“Do you like it?” he asked.
“Do I like it? Are you crazy? What is this…thing? There’s no way. What the hell is this thing sticking out on top?” she asked. He truly wished he could see her face.
“It’s for you. To use when we’re on the phone at night. I researched. This thing is guaranteed to make you…”
“Shhh. No. Uh, uh there’s…just…no,” she stammered out. “I’d rather have a low speed centrifuge,” she practically pouted through the phone.
“Well, there is a low speed on that thing, I believe,” he answered calmly.
“You’re…you…words escape me,” she finally uttered.
“Aye, all right. Pop some batteries in that thing and let’s get going, eh?”
A long moment of silence had him slightly worried.
“I can’t do this,” she finally said.
“Think of it as a scientific necessity,” he stated and continued after a snort sounded in his ear. “I’m serious, love. I need you to use that so I don’t hurt you the next time I see you.”
“You won’t hurt me the next time you see me. Because we won’t be doing that again,” she stated.
It was his turn to snort.
“I’m serious! I think this separation is a good thing,” she started. “I think we’re both rational, intelligent people. I just happen to think we lose our heads when we’re around each other. That’s all. Maybe it doesn’t bother you that I work for your company, but it bothers me. Besides, in another month? You won’t even remember me,” she stated before realizing the ridiculousness of her words.
“Do you really think I wouldn’t remember you in a month? Annie, if I never saw you again, I would still remember you for the rest of my life,” his voice was so soft and soothing, the tone so earnest, she felt her resolve weaken instantly. He was either one hell of an actor or he truly did feel something for her. Her eyes darted around the room, trying desperately to think of an argument but all she could do was sit silently for a few moments.
“Annie?”
“I still can’t use this monster. I think it’s too big,” she finally stated.
“It’s not too big. I measured. It’s the same size.”
His words caused nervous laughter to burst from her mouth. “You really did research this.”
“Aye. Where are you right now?”
“At home.”
“No shite, love. What room?” he asked.
“Kitchen.”
“All right. This is what I want you to do. Go upstairs, take all your clothes off, ALL of them,” he emphasized, “Get on your bed; put the phone on speaker…”
“No. I haven’t even eaten dinner yet,” she stated before a grimace scrunched her facial features when she realized how dumb that sounded.
“Oh! Sorry. Do you have a ‘no orgasm before dinner’ rule?” he laughed out.
“Something like that,” she mumbled as she absently turned the pink silicon toy in her hands, studying it from various angles.
“I hate this time difference,” he breathed out. “I’d stay up later but I’ve got a meeting at six am tomorrow. Can’t ya just work with me, here?”
“I need to think about this,” she answered instead.
“Aaaaannie…” he whined.
“Iaaaaan,” she mocked. “I’m serious. This is just very…weird, OK? Let me think about it. You should get some sleep. It’s eleven your time, you know.”
“Thanks. I had no idea,” he answered with sarcasm before a long drawn out breath could be heard on her end. “Fine,” he finally said.
“Good,” she stated, relieved.
“Tomorrow,” he stated forcefully.
“We’ll see. In the meantime, I need to find a good hiding place for this thing. Could you imagine if Irene found it?” she almost laughed at the absurdity of that possibility.
“That would be something, eh?” He let out a long sigh. “Good night, sweet. Don’t you DARE use that thing when I get off the phone, promise?”
“I think I can hold myself back,” she answered sarcastically.
“Good lass. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“Good night, Ian,” she pulled the phone from her ear and settled it on the table next to her.
She probably had the strangest expression on her face as she stared at his ‘present’, but she was alone, so who really cared?
A buzz ripped the silence in the kitchen causing her to jolt. Her cell lit up and a message showed on the screen.
I mean it. DO NOT use that without me.
*****
She had an awful lot to think about.
The next two days were filled with equipment purchases and delivery schedules and yet in the back of her mind, Rand’s request loomed large.
She dodged Ian’s texts and nightly calls, responding only once that she was still thinking about it. Apparently he wasn’t used to being told no, or having to wait for anything. At this point, all correspondence came in as CAPS to emphasize his frustration with her. It was comical in a way, but it was also confusing as hell.
Rand was basically asking her to deceive the person they worked for. The same person she slept with, unbeknownst to Rand, of course. The same person that sent her sexy, suggestive texts. What a lovely mess she was in.
She didn’t want to disappoint Rand, and to be honest, the stress and strain of the last few days were really beginning to show on him. He was in and out of the office, he looked as if he hadn’t slept and it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that she received a visit from Shay late Friday night as she sat outside, contemplating the stars above as Pink Floyd played softly in the background.
“Hey.”
“Aggghh!” She jerked upright in the chair, her heart pounding wildly. Shay stood at the top of the stairs on the deck as Anne tried to get her heart rate and her breathing under control.
“I’m sorry!” she stated as she walked closer. “I didn’t mean to scare you,” she stood a few feet from Anne, and from the light shining from the kitchen beyond the sliding doors, Anne could see the glistening of tears on her cheeks.
“Shay? Are you OK?” Anne asked cautiously.
