by Gina Henning
Marcus speaks up. “I’m good at grabbing new clients from the lines. People who are calling in with issues, I turn into big clients. That’s my number one selling point.” He puckers his lips to the side and nods.
This is a great skill to have. I find myself nodding in unison. I open my mouth to speak and before a sound can formulate, I hear Trent’s remarks—and they are not ones that I fancy.
“Grabbing, so you steal other team members’ clients? Are you a poacher?” Trent laces his hands together and pops his knuckles.
Marcus looks indignant. “No, I take problems and turn them into sales. These are people who show up in my queue.” He jerks his head back and shakes it as if he is also trying to shake off the idea of being in a weird B movie or something. He’s not the only one… I wish I could tell him.
But I definitely have to say something in defiance of Trent. Not only has he completely hijacked my meeting but he’s belittling me in front of a colleague too. This has got to stop. “Well I think that’s a great quality, Marcus. I can certainly use that kind of ingenuity on my team.” I smile at him and he nods his head, smiling back in agreement.
“Right, well…what do you think, Lauren? Any more questions?” Trent pops his neck from side to side. I wish I could pop him out of my office. This display of machismo is ridiculous beyond belief, but then again, so is almost everything about him.
“I’ve heard everything I need to hear. Thanks for stopping by, Marcus. I’ll be sending you a team meeting invite for this afternoon. Please be on the lookout for it.” I stand and offer my hand.
Marcus shakes my hand with the right amount of pressure and the sides of his mouth pull up into the perfect grin. Not arrogance or overconfidence, not a false sense of happiness. He seems genuinely excited to be joining my team. Trent stays in his seat and Marcus exits my office and unfortunately closes the door. Leaving me alone with Trent.
I hesitate for a second and then decide it’s best to hash it out with him and get him on the right track for good.
I slide into my seat and glance at the stacks of papers in front of me. They are proof of my existence in this office, in this company prior to Trent. I’m making a name for myself and I don’t need him to take cuts and slices of it along the way. This has to end.
“Trent, I want to be clear about something right here and now.” I need to say this and be heard. Loud and clear. No missed signals, no interruptions. Or interferences. “I do not want you to ever be a part of any meeting or discussion unless I personally ask you. And by personally I mean that the words: Trent, I would like xyz will come out of my mouth. Otherwise, there are no mixed signals or quandaries for you to figure out. If I don’t ask then it’s a no.” I take a deep breath. “Are we understood?” Yes, this is a moment in my career that I will look back on and give myself a virtual high five. I’m sure of it.
Trent stands up and nods. Wow, I’m so surprised. I thought for sure that he would argue or say something to negate my words and, most importantly, I thought he would ignore all of it and say something dismissive about me. But nothing. Just a simple nod and then he was gone.
I let out a breath I didn’t know I’d been holding. Maybe this is a good sign? I hope. But knowing Trent, probably not.
Chapter Three
My drive home from work is long; Friday traffic is always such a drag. I’m in the mood for some good tunes but I just can’t shake the bad office mojo. Since the disaster meeting with Marcus, Trent has stayed away from me all week. Which has been great. But his numbers have been amazing and everyone on our floor is noticing it, including Javier. I definitely can’t say anything to our Human Resources department about him now because there will be some sort of insinuation that I have an issue with Trent’s promotion or something along those lines. I shake my head. The sound of my cell comes over my speakers. I click the answer button my steering wheel.
“Hey, honey, how are you?” my mom asks.
“Good, Mom. Real good,” I lie.
“So, have you and Jack had time to figure out a theme?”
I roll my eyes. My mother loves themes and decorating, going all out on any holiday. She wants me and Jack to decide on a theme for our wedding so that she can go overboard with decorations and attire. This is not exactly how I envisioned my wedding and though I love my mother with all my heart, I don’t want my wedding to be a blown-out-of-proportion theme extravaganza. Sure I want there to be symmetry and color coordination with the décor but not any extreme overindulgence in decorations. I’d like a more refined classic look and I’m sure whatever my mom has planned consists of flashing lights and feathers.
