CHAPTER Eleven
When Roewynn practically ran through the front entrance of Fonteneau Food Services, Susie raised both eyebrows. In her haste to get to the office, it hadn’t occurred to her how it would look for both of them to arrive just in time for lunch.
Once home, she’d hurriedly showered, pulled her hair into a messy bun, and put on clothes that were more corporate than she normally wore, reasoning that, if she was going to be a horrible executive assistant, she could at least dress like she deserved the job.
“I had something to take care of.” She used a haughty tone with Susie to cover her embarrassment.
It was hard to tell if Susie bought it. She just nodded and said, “He’s already here.”
Roewynn hoped Susie didn’t catch her surprise. She walked to the stairs wondering how he’d managed that. He lived closer, but not that much closer. She concluded that it just took men less time to get ready. A lot less time.
She was pulling the strap of her bag off her shoulder as she rounded the corner and entered the still bare outer office. What she saw caused the breath to stop in her lungs at the same time her body went stiff as concrete.
April was there. She’d just gone up on her toes, thrown her arms around Dash’s neck and kissed him in the sort of familiar way that suggested they were a couple. Deciding that she couldn’t let that stop her mission to prove she was worth the most outlandish employee package ever scored by an EA, she forced all her will into her limbs and moved.
“Good morning,” she said. “Should I come back later?’
Dash pulled away from April like he’d been snake bit and looked at Roewynn with guilt written all over his beautiful face.
“No. No. No,” April said cheerfully. “I just needed to drop off Dash’s tie for tonight.” She smiled at Roewynn conspiratorially. “Special color for a special event.” Turning back to Dash, she said, “Pick me up at eight, babe? I’ll be ready for a late night.” Turning to leave, April punctuated ‘late night’ by showing Roewynn a wink.
Dash flicked an unreadable glance at April and said nothing, but it didn’t matter because apparently April was already disappearing through the outer office door.
Roewynn turned from watching April leave to Dash. The strap of her bag was still in her hand. Instead of setting it down, she pulled it back up over her shoulder
“Mr. Fonteneau,” she said quietly. “I’m taking a personal day. I’ll work from home and see you Monday.”
“Roe!” Dash ran around her and, for the second time that morning, blocked her exit. “That was not the way it looked. I mean I don’t know for sure how it looked, but by the look on your face, I’m guessing it didn’t look good.”
Dash got that what he’d said was not what she wanted to hear because Roewynn’s amazing green eyes flashed at him like she wouldn’t mind turning him into a toad.
Turning him into a toad? Where did that come from?
Through clenched teeth, she said, “Get out of my way,” and sounded like she meant it.
“You have to let me explain. I didn’t kiss April. She caught me by surprise.”
“That did not look like surprise to me.”
“Well, it was!”
“It looked like guilt!”
“That wasn’t guilt. It was fear that you might think exactly what you are thinking!”
“You’re dating her.”
“I’m not!”
Roewynn looked at him like he was insane. “You’re not?”
“No!”
In a voice that sounded like she might be losing the battle with rationality, she said, “Here’s your tie for tonight? Pick me up at eight? Babe?”
Dash was shaking his head. “It’s just a thing cooked up by Adrienne. I…”
“Adrienne wasn’t forcing you to kiss April.”
“I wasn’t kissing April. She surprised me. Like I said.”
“Surprised you.” She almost spat the words out. “Survey says you’re full of shit, Mr. Fonteneau. Now you will get out of the way.”
“No. I won’t. You can’t leave like this.”
“Are you planning to stand in the doorway all day?”
Dash could see that Roewynn was struggling with her composure, trying to hold it together, but on the verge of tears. He knew her well enough to know she was proud and he didn’t want to push her to the point of humiliating herself at work. He loved her too much for that.
Loved?
He checked in with himself. Yes. Love was the right word. How did he feel about that? Good. Or at least he would if the woman he loved wasn’t ready to hang his balls on the line to dry.
The best thing for him would be to keep her there until she believed him. In a lot of ways that was the best thing for her as well because he could see that she was hurt. She looked stricken. Over a misunderstanding. The best thing for her would be to let her go and explain later, somewhere that wasn’t public. He had to choose whose need was greater in that one moment in time. He chose her, deciding that love was doing the best thing for her. So he clenched his teeth in resolve, stepped aside and let her pass.
He turned around, walked back to his desk, sat down, and stared at the empty chair where she should be. Just as he could have predicted, the instant she was out of sight, the thing was back, clawing at him from the inside out.
Zane appeared within seconds. “Are you okay?”
“You heard that?”
“Everybody heard it.”
Dash sighed. “Well, I guess now everybody knows we’re an item then.”
Zane barked out a laugh. “Who do you imagine didn’t already know that? Larry who drives the Castle Rock route?”
Dash scowled.
Zane scoffed. “I’ve never seen anybody so completely gobbled up and spit out by love sickness.”
“Wow. You make me sound like an idiot.”
Zane shook his head. “No. Just somebody who found the right girl and fell hard and fast.”
“She hates me right now.”
“Yeah. From her point of view, that’s kind of understandable. Don’t worry. It’s fixable.”
“You sure about that?”
“Here’s the thing. As much as you’re love bug vomit, so is she.”
“Like the image.”
Zane brightened. “I’ve got more.”
“Another time maybe.”
“You want to clear out and grab lunch?”
Dash shook his head. “No. I want to give Roewynn time to get home and finish throwing things then go knock on her door.” Dash swiveled around, looked at the mountains for ten seconds, then swiveled back. “You think she’ll open up?”
“If you make enough noise and refuse to leave.” Zane smiled. “Or she’ll call the cops. Hard to say.”
“You know what vacillate means?”
“I told you I wasn’t great at school. But I’m going to guess it has something to do with the plumping of vaginas?”
“Get out.”
Zane chuckled. Dash thought the man who was supposed to be his brother was taking his predicament way too lightly. “Okay. Here’s my real prediction. You’ll laugh about this with your grandkids.”
Slowly, as Dash integrated that image, his brows drew apart and he gave way to a slow smile.
Zane snapped his fingers and walked away whistling, like he thought his work was done.