Eleven
The ticking of a clock usually would drive me bat shit crazy, but for some reason I was finding it rather soothing.
Most of the weekend was spent running on little sleep, due to my mind getting the best of me after everything that unfolded with Everett. Talk about being a recipe for disaster. That’s what I seemed to be anymore. But you can’t help what the heart wants, can you?
He was due to be at the office some time throughout the day, but little ole me didn’t bother to schedule an actual time. So my day was going to be spent thinking every knock on the door and every buzz from Stacey would be to let me know that Everett had arrived.
I stretched my arms above my head and leaned back in the chair. Spending extra money on one that didn’t hurt your back was one of the best decisions I’d ever made. I could seriously take a nap in the thing and wake up feeling better than if I’d slept eight hours in my own bed, and a nap was beckoning me at the moment.
Without notice, my office door began to open and my sleepy self all but jumped to sit upright in the chair. My heart was racing as my visitor stepped into the room pushing a cart and whistling to whatever was blasting through the headphones resting in his ears. He removed one and gave me a small wave.
“Hello, Ms. Kenton. Got a few deliveries for ya today.”
Our mailman, Jude, was one of the nicest twenty-year-old guys I’d ever met. I’d love to give his mother a giant hug and let her know that she’d raised him right. He always seemed to brighten my day when he came by, even if he was bringing bills and junk mail most of the time.
“Jude! How’s the day treating you?”
“Oh, you know. Living the dream.”
I chuckled.
Every day it was the same response, which always came across as a happy one. I’d never know if he was having a bad day, if he actually had bad days, because a genuine smile was the only expression I’d ever seen him wear.
“How’s school going?”
Jude was a couple years into his journey of becoming an attorney. Ever since the day he spilled those beans to me, I’d constantly pushed him toward corporate law. It was a money bag in big cities.
“Wonderfully. Thank you for suggesting corporate law courses. It’s been a bit of a different route than the regular ones. I’m really enjoying it.”
“Well, you know, when you graduate I could possibly pull some strings to hire you here.” I crossed my arms over my chest and grinned. “That is if you want to swim with the small fish starting out.”
Jude tossed his head back and cackled.
“I’d be honored to work for Level. If the company would have me.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” I gave him a wink. “So what’cha got me for today? More lingerie catalogs I never signed up for, or a stack of invoices I get to review and thankfully pass along to accounting?”
“A little bit of each. Plus an invitation from Tennessee it looks like.”
I choked on my spit.
“What?”
I quickly took the stack of mail from him and rummaged through it until I found the letter he spoke of. Sure enough, in elegant script my name and office address were written across the front of the burgundy envelope, with nothing but a return address in the top left corner.
“Looks pretty important, huh?”
Jude knew a little bit of my back story, but not much. He had been told, like most of my co-workers, that I’d jumped ship and hauled ass out of my hometown in hopes of finding a new life and path. Thankfully I had, but not without a price.
“Yeah, it does.” I tossed it in the wire basket on the edge of my desk and leaned back in the chair.
“Well, I hope it isn’t anything too hectic. Have a great day, Ms. Kenton.”
“Jude, call me Arbor, please.”
“Okay, Arbor.”
I smiled.
“Have a great day yourself, and kick ass in those classes tonight.”
He gave me a salute as he reached the door.
“Always do.”
The door clicked closed, and I was left staring at an envelope I didn’t want to open. Who tracked me down in Indianapolis? I’d left town without so much as a goodbye to ninety-nine percent of the people that knew me. So receiving mail from an unnamed someone was a puzzle to me. Probably one I didn’t want to try and solve, either. I lifted the envelope and felt the thickness of it.
“This came from someone who has money to blow on expensive envelopes, solid-colored ones without personality at that.”
I narrowed my eyes and flipped it over in my hands. The only thing that decorated the back was a small elegant M at the tip of the closure. Almost instantly I knew who it was from. But what the hell did she want? Neither of our birthdays were close, and I hadn’t spoken to her since way before I left town. Why would she be sending me something?
Curiosity was killing me so I ripped the envelope open, slashing through her elegant M and all the bullshit that she’d caused me over the years. Floral, extra-thick cardstock peaked at me so I slipped it from the envelope and erupted with laughter at the first sentence printed on the thing.
You’re cordially invited.
“Cordially, my ass,” I scoffed.
But what I thought was an invitation to some fancy ass wedding wasn’t the case. As I continued to read, my mouth fell open and my palms began to sweat. She had sent me an invitation via the post office to be a bridesmaid in her damn wedding.
