When I Saw You

by Laura Branchflower

  “Then I don’t understand what you’re asking.”

  “I guess I’m asking if I came to your mind at all during those three days.”

  “I’m sure you did. I have a dozen things on my mind at any given moment. I’m in the office before six and not out until after nine. And I’m working. Any distraction, any interruption just extends the day.”

  “It takes two seconds to return a text. You have your phone with you all the time. You just ignored my texts.”

  “No. I didn’t ignore them. I get a hundred texts a day. I can’t answer them all—I’d never get anything done if I did.”

  “But I’m supposed to be your girlfriend. I’m not a business text.”

  He ran his hand down her arm. “I understand and I’m going to do better. I’m not going to lose you again.”

  “I feel like you only think about me when you want to have sex.”

  “That’s not true.”

  “You never call me unless you’re trying to coordinate a time to come over. We never talk just to talk,” she said. “If we talk it’s because you want to come over and have sex.”

  He sighed. “That isn’t true.”

  “Yes, it is.” She pushed herself up on her elbow. “Did you even think about me that night? I mean when you were taking off your clothes to be with another woman, did you—”

  “Kathy, don’t.” He gripped her upper arm. “It was a mistake. I apologized. It’s not going to happen again. Now lay back down.”

  “No. I need to talk about this.”

  He rolled onto his back and flung an arm over his eyes. “It meant nothing to me.”

  “Well, it meant something to me.” She pushed his arm away from his face so she could see his eyes. “Who was she?”

  “No one.”

  “I want to know. Just tell me.”

  “No one. Look, Kathy,” he began as he sat up, “I’m not getting into this with you. I told you I was sorry.”

  “Oh, and that’s enough? You think it’s over now because you said you’re sorry?”

  “Obviously not.” He threw his legs over the edge of the bed.

  “How many times did you make her come?”

  “Oh, for God’s sake! I’m not doing this.” He crossed to a chair and picked up his pants.

  “How do you think it makes me feel to know you were inside another woman? That you came inside another woman? Where are you going?”

  “Home,” he said, roughly pulling up his pants. “I have apologized to you every way I know how, and you have a right to be pissed off. Hell,” he said, throwing up one of his hands, “no one could blame you if you never wanted to see me again, but I refuse to hang around and be punished for something I don’t have the power to change.” He shrugged into his shirt. “I never lied to you,” he continued. “Until today we never said anything about other people.” He picked up his socks from the floor and sat down on the chair. “You’re going to have to decide whether you can forgive me for this.”

  “Don’t leave,” she said. “I don’t want you to leave.”

  His hands stilled in the process of pulling on a sock. “Kathy?”

  “It just hurts, knowing you were with someone else. How would you feel if you knew another man was with me?”

  “Not good.” He crossed the room, lowering himself onto the edge of the bed beside her. “I’m sorry.” He touched the side of her face. “I wish it hadn’t happened and I promise you it will never happen again.” He kissed her lightly on her lips. “I love you.”

  “Hi, sweetie,” Lia said after opening her front door. It was a Sunday in mid-October, and Taylor was returning from a weekend with Ned.

  “Mommy!” Taylor hugged and kissed her before turning back to her father. “Can you stay and play with me for a little while?” She grabbed one of his hands. “Please?”

  “Not today, Taylor. Daddy has to leave,” Lia said, having no desire to spend even an extra minute in his company.

  “Yes. I have to go. Candice is home waiting for me.” He set down her overnight bag and kneeled down to give her a hug. “I love you, sweetie.”

  Lia watched them, an emotion akin to hate simmering within. She looked forward to the day she could be in his presence without a reaction. As much as he deserved her wrath, she didn’t like harboring such negativity towards another person, especially one she once loved.

  Unfortunately, he looked good. He seemed to look better every time she saw him. Standing just below six feet with a lean, athletic build, sandy-colored hair and a strong jaw, he’d always been good-looking, but now there was something different about him, which she decided must be his clothes. He dressed like he had money. Even his casual clothes looked expensive.

