Senna's Secret

by Karen Tjebben

  There was no reason for his chance meeting with Senna to mess him up so much. It wasn’t like Senna had flirted with him. Not that he’d wanted her to flirt with him, but he could feel the tension coming off of her, and that, he didn’t like.

  Then, when Lia stepped beside him, he’d noted the shift in Senna’s countenance. Instead of the natural curve of her lips resembling a smile, her lips straightened as she pressed them together, the light in her eyes dimmed, and her body stiffened. She looked so uncomfortable.

  He had so many questions for her. Questions that ten years ago haunted his every thought, but he hadn’t thought about those questions for years. He’d done his best to stop caring and shifted the questions to the Area 51 of his brain where top-secret, unknowable things were stored.

  Lia strode out of Josh’s house with their drinks in hand and nestled beside him on the double chaise lounge in his backyard. She’d picked up the change in his demeanor as soon as she’d stepped next to him in the grocery store. When she’d wrapped an arm around him, he hadn’t stepped closer to her. He’d just stood there, like a mime impersonating a statue. There was no way that he didn’t have a history with that woman.

  “Thank you,” Josh said as he took his drink. He studied the green concoction and prayed that he liked it. Lia had asked him to wait on his patio while she mixed up a smoothie for them. He knew it had frozen fruit in it and a banana, but he wasn’t sure about the other stuff. He just knew it was one of those ‘healthy’ drinks.

  “What’s in it?” he asked, bringing the glass to his nose to smell. He picked up the scent of strawberries.

  She noted the worried crease in his brow. “It’s delicious,” she promised. “This one is my favorite. It’s a strawberry and banana recipe.”

  He cocked his head to the side and raised a brow. “Yellow and red don’t make green.”

  “What?” Her forehead crinkled in confusion. Then she figured out what he meant by that statement and let out a snort. “Very funny. Besides strawberries and bananas, there’s a secret ingredient in it.”

  “I’m guessing something green,” he replied flatly. He knew spinach was sometimes added to things. Kale, too. He wasn’t sure about broccoli.

  “You’re hilarious,” she deadpanned and tapped her glass against his. “Drink up.” She brought her glass to her lips and raised a brow, as if mocking him, as she waited for him to do the same.

  He smiled, unsure why he was so hesitant to taste it. He was a healthy eater who always ate his veggies. He just wasn’t sure about drinking his veggies. Something about that seemed weird.

  He brought his glass to his lips and paused. The fresh aroma of the strawberries lured him to tilt the glass and take a sip. To his surprise, he couldn’t taste any type of veggie in it. “Hmm,” he moaned and took a bigger sip. Taking the glass away from his mouth, he added, “That is good.”

  Lia gave him an I-told-you-so smile and licked her lips. “See, delicious.” The whole reason they were at the grocery store earlier was so she could make him one of her smoothies. Now she wished she hadn’t gotten the urge to drink one. He’d been different since they’d returned.

  She was tired of the awkward tension between them. She decided to do a little digging through his past. “That woman we met earlier. The one from the grocery store. Were you two together in high school?”

  He took another sip, hoping to delay his answer. He didn’t want to get into this. It was so complicated, and he didn’t have any answers for her. Hell, he didn’t even know what happened between him and Senna, how could he explain it to Lia?

  Resting his glass on his thigh, he looked out at the pool in his backyard. The sun sparkled off the still water. If he dove through the glassy surface, could he avoid the question?

  “We dated in high school,” he replied honestly.

  Lia nodded. “I figured that much. Did you love her?” She took another sip, hoping that she looked casually interested rather than jealous.

  He wasn’t sure how to answer that. He didn’t want to dig himself into a hole and get stuck, but he knew that lying always came back to bite you in the ass.

  “I think I did,” he said and lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “At least what I thought was love as a senior in high school.” There was so much more to the story, but he prayed she’d be content with that.

  “Do you still love her?” She wasn’t sure she wanted the answer to that question.

