll just cut straight to the chase.”
I settled into one of the guest chairs and straightened my tie. “I’m a bit curious.”
“Let me start by saying how pleased I am, not only with the quality of your work but also with the positive feedback from your last client. They spoke highly of you and specifically requested you for future projects.” He took off his glasses and leaned back in his padded leather chair.
“Really?” My shoulders slumped in relief. This definitely wasn’t a bitch session or send-off.
“Yes, which leads me to the main reason for why I called you in here. You’re aware that next Friday is Paul’s last day?”
“I am.” What did the team leader’s last day with the firm have to do with this conversation?
“We have yet to fill his spot. How would you feel about stepping into it?”
I stared at him in disbelief. This man, the guy who had embarrassed me in front of coworkers and threatened my future with the company, was offering me what sounded a lot like a promotion. “I’m interested,” I said coolly, proud for not giving away how much this opportunity thrilled me.
“It would be on a trial basis for the duration of our current contract with them, which expires at the end of the year. If your work continues on the same exemplary path and client satisfaction stays on a similar level, you’ll be officially promoted to team lead on January first.” He paused and scribbled on a small notepad. “We’re prepared to offer you this amount as an annual salary,” he said, tearing off the sheet and sliding it toward me.
Cha-fucking-CHING. It was a hefty increase from what I already made. “Seems fair,” I said, folding the slip in half and tucking it in my pocket.
“Excellent!” he boomed, rising from his seat with his hand extended. “The office next to Paul’s is empty. Go ahead and move into it as soon as you can. I want you to shadow him the rest of this week and all of next to learn the ins and outs of the position before he hands you the reins.”
I did a mental fist pump while sealing the deal with a firm handshake. “I’ll be relocated by the end of the day. Thank you. I won’t let you down.”
“You’d better not,” he said with a crooked grin, indicating he was half-serious.
I returned to my cube in a daze. Diana wasn’t around, and I remembered her mentioning she had to run over to one of her clients’ offices to pick up some documents. I finally let the grin that had been fighting to come out for the last fifteen minutes spread across my face and reached for one of the empty file boxes under my desk.
Half an hour later, I held up my phone and snapped a picture of the view outside the window. My window in my office. It was small–the desk occupied most of the floor space–but it had four walls and a door, which was the equivalent of a mansion in comparison to a cramped cubicle with partial walls and a doorless opening.
Guess where I am? I attached the picture to the message and sent it to Collette.
Client’s conference room? she replied.
No. Guess again. I’ll give you a hint. I plunked down in my new high-backed leather chair and rolled across the carpet to the middle of the window. Cheesing like a damn fool, I took a selfie and sent it off.
>
I love you when you’re in a playful mood, but my brain is mush from writing this paper for my management class, and I’m all out of guesses. Nice tie, by the way.
I gaped at the screen, specifically at the first three words. Was Collette just being cute or was she serious? Neither of us had used them before, not even to joke around.
Part of me wanted to reply with, I love your mushy brain or something similar to reciprocate and test the waters. But the rest of me didn’t want to drop the L-bomb via text.
The screen lit up with an incoming message, snapping me out of my contemplative state.
Holy crap, you got canned? I’m sooo damn sorry. I really thought D-bag called you in for something good. What an ass! Are you okay?
Diana probably freaked out when she got back to her desk and saw my empty cube. I could imagine the horrified expression on her face, eyes wide as saucers and mouth hanging open.
My fingers moved quickly over the screen as I tapped out a response.
I’m still in shock. Want to meet at the greasy spoon at one? I could use a gyro after the way this morning went.
She replied instantly with, I’ll be there. I’m surprised you’re okay with lingering near the scene of the crime. Maybe you should get some coffee and start checking online job sites.
I chuckled and set aside my phone to continue my analysis of Collette’s last message. If she had used the L-word casually, cool. But if it had been a crafty declaration of her feelings toward me, we were right on the cusp of taking our relationship to the next level.
Was I ready to go there with her? Absolutely. We’d been dating for a little over a month. While that wasn’t a long time, it was enough for me to admit how I felt about her. The words had been on the tip of my tongue for over a week, and the attraction had begun brewing the night we first met.
Even though I wanted badly to let them out, I didn’t want to move too quickly and frighten her. Yes, I was the happiest I’d ever been in a relationship, but no, I didn’t feel the urge to put a ring on it or start discussing baby names. We were still in the honeymoon phase of coupledom, where sex was a daily occurrence, and everything was seen through rose-colored glasses.
That’s not to say I expected the rug to be ripped out from beneath us at any given moment. Yet certain milestones were inevitable, such as the first big argument. It was only a matter of time before I cracked a joke or made a smart-ass remark at the wrong moment. And when it happened, I had no doubt that Collette would make her displeasure known. I’d double-time it to the nearest store for flowers and ice cream–lilies and rocky road were her favorites–before making a doorstep apology. Then I would initiate the best make-up sex known to mankind and show her how much I regretted the spat.
I decided to stop obsessing over the “I love you” and picked up my cell. I’m in my new office. Got called into an impromptu meeting and was offered a promotion.
OMG, congratulations! I’m so happy and excited for you. Let’s go out to dinner to celebrate. You pick the place, but it has to be casual because I’m slumming it in jeans today.
Schhhwing! The mere thought of how fantastic her ass looked in those skinny jeans she liked to wear made me rise to half-mast. Peeling the denim off her lower half was one of my favorite pre-playtime activities. Nice and slow, one leg at a time, pausing after the first to give attention to the newly exposed flesh before unveiling the other. Unwrapping her was better than opening gifts on Christmas morning and my birthday combined.