I sigh. “No, we haven’t. I’m not sure that we really want a defined theme.”
My mother gasps. “What? Lauren, you have to have a theme.”
“I don’t know, Mom. I don’t think we do. I think we can just have something kind of, you know, toned down.”
“I see.” The silence is painful. I don’t want to hurt her feelings and I know she only wants to help but I—we—don’t really want the same thing that my mom does and it’s our wedding after all.
“Mom? I’m sure we can figure some way to incorporate something.”
“All right, well just let me know. I’m ready to help and I’m putting off all my other planning so that I can be ready for whatever you decide.”
“Please don’t put anything on hold. I’m sure whatever we come up with won’t need too much time to set up.”
“I see.”
My chest tightens. Why can’t she really see? It’s our wedding…not everyone wants to have flags and banners and glitter all over the dance floor. My speakers beep.
“Mom, Jack’s calling.”
“All right, honey. I’ll talk to you later.”
I click the button to accept Jack’s call. “Where are you?”
I glance at the street sign. “Still on Fifth Street. I haven’t even made it to the beltway yet.” I slump my shoulders.
“Take the next right and meet me at Sunset Pier.”
“Okay, I thought we were having dinner in tonight?” I steer my car over to the right lane. The other drivers don’t seem willing to oblige my turn signal or give me enough space to squeeze in. I merge anyway and give a big thank you wave as if they intended to let me in. Ha!
“I changed my mind. I’ve got a spot saved for you out front.”
“Great, I’ll see you in a minute.” I disconnect the line.
I do love Sunset Pier. It is truly one of the most romantic restaurants in Baltimore, but I was looking forward to getting out of my beige skirt suit and pumps. These heels are killer black stilettos but I’m ready to step out of them and into something comfy. Normally, I would dress a little more casual on Friday, but at the moment I can’t downplay anything at work. I have to dress and act the part of a power player. Especially if I’m going to compete with Trent and his new team. They are all doing impressively well, whereas my team is taking time to find its feet. I’m going to have to have a major meeting on Monday and come up with a few strategies to bring up our numbers and get on top. If I’m going to keep Trent from his next promotion I’ll have to make sure that my numbers are always higher than his and right now they are not.
I sigh and take a left and immediately my spirits lift. Jack is standing in a parking space in front of the restaurant. My stomach does a tiny dance of excitement. I steer my car into the spot and hop out.
Jack wraps his arms around me and squeezes my body into his. “It seems like I haven’t seen you in days not hours.” His lips meet mine and tingles trail down my arms.
“It’s good to see you too.” I flitter my eyelashes. “Really good…it’s been a day.”
“Did something happen?” Jack’s hands grip my arms as he stares down into my eyes.
I shake my head. “Not anything particular.” I roll my eyes. “You know, just office stuff.”
Jack nods. “Office stuff. Is that code for Trent?” He cocks his head and tips my chin u
p to him so that I can’t look away.
“Well, you know he got the promotion…he’s just being…well, Trent.” I shake my head. “Come on, let’s go eat.” I turn towards the restaurant.
Jack pulls me back into him. “Lauren, if he’s causing problems we need to talk about it.”
“He’s just being himself. You know. And his team’s doing really well, but a bit of competition never hurt. Let’s go, come on.” I nod my head towards the restaurant door.
Jack purses his mouth to the side as if he is thinking about saying something. But instead he guides me in past the doors of Sunset Pier. The restaurant is filled with white lines and topped with the glow of individual candles.
The host leads us to the back patio and we sit down. The place is packed. It’s a very popular restaurant and on Friday nights they set up a salsa dance floor. My eyes widen. Jack is going to want to dance. I just know it.
“Can you put off the wedding dress hunt for tomorrow?” Jack squeezes my hand.
“I suppose I could reschedule it. Why?” I pick up my wineglass.