  Surprised at the boldness of her question, he turned to face her. “No. I don’t still love her. Honestly, I haven’t thought about her for a long time. It was just weird seeing her today. I wasn’t expecting that.”

  “So, you haven’t been secretly stalking her on the internet for years?” she asked with humor and prayed she’d like his answer.

  Josh laughed. “No, no stalking. The only woman I’m texting or following online is you.” He rested his hand on Lia’s thigh and gave it a little squeeze. “I’m sorry if it was awkward. That wasn’t my intention.”

  “That’s all right,” she replied. “We both have past relationships. It would be silly for me to think that in this small town that we wouldn’t bump into someone you’d liked before.” Had he slept with Senna? Was she his first?

  Even though his words were what she wanted to hear, the look in his eyes told her that there was more to the story. She didn’t want to press the issue and sound like a jealous wench, but she didn’t want to be in a relationship with a man who couldn’t stop thinking about another woman either. Her gut told her that there was a lot more to the story between him and Senna than he was letting on.

  4

  Senna’s car chirped as she clicked the fob. The small shopping center had changed over the years. Where there used to be a teen’s clothing consignment store, a pet store now resided. A lazy cat sat on a pillow with her tail curled around her body. And where the book store had been, a beauty salon filled the space. She prayed the chemical smell wouldn’t seep into the accounting firm.

  She couldn’t remember if Reid’s Accounting Firm had been at this location when she was a teen. That kind of place wouldn’t have meant anything to her at the time. But now, here she was, heading into her new place of employment. It certainly wasn’t as fancy or dressed up as much as the building she worked at in Burbank for the television studio. The studio had large statues of cartoon characters holding up the roof the building.

  Pulling open the door, she stepped into the small office. Nestled in one corner were some chairs and a coffee table with magazines piled on top that she assumed were for clients. A receptionist work station was front and center with a name plate that read, Andrea Reid. Behind the name plate sat an older lady who she assumed was Andrea Reid.

  “Good morning, Ms. Reid,” Senna said, stepping closer to the desk and extending her hand in greeting. They’d spoken many times over the phone, but this was the first time they’d met face to face.

  “You must be Senna Lang,” Ms. Reid replied with a smile. Ms. Reid pressed both palms against the desktop, pushed herself to standing and shook Senna’s hand. “It’s very nice to meet you. Now I have a face to put with the name. We’re so glad that you joined our firm. Let me show you around. It’s a small office, but we have everything you’ll need. Please, think of this as a second home.”

  Ms. Reid stepped from behind the desk and opened her arms wide to showcase the room. “As you can see, this is the reception area of the office. Being an accounting firm, we don’t have a mass of clients coming into the office that a dentist or eye doctor would have, but sometimes we do need to speak with clients in person.”

  Ms. Reid motioned to a partition wall that divided the public front of the office space with the more private work space. “Back here,” she said as she stepped through the aisle that led behind the partition, “is where you’ll find your desk.” She motioned to the clean desk. A laptop rested on the desk surface and an ergonomic chair sat behind it.

  Senna was disappointed that she didn’t have a privacy
wall or partition of some kind around her desk. Instead, her desk was positioned at an angle so that it was facing the other desk on the other side of the room. She reminded herself that this was a small-time accounting firm and personal space would be limited. Besides, if she wanted to work in Avenel, this was her only option. She’d just have to adjust.

  “It looks great,” Senna said, setting her messenger bag on top of the desk. She’d add her own touch to her little nook throughout the week.

  The older lady continued, “Mr. Reid’s desk is here too.” Her hand swept towards her son’s desk on the other side of the room. The surface area was tidy but did have a single stack of papers on it, along with a closed laptop.

  “And if we walk a little farther,” she knocked on the door and then turned the knob, “you’ll find the restroom.”

