by Nora Flite
“I just hope you’ll forgive me,” he said simply. His tone wasn’t pleading or desperate, but honest. And yet he was putting all of it—our future, us—in my hands.
I answered quietly, without tears in my voice.
“I already have.” We were both silent for a moment longer. And then Simon came close, sweeping me into his arms. He kissed me deeply, and I kissed him back, and I never let him go.
All night, we made love on his sofa, Simon’s body pressed against mine. We touched one another until our skin was sore, kissed until we had no breath left. Then he dressed me in one of his silk robes, tossed me over his shoulder, and carried me off to bed. We only stopped once, so he could feed Hershey. Then it was right back to business, over and over again until my body was weak from the way he worked it.
As dawn came grey through his window, I pulled myself from bed and began to get ready for work. It was Friday. Valentine’s Day. Time for the presentation to our investors, and for facing Riley, as well.
“Hey,” I called from the bathroom.
“What’s up?” he said.
“I wanted to ask you a favor.” I bit my lip. “Well, two favors actually.”
“Go ahead.”
“There’s a party at work tonight. Usually I’d go stag, but I thought it might be nice if we went together.”
“Are you asking me to be your Valentine?” he asked, wrapping his arms slowly, luxuriantly around my waist and squeezing me tight. I smiled, watching us both in the mirror. We looked so good together. I imagined how it would feel to give my presentation to my colleagues with Simon in the audience. After all, this was as much his success as it was mine.
“I guess,” I said, sheepishly.
“Tazzy, you know there’s nobody I’d rather be with tonight,” he said. I practically purred, because I knew it was true. He kissed my neck, but then pulled away.
“What was the second question?”
“Oh.” I laughed lightly. “I guess it’s no big deal, but could you resend that picture of your abs you sent me yesterday? I kind of deleted it in a fit of, um, rage.”
His hand moved down to my ass cheek. I expected a caress. But he gave me a hard spank instead. I jumped in surprise, and pleasure, too.
“Naughty girl,” he said. “You’d better keep control better next time. Unless you like being spanked for acting so bad.”
I bent over the sink, exposing both of my smooth, naked cheeks to him.
“What if I do?” I asked, trying to keep the smile off my face. “Being bad has it's upsides.”
He spanked me hard one more time. I flushed with passion.
“That’s what I like to hear,” Simon chuckled.
16
Work was frantic in preparation for the party. I should have been too, but my mind was on other things. All day, I tried to get Riley’s attention, but when we passed by the vending machine, she gave me a quick, close-mouthed smile and said, “Can’t chat now. Let’s catch up during the party!”
Then she literally ran out the door. She must have known that I was on to her, but if she thought I was going to let her off that easily, she thought wrong.
I’ll just have to confront her with Simon in tow. It wasn’t ideal. I would have liked to give her a piece of my mind in private, not while the prying ears of our entire office listened in. I was already a mess of nerves over the presentation, and adding Riley to that weight was no help.
I headed back to my desk and slumped over in my chair. I didn’t want to hurt her, not exactly. She hadn’t humiliated me like she’d wanted to. Far from it, actually. Now I had love and she had nothing. Well, except the answer to why she wanted to hurt me in the first place.
And as Simon had pointed out, in a weird way, we were indebted to her. If it hadn’t been for her scheme, I never would have known Peacock87 or the way it felt when our bodies collided. Still, I wasn’t going to let her get away with it, not without saying something.
“Heeeey, Tazzy,” I heard a voice intrude from over the edge of my cubicle. It was Jim.
“What’s up?”
“A lot riding on today, huh? You ready?”
My confidence in my work had turned into a sharpened knife’s edge. “Of course I am. Are you?”
“I’m not worried about that,” he said, glancing across the cube farm toward where the programmers sat. That’s when it hit me. Riley. He was probably planning on asking her out. “I’ve decided that today’s the big day. Do or die. You know I’ve had a crush on her since I started here? Christ, it makes me feel like a teenager again.”
Even though we’d worked together for a long time now, it was almost like it was the first time I was really seeing him.
He reminded me of someone. And then it hit me in the gut like a hard blow. Jim wasn’t so different from my dad. Bumbling, awkward sometimes. Maybe his personal life was a little bit of a mess. But he wasn’t a bad person, and he was trying to pick himself up—as brutal as it had to be—after having his heart broken in two.
I reached out and put my hand on his. He startled back in surprise. But then he smiled at me.
“I think it’ll go fine,” I assured him. “You’re a catch. Any girl, even Riley, would be lucky to have you.”
“Even Riley?” he asked with a chuckle. I cringed a little.
“That’s not what I mean—” I started. He shrugged his shoulders.
“It’s fine, Tazzy. I know you two haven’t always gotten along.”