“I want to take you somewhere.” Jack’s ocean blues sparkle at me like he can’t wait to fill me in on a big secret.
“Okay, let me text Brianna.” I pull out my cell and there is a text message from Trent.
Do you want to meet for drinks and we can discuss your team’s numbers and maybe a way I can help?
My eyes strain from reading it. He is really ridiculous. I can’t bel— Well actually I can. Why doesn’t he just leave me alone? I’m sure whatever his plan is involves a way for him to look better and get him one step closer to his next promotion. I have no intention of responding to his text or offer so I delete it.
I type a quick message to Brianna.
Jack wants to take me somewhere tomorrow, so can we reschedule the hunt?
Oh…he does? Does he? ;)
I squint my eyes. Does she know where Jack wants to take me? I toss my phone in my purse and take a long sip of my wine. I want to drift away right now. The woodsy notes of the Cabernet glide down my throat and I take in the sights. Jack.
His soft blond hair is parted to the side and I want to reach for him and run my fingers through it. I wish we were at my house so we could be nuzzled up together in bed and not so far apart at this restaurant.
“What’s on your mind?” Jack squeezes my thigh under the table. I’ll never forget the first time he did that at Vintage Estates on Thanksgiving. All of my grandmother’s friends were around us.
“You.” I sip my wine.
“You’re always on my mind too, Lauren. I never would have thought a year ago that I’d be sitting in a restaurant in Baltimore on a Friday night across from the most gorgeous woman to ever cross my path.” His eyes flicker at me with a hunger that I want to feed. Can’t we just skip the meal and head home?
“One would think that if you were so interested you might have been a little more forthcoming with sharing your pecans.” I toss my hair over my shoulder.
“I couldn’t simply hand over the pecans. Life isn’t about taking the first opportunity. Sometimes things have to build and progress.” Jack takes a sip of his wine.
“Maybe, but we’re talking about pecans. Or are we?”
Jack shrugs. “Now that we have a date and you’re on the hunt for a dress, we need to figure out a few more things.”
“Right, like where are we going to get married?”
“I think it would probably be easier for your family if our wedding was in Texas?” Jack trails his index finger along my arm. Goose bumps pop up all the way to my neck. The slightest of touches from him have such a strong effect on my body.
“But is that what you want?”
“It’s fine by me. My Aunt Minnie is only a few hours away from Austin.”
I let out a sigh. “True and telling my mom we have a location will get her off my back a little bit. She really wants to us to have a theme…but I’d rather have something simple and classic.”
Jack nods. “I agree.” He takes my hand and kisses each one of my fingertips. “We need to decide on the cake.”
It’s almost as if warm chocolate is running over my body and I’m in a fancy bath of melting fudge. “Jack…you can’t send me over here…I don’t think the restaurant owners would appreciate it if I hopped into your lap right now.”
Jack laughs. “Maybe not. But I would.”
“I bet you would.” I retract my hand and drink my wine.
“Cake. What’s it going to be?”
I shrug. “I don’t know. Why don’t we go to one of those fancy bakeries and taste a bunch?”
“Okay. Just for tasting though as I want to bake our wedding cake.”
I jerk my head back. “You want to bake our wedding cake?” I shake my head. “I don’t know, I think we should leave that to the professionals.”
Jack’s face lights up. “Are you forgetting that I’m an award-winning pie maker?”
I roll my eyes. “No and technically I am also an award-winning pie baker.”
“Lauren, second place isn’t the same as first.” He shrugs his shoulders.
“You are so ridiculous.” I roll my eyes. Over the Fourth of July my grandmother insisted that I enter an apple pie baking contest, as she had always won pie baking contests and she thought it was time I took up the mantle. Per her request, I did. Surprisingly, Jack also entered at the last minute and won. I’m still a bit shocked by that. Not that he isn’t a great baker. We made pecan pies together over Thanksgiving and a red velvet cake over Christmas, but our own wedding cake?
