Back in her room, Elizabeth flopped down on the bed. A smile had come to rest permanently on her lips. It was becoming harder to push down the feelings that were bubbling to the surface. In her mind, she pictured the photo they had taken earlier. Was it too farfetched to think that the desire in his eyes could have been real? Was she the only one feeling the sexual tension between them? There seemed to be an easy chemistry between them. Even him calling her Lizzie was starting to grow on her, though she would never admit it.
If she took a risk and told him how she was feeling, the worse he could do was tell her he didn’t feel the same way, right? “Just give me a sign.” She stared up at the ceiling. “What should I do?” Outside the window, the sun broke through the clouds. The rain was just a drizzle now. Her heart pounded faster in her chest. If that wasn’t a sign, then nothing was. She mentally prepared herself to take a chance. Would he be back yet from checking on his business? Elizabeth jumped to her feet and bounced on the balls of her feet. Only one way to find out.
Quickly, before she lost her nerve, she forced herself across the hall to his room and raiser her fist to knock. A large smile lit up her face, but before she could knock, the door opened. Elizabeth’s face immediately fell. A redheaded woman stared back at her. An elegant finger smoothed the edges of her smudged lipstick. In one instant, Elizabeth’s heart shattered.
“Oh, excuse me.” The woman brushed past her and left Derrick’s room leaving Elizabeth staring past her to where her boss stood.
“Lizzie,” he started to try to explain, but tears were welling up in her eyes. She took a step backwards and then bolted down the stairwell. “Lizzie, wait!” He called after her, but she wasn’t stopping.
Her feet pounded down the stairs. She felt foolish for getting her hopes up. Of course he wasn’t interested in her. She had fed herself a stupid fantasy. At least she hadn’t admitted it out loud to him. Elizabeth burst out of the bottom of the stairwell and ran outside. The sidewalks were still sodden from the rain. She held out her hand to flag down a cab. Hoping in the back, she dug through her wallet for some cash.
“Where to, Miss?” The cabbie glanced at her in the rearview mirror.
“Can you take me to the airport, please?”
“Yeah, I can do that.” He drove through the streets and ended their ride in front of the airport. “Twenty bucks.”
She could feel herself about to cry again, “I only have fifteen.”
He couldn’t stand it when women cried. “Hey, hey, hey. No need for tears. Looks like you’re having a rough day. Why don’t you give me the fifteen and a smile, and we will call it good?”
“Really? You would do that?” His kindness was touching, and through the tears she managed a small smile.
“There. See? That’s definitely worth five bucks.” She passed him the cash she had. “Take care of yourself, Miss.”
“I will. Thank you so much.” He waved goodbye as she climbed out, barely succeeding in holding back her tears.
Her savings account was scraping bare bones. She needed to get home. Her fingers found the emergency credit card tucked in a secret compartment of her wallet. She would have to deal with the consequences later.
The flight was cramped and less accommodating than the one she had been on earlier, but she was thankful just to be going home. How could she have been so stupid? She thumped her head on the back of her headrest. This day had been emotionally draining. So much had happened since she had woken up this morning. The most exciting day of her life had quickly soured. The look on the redheaded woman’s face swam before her eyes. Jealousy and hurt curled their fingers around her heart. How could she go back to work after this? How could she live next to him and relive that embarrassment every time she saw him?
When the plane landed, her heart dropped again. She didn’t have a car close by or any money for another cab. She didn’t think that she would get lucky enough to get a second cabbie who was nice enough to take smiles as a form of payment. Fighting back mental and emotional exhaustion, she fished out her phone. “Miranda? Could you come get me?”
After a few minutes, Miranda’s car pulled up to the entrance. When Elizabeth climbed in, she handed her some coffee to cheer her up. “Hey, are you okay? You sounded so upset on the phone.”
“Today has been…eventful.”
“Ut oh. Do you want to talk about it? You look like someone threw a bucket of water on you, kitten.”
“Miranda, do you think it’s crazy for me to think something could happen between Derr—Mr. Page—and I?”
“Ah.” Miranda sucked in a breath through her teeth. “Yes.”
“Wow. Thanks.”
“Let me finish. Yes, it is crazy for you to think that, but not for the reason you think. Derrick’s wife had an affair with one of his employees about four years ago. It really changed the way he felt about women. When they were married, he was head over heels for this woman. Super romantic. He did everything for her. One day, he caught her having an affair with one of his employees. He was betrayed by two people he trusted, and it really did a number on him. After the divorce, he just went into total playboy mode. He hasn’t had a real relationship since they split.”
“That’s terrible.” Elizabeth sank lower in her seat. She felt bad for him. He was so nice and thoughtful to everyone. How could someone do that to him? There really was no hope. He had closed himself off to protect himself. Who could blame him after going through that?
“Yeah, so don’t be too hard on yourself.” Miranda took her to where she had left her car the other night. “Do you want me to follow you home? I can stay for a bit if you need me to.”
“Nah, I’ll be fine.” She offered up an unconvincing smile.
“If you change your mind, just give me a call.”
“Thanks, girl.” Elizabeth waved goodbye and got in her car.
The more she thought about the situation, the worse she felt. She didn’t want to be here anymore. Maybe she could lease out the house and just get an apartment. Right now, she was willing to do anything to get away from him, away from her feelings. She parked her car in the driveway. The homeowners’ association could suck it.
She shoved the key into the lock in frustration. She didn’t want to stay here anymore. Elizabeth shoved loose items back into a box and hauled it outside. Shoving the box into the backseat, she went back inside and grabbed another box. Her eyes were focused on the where she was walking as she lugged another large box out to her car.
“What are you doing?” Derrick’s voice made her head snap up. He was standing in her driveway with his arms crossed.
“I’m packing up. What does it look like I’m doing?” She moved around him and tossed the box unceremoniously into her backseat.
“Why?”
Elizabeth turned on him, her eyes brimming with fresh tears, “Because I don’t want to be around you anymore, okay?”
“Why? Because you saw another woman leaving my room? You and I are not dating, Miss Adams. I know we spent some time together today, but we are not in any relationship aside from working together. This,” he gestured between her and the boxes in the car, “is childish. Instead of being an adult and dealing with your feelings, you are leaving after you just bought a house. How could I be with a girl like that? I need a woman who can take care of business not a little girl who lets her emotions get the best of her.” Derrick turned and walked away from her.
“You’re one to talk!” Elizabeth yelled after him. “You won’t date because four years later you’re still upset that your wife cheated on you!” She clamped her hands over her mouth. The words had come out before she could stop them. Derrick stood still for a second and clenched his fists before continuing walking back to his house.
Elizabeth stormed back inside, slamming the door behind her. “Ugh!” She huffed to herself. He made her so mad! Childish? She was being childish? Elizabeth stomped her foot on the ground and crossed her arms over her chest. She caught her reflection in the glass of the oven door. Childish. She looked like a little kid throwing a tantrum. Elizabeth quickly lowered her arms. Fine. If that was what he thought of her, then she would have to prove him wrong. She could act more mature.