Anne’s hand absently reached out and grabbed it. What the hell was that? Was that the same man that bought her flowers, showed up at the house, kissed her? What the hell was that?
Maybe he finally took the hint. Or maybe he knew what she wanted to talk about and was purposely ignoring her? Maybe…
“Hey, happy hour tonight, Connelly’s. You in?” Anne’s eyes snapped to Andrea’s.
She could use a drink.
“I’m in,” she stated without giving it a second thought.
*****
Ian folded his arms across his chest and leaned his weight against the door to his office later that afternoon. Andrea was leaning back in her office chair chatting on her cell phone, her back turned toward him.
“I called Connelly’s and reserved a big table…yeah…like twelve? Or maybe thirteen. You’ll never guess who finally said yes…Anne? I know right? She never goes…yeah…” she blathered on as Ian straightened and wandered back into his office.
For all Anne knew, he was still planning on picking her up at six for dinner. Then again, this was Anne. She only accepted that happy hour invitation to avoid him, but she needn’t have worried. He wasn’t planning on picking her up at six anyway.
He seated himself back at the desk and grabbed the red folder with the business card tucked into the small holder on the inside cover.
His fingers pressed the numbers on the phone and he waited for her to answer.
“Hello?” he heard her through the phone.
“Grace? Hello. It’s Ian McClellan. You said you wanted to continue our discussion and I find I’m free for dinner tonight,” he stated.
*****
“Is there something wrong? You seem really distracted.”
His eyes wandered back to Grace and a small smile played on his lips.
“Nah…just umm…so you were saying?”
“Well, I know this sounds…strange, but the ad company came up with some slightly amusing commercials, I can go over them, just to give you an idea.”
“Pharmaceutical commercials are notoriously boring. For a reason. And they’re never amusing. What’s amusing about a drug?” Ian asked, trying desperately to keep his eyes on the woman in front of him and not on Anne, but he lost that battle.
She was standing near the edge of the bar in that dress with those…shoes and her legs. Somebody said something and a demure smile spread across her mouth.
Dammit. Concentrate.
“Just because it’s never been done doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t,” he heard her say.
“And maybe it hasn’t because there’s no need to. Drugs are drugs. They’re not supposed to be entertaining.” Except for my mum. She finds them immensely entertaining, he thought with a grimace.
“Whoa! Ok there, from the expression on your face, I would say that you’re definitely not interested,” she stated, causing his eyes to settle on her once again.
“It’s not that. It’s just…” what to say? “It’s just not my thing, that’s all. The other aspects for the campaign are spot-on though. I like everything I’ve seen so far.”
“Well good! That’s encouraging. Can we schedule a follow up?” Grace asked as she flipped the cover of her tablet open.
“Sure. I’m not quite positive when I’ll be back, but maybe we can set up a video conference or something,” he stated as his eyes just sort of moved on their own to…a set of blue green eyes looking right back at him before she quickly shifted them elsewhere.
Ha! Caught...
*****
“What’s he doing here?”
“Did you see that woman, holy hell, she’s hot!”
“I didn’t even think he dated.”
“Who would put up with that? He’d probably criticize a woman during sex.” That one seemed to make everyone crack up. Anne kept her mouth clamped as the conversation swirled around her.
This was a mistake, coming here.
She was far too aware of him in the corner, seated across from the woman he was with earlier in the day. Who was she? They seemed rather cozy, not that she looked too closely. Of course her eyes sort of wandered over every once in a while only to be snapped back when someone asked her a question.
Technically, she was supposed to be seated across from him on some boat in Philadelphia, or at least that was what he had stated only two nights ago. How quickly things changed. Maybe he was hurt when she alluded to the fact that he was desperate. Of course, he seemed to write that off as a joke. It just didn’t make sense.
He was hot and cold. Was he playing with her? Her eyes flicked back to him and lingered for a second too long. He looked completely engrossed in his conversation but his gaze lifted from the woman across from him and swept the room beyond before snapping to Anne’s. A small gasp and an abrupt turn of her head accompanied the zing of nerves that just shook her at being caught looking at him.
She really needed to leave.
*****
Your message to Ian McClellan:
You never responded to my request for a meeting.
Could you please let me know if you can spare
just five minutes to go over this list?
There, she had sent it. She watched the bottom of the message box to see if he was typing anything back, but it was woefully empty. In fact, right after she had sent the message, she noticed his status went from ‘Available’ to ‘Do Not Disturb” mode.
Well…that told her.
Her fists clenched and unclenched.
*****
“Oh my God, he’s in here,” Em whispered next to Anne as she carefully adjusted the knob on the microscope as she peered into the eyepiece later that same day.
“Who?” she asked absently.
“McClellan…” Em stated, causing Anne’s body to jolt and her eye socket to hit the hard plastic.
“Ow…” she raised her neck and immediately pressed her fingers to her right eye to soothe the sting.
“And some other guy I’ve never seen before,” Em added in a low voice.