Hysterical laughter bubbled up my throat. The kind of laughter where you can’t control it and no matter how unfunny something is, you continue to laugh because you really don’t want to cry. I’d hit that delirium state.
My cousin Libby Mack was a vile person. She’d never treated me like family, let alone a friend. But she had enough nerve to mail me an invitation to be a bridesmaid in her wedding? Had the girl gone mad?
Who mails bridesmaid invitations anyway?
I guess she had to since she doesn’t have my phone number.
My office phone startled me with unexpected ringing; I nearly fell out of my chair.
“Sweet Jesus, get a hold of yourself, Arbor.” I rubbed my face with my hands and quickly answered Stacey’s call.
“Arbor, a Mr. Green is here to see you.”
“Who?”
“A Mr. Green.” She nervously paused. “Said you told him to stop by today to sign some paperwork.”
“Oh, Stacey, I’m sorry. My mind’s somewhere else. I’ll come out and get him.”
“I can bring him to you if you’d like.”
“No, it’s fine. Let him know I’ll be right there.”
My office was two floors above where Stacey was located. So the time it would take for me to go to her was needed to clear my head a bit. Everett had shown up at the worst of times, but hopefully the encounter would be easier than that damn invitation I’d read.
Who was I kidding? I was about to be face-to-face with the man whose bones I’d jumped over the weekend, a client at that. I stepped into the elevator, and once the doors shut, I let out a small tantrum and breathed in deeply. Letting the large breath out slowly, I felt a tad bit better.
The elevators were located behind where Everett would be seated. Thankfully the design company had done a good job with that, because stepping off the elevator and coming directly face-to-face with him wouldn’t give me any time to take him in. Selfish of me, I know. But a girl likes to observe a nice looking man, even for a split second, before she has to do business with him. Right?
My heels clanked against the floor as I crossed the walkway toward the waiting area.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Green,” I teased with his last name, which I hadn’t known.
His company’s name made total sense now.
His honey eyes connected with mine before making a quick pass down my body and back up again. A mega-watt smile spread across his gorgeous face and he stood, extending his hand for me to shake. Very professional of him.
But I bypassed the handshake and went in for a hug, knowing it was more intimate, but I didn’t care. His woodsy cologne filled my senses as his hands rested for a moment on my lower back.
“How did I not know your last name’s Green?”
“Because you only want me for my body.” His heady tone vibrated through me.
This is already starting out bad.
I stepped back with an even wider smile than before and motioned toward the elevators.
“My office is this way.”
Everett followed slightly behind me as I pushed the up arrow on the wall.
“So how was the remainder of your weekend?”
His question made me clear my throat. He apparently wasn’t going to play fair like we’d agreed upon.
“Very relaxing.”
A knowing grin filled his face.
“Must be nice. Mine was tense. Had to take care of myself yesterday, though.”
Knowing the hidden meaning behind his response had my body warming.
We stepped into the elevator and I pushed the button for the floor my office was on.
“I find it odd that your receptionist is two floors below you.”
“She’s not my receptionist, she’s my assistant.”
“Tomato, tamata.”
“She’d probably be offended if you said that to her.”
“I highly doubt it. She seemed far too bubbly to get offended.”
I giggled. “You don’t know how true that is.”
The elevator doors opened to a very quiet floor. Quieter than I remembered it being when I had gone down to get him. I wasn’t sure if it was my hyper awareness of it or what, but the privacy was a little unnerving. Knowing how our last private moment unraveled.
I showed him to my office and closed the door behind us. Everett went directly to the large windows I loved to look out. As if we needed something in common.
“Beautiful view.”
I stepped beside him. “It is, isn’t it?”
He grinned at me before turning his attention back to the city. His hands were resting inside the pockets of his black slacks. A solid burgundy button-down fit his toned body, almost the same color burgundy as the envelope that was beckoning me on my desk.
“You okay?” Everett’s hand touched mine.
Our eyes connected and I exhaled a slow breath. His touch was calming, and boy did I need that.
“I’ll be fine.” I took a seat at me desk and motioned for him to have a seat as well. “Shall we get started?”
“The actual business side of you is showing,” he teased as he took a seat directly across from me.
I shook my head. “You’re playing dirty.”
“You look beautiful today, by the way.”
I tried to hide my grin by rolling my bottom lip between my teeth, but it only seemed to make things worse.
“You know, I never thought biting a lip was sexy, until I witnessed you do it.” His eyes were focused on my mouth, so I quickly let go of my lip.