  “When are you coming back?” Taylor continued to hug him.

  “Soon.” He kissed the top of her head before standing up. His gaze shifted to Lia. “Could I talk to you for a second?”

  “Taylor, you can go watch TV. I’m going to walk Daddy out.” She followed him out of her apartment and down the stairs, neither talking until he stopped beside his black BMW.

  “I’d like to see more of Taylor. Two weekends a month isn’t enough.”

  “Oh.” She didn’t know why, but she was surprised by the request. “Okay.”

  “I could pick her up from your mom’s for dinner a couple nights a week. Tuesdays and Thursdays work for me.”

  “Tuesdays and Thursdays are fine except next week. A week from Thursday is Halloween.”

  “I know. I’d like to take her trick-or-treating.”

  Lia shook her head. “I’m taking her trick-or-treating.”

  “Where?” He swung his gaze around the apartment complex. “Here?”

  “No. I’ll take her in my mom’s neighborhood.”

  “Lia, let me take her. We live in a nice neighborhood and there’s a girl next door the same age that’s going to go with us. She wants me to take her. She told me.”

  “Too bad.”

  “Too bad’?”

  “Yeah.” She met his eyes. “She’s going with me, Ned. If you’d like to come over and join us that’s fine, but I’m not missing out on Halloween with Taylor.”

  “She’s my daughter too.”

  “I know. And that’s why I invited you to join us, because God knows I have no desire to spend an evening with you.”

  “You’re not being fair. You have her all the time.”

  “That was your choice. It’s cold. I’m going inside.” She turned and walked towards her building.

  Several hours later, stretched out on the couch with a glass of Baileys and crème, she was berating herself for the conversation with Ned. She didn’t want to play the role of bitter ex-wife. She didn’t even want him anymore, yet knowing he’d cast her aside for someone else still burned. Her husband, a man she once loved and adored, left her for another woman. He’d known both women, slept with both women and chosen Candice.

  She took a sip of her drink and reminded herself she wasn’t supposed to be thinking about Ned. Her thoughts drifted to Zurtech. The task of processing what appeared those first few days as an insurmountable volume of information was no longer so intimidating. And she knew enough to ask intelligent questions of Kay and Claudia, who turned out to be valuable resources. She’d begun lunching with them regularly.

  The receptions were somewhat baffling. Getting paid to drink alcohol and eat seemed an odd concept, but she supposed it was akin to making business deals on the golf course, with one small exception: As far as she could tell, no business was ever discussed at the receptions. The gatherings reminded her of the mixers she attended in college when she was a member of the Alpha Delta Phi. The B2B staff members were the sorority and the clients were the fraternity, only the participants were ten to thirty years older.

  At nineteen, they were fun, but at twenty-eight and recently divorced, she found them depressing. Hanging out with what appeared to be mostly married men and stroking their already-inflated egos was neither rewarding
nor challenging work, and she found it incomprehensible Claudia could actually enjoy herself at the get-togethers.

  She picked up the television remote and began surfing through the channels. Over the past year, television had become her refuge from the loneliness of the late hours after Taylor was in bed, but at 9:45 p.m. on a Sunday, the options appeared slim.

  “…now let’s move to your personal life,” Anderson Cooper was saying to his guest when Lia passed through CNN. She pushed the up-arrow key to return to the program, the man across from Anderson catching her eye. He was gorgeous, with wavy dark brown hair and large light brown eyes surrounded by black lashes so thick she could see them on the television. “The Washingtonian named you the most eligible bachelor in Washington. How does that make you feel?”

  He smiled, revealing a set of perfectly straight white teeth and deep dimples in his cheeks. “Honored?” Lia put her hand over her heart, knowing if a man like him showed up at one of the receptions, it wouldn’t be so boring.