  Senna peeked around the doorframe and into the small room. A marble covered vanity and sink were under a mirror. The toilet was beside the vanity, and a table with extra restroom supplies and a silk plant arrangement was opposite the toilet.

  “Is this the only bathroom?” Senna asked.

  “Yes,” Ms. Reid replied with a nod. “Be sure to lock the door. Martin sometimes forgets to knock.” She gave a little chuckle and pressed her hand to her heart. “Sometimes he gets so focused that he forgets other people are around.” Martin’s idiosyncrasies began surfacing in his childhood. Now she did her best to help him fit in and be successful in his career.

  Senna’s face heated with embarrassment at the thought that her boss could walk in on her while using the toilet. When she worked for the television studio, the office had resembled every other large corporation office, with divided workspaces and large bathrooms with multiple stalls and sinks. But this was clearly a mom-and-pop accounting firm, so she shouldn’t have been surprised to see it lacked some of the perks of a big-time accounting firm.

  Ms. Reid pulled the bathroom door close behind her as she stepped across the hallway and motioned to the open door. “This is our break room. There’s always fresh coffee in the morning. I start it when I arrive. There’s also a refrigerator, microwave, sink, and there are utensils in the drawers. Plates and glasses are in the cupboards over the sink.”

  Senna liked that the kitchen had a small dishwasher. She stepped closer to it and touched the counter above it. “Wow, this place has everything,” she said with relief. She wouldn’t have to buy her own mini-fridge to keep her lunch and drinks cold.

  Ms. Reid continued, “Yes, you don’t need to haul stuff back and forth from home to work either. We run the dishwasher every Friday in the afternoon. I empty it on Monday morning when I get in. You can put whatever items you used into it. I just ask that you rinse your dishes first.” Ms. Reid scrunched up her nose as if smelling something rancid. “The food particles begin to stink if they sit in there for an extended amount of time.”

  “Of course,” Senna replied. “That’s wonderfully convenient.” She usually brought her lunch to work, but not having to lug the utensils or dishes back and forth would be fabulous.

  “We have plenty of mugs in here.” Ms. Reid tapped her nails against one of the cupboard doors. “You can get a fresh one each day.”

  Just as Senna replied, “Perfect,” a man’s voice echoed through the hallway.

  Ms. Reid brought her hands together and smiled. “I think I hear my son.” She stepped around Senna and walked out of the room. “Good morning, Martin.” She reached up and set a hand on each of his shoulders and kissed his cheek.

  It always made Ms. Reid nervous when Martin met new people. He had severe social anxiety, so she never knew how he’d react. She prayed that he’d keep it together for the initial introduction.

  “Mother,” Martin said under his breath, embarrassed that his mother kissed him in front of his new employee. That wasn’t professional, and although he ran a family business, he still wanted to appear as professional and proper as any other business. He had enough trouble fitting in. Mother kissing him didn’t project a masculine image.

  Senna gave a light chuckle, liking the fact that working here would be so different from working at a big company. The homey vibe was a positive for her. Ms. Reid was friendly and kind.

  Reaching out her hand, Senna said, “So good to meet you in person, Mr. Reid.”

  He was short for a man, but still taller than she. He was bald on top with a band of silver and brown hair wrapped around the sides of his head. He was slender and lacked muscle tone, not surprising for man of his age who sat behind a desk for a living. He wore dress pants and a brown-striped, button-down, short-sleeve shirt.

  As their hands connected, he said flatly, “You can call me Martin. Although we do our best to remain professional with our clients, we are a family business. I’m so happy that you joined our family.”

  He pressed his lips into a smile. Mother had forced him to role-play meeting Senna last night. He wasn’t sure what Mother was so concerned about. It wasn’t like he’d never worked with someone before.

  Family. That was one thing her past job hadn’t been. Although she’d worked with some of her co-workers for years, she hardly knew anything about their personal lives. The photos they kept on their desks were the only peek into their lives she’d ever gotten.

