Traffic had been a disaster, putting Cori and James behind schedule. Though there was plenty of padding in her morning schedule, and she would be to her desk in plenty of time, her morning chat with Tony would be cut short. Worse things could happen, she supposed.
What she wouldn’t compromise was her morning coffee. She would be late for coffee. With her hands full and extra hustle in her step, she wasn’t paying enough attention when she walked over a storm grate, catching her heel. In an effort to stay upright and not flash half of Manhattan the goods, she sacrificed the heel of her shoe.
Though still attached, it was barely hanging on. She hobbled the rest of the way in and straight to Tony and his bag of tools. Surely, he had something to help her.
She liked to get to her desk before her team arrived, but walking around with a busted shoe and odd hobble was not only tacky, but risky as she wasn’t the most graceful on two feet.
“You seem to have a bit of a streak this week, kid,” Tony teased. “I have some of that industrial glue. Holds anything together. A man glued himself to a building and hung there for days, using this stuff, until he could be rescued.”
“That is exactly what I need! These may be cheap knock offs, but nobody needs to know, and even these don’t come cheap,” she admitted. “I just need to get through today.”
“Sit your rear down on my chair and give me your leg. That’ll be faster than unlacing these things. How long do these take to get on?” he asked sincerely.
“They aren’t that bad. I have it down to a science. Besides, once they’re on, they don’t come off until bedtime.”
“All that for a pair of shoes.” He shook his head, going to work on her shoe. “I don’t understand you young people.”
Like the previous day, Nick walked through the door, surprised to see Cori sitting behind the security desk. He was headed their way when he was stopped by an associate and stuck in a conversation that was entirely one sided. It was obvious to Cori that Nick didn’t hear a thing the man said because his attention was pinned on her and the peculiar happenings behind Tony’s desk.
Cori finally stood to try out the fixed heel, only to stumble when it broke. So much for industrial strength. “Now what? It didn’t work, and I don’t have an extra pair of shoes or time to run up the block to grab some anywhere?”
“Well,” Tony said, scratching his head. “We could just break the other one off. Not ideal, but at least you won’t be lop-sided.”
“Perfect. It’s summer; they’ll just look like strappy flats. You’re a genius.” She turned away from Tony, and grabbed ahold of the counter in front of her to brace herself.
Tony, resourceful as he was, grabbed the heeled foot she elevated and went to work tugging, pulling, and bending the heel he was trying to break.
Cori caught Nick’s attention again, but this time, his expression dropped to one of concern as he looked around to see who was watching. She followed his glance, unsure why he was doing such, and shrugged her shoulders at him.
From her perspective, Tony was just fixing her shoe. From where Nick stood, it looked indecent with her leaning over the counter, and an older man behind her pulling and thrusting, doing who knew what. Breaking the conversation, he quickly made his way to the security desk to see what they were up to this time. Surely it wasn’t what it appeared to be.
“Hey,” she grunted, holding onto the counter with a death grip as Tony tugged on her foot.
“Do I even want to know this time?” Nick asked with an awkward smile when he saw Cori’s foot in Tony’s hand.
“Oh, my heel broke. Tony is just evening me out. No time to get a new pair before the day starts,” she shrugged.
“Cori, take the morning and do whatever it is you need. Being in management comes with privileges – as does being engaged to the CEO.” He winked.
“No. I can’t do that. I won’t do that.” She shot Nick a serious look that suggested she might even be a little offended.
With a big jolt, Tony shouted, “Got it!”
“Thanks, Tony.” She kissed his cheek and threw both heels in the trash. “You’re the best.”
Both men stood and watched her hobble off in an odd moment of déjà vu as she climbed into the elevator and tossed them both a wave before the doors closed and said, “Have a good day.”
“Poor kid, can’t catch a break, today, but still makes the best of it nonetheless. Off to conquer the world, she is,” Tony offered with a chuckle while cleaning up his work space.
“Not a woman I know that would have a shoe disaster and make it look on purpose and own it,” Nick said in disbelief. “That literally would constitute an emergency sick day for any other Manhattan woman.”