She flopped into the chair next to Anne. “No,” she replied sullenly. It was so not like her. Something was seriously wrong.
“Do you want a glass of wine?” Anne asked softly, noting the half-empty bottle situated between the chairs.
“Sure,” she stated before it appeared she was going to sit up.
“Stay there. I’ll be right back,” Anne immediately pushed from her chair and wandered into the kitchen to retrieve a glass, her mind racing as to the purpose of the visit. She would find out soon enough, she was sure.
*****
“So, he’s been acting strange lately. I mean, sometimes he’s distant, sometimes he snaps at me when I get on his nerves, but tonight…” she trailed off, taking another sip of wine before cradling the glass in her hands and staring at the liquid inside.
“I think he’s having an affair,” she stated softly.
“No. Shay…”
“I do. I really think so,” she interrupted Anne. “He takes care of all the bills, pretty much all the mail. I think I’m going to start checking stuff. I make it too easy for him.”
“Maybe he’s stressed out about work? Did you ask him? I mean, McClellan was here last week and of course, that put everyone on edge. Hell, he even stressed me out and I don’t even run the facility.” He’s still stressing me out - over a sex toy… She would keep that to herself.
“Maybe. I don’t know. I just want to know where he goes. He’s left the house at night three times this week. Said he had dinner meetings. He does this, but not three times in one week. What should I do? Should I confront him? What if he says yes? Do I leave him? I never even finished college,” she stated as fresh tears began to fall.
“Ask him.” Anne stated as Shay gave a rather loud sniff. “Personally? I think it’s stress. You should see the way he lights up when he talks abou
t you. It’s true!” she stated in a louder tone when Shay sent her a disbelieving look.
“Just ask him, Shay. It’s better to get it out there. Don’t let it fester. You’ll end up turning yourself into someone you don’t want to be.”
“Maybe,” she stated simply after a few moments of silence.
“Good. Now, sit back and look at this sky. Isn’t it crazy, how vast it is? When I need to think, I always do this. It helps me put things into perspective,” Anne stated as she tilted her head back and scanned the sky. “We’re this tiny planet in the middle of a solar system that’s only a small part of a galaxy amongst other galaxies. It just goes on forever,” she stated in a half-whisper.
“I always think that I’m this insignificant thing living on a tiny planet revolving around a big ball of gas. What if the earth just sort of left its orbit, or…what if the sun just decided to up and burn out one day? That’s important shit. This stuff? Not so much.” She shrugged.
“That’s…depressing,” Shay stated as her own eyes fastened on a rather large star above. “And…slightly nerdy,” she added causing a soft laugh to come from Anne.
“What is this music? It’s god-awful,” Shay commented before her head turned toward Anne.
“Bite your tongue, woman. This is Pink Floyd, The Wall? One of the most iconic albums of all time. Quite possibly the most inspirational collection of songs and lyrics and…stop snorting at me. Who do you like?” Her own eyes shifted toward the woman seated next to her.
“I don’t know. Maybe Nelly?”
“Nelly,” she stated with her own snort. “It’s getting’ hot in heeeere, so take off all yer clothes,” she mocked.
“Yeah. That’s a good one…”
“Totally inspirational. You’re right,” Anne added with a smile as her eyes fastened on the stars above once again.
*****
Tonight. Be home at Five.
I have something for you.
Oh brother. She immediately started tapping on her phone screen early the next morning.
No thanks. Your gifts are weird.
The soft shrill of the phone filled the kitchen. An international number, of course.
“What?” she stated in a clipped voice.
“Well, that’s a fine greeting,” he laughed softly. “What are you doing tonight?”
“Something,” she answered cryptically.
“Something? What is something? It better not be a date. It’s not a date is it?”
“Yes, that’s it. It’s a date,” she lied. A small smile spread on her face as she wandered toward the sliding glass doors and looked out.
“Dammit, Anne,” she could hear growled through the phone.
“Relax. Don’t get yer knickers in a twist, isn’t that what you folks say?” she answered. Her tomato plants were growing quite nicely, she thought as she absently stared at them through the glass.
“Don’t…” he let out a frustrated breath, “Annie, you’re making a joke with me, right?” he asked a bit more congenially.
“Maybe. Even if I had a date, what difference is it to you? I’m a single woman, if I want to go on a date. I could. Who cares?”
“I care.” You’re MINE, he thought. “Stop being so flippant, ya brat. Now, are you going to be at home at five or what?”
“I don’t know. It depends. Are you going to send me a cryogenic freezer? If that’s it, I’ll be home,” she answered.
“It’s not…aagh, girl, I gave you the funding for the equipment…”
“Not all of the funding, just the replacements. I guess the sex just didn’t warrant the full amount, huh?” she asked, only half-teasing.
“I swear, if I were there right now? I would put you over my knee. Where do you come up with this?” he practically grated out before he let out a rather noisy breath. “I don’t want to talk about work. I want to talk about us,” he softened his voice measurably.
“What ‘us’? Is there an ‘us’?”
“Aye. You, me and your little pink friend,” he stated.
“First of all, that thing is not little and second, it is not my friend,” she answered in a cool tone. Weeds had started growing up through the freshly turned soil, she noticed as she continued to stare at the small garden. Suddenly she had a plan for the day.
