Chapter Two
Ashton
An enchanting scent wafted past my nose as I sat at my desk in my office at WOLF, reading about how lighting could be used in the studio to enhance the viewer’s watching experience. The smell had me looking up to find Nina Kramer coming in with a mug of steaming coffee in her hands. “Hi there.”
I pushed the papers away and leaned back in my chair, taking her all in. “Hey, Nina.”
Her ash blonde hair was pulled back into a hairclip and her green eyes sparkled as she set the mug down in front of me. “I brought you something I’ve concocted.”
It was well known that Nina brewed a mean pot of coffee. She and her friends, Lila and Julia, had powwows around ten each morning, and everyone knew that coffee took center stage.
Our boss, Artimus Wolfe, seemed to be the only man who had ever been offered a cup of the magical liquid. Being Julia’s husband had its advantages, I supposed.
And here I was, the recipient of a cup of bliss, handed to me by the maker herself. “Thank you. And to what do I owe this honor?”
Nina took the seat in front of my desk, which wasn’t unusual. We were good friends, and we had been since the inception of WOLF. I was the one who’d hired her as the cue card girl in the very beginning. There’d been something about her that I’d just liked right off the bat.
First of all, she was easy on the eyes. To me, she was a petite little thing. Being six feet and two inches myself, a bit on the taller side, her five-foot-five height made her seem small to me. The smattering of freckles that dusted across her nose and the tops of her cheeks made her look adorable.
But Nina had a sexy quality to her too. Round hips and a butt that wouldn’t quit were offset by a tiny waist. Her tits were world-class too. At least a size D, I’d guess. But those were all things I tried very hard not to notice on a day-to-day basis.
I loved the way she dressed, too. Always so professional. And it was no different as she sat in front of me, offering me coffee. Nude heels made her legs look long and lean. A form-fitting navy blue skirt hugged her curves well, and a tan lace blouse tucked into that skirt completed the outfit perfectly. My eyes were glued to the mounds of plump flesh just underneath that fabric. I pulled them away to look her in the eyes.
Really, I tried hard not to dwell on her many attributes.
Her smile was bright as she said, “I just thought you might like to try some of my coffee is all.”
Picking it up, I took a sip and found my taste buds dancing with delight. “This is great, Nina. I’d heard tell that you were once a barista—and one hell of a great one at that. But I was certain it had to be a myth. In two years of working together, I have never seen a cup of the mystical brew.”
She laughed and leaned back in the chair, making herself comfortable. “And now that you have, what do you think?”
“I think I’m already addicted.” I took another sip and knew I wasn’t lying about the addiction; the coffee was fabulous. “I hope this isn’t a tease, girl.”
“Nah, I think I can bring you a mug each day.” She leaned forward to whisper, “But you can’t tell a soul. I don’t want to end up making pot after pot each day for everyone else. This is a special thing, and I only do it for special people.”
I’m special to her?
I knew I was kind of special to her, but not coffee-special. “Lucky me.” I took another sip then sighed. “It really is wonderful. Thank you.”
“I was thinking a while ago that I don’t know that much about you.” She looked over her shoulder at the open door. “Mind if I close that, Ashton?”
I had no idea what she was on about, so I nodded. “You can close it.”
She got up, closed the door, then came back to sit down. “We’ve worked together for a pretty long time, and yet I hardly know one personal thing about you. Like your family. Where are they?”
“My parents moved from New Jersey, where my older sister and I grew up, to Georgia.” I leaned back, resting my head on my clasped hands. “Mom inherited her grandparent’s small farm there. My parents sold their home and moved a few years ago. My sister, Annabelle, is married with two kids. They live in Hawaii. Her husband is the manager of a hotel there. We get together once a year at the farm on my parents’ wedding anniversary. Other than that, we only talk on the phone, as everyone has their lives to lead.”
“You live alone in your Manhattan apartment, don’t you?” she asked, then her lips formed a straight line, and one small crease moved across her brow. It gave me the impression that she was concerned about my living arrangement for some reason.
“I do live alone. And if you know someone who is in need of a place to live, I’m not really interested. I like my life just the way it is, and I’m not into having a roommate. I like the solitude of living alone.” I leaned forward to rest my elbows on the desk as I looked at her.
She shook her head. “I don’t know anyone who needs a place to live. I was just asking. You see, I’m curious, Ashton. I know you were engaged once, and I know what happened. Did she live with you in that apartment and you just don’t want anyone else to intrude on her memory?”