She could hear his voice as he explained the equipment and the set up in the Lab. Was he giving a tour? She refused to look up at him, although she noticed that everyone else in the lab scurried around or stiffened up.
“This is Ryan. Ryan, this is Mr. Hurley. Could you give him a brief summary of what you’re working on?” Anne cautiously settled her eye against the eye piece once again, trying desperately not to turn around or act unnatural in any way. Em sat next to her on a stool, writing down Anne’s observances as she switched lenses and refocused. Her eye was concentrated on the cells in front of her but her mind was absorbing everything that was said in the room.
Amazing how grown adults, scratch that, extremely well-educated grown adults, could be reduced to stammering idiots when this man focused his attention on them. She listened as he made his way around the room, waiting rather impatiently for her turn. She would be fine. Better than fine. She would speak articulately and maybe even throw in her request for a meeting while she had his attention.
But the chance never came.
“Whew, we dodged that bullet,” Em stated a while later.
Anne straightened from the microscope and turned toward the door. He was gone. He had purposely spoken to each person in the Lab except for her…and Em, of course, but it was deliberate.
What the hell kind of game was he playing? And why on earth was she letting it bother her so much?
*****
Your message to Ian McClellan:
It’s apparent that you are not interested in
speaking to me about this list so I am
going to email it to you. Do you think
you can at least look it over at some point
and give me feedback? Is that too much to ask?
She practically smashed the enter button on her keyboard the next morning, sending the message before opening her email. She attached the spreadsheet and quickly hit send without typing in a Subject.
She pushed back her chair and strode angrily through the office into the lab. She would not wait for his reply, although it was clear he was working, at least from the “Available” status showing on the Instant Message screen.
“Available, my ass…” she hissed out. It was still early and the rest of the group wouldn’t show up for at least an hour. In that time, she would try to use the equipment she needed before the daily ritual, better known as the ‘waiting game’ began.
*****
To: [email protected]
From: [email protected]
Subject: Re:
My schedule. Please take a look and see if there is a five minute time slot you can fit yourself in to.
Here’s a hint:
There isn’t one.
Ian
Frustrating, infuriating man.
She opened the attachment later that morning and he wasn’t lying, but STILL. She also noticed the flight information on the very last line of the agenda. He was leaving on Saturday morning at 6:00 am.
It was Friday. If she had any hopes of pleading her case in person, today would be the day. Unfortunately, it didn’t look promising at all.
Maybe it was for the best. If she did get the opportunity to speak to him face to face, it would undoubtedly end in her telling him off. Hardly conducive in appealing to his non-existent generous side…
She had even gone to the gym early every day in the hopes of running into him there, but he never showed.
She thumped her notebook on the counter and flopped open the cover with a displeased huff of breath. It was just equipment after all. Just equipment…
Liar. This was a much bigger thing than a stupid list of equipment and she knew it.
*****
“So, what are you doing?” She heard through the phone as she settled into the Adirondack chair on the back deck later that night.
“Doing a little soul searching,” she responded as she took a sip of her pilfered wine and set it back on the table next to her.
“Yeah, I can hear Pink Floyd in the background. It’s Friday night and this is the best you can come up with?” Beth asked.
“I just need to put things in perspective,” Anne responded as she pulled her fleece closed. The air was chilly tonight, but the sky was clear and the stars were out in full force. She sat in the darkness and let it blanket her as Beth’s voice filled her ear.
“So. You never got a chance to talk to Roddy again?” she asked. Obviously she was referring to McClellan.
“Stop calling him that,” she admonished before continuing, “And the answer is no. He shut me down. Monday, he was all over me. By Wednesday, I didn’t exist. Now he’s leaving tomorrow and I didn’t even get a chance to give him a piece of my mind. I mean, I realize the guy is busy, but what the hell, Beth? Why can’t he just say, ‘no, you can’t have the equipment’ and be done with it? Why is he messing with me?” she practically whined before grabbing the glass for another gulp.
“I don’t know. Maybe he just doesn’t want to discuss it. Or maybe he’s just fucking with your mind. If he is, he’s doing a damn fine job of it. You should hear your voice. You’re whining. It’s really funny,” she stated in a clearly amused tone. “Snap a picture of this dude and send it to me. I have to put a face to the guy that has reduced the great Anne Bennett into a whiny baby.”
“Hell no. Besides, I can’t even get near him right now, anyway,” Anne stated as her eyes focused on the sky.
“Hmmm. Does he wear a kilt?” Beth asked out of the blue.
“All the time.” Anne answered as seriously as she could muster.
“No shit! Are you serious? That’s hot…” Beth exclaimed.
“Yeah. And he usually has his bagpipes strapped on his…sh..shoulder,” Anne tried to keep the serious tone in her voice but she snorted and ruined the entire effect.
“Ha! You’re a jackass. Are you drinking?”
“Yup.”
“Good for you. Getting wasted by yourself. You’ve really come a long way…” Beth quipped.
Anne’s eyes caught light near the top of the hill, illuminating the trees as a car drove up before the light disappeared. That was probably him, she thought. He had said it was the only house up there. Maybe it was what’s-her-face from Wednesday paying him a visit. Maybe he took her to the restaurant on the boat. Maybe they could both kiss her ass, she thought as she frowned.