  “You’re thirty-four years old and have never been married. Is that correct?”

  He reached for the coffee mug on the desk and took a sip before responding. “That is correct.”

  “Any plans to get married?”

  “Not at the moment.” He leaned forward and set down the mug.

  “You’re going to make me work for every detail, aren’t you?” Anderson asked.

  He shrugged and the smile returned. “You’re lucky I’m answering any of these questions.”

  “You’ve been dating Kathy Paige for quite a while.”

  “Close to a year.”

  “She’s a beautiful lady.”

  “Yes, she is.”

  “Any talk of marriage?”

  He smiled again. “Didn’t I already answer that question?”

  “No. I asked if you had any plans to get married. Now I’m asking if you’ve discussed marriage with Kathy.”

  He moved a hand over his mouth and shook his head. “I’ve already answered that question. Let’s change the subject.”

  Lia rolled onto her side, continuing to watch the interview, not actually listening to the words, but feeling almost mesmerized by his eyes and deep voice. Not one to partake in unattainable fantasies, she was surprised by her reaction to the man and later, when she awoke on the couch after dreaming she’d had sex with him, she knew she was in desperate need of a boyfriend.

  4

  Lia met Eric Nettles the day before Halloween. She arrived a little late to a reception at the Zurtech House, wearing a black strapless dress falling just above her knees. She was looking around to see if she could spot Claudia when she saw him. He was seated at a small round table by himself, watching her as he puffed on a cigar. When she met his eyes, neither of them looked away. Within seconds he was at her side.

  “You’re new.” It was more of a statement than a question, but she nodded. “And you have amazing eyes.” He held out his hand. “I’m Eric Nettles.”

  “Hi.” She smiled as she returned his handshake. “You work with Claudia Kelly.” She remembered her name from his file.

  “For now.” He didn’t release her hand, his eyes continuing to meet hers. “Are you going to tell me your name?”

  “Oh, I’m sorry.” She smiled. “I’m Lia Merrick.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Lia Merrick.” He released her hand, but continued to stand a bit closer than socially appropriate, the male appreciation undeniable as his eyes feasted on her face.

  She recognized him from the picture in his file. He was the Chief Operating Officer at Buznet, the largest wireless communications company in the country and, at forty-two, still single. He had dark hair, graying at the temples, brown eyes and a pleasant looking face.

  “And what do you do for Zurtech?”

  “I’m still learning.”

  “Is this your first reception?”

  “No. I believe…” She paused, squinting as she thought back. “This is my fourth.”

  “I suppose that means I’ve missed at least four, because I would definitely not forget you.” He glanced towards the bar across the room. “What can I get you to drink?”

  “A Coke.”

  “A Coke?” He pulled head back. “You need something stronger than a coke.”

  “I do?”

  “You do.”

  “I don’t think so.” She smiled to take any bite off her words. “I’d really just like a Coke.”

  It was past 4:00 a.m. when Lia arrived at her mother’s house, and as she tried to quietly close the front door, her mother’s voice startled her from behind. “Where have you been?”

  Lia spun around, a hand moving to her chest. “You scared me.”

  “Where’ve you been? It’s four a.m.” Her arms were crossed over her chest as she stood in a white robe.

  “I went out to breakfast.”

  “Until four? I was worried sick. I’ve sent you numerous texts.”

  “I’m sorry.” Lia slipped off her jacket and turned to the closet. “We lost track of time.”

  “We?”

  “I met someone,” Lia said after hanging her jacket. “And we started talking and the next thing I knew it was three forty-five.”

  “A man?”

  “Yes, a man. He was so nice and easy to talk to. I feel like I’ve known him a lot longer than one day. Can you watch Taylor for me Saturday night?”

  “Saturday?”

  “Yes. He has tickets to some play opening at the Kennedy Center.”

  “Yes. Of course I can watch her.”