I slid the folder holding all of the paperwork to tie Level PR and Evergreen together across my desk and placed a pen on top. “Here’s what you need to review, if you have any questions, or sections you want altered, simply circle those and I’ll take them down to the legal team and have it looked over.”
A still smiling Everett lifted the pen and took the folder from my desk. He leaned back in the chair and rested his ankle on his other knee, using his lap as a workspace.
“We can go to the conference room if you need more space.”
As soon as the suggestion passed my lips, I knew I needed to insert my foot in my mouth.
Everett’s eyes rose to mine, and the corner of his mouth peaked.
“Is that so?”
A bellowing laugh echoed in my office. “You have got to stop.”
“I can’t help myself with you.”
“We have to come up with some common, nonsexual ground.”
He sat the folder and pen on the corner edge of my desk, and leaned his forearms onto the top until his face was mere inches from mine.
“It’s hard when a man’s had a taste of something he likes, but not the full meal.”
I rubbed my knees together beneath the desk and did a helluva job not closing those inches between us and smashing my lips to his. Everett knew the game he was playing, but why didn’t he seem to care about the professional side of it?
“Do I need to hand you off to someone else?”
“As a client?”
“Of course as a client.”
Everett sat back in his chair and crossed his ankle once more over his knee.
“I apologize. We can be strictly business associates if you’d like. But the moment you want to try and take it further, if you need to pass me off to someone else, please do.”
My internal self was screaming to pass his business off on someone else and take him somewhere, so we could do everything we’ve wanted to do since the other night. But I knew losing him as my client would look bad to the higher ups, and I didn’t want that. I needed to keep Evergreen as a client. It was a very large stepping stone for me.
He placed the open folder in his lap and spun the pen between his fingers as he read through the documents. I pretended to be doing other things on my computer, but kept finding myself watching him out of the corner of my eye. No one had affected me to the extent that he was, besides he who shall not be named. It was unnerving how much they reminded me of one another. Not in the looks department, but the snarky things they said and how easily they could be the polite guy.
“Where’s my favorite roommate?” Emily came barging in without notice, causing me to huff and Everett to turn his attention from the paperwork to her.
Emily came to a dead stop as she glanced between me and Everett. I gave her a knowing look that screamed ‘do not start,’ hoping and praying she would get the message and leave my office.
“I didn’t mean to intrude.” She turned on her charm.
“It’s quite all right.”
“I’m going to be a little while, so I’ll catch you once we’re finished here.”
I tried to get her the hell out of my office as fast as possible, but she wasn’t a fool. She knew exactly who he was without ever seeing him before.
“By all means, stay,” Everett spoke up. “I didn’t have an appointment with Arbor, so if you two have some business, it’s fine.”
“She doesn’t have an appointment either,” I quickly countered.
“I don’t need one, though, since I work here as well.” She crossed the room and extended her hand to him. “Emily Colt, Senior Marketer, and best friend of that gal right there.”
“Roommate, too?” Everett took her hand for a moment.
“Yes.”
“Very nice to meet you, Emily.”
“You, too, Everett.”
The thought of throwing my stapler at her crossed my mind. My hand was even clenching it, but I talked myself down. He hadn’t offered her his name yet, and knowing he didn’t have an appointment scheduled with me was more than enough evidence for him to know she shouldn’t know his name. Not unless I was openly talking about him to her. He cocked his head to the side and grinned at me. Not the regular grin of his, but one that spoke volumes about Emily knowing his name.
I was caught red-handed.
“Well, if you want to grab lunch when you’re done, let me know.”
“Sure thing, Emily.”
“Ah, you beat me to it.” Everett closed the folder. “I was really hoping to have lunch with Ms. Kenton so we could go over a few items in the paperwork.”
My heart almost leaped from my chest. Everett was intervening in my lunch plans, and doing a helluva job at making it impossible for me to say no. Unless Emily didn’t take his bait.
“Oh, by all means, she’s yours. We can have lunch anytime.” She smiled widely at him and once he turned to face me, she mouthed ‘oh my God’ and fanned herself.
The stapler almost took a trip yet again toward her head.
“Perfect. How about we head out now?” I locked my computer and pulled my purse from the bottom drawer of my desk.
Everett stood and shook Emily’s hand again.
“It was nice meeting you, Emily. Hopefully I’ll see you around.”
“I’m sure you will.” She offered a smile and left my office without another glance in my direction, knowing I was shooting daggers at the back of her head.
“Looks like you’re mine.” He tucked the folder beneath his arm.