“Yep. That’s our Cori. Takes a lot to get her down. You mark my words – rather than rush out of here at noon to grab a pair of whatever is close by, she’ll work through lunch and forget the shoes are even an issue.”
“Hmm.”
“She rarely takes a full lunch as it is. Just works – total company girl. Sets an example for her team. She says it makes her approachable and available – that’s why they respect her so much,” Tony added for good measure, just in case Nick was unaware, which he likely was.
“Really? Makes sense I suppose.”
“Yep.” Turning his attention to wiping down his desk top, he had another trick up his sleeve. “Too bad Guido’s isn’t a little closer.”
“Guido’s?” Nick questioned.
“The sandwich shop she loves, up the street.” Tony paused to glance at Nick over the top of his glasses to see if he had his attention. “Italian grinder is her favorite – with extra pepperoncini’s. Don’t be fooled by that size seven; she’s not one of those fussy lettuce wrap girls.”
“Size seven?”
“Oh…size seven shoe, that is.” Tony grinned. It was working.
Nodding his head, Nick grabbed his phone out of his pocket, as he did the previous day, and hit the screen a few times before bringing it to his ear. He looked at Tony, “Right…size seven and Italian grinder.”
He began to walk away when Tony hollered, “With pepperoncini’s.”
Nick tossed him a thankful wave and said into his phone, “Hey, I need a couple favors…”
If Tony were a betting man, he would put his money on those favors consisting of size seven shoes and pepperoncini’s.
***
Just before noon, Cori received a call from Eve, Nick’s assistant. “Hello, Cori. Mr. Blackthorne would like to see you, dear.”
“Oh. I didn’t think we had anything scheduled.” Baffled, she didn’t know how to reply. “Should I bring anything? Is this about my proposal for the campaign?”
“No, dear. Just you.” Eve’s motherly smile could be heard in her voice. “Ten minutes?”
“Wow. Ten minutes it is then. Thank you, Eve.”
Cori spent her ten minutes pondering what he could possibly need an impromptu meeting for. If not for her proposal, then what? She made quick work of pulling out her mirror, giving her hair a swift once over and grabbed for her nude lipstick that she wore every day, but thought better of it and went for the red.
Red is a power color – stands for power, confidence, and commands a room. Apparently, according to someone, it does well with all of the men in Manhattan. She straightened her skirt, brushed it smooth and hobbled as gracefully as she could to the elevator. So much for new shoes at lunch – she’d just make this work.
Eve instructed her to go straight into Nick’s office when she exited the elevator on his floor.
“Mr. Blackthorne,” she said as she entered.
He looked up over the papers he had in his hand and met her eyes. “Aren’t we past that? It’s Nick to you.”
She smiled but maintained her professional position. “My proposal isn’t quite ready, but I’m happy to give you a quick overview if that…”
Interrupting her, he waved his hands in the air. “This isn’t a working lunch. It’s a study lunch.”
“A study lunch? You lost me – what are we studying for?”
“Tomorrow.” He smiled and pointed to the spread set up on a small table that sat next to the floor to ceiling windows, offering a perfect city view. “Thought we could talk, make sure we are on the same page.”
“Oh.” She wasn’t sure what to think about his idea, but the low growl in her belly at the sight of the unmistakable packaging of Guido’s sandwiches had her on board. “Guido’s? Pepperoncini’s?”
He nodded with a grin.
“How did you…” She paused, knowing exactly how he knew. “Tony.”
“I may have had a little inside info. I hear it’s your favorite, and as much as I like a good aged steak, grinders are more my style.”
They sat to eat, and apparently talk, though she didn’t know how one prepares or studies for a cake tasting with a couple of asshats.
“Hold on.” He excused himself from the table just as he finished his sandwich. “I have something for you.”
Holding a giftbag, full of tissue paper, he returned to the table with a pleased smile. “This is for you.”
“Nick. What did you do?”
“Open it!”