“We’ll see about that. Five o’clock, remember. Do you have a laptop?” he asked, seemingly out of the blue.
“Yes?”
“And there’s wireless in the house. Do you have Skype?”
“Yes?” She pulled the phone away from her ear to give it a strange look before placing it to her ear once again. “Why?” she asked.
“You’ll see. I have to go, love. I’ll call you at five,” he said then hung up, causing her to look at the phone for a few moments before finally settling it back on the counter in utter confusion.
She should probably be anywhere else but at the house tonight, she thought as she opened the sliding door to the backyard. In the back of her mind, though, she knew she would be waiting at five o’clock for whatever mysterious thing he had cooked up.
*****
“Let them in, love,” he stated through the phone as the doorbell rang a few minutes after five.
“Who is it?”
“Just open the door, Annie. Geez…”
She wandered over to the door, peeking out through the peephole and settling back from her tiptoes for a moment before clicking the lock.
“Hello!” A young woman in a white shirt and black pants greeted her. She was holding a box at her chest.
“Hello?”
“Let her in,” Anne could hear in her ear. She stepped back after pulling the screen door open.
“What is this?” she asked in confusion as the woman walked directly into the kitchen, pulled out a white linen from her box and laid it on the kitchen table.
“I’m taking you on a date,” he answered. The woman continued to set the table, pulling out china, utensils, a wine glass…
“Go get your laptop,” he stated as she continued to watch the woman. She was pulling out small votive candles, lighting them and placing them on the table.
“Are you getting your laptop? Or are you just standing there, staring at her?”
“Umm. I…hold on,” she stated absently. Tiny flutters erupted in her stomach as her feet finally decided to move. A knock sounded behind her, causing her to turn and see a huge spray of color in the doorway. A pair of legs was visible beneath it.
“Oh, right. Get that too,” she could hear through the phone.
“Ms. Bennett?” a male voice sounded from behind the…not tulips this time, but roses. Dozens of them. They were the same mix of color as the tulips though, yellow at the stem and morphing into orange and finally red at the tips.
“They’re beautiful,” she breathed out as she reached for the vase with suddenly shaky hands.
“I know, right? I had no idea they even had roses like that,” she heard in her ear as she cradled the phone between her head and shoulder.
“Good evening,” the man said before turning and walking down the steps.
“All right. Put those down. Go grab your laptop,” he commanded.
She turned to see the woman place a metal topped plate on the table, grab a bottle of wine from the depths of the box and pull out a wine opener.
“Annie?”
“Yeah, yeah…Ok,” she looked around, finally placing the vase on the table behind the couch before walking over and grabbing her laptop from the coffee table.
“Got it?”
“Yes.”
The woman appeared in the living room with the box. “Enjoy your evening,” she stated with a warm smile before continuing to the front door.
“Ah…thanks?” Anne watched as the door closed behind her.
“Ian, this is…what are you…?”
“Annie, darlin’, please set that laptop on the table. I want to see that beautiful face,” he stated softly, causing the small flutters to increase ye
t again.
Her feet padded to the table, placing the laptop on the linen clad surface before opening the screen.
She immediately opened her Skype icon, there was only one contact shown on the left side of the screen. Beth. That was it. Now there would be two…
*****
“Good?”
“Excellent,” she stated before wiping the side of her mouth with the linen napkin from her lap. “What do you have there?”
“Stovies with Lamb. There’s this pub in town, best food you’ll ever eat. I’ll take you there sometime,” he stated before placing a forkful of something brown in his mouth. She could barely see the plate on her screen. Besides, her eyes seemed to want to affix to his face. It was only a week, and yet it felt like a lifetime ago since she saw him last.
“Sure, I’ll just pop in when I’m in the neighborhood,” she smiled before scooping another gravy covered mushroom from her plate.
“Great. Just wear something a bit more appropriate,” he said, taking in her athletic pullover.
“Well, you didn’t tell me this was going to be a date. I was expecting another brown package. Maybe a butt-plug this time or something equally romantic…” she quipped before placing the fork in her mouth.
“Oh, Annie…” he breathed out. “Say butt-plug again.” He was resting his chin on his hand, watching her intently. Even through a computer screen, he could still make her warm all over.
“No.”
“Come on, I’m getting all kinds of ideas over here,” he grinned.
“Fine. You’re a butt-plug. I even put it in a sentence for you. Is this Connelly’s?” she changed the subject.
He squinted his eyes and shook his head slightly. “Ah…yes. They do make the best chicken marsala, I believe. Do you like the wine?”
“Yes, look, I practically guzzled the first glass,” she held up her wine glass in front of the screen.
“Pour another one,” he stated then shrugged casually.
“Are you trying to get me drunk?”
“Absolutely.”
*****
“No.”
“Yes, take it upstairs,” he demanded through the screen. She sat back in her chair, pushing the now empty plate to the side.
“I’ll make a concession. I will attempt to use that ‘thing’ but I am not doing it in front of this computer!” she stated with widened eyes.
Absolute Zero Page 29