My heart stopped beating. I’d told only my closest friends, Artimus and Duke about that. I should’ve expected that they would tell their wives about the accident and that the wives, being Nina’s best friends, would tell her. But why she was bringing it up now, I didn’t understand.
Shoving my hands through my hair, I pulled it back as I thought about what to say. Finally, something came to me, “No, she and I didn’t live in that apartment together. I had to move out of the place she and I shared. I couldn’t stand to be there without her.”
“Before her, did you have roommates? Or did you live at home with your parents?” She gave me a stoic stare, as if she were analyzing me.
I wasn’t sure if I liked it or not, but my mouth kept talking anyway, “I lived in the dorm at Columbia before moving in with her.”
“So, you’d always lived with other people until she passed away, and since then you’ve lived alone.” She shook her head. “How can you stand that? I mean, I’ve lived with other people my whole life. I can’t imagine living all alone.”
I wasn’t about to tell her that I would rather live alone than have anyone know that I still had nightmares about the accident that took my fiancée’s life. About once a week I would wake up screaming. No one needed to hear that.
With a shrug, I said, “I like it that way, Nina.”
A smile curved her plump pink lips. “How’d you meet her, Ashton? How did you meet this woman that you asked to spend the rest of your life with?”
No one had asked me that since before she died. I gazed into Nina’s eyes as I told her about that time in my life. “A few friends of mine and I were on spring break in Florida. Her family owned the hotel we were staying at in Miami. Her parents had brought her from India only a few months earlier, and they all worked for her uncle there. She worked in housekeeping, and we ran out of towels. I was looking for more and was sent to the laundry room by the man at the front desk to get some there.”
“Was it love at first sight?” Nina asked with wide eyes.
I laughed. “Yeah, it was.” I could see her face in my mind. “She was sweaty and aggravated when I came into the laundry room and asked if I could have four towels. She didn’t even turn around as she shouted at me that I would have to wait, they were still drying. Then she turned around and saw me. She and I just looked at each other for a long time in silence, and then she apologized.”
Nina sighed then said, “So that’s what love at first sight is. Interesting. How long did it take before you two became a couple?”
“No time at all. I ended up hanging out with her all of spring break. She wanted to go to college, so when I got back to New York, I got a job and a small apartment and then she came to live with me. We lived together for six months before I asked her to marry me. She wanted a big wedding. Her family was happy with that and was going to pay for all of it, as it was their tradition as Hindus. The date was set for a year from the day I proposed.”
Nina looked a little sad as she asked, “What was her name, Ashton?”
No one had asked me that since her death. I hesitated to even say it for fear I might break down, but then I let it slip from my tongue, “Natalia Reddy. She was beautiful and fun-loving. A real free spirit. I loved her more than I had ever loved anyone in my life.”
“And then you were hurt more than you’d ever been in your life too,” Nina said, her words hushed, as if she was thinking about that fact. “Do you have a picture of her?”
I pulled out my wallet and took out the only thing I had left to remember Natalia by. “This was taken only a few days before the wreck.” I pushed it to Nina.
She picked it up and looked at it. “She’s beautiful, Ashton. I’m so sorry that it all ended the way it did.”
“We were only a few weeks away from the wedding date when it happened.” My gut clenched as I recalled it. “It began to rain, and the day had been hot. The police said that the oil had pooled on the pavement and then mixed with the rain, and that’s what made me lose control of the car. Everyone said it wasn’t my fault, including her family. But I blamed myself. I still do.”
“But you shouldn’t.” She slid the picture back to me. “I’m sure Natalia would hate for you to blame yourself for an accident. She did love you, after all, Ashton.”
Looking at Nina, I saw her in a new light. There had always been an attraction between us, but I wasn’t ready to go down that road again. Somehow though, the way she was talking to me made me feel closer to her than I had been to anyone since Natalia.
Tapping the top of my desk, Nina got up. “Well, we’ve got work to get to. Did you really enjoy the coffee?”
“I really did. And the conversation, Nina. I haven’t talked about her with anyone in such a long time,” I found myself admitting to her. “I feel a little freer, having spoken to you.”
“Good. Feel free to talk to me about her—or anything else—anytime you want to. I think I’ll be stopping by with some fresh coffee for you from now on.” She waved as she opened the door to leave. “Bye. Will I see you at lunch?”
“You will. I’m thinking cheesesteaks.” I put Natalia’s picture back in my wallet.
“Yum. Sounds good.” She left my office, and I was left staring after her.
What just happened here?