She did as he asked, both anxious and excited. Under all of the fluff and pretty bag was a box. A shoe box. One she recognized as one of her favorite designers. An expensive designer. One she could never afford on her own unless it was a season or two old and from the thrift shop.
“Oh, Nick.” Her expression was blank, emotions she didn’t recognize racing. “These are amazing. I can’t…”
“I’m sensing a pattern here.” He interrupted. “You can take them, you deserve them, and frankly…you need them.”
A boisterous laugh escaped her as she looked at the shoes he gifted her and then down at her feet to the disaster that was laced up there. He was right; she did need a pair of shoes. What was the harm in accepting a gift, anyway?
“I’m just not used to people being…nice. Don’t get me wrong. I have plenty of nice people in my life, but gifts like this, or those you’ve already given me…I’ve never been treated to such things,” she shrugged.
Raw and vulnerable, her words struck him and actually pained him because if anyone deserved to be treated such a way, he thought it was Cori. It wasn’t like he knew her well, or even personally, really, but something said she was as real as it gets, and it was a breath of fresh air.
A knock at the door interrupted their intimate moment of getting to know each other. It was probably best because Cori was showing her hand a little too much for comfort.
“Come in.” Nick stood, putting his hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze as he passed her on his way to the door to greet his guest.
Two ladies entered the expansive office with arm loads of large garment bags, followed by rolling brass clothing racks, each packed tightly with more garment bags, wheeled by Tony and Carmine, manning two each. Tony tossed Cori a wink before heading out, to which she smiled. A smile that grew when the first lady put her bags down, and revealed who she was.
“You must be Cori, darling.” Gwendolyn said with a long upper crust drawl. “It’s a pleasure, I’m sure.”
“You…you’re Gwendolyn. Gwendolyn Brock,” she stammered. “The pleasure is all mine. Uh, Nick…what’s going on?”
“Wedding dress.”
She choked on air, unsure if she heard him correctly, and pulled him aside. “Wedding dress? You’re not serious?”
“Why am I not serious? Do you have a dress?”
“Well, no.”
“Then you need one…for tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” she said a little louder than she intended. “What’s…tomorrow.”
“Cake tasting.”
“Nick, you know how this works, right? You don’t wear the dress to the tasting. You wear it to the wedding…which we aren’t having,” she said low so no one could hear. Winnie knew anyone that was anyone, and the last thing Cori needed was for her secrets to get back to the enemy.
“Of course, I do,” he laughed. “You need a picture, right? Isn’t that what tomorrow is about? Kind of like a pissing match, but wedding stuff? What will you show her if she asks?”
“Wow, you’ve really thought this one out, haven’t you?” When he didn’t say anything, her eyes grew wide. “You had help, didn’t you? When? When did you talk to him?”
“The other day after he dropped you off, I said hello, and he just started…talking.”
“James tends to do that. What did he say? Was it his idea to get Gwendolyn freaking Brock?”
“No. That was Miss. D’s idea. Not sure who that is, but...”
“Devina? How in the world?”
“Well, this morning…”
Her voice raised and octave and became scratchy, “This morning? You said the other day.”
Man, she was good, didn’t miss a beat, and he needed to take lessons. “Both mornings. This morning, James said he talked to Miss D, and when he mentioned Gwen, I called in a favor.”
“Another favor. Of course, you did.”
“Did I do something wrong here? I thought it was a great idea, really. I’m new to this, and James seemed…”
“James seems a lot of things. This is getting so out of hand, and there are too many people involved to keep it straight.” Her hands ran through her hair.
“What’s the big deal? He was just trying to help, as was Tony.”
“Tony?”
“Sort of Tony. He knows you pretty well, and…I’m getting all of them in trouble right now, aren’t I?”
“No. They all mean well, as do you, but I can’t.” She paused, searching for the right words to get through to him without hurting his feelings. “I can’t afford any of this, and I don’t like taking so much from you. Pretty soon, I’ll owe you those favors you’ve been calling in, and I can’t afford to pay them.”