“I’m ridiculously in love with you and I want us to bake our wedding cake together.” He takes a swallow of his wine.
My cheeks heat up. No matter how many times Jack tells me he loves me it never ceases to make me want to throw my body on a fainting chair and just float around taking in his words, swooning. His love. He is my everything. Sitting here with him has swiped away all the negativity of my workweek. It’s so great to be with someone who can magically make everything better just by being present.
“I don’t know…don’t you think we should just hire someone?”
“No, I want to bake it with you. I want to find the perfect wedding cake recipe and I want each whip of the batter and each layer of frosting to be with you.”
I take a deep breath. “Wow, how could a girl turn that kind of offer down?”
“You can’t. Think about how much fun we’ll have deciding on the perfect cake and the right frosting.” Jack squeezes my hand. Vibrations of love spread up my arm and I can’t believe I’m in this moment of wonderfulness. How did I get here? To this point of having this amazing guy who wants to bake our wedding cake? Together. I blink my eyes. Yup, this is real.
“Okay, let’s do it.” I nod my head. Jack leans in and kisses my lips and I don’t care for this small moment that we are in a restaurant and not alone. Our kisses trail on for a second too long before we settle back and focus on the meal. Followed afterwards by dessert back at my—our—house.
***
Jack seems to be asleep and I’m wide awake. Visions of office issues and now cake baking are crumbling over in my mind and piling up into a huge ball of fear. I’m not sure how I’m supposed to tackle any of them. I climb out of bed and tiptoe to the living room. Our wine from earlier is still out. I pick up a glass not sure if it was Jack’s or mine but it honestly doesn’t matter. We are living together, we kiss…it’s probably okay if we share a glass. I flip on the TV and find the Food Network. I want to watch mindless entertainment with no drama. Pure comfort. I settle into the couch and listen as the host delivers a great speech about the fluffiness of cake and how you want to make sure to beat it to the speed and time listed in the instructions or else it will be a flop.
The blender begins to go again and the host is trying to speak over it. I take a swig of my wine and sense I’m being watched. I glance in the doorway of my bedroom and Jack is leaning against the frame.
“Hey.”
“Hey, what are you doing out here?” Jack makes his way towards me and sits down.
“I couldn’t sleep.”
His eyebrows furrow. “Is something on your mind?”
I let out a small laugh. “Not really, I just wanted to watch—”
“Wow, Lauren, I didn’t think you would take the cake baking so seriously. You don’t have to cram and study cake baking. We’re going to do this together.” He grabs my hands and kisses my fingertips and I’m being swiped away from reality. The reality is that I wasn’t studying cake baking, but rather just being a vegetable. There is no way I can tell Jack that, not now, not in this moment. I let him kiss me back to bed and enjoy this moment of naivety.
Chapter Four
Jack has been silent during the entire ride. It’s like he has been deep in thought—about what? I have no idea. After breakfast, he asked if I was ready to see his surprise. Of course I said yes and now here we sit silently in his car. It’s only been fifteen minutes but still…that’s a lot of silence. And I can’t help but worry. Surprises are usually a good thing but Jack has had his fair share of “didn’t want to tell you till I had things worked out on my own” moments. This was an issue for us before. This hang-up of his—or ours, rather. He kept things to himself. Important things. Like that he was planning on moving here and that he was going to sell his architecture firm in order to save Vintage Estates. All of which seems so long ago. Fortunately, his Aunt Minnie delivered a huge deposit to save Vintage Estates and he did move here. Both were nice surprises. But I was so in the dark in those moments. I wasn’t privy to his thought process or his grief. All of those things were kept from me. Jack wanted to shelter me from the possible bad and didn’t trust in me or our relationship enough to survive a failure. I can’t help but worry. I fiddle with my purse strap. I don’t want to be in another situation where I’m in the dark. I bite my inner cheek. Jack’s eyes were twinkling when he asked me to cancel my wedding dress shopping. So this has to be for something good.