Thank you. I’m pretty stoked about it. I’ll come up to get you shortly after five.
Paul walked in a few minutes later as I arranged hanging folders in a filing cabinet drawer. “Feel up to sitting in on a conference call? It’s just a routine check-in to make sure everything is on schedule. I think we should let the client know about the changing of the guard while they’re on the line. I’m sure they’ll be okay with it since they already know you.”
“I agree, on all counts.” I grabbed my laptop and followed him next door, eager to begin the process of transitioning into my new job.
***
“You have got to be shitting me!” Diana yelled, smacking a palm on the chipped tabletop. “Thanks a lot for letting me worry all morning, asshole.”
I laughed, ignoring the irritated glares from diners at other tables while spreading tzatziki sauce over the pita lying on my plate. “You’re the one who automatically assumed I got fired. Reread what I texted. I never actually confirmed it.”
“You didn’t deny it, either.” She exchanged her onions for my tomatoes. “Several guys are fighting over who gets your cube. It’s apparently prime real estate worth squabbling over.”
“They probably want to sit next to you.” I layered on some strips of meat and onion slices, folding the soft bread until it resembled a taco.
“God, I hope Jim wins. Randy has a serious gas problem, and Ted does this annoying throat-clearing thing. It sounds like he’s going to hock a loogie.”
I made a face and pointed to my half-eaten gyro. “Trying to eat here. Either do the same or find something less disgusting to talk about.”
“Okay…” She tapped her cheek with a finger, chewing a chunk of feta cheese. “I just can’t believe Darren gave you the job. I mean, you’re a people person and a really good accountant, but there are others who’ve been around longer who probably should have gotten the position.”
A ribbon of anger unfurled in my belly. “I didn’t ask for this promotion or sneak around behind anyone’s back to get it. It fell into my lap, and I’d be an idiot to not take it.”
“Yeah, I’d do the same thing if I were you. All I’m trying to say is that there may be some bad blood from people who were overlooked. You know how catty the diehards with corner office aspirations can be.”
Bullshit. Diana wasn’t fooling me for a second by trying to pretend she had my six. I could tell from the jealous tone of her voice that she felt snubbed for not being offered the position. It was her own fault, though. She did herself no favors with all the time she spent on personal calls and surfing the internet instead of working. Several of her clients had complained about her smoke breaks as well, claiming they were too frequent and too lengthy.
“Oh, I know,” I muttered, the words partially directed at her.
“Can we still go on our coffee run every afternoon?”
“Why wouldn’t we? I’m sure I’ll still need the boost, especially now that my workload will be heavier.”
“Good. It would suck if you moved up on the corporate ladder and I never saw you again.”
I rolled my eyes. “This isn’t India, Diana. I’m not going to shun you because you still live in cube city.”
She finally picked up her gyro, thankfully ending our increasingly uncomfortable conversation to eat her lunch.
Most of my afternoon was spent in Paul’s office, learning the ropes while observing and doing hands-on work. I had to bow out of the mid-afternoon coffee run to sit in on another conference call. When I finally IM’d Diana to let her know I couldn’t make it, she answered back with, Got tired of waiting and went on my own.
I felt bad, but what the hell was I supposed to do? I couldn’t risk making Darren regret his decision to choose me by ducking out of my new duties on the first day. There would be plenty of boring afternoons when it would be easy to justify a break from number-crunching to grab a cup of joe. She’d just have to be more understanding of my limitations.
By the time I got on the elevator to head up to the fifteenth floor, my head ached from the information dump it had been subjected to. Being the team leader was no cakewalk. It entailed more than an increase in workload. I had to oversee subordinates and ensure they were on task while completing my own. It would take some getting used to, but I was pretty good at multitasking and felt confident in my ability to juggle another responsibility.
Resting the back of my head on the wooden elevator wall panel, I pulled out my cell to compose a message to my mother to s
hare my big news.
12
Ryan
My phone rang as I stepped off the elevator, a picture of my mother filling the screen.
“Did you lose your manners when you moved to the city?” she asked in lieu of hello when I accepted the call. “You don’t text that kind of big news, Ryan.”
“Sorry,” I said sheepishly. “I’m on my way to pick up Collette and wanted to at least let you know.”
“Mmmhmm,” she huffed. “I’m glad you mentioned her, actually. I was just telling your father yesterday evening that we really need to meet this girl. You should bring her home for Thanksgiving if she doesn’t already have plans.”
Not a bad idea. “Let me check with her and get back to you. I’ve got to get going, Mom. I’ll call you tomorrow. Tell Dad I said hi.”
“Will do. Congratulations, sweetie. I’m proud of you.”
I thanked her and ended the call, bumping into Luke as he left work for the day. He wound up accepting a job as an event coordinator and had started last week. The guy seemed pretty happy to no longer be a waiter.
“Hey, congratulations!” he exclaimed, shaking my hand. “Collette told me about the promotion.”
“Thanks. I’m pretty excited about it. Everything still going well for you here?”
“Oh, yeah,” he said enthusiastically. “This beats my old gig by a mile.”
“I bet. Is Collette in her office?”
“She was putting the finishing touches on her paper when I walked by on my way out.” A ding announced the arrival of an elevator, and he waved farewell, turning sideways to fit into the crowded car.
I made my way through the lobby and down the dark corridor, passing deserted offices until reaching the first one with light still spilling out the doorway. Standing on the threshold, I froze with my fist poised for a knock in midair upon seeing Collette and Neil in the arm chairs in the seating area near the windows. Their heads were angled toward each other, and Collette consolingly rubbed his shoulder, speaking in a hushed tone.
More than Money (Found in Chicago Book 1) Page 9
