Chapter 15
Jesse turned in the chair to look at me, his trouser riding up to show a hint of his tattoo as he tapped his fingers on his knee. His eyes moved upwards, and I followed them to see West coming in the entrance.
“Lunchtime?” Jesse asked.
“No.” I leaned sack and crossed my arms. “Not until you help me pick our winner.”
Jesse put his hands up. “They’re all great, Boss.”
I inhaled, letting the air stagnate in my lungs. For two hours we’d been going back and forth like this. I’d been trying to get Jesse to hint at who he’d select, but he kept avoiding it.
West knocked on the glass door and Jesse waved him in, his eyes still on me.
“Hey.” West leaned down and kissed my cheek. Jesse and I continued to stare each other down, and West stepped back looking at us. “Something going on here?”
“He won’t help me select the winners for the competition.”
“The one you came up with?” West asked, and my eyes moved up to him. “You did!” He sat down across from me and leaned back. “Boss.“
My eyelashes fluttered against my cheeks. “You’re in on this.”
“Well, I am hungry,” West replied.
Jesse tapped his fingers again. “Me too.”
My face burned red. “Seriously? I knew I shouldn’t date someone who was friends with my boss.”
Jesse’s shoulders rose. “I did warn you against him.”
“Okay.” I bit the inside of my cheek as I looked at the papers in front of me. I flipped through each, landing on my favorite. My stomach twisted as I turned the paper and slid it across the table to Jesse and West.
They both leaned forward, and then looked at each other.
“What do you think?” Jesse asked West.
“I think she’s incredibly smart and should stop doubting herself.” West patted Jesse on the shoulder. “You taught her well.”
“Good choice,” Jesse replied, giving me a nod. “Now, burgers?”
~~~
“I’m sure you’re all excited to see who won our internal competition.” I paused looking around the table and pressing my lips tight to keep from smiling. The team leaned forward against the conference table, eyes wide in anticipation. “Charlie’s team of Maggie, Claire, Tony, and Veronica won with their Webs Bank integrated plan. Everyone give them a hand!”
Charlie and her team members high-fived one another as we clapped for them.
“This team did a great job. The word team is the key here. They worked together capitalizing on each other’s strengths and keeping one another on track for an effective and efficient rollout,” I said.
The other teams stood, offering congratulations as the left the room. My face warmed with pride as I stared at the remaining team members. “So…what did you decide you wanted for a prize?”
Charlie looked at the other members of her group, biting her lip before turning to me with red cheeks. “We’d like to go to the Makeshift Chemistry concert next week at the Palladium.”
“I’m glad we have the same taste in music, who else is playing with them?” My stomach twisted as I sat down.
“Well… we really just want to see one of the other bands playing with them. They’re from Boston,” Maggie replied, rubbing her palms together as I felt my jaw clench. Please don’t let it be them. “Fade Burn. Have you heard of them?”
I blinked hard, my mouth half open as the room became too hot. I pulled at the collar of my shirt. “Yeah, I know of them.”
I should’ve known. My eyes flicked to Charlie. I knew she loved them.
“It’s only $25 per ticket, so that should be within reason, right?” Charlie asked.
Bile rose up my throat as my brain started misfiring.
Can I get out of this?
No, that’s not fair to your team.
West said you should see him again.
I plastered on a smile. “Looks like maybe we’ll even get dinner and a limo.”
Charlie and Maggie squealed, and my ears rang. I laughed, putting my finger in my ear to stop it.
“Just think of where you want to go to dinner and let me know,” I said as I stood. “Now back to work.”
“Sure thing, Boss,” Charlie replied. “Effective and efficient.”
I shook my head as I followed them out of the conference room and went to my office. I wished I could shut the door and lean my head back against it, but the fishbowl prevented me from showing any emotion. I sat at my desk, staring at my blank computer screen.
I was going to see Adam perform. I fought the urge to sink my head into my hands as memories of the last time swarmed in my mind. I’d walked away from him that day.
The phone rang and I jumped as Jesse’s name appeared on the screen. I inhaled through my nose before picking it up.
“So how did it go?” Jesse asked with his voice chipper, as always. I could almost see him looking at me over his reading glasses.
“Great,” I replied, trying my best to keep my voice level.
“Then why do you sound like that?” Jesse asked, and I could hear him shuffle the papers on his desk.
“No reason.”
Jesse chuckled, not believing me. “So what did they ask for? Was it reasonable?”
“Makeshift Chemistry tickets at the Palladium,” I said as I tapped my fingers against the desk.
I heard typing on the computer, followed by a pause.
“River…” Jesse said, his voice tinged with concern.
“Jesse…”
“Fade Burn?”
I cleared my throat. “What about them?”
“You’re supposed to go with the team.”
“I figured we could do dinner and rent a limo too since the tickets are so cheap,” I replied, tipping my head back as I turned away from the door. No one could see the way my face had turned red if I wasn’t facing them.
“That’s fine, but River–“
I cut him off. “I’ll be fine. It’s been a long time.”
Jesse heaved a sigh, and it reverberated through the phone. “I’ll trust your judgment on this.”
“Thanks,” I replied.
I just wasn’t sure I trusted my judgment. I’d eradicated Adam from my mind, but now his name was on replay.
Adam…
Adam…
Adam.