  Lia’s desk phone was ringing when she arrived at the office at 10:15 the following morning. She quickened her steps, hoping to answer before it switched over to voicemail. “Hello?” She set her purse on her desk.

  “Did I tell you how incredible your eyes are?”

  “About a dozen times.” She smiled as she sat down. “I just got in.”

  “I figured. This is the third time I’ve called. You neglected to give me your cell number. Do you have lunch plans?”

  “Today?” Her mind was spinning. She’d barely slept.

  “Yes, today. It’s seventy degrees. I know the perfect spot for a picnic.”

  Her eyes swung to Stan Hall’s office. “I don’t know what my boss—”

  “Stan won’t mind. I’m an important client. Do you want me to call him and tell him we have a meeting?”

  “No! Let me think for a second.”

  “I don’t have a second. I’ll be at your office at noon.”

  Eric Nettles looked even better in the light of the day, and as Lia watched him in Stan Hall’s office, laughing at something her boss said, she suddenly couldn’t wait to be alone with him. And he was right. When Stan led him to her cubicle several minutes later, he didn’t seem to mind that she was going off to lunch with Eric. “Don’t worry about coming back today, Lia,” he said. “Enjoy the nice weather.”

  “No, that’s okay. I can get a few more hours of work in after lunch.”

  “Don’t bother.” He turned to Eric, clearly indicating his decision was final. “Nice to see you.” The two men shook hands and then Stan walked off.

  “You look incredible,” Eric said as soon as they were alone.

  “I don’t know if this is picnic attire.” She glanced down at her dress.

  “It’ll be fine for my picnic.” He trailed his fingers down her arm. “You’re perfect.”

  “Eric?” Claudia appeared beside them. “I thought that was you.”

  “Hello, Claudia.” He turned from Lia. “How are you?”

  “Fine.” Her eyes moved from him to Lia, then back. “What are you doing here?”

  “Taking Lia to lunch. How come you didn’t mention you had a new coworker?”

  “I didn’t realize that was part of my job description. May I talk to you alone for a minute?”

  “Sure.” He touched Lia’s arm. “I’ll be right back.”

  Lia watched them walk off, surprised at Claudia’s
displeasure. She was still pondering her reaction when Eric returned a few minutes later.

  “Ready?” He was smiling as he approached.

  “Is everything okay?” She picked up her purse.

  “Yes.” He put a hand to the small of her back as they began walking. “Everything’s fine.”

  The “perfect spot” Eric chose for their picnic was the backyard of his very posh home in Great Falls, Virginia, located on a prime piece of real estate along the Potomac River.

  He’d evidently called ahead because after parking his Porsche in front of his six-car garage, he led her off to the right of the house and down a cobblestone path that wound them through a cluster of trees and then on to a stretch of perfectly manicured lawn about half the size of a football field with spectacular views of the river. To their right, laid out on the grass, was a red-and-white checkered blanket weighted down on each corner with a small gray stone, and in the center was a larger wicker picnic basket.

  “This is beautiful,” Lia said softly as she set her purse on the blanket and looked off towards the river.

  “I like it,” Eric said from behind her as he placed his hands on her shoulders. “Isn’t this better than work?”

  She nodded, liking the feel of his hands. It had been so long since she’d felt the touch of a man. “I love the sound of the river. It’s so soothing.”

  “It is. If I open my bedroom windows, I can hear it while I’m going to sleep.” He turned her until she was facing his house, lifting one of his hands from her shoulder and pointing towards a balcony on the second floor, his chest pressing into her back. “That’s my bedroom.”

  The house was almost as spectacular as the view with a modern design, comprised of numerous levels with floor-to-ceiling windows throughout. “Wow,” she said. It was the first thing that came to her mind. “It’s incredible.”

  “You like it?”

  “Of course.” She continued to admire his house. “It’s beautiful. How long have you been here?”

  “I had it built a little over two years ago.” He stepped back from her, and Lia instantly missed his warmth. “How about some wine?”