“That I am.” I rounded my desk and he placed a hand on my lower back as we left my office.
Why do all the best conversations happen over food? There was something about breaking bread with others that would even place enemies at the same table for periods of time without harming one another. History had proven so. But I hated to admit that I absolutely loved spending time with Everett over food. It seemed to calm the tension between us and brought out the everyday conversation normal people have. Since the majority of our conversations had been sexual innuendos and playful hidden messages. Professional by all means.
“So why’d you leave your hometown for a big city where you didn’t know a soul?”
How could I tell him that I hated that place? No one understood me there, and most ties I had were either deceased or didn’t acknowledge my existence. Like my lovely cousin Libby who wanted me to be in her damn wedding.
“It was an easy decision really. Both of my parents had passed, I’m an only child, and nothing was holding me there anymore.”
“I’m sorry to hear about your parents.”
“Death comes for us all at some point.” I laughed. “That sounded morbid, I’m sorry!”
Everett rolled with laughter. “No, you’re right. Death does come for us all. That’s why we have to live our lives to the fullest.”
I fiddled with a random strand on the waist of my pencil skirt. Knowing his underlining meaning to people living their life to the fullest, I couldn’t look at him. Everett’s words were very transparent, no matter how he masked them. Something about his choice of words intrigued me, no matter what he was talking about.
“Arbor.”
“Yeah?” I kept my focus on anything other than him.
“Look at me.”
Instead of responding, I dove right into the real reason we were supposed to be having lunch. The paperwork.
“You didn’t ask me to lunch to go over the paperwork, did you?”
“Truth or lie.”
“What?”
“It’s a game I used to play whenever someone would ask me a question. I ask if you want the truth or a lie.” He leaned his arms against the table. “So, Arbor, truth or lie.”
“Lie.”
He chuckled.
“I don’t know why, but I had a feeling you’d pick lie. Yes, I wanted us to talk business over lunch, and we’ve done a great job doing so.”
As much as I thought hearing a lie would ease the situation, it definitely didn’t.
“We really should be going. I have a few deadlines I have to wrap up and I need to get your paperwork turned in to my boss.” Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Everett hadn’t given me the paperwork. “That is, if you’re planning on still signing it.”
“Of course I’m going to sign it. I just wanted more time with you, Arbor.”
“Thank you for the lunch, Everett. I had a nice time.”
I stood from the table and hooked my purse on my shoulder. Everett stood as well and followed me out of the restaurant.
“Care for a ride back?”
“Sure.”
As much as I wanted to tell him I could catch a cab, I couldn’t. He was like a magnet, pulling me in when I should be going in the opposite direction. His handsome face, honey eyes, and priceless smile, they did things to me that I shouldn’t be running toward. But my job was the main priority. If I screwed that up, I would be back at square one wishing for a new life.
The valet pulled Everett’s Audi around, but he beat the valet getting to the passenger door to open it for me.
“For the lady.”
“How kind of you, sir.” I slipped inside and he shut the door.
I watched through the windshield as he slipped the valet some cash and rounded the vehicle to get in. A couple of older women stood on the sidewalk awaiting their turn with the valet, but their attention wasn’t on him. It was on Everett. He noticed just before he opened the driver’s door and gave them a wink.
“Have a nice afternoon, ladies.”
He shut the door and drove off as I held in the laughter that was threatening to erupt.
“What’s so funny?” He glanced at me while we sat at a stoplight.
“You even had those women swooning over you, and they’re old enough to be your grandmother!” Not realizing the depth of my own words, I chuckled.
His hand covered mine in my lap and he gave it a gentle squeeze.
“I honestly only care about two women’s opinions.”
Like a fish grabbing hold of the bait on a hook, I went for it.
“My mother’s…and yours.”
I dropped my head back against the seat. “Can we be real for a second here?” I paused, knowing the overflow of words were about to spew from me. “How do you have such strong feelings for me? We’ve only been around each other a handful of times. I’m positive it’s sexual attraction and nothing more. Because I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to jump your bones, Lord knows I do. But other than that, I’m not sure. Yeah, you seem like a great guy, but the one word that stands out in that sentence is seem. I don’t honestly know you yet, but I’d like to get to know you.”
“Okay,” Everett removed his hand from my lap and wrapped it back around the steering wheel.
The light turned green and we were moving at a nice pace down a usual busy street.
“Truth or lie.”
“Lie.”
“I don’t think we should sleep together to see if it’s just sexual attraction. So if you want to, it’s not happening.”