“Cori. I don’t expect anything in return. I figure while we’re doing whatever this is, you may as well have fun, and if I can provide it…why not. It’s just a dress.”
“I can just find a pic online and show it to Winnie.”
“Or, you pick the dress of your dreams and take a picture wearing it. What can it hurt? She’s an old family friend; it’s just a…”
“Favor. I know.” With her arms crossed, Cori looked to Gwendolyn and her assistant, unbagging some of the most exquisite gowns she had ever seen, then back to him. His gesture came from the right place, and it was sincere…she could tell. She really had nothing to lose, did she? “Fine, but let’s talk about things before we do them from now on. You know…communication is key in a healthy relationship. I can’t marry you if you keep secrets, Blackthorne.”
Her teasing brought a smile to his face as he took a seat and let the ladies get to work.
“Oh,” On his way to take a seat, he paused to give her full disclosure. “Since there aren’t any more surprises, Gwen’s assistant will be taking your measurements and there will be a dress ready for you tomorrow.”
“For tomorrow?”
“Yeah, for the cake tasting. James said…” he stalled, and smiled. “Never mind what he said. There’s a dress or two coming.”
Cori tried on numerous dresses, giggling and dancing around as she did. When she walked out of the private bathroom she was using to change, Nick stopped what he was doing and took to his feet.
Gwendolyn gasped, “Oh darling…you look like a dream.”
“That’s the one.” Nick said with more emotion than he probably should. “Breathtaking. That’s your dress.”
Oddly, Cori found herself a bit emotional, even though none of this was real. She couldn’t agree with them more. If she were to marry anyone, this would be the dress she wore. Stopping herself, she corrected herself – this is what she would wear to marry Nick.
Nick stood behind her and looked at her in the mirror, his hands on her shoulders. They stood there for a moment, quietly. She finally turned to him, that vulnerability back in place, and looked everywhere but at him.
“What is it?”
“It’s…perfect, but it’s too much. This is just a ruse. I can’t let you spend this kind of money on a dress. It’s probably more than I make in a year.”
“First, you need a raise. Second, I told you not to worry about that. Gwen and my mother are old friends. Please let me do this – I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t want to.”
Speechless – that was something new to Cori. She didn’t have words – mostly because of the way he was looking at her. When his hands cupped her face and thumbs stroked her cheeks, she was done. For such a confident, used to getting what he wanted, alpha type, he really had a soft side and a big heart. All things she could get used to and had to keep reminding herself not to.
Their moment was broken when glaring sun, coming in through the window, threatened of looming sunset. Panic settled in when Cori realized just how much time had passed since being summonsed to his office. “Oh, my God! My meeting. I completely spaced it.”
“Whoa. It’s okay. Eve took care of it. It’s been rescheduled for Monday. Hope that was okay – she didn’t see anything else on your schedule that needed moving or that would interfere with a Monday reschedule.”
“No, that’s great. I’m not really prepared for it now, anyway.”
His hands still holding her face, he leaned in and kissed her forehead. “You will be. Now go change. I think Gwen has a few more things to show you. Oh, and bring that skirt or dress that Tony messed with tomorrow. Gwen’s assistant will take it and fix it when she drops off whatever you guys decide on.”
“Decide on? I thought it was already decided. You said a couple things?”
He shrugged his shoulders and went back to his desk to check emails, but she felt his stare when she turned to go change. What on earth was happening here? Her little lie was taking on a life of its own, and she didn’t know what she thought about that.
At nearly five o’clock, Cori was back in her office with her feet on her desk, staring at her new shoes. They weren’t the shoes Nick gifted her; they were the pair she wore trying on dresses. Gwendolyn Brock never let more than one person wear the same pair of shoes for a fitting…they were just part of the gig. Another gift, really.
When her phone buzzed, she was surprised to see it was Nick since she had just left his office.
Thanks for lunch. Looking forward to tomorrow. – Nick
Giggling was new to her, and she seemed to do it often where he was concerned. Any other day and it would probably annoy her – but not today.
I felt like a princess today – thank you. Oh, and the pepperoncini’s were perfect.