I was still trying to get the night before out of my mind. It was hard to not think of all of the family and friends around me when I had told Jamie that I couldn’t marry him. It was not something that should have been done in that way. I had tried to pull him off to the side, but they wouldn’t let that happen. By the end of it, I was sure he wished that he had gone with me. I was just so upset with my mother for meddling and at Jamie for going along with the crazy scheme. We had broken up for a reason, and I knew that the reason had not changed.
So when I went back to delivering for Jesse the next morning, my mind was more occupied with the night before than the job that I had to do. The only good thing about today was that the seemingly never ending deliveries were a little bit of a distraction from last night’s debacle.
I was becoming familiar with the building I was pulling up to now. It was becoming a tradition. I had assumed that Jerold was always a regular customer, but Jesse told me that it was usually only once a week or so. Now he was ordering every day. I liked to think that it had something to do with me, but I knew it was most likely coincidence.
Either way, I just wanted to see him again. I looked at my reflection in the rearview mirror and was happy that I had taken the time to put a little makeup on and do something with my hair. I was looking forward to seeing Jerold. Even with the green polo shirt on, I felt beautiful when he looked at me.
When I got out of the elevator, the assistant told me to go to the same conference room that I had been in before. I was a little disappointed when I didn’t see Jerold in the meeting room, but I knew that I still had a job to do, even if I did want to leave when I didn’t see him there. He was supposed to be there. He certainly was in my dreams, but that didn’t seem to matter now.
I was about to go when I caught Jerold’s eyes through the glass wall of the room. I smiled at him, because I couldn’t help myself, and I really liked the relaxed smile that I got in return. He was looking very well today. His suit seemed to fit him just perfectly. His bald head was shiny under the lights, and I wondered for a minute how it would feel to rub it. I had to pull my hand closer to my body to fight the urge to touch him. I knew that it wasn’t professional, but it was what I wanted to do more than anything else in the world. What was wrong with me?
“How are you today, Nicola?”
I kind of shrugged, not really sure if my voice would work anyways. “I have been okay,” I said, even though I knew I looked tired.
“So how do you like your new job?”
I smiled and tried to think of the words to make it sound better than it was. “It has been an interesting few days.”
“Why are you a delivery driver when you should be cooking?”
Cooking? How does he know that about me? Who told him?
“Well, that is of course what I want to be doing, but sometimes you just have to make do with what you get.” I pulled down the hat that I had finally remembered to wear and tried not to look so unhappy. I kept telling myself to be grateful that at least I had a job in my field, but at moments like this the lie was harder to tell myself.
“If that is what you want, you should have it. I have a good feeling about you.”
I wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but I discovered that it was easy to talk to him. Before I had been scared of being around him, but now I was at least able to breathe. There was no surprise to that. Jerold made me feel things that were hard to handle, and after the upset with Jamie the night before, I was ready to get out of there quickly. My luck with men lately had not been the best.
“Well, I don’t mind working my way up from the bottom.”
He frowned at me, not liking my answer. “You should never settle, Nicola. My company was just about to transition into having an in-house chef for meetings and some breakfasts. Would you be interested in applying for that kind of a position?”
Had I just heard him right? I didn’t think I had. I actually knew that I hadn’t heard him right, but at the same time, I wasn’t brave enough to ask him to repeat himself.
“Who would I send my resume to?” I felt a little bad about doing a negotiation while I was working for another company. It felt strangely like I was betraying the people at Jesse’s, but I couldn’t not jump at the chance to get right into cooking. I mean, how hard could it be?
“There’s no need for a resume, Nicola. I’ve already seen all of that information, and I can tell that you’re exactly what I need around here.”
I caught the way he said it, but I didn’t think much of it. I liked the idea of him needing me, though I knew it was more than likely just a slip of the tongue. My eyes centered on his full lips for a moment, and I only looked away when I realized that I was staring. I wasn’t supposed to be looking at him in such a way. He had asked me about a job, and I was thinking naughty thoughts before I even said yes.
“I would love to fill the position. When would you like me to start?”
He seemed to contemplate it for a moment, but the answer was not far away. “Why don’t you come in around nine and you will be off around two or three, unless there is a late meeting that will need to be catered.”
I nodded my head. I loved the way it sounded, but I had to wonder what was going to become of me. And where was all this cooking going to take place?
“So would I be cooking off-site and bringing it in as needed?” I felt like I was starting to babble up into the grey eyes that wouldn’t let go of me.
“No, I have had one of our office kitchens changed up a little bit for you. I think it will be perfect.”
I was urged to follow him. He was going to show me right then. I was nervous and just followed behind blindly. We went back to the elevator and went down a level. The place was very similar on this floor, but I could tell quickly that the atmosphere was different. A few people stopped to talk to Jerold, something that he took in stride; it seemed to be a normal occurrence.
Soon he was introducing me to the many other people who worked there, and I was trying my best to remember the whirlwind of people that I was meeting. Then he walked me down one of the hallways. I was getting anxious as we reached the door.
“I have a good feeling that you are going to like this, Nicola.”
I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it or not, but I knew that the idea of a new job was lending an unaccustomed lightness to my step. I didn’t want to have to deliver anymore, and if Jerold was going to give me an out, it would be crazy to turn him down.
The kitchen was not something I would have expected in an office building. It was stocked full and the equipment looked brand new.
“How long has this been here?” I was confused why they were ordering food from Jesse’s if there’d been a whole kitchen here all the time.
“I just finished it yesterday. Do you like it?”
I looked over at him and hoped that my mouth wasn’t agape. I couldn’t speak, so I just nodded my head that I did love it. It was perfect.