“I have to get going. Kyle’s taking me somewhere overnight. I need to pack,” Beth stated with a hint of excitement in her voice. She was so lucky. She really was. Not only was Kyle a great guy, but he was so in love with Beth. He loved her so much that anyone looking at him as he looked at her just knew it.
She would never have that. No one in their right mind would want her baggage. Even McClellan backed off and he had no clue about her past. If he knew? Well, it didn’t matter. It was obvious he had moved on…
“Have fun. Call me when you get back,” Anne said absently as the floodlight popped on in the distance, she noticed.
“Yeah,” Beth responded in her ear as her eyes held the small pinpoint of light through the trees.
Setting the phone down, she continued to stare.
Roger Water’s haunting voice soothed her brain as Hey You filled the house from the speakers in the living room and drifted out through the open screen at the back of the house. She should be staring at the stars and waxing philosophical on the insignificance of her life and her problems instead of staring at a stupid light on the hill.
He was up there. He was a captive audience, so to speak. What would he do if she knocked on his door? Would he slam the door in her face? Would he run to his car and peel out just to avoid her? That would be funny. Or would he give her the measly five minutes she needed to try and convince him to listen to reason? She grabbed her glass and took another gulp, draining it before setting it down. Is There Anybody Out There took over the brief silence and a soft laugh escaped her throat at the absurdity of it all. The Wall was a soundtrack for her life at present.
Her eyes drifted to the half-empty wine bottle, as she contemplated another glass. She was relaxed, for sure. She didn’t need to be loopy. She disregarded the urge to pour another one.
A huge sigh escaped as she settled back in the chair, her eyes firmly attached to the stars above as the words and the melody and the music poured through her like no other band, no other album could. It truly was a masterpiece and it had always spoken to her on such a personal level.
Uninvited thoughts overtook her mind as she searched through the sky, finding unnaturally bright orbs settled in with much smaller, dimmer points. Satellites. Man-made stars. She watched one in particular as it flickered repeatedly, almost hypnotically. Her mind wandered back to McClellan.
She could send him a text. Of which he would surely ignore.
She drew in a long breath and let it out through closed lips. An unflattering sound accompanied Roger’s singing in the background.
She failed. Everyone seemed to be depending on her to convince him. Even Rand had alluded to the fact that he might listen to her. Obviously he was wrong. Despite whatever previous attempts he made to woo her, he backed off. It was what she said she wanted, after all. Why did he have to listen to her? Wait. Are you drunk? She asked herself. Why on earth would she think that? Her hands gripped the course wood of the chair’s armrests and squeezed.
“Screw it,” she ground out as she pushed her body up and out of the chair.
*****
The car’s pace was practically at a crawl as she searched for a small paved road she assumed must be the beginning of the driveway to the house on the hill. She had passed it every day on her way to work or into town. It shot straight through a cornfield and curved through the trees before disappearing around a bend. It almost had to be his driveway, seeing as there were no other roads for at least a quarter mile in either direction.
She quickly turned right as soon as it came into view, her foot pressing the gas pedal
a bit harder as she drove through the cornfield and began her curving ascent into the thick forest surrounding her. A few more curves and it was apparent at least from the amount of lights she could see through the trees, that she had indeed reached her intended destination. A soft gasp followed by a muttered ‘holy shit’ spewed from her mouth as she took in the sight before her. It was huge. Old by modern standards, the brick façade boasted arched windows, an elegantly curved stairway leading up to a front porch that was backed by a huge recessed entry way. It too was arched and framed the gleaming double doors crafted from a dark stained wood. The light embedded into the arch was shining down on the front stoop. It was intimidating and inviting all at the same time, she thought as she stopped in the circular driveway and put the car into park.
You can do this.
She quickly unfolded her frame from her vehicle and walked on suddenly weakened legs up the steps and on to the brick porch.
Her arm rose and she gave a few timid raps on the door. There was no way he could have possibly heard that, she thought as she considered the sheer size of the house. She made a fist and pounded the door with a bit more force and almost laughed at the absurdity. Apparently her brain was rattled enough that she hadn’t put forth much effort to search for a door bell. It was located on the right side of the door and she gave it a firm push before stepping back and waiting impatiently.
Nothing. Maybe it was a few seconds, but it certainly felt like hours to her. She pressed it again, listening intently for any sound of movement beyond the doors. The faint strains of the melodic sound of the bell lingered then stopped. Her weight shifted from one foot to the other as her frustration began to increase. Was there a camera imbedded somewhere?
She pressed the button again and added a few hard pounds to the door for good measure. What if he wasn’t alone? She would be mortified. There were no other cars visible from her vantage point, so it was unlikely. Unless of course he drove them to the house…
She turned and pounded again, before trying the bell. He was definitely home. Light was showing through several of the many windows in the front of the home and she definitely saw a car drive up earlier.
Absolute Zero Page 24