  “I’ve very thankful for this opportunity, Martin.” She released her hand from his limp grip. “I’m excited to get settled and learn about my clients and how I can help them.” She noted that his eyes roved over her from top to bottom but lingered on her chest a little longer than proper. She was thankful that she’d opted to wear the conservative button-up blouse and not the V-neck that she usually paired with these dress pants.

  “Excellent,” he replied, making eye contact again. He shouldn’t feel nervous. He was the boss, but for some reason meeting Senna in person was different than speaking to her over the phone. She was far prettier and younger than the woman she was replacing. He’d enjoyed working with Sharon Sullivan over the years, but Sharon was in her early-forties just like him. Senna could be the fresh face of the company. She could pull in the younger business owners who’d see her as current with pop-culture and new business practices. She could bring new life to the sleepy accounting firm.

  Smiling to himself, he continued, “I have work waiting for me.” He motioned to Ms. Reid, “I’ll let Mother finish your tour, and then you can get settled.” He quickly made his exit before his nerves caught up with him and he began stuttering or speaking non-sense.

  “Speaking of work,” Ms. Reid began, “When you log onto the company web-site, you can access your clients’ files. You’re taking over Sharon Sullivan’s client list. On your desk, you’ll find your welcome packet. It has all the necessary information you’ll need for logging on and accessing your client list. You have a temporary password that you can change once you’re in. If you have any questions, please just send me a text.”

  “Wonderful,” Senna replied. “I guess I’ll get started.”

  5

  It didn’t take Senna long to get her stuff organized at her desk. Her purse was tucked away in the bottom drawer, and her pens and pencils were neatly displayed in the plastic organizer on top of her desk. Her cell was on silent and to the right of her computer so she could see if someone contacted her. She would bring a few pictures to personalize her space as she went through her stuff at home.

  The one negative she spotted was the layout of the workspace. It was odd the way her desk faced Martin’s. Their desks formed a five-foot wide aisle down the center of the room. Without a partition, they were way too close to each other. She hoped that wouldn’t be a problem.

  Logging into her laptop, she glanced up and noticed Martin looking at her from behind his desk. His brown eyes were glazed over, like he was staring through her and not truly at her. She looked around to see if he was staring at something she hadn’t noticed. Nothing seemed out of place. She gave him a little smile. His lashes fluttered a few times, as if he was waking from a trance. Then he return
ed her smile.

  Not knowing what to say, she looked down at the keyboard of her laptop. He seemed nice enough, but he was a little off. She’d worked with people like him before, the ones who struggled to read situations and fit into society’s norms. Interpersonal relationships were hard for some people. They were completely inept in social situations. And Martin was decidedly in that camp.

  In decades past, he would’ve been considered a nerd or simpleton. She could practically hear her grandma talking about an unusual person and saying that he was ‘not right in the head’. Regardless of the oddities Martin demonstrated, she knew he was intelligent. Unfortunately, his social deficiencies made him stand out as different. She certainly wasn’t an expert on human behavior, but she figured he was harmless.

  Avenel survived off the tourist industry which meant that most of her accounts would be small businesses, places like Dahlia’s Delights or Gina’s Shiny Diner. Today she would familiarize herself with the accounts and her clients’ needs.

  Her day went smoothly as she contacted her clients and introduced herself to them. After lunch, she came to a name that she didn’t recognize. Sand Castle Design Experts. It was a fun name and perfect for an island company. Opening the file, her heart stuttered when she read the owner’s name.

  Josh Turner.

  She closed her eyes, took a breath, and then reread the name. Yes, it was definitely Josh’s name listed as the owner. She knew he had some sort of business, but honestly, the idea that she could end up handling his account hadn’t even crossed her mind.

  The notion of contacting him by phone made her stomach queasy. It shouldn’t bother her. They’d had their awkward encounter, so she should be over the nerves. But she wasn’t. She’d struggled to keep him off her mind yesterday as she’d worked in her condo.