I drew my hand away. Now it was my turn to blink back my surprise. “What do you mean?” I asked. There was no way he could have known about the bet, or the way that Riley had betrayed me. That was my own, private pain.
“Well, you know,” he began. “When you first started here, she didn’t have a single kind word to say about you. She was always talking about how you thought you were better than everyone else. But I guess you won her over.”
Geez, you think you know someone. I tried to keep the smile over my mouth, as if none of this was news to me. And maybe it shouldn’t have been after everything that I’d read in her conversations with Simon, but it still hurt to hear it.
“Guess I did,” I said.
“Anyway, I’d better polish off these reports before the party,” Jim said. “Thanks for listening. Wish me luck tonight?”
“Break a leg, Jim,” I said, and he looked so hopeful and so sweet that no matter what I thought of Riley, I meant it.
The party was a fancy catered affair held in the reception area of a hotel downtown. No sad homemade heart decorations here, not for the Perfect Click crew. The tables were draped with black cloths, expensive arrangements crafted from crystal and silver at the center of each. There was a DJ and an open bar. What can I say? We’d had a great year, and things were only going to get better once the investors heard what I had to say.
The marketing department was seated half a room away from the programmers. I’d been watching since my arrival as Jim searched for Riley, nerves and yearning both jumbled up in his gaze. I went and got a glass of champagne for him.
“Here,” I said. “To help you relax a little.”
He laughed gratefully. “Thanks, Tazzy,” he said. “You’re a real peach.” I smiled to him. I hoped it would go well—really, genuinely. Maybe Riley would end up learning something about love, about vulnerability, like I had. Maybe she could still change.
“There she is,” Jim said, nodding his head toward the programmer’s table. And indeed, there she was. Riley in a little black dress with a hoodie, of all things, thrown over the top. I felt a million different emotions as I watched her chatting with her programmer friends. I’d once really admired her devil-may-care attitude, right up until it bit me in the ass. Maybe she wasn’t as cool as I’d previously thought. Maybe she was your classic high school mean girl, and she’d just wanted to fuck me over all along.
“You okay?” Jim asked, noticing my silence.
“Sure,” I said. “You should go for it. Good luck, Jim.”
Jim drank down the rest of his drink, took a breath, and walked across the ballroom. I tried not to watch them too intently, but I could see Jim smiling and whispering in her ear. And then Riley’s face fell.
Give him a chance, I found myself saying to myself. But I guess my psychic powers were out of commission, because Riley took one look at Jim’s hopeful, sweet face and threw her drink in it.
He was frozen in shame and horror. Riley, for her part, got up in a hurry and ran off through the ballroom doors. So much for cornering her before Simon got there. Poor Jim was doing his best to pull himself together, wiping his face on a cloth napkin. I hurried over to him.
“Are you okay?” I asked, putting my hand on his shoulder. He laughed a bit too loud.
“Yeah, a little champagne never hurt anyone.”
“What did you say to her?”
“All I did was ask if she was free this weekend.”
“No rude gestures?” I asked. Jim shook his head.
Then he looked toward the door. My heart shriveled in my chest.
“You know what, Jim? Wait here. I’m going to give Riley a piece of my mind.”
“No, Tazzy, don’t—” he began, but I didn’t want to hear it. She’d taken things one step too far. There was no reason to act so cruel to Jim.
My hands curling into fists, my resolve hardening, I rushed out of the ballroom and after Riley.
17
I saw Riley disappear into the lady’s room. But she wasn’t going to get off that easily. Crackling with anger, I rushed after her, bursting through the door just as she locked a stall behind her.
“Riley, I know you’re in there!” I called, knocking my knuckles against the door. But Riley just laughed bitterly. I heard the toilet flush.
“A little privacy, please?”
“You didn’t even pee!” I said. That’s when the door swung open. Riley was standing there, fully clothed, glowering at me.
“What, Tazzy?” she snapped, hustling toward the sink and soaping up. I stared at her in the mirror, waiting for her to make eye contact, but she wouldn’t. “That creep just asked me out. I don’t want to deal with you, too.”
“He’s not a creep,” I said softly. “He really liked you.”
“I don’t have the time for Uncle Jim.”
“Fine, but you don’t have to act like a jerk about it.”
It was like I wasn’t even talking. She just shook her head fervently and went on. “I need to focus on other things.”
“Like hiring Simon to scam me?” I asked, my teeth crushing together as I bit off the words. The pain was still there, fresh and ever present. I guess there was no way to avoid work drama with Riley over it. It had to come out someday. Why not now?
She eyeballed me, pain and confusion swirling in her eyes. Guilt, too, I’m sure. I wondered if she was going to burst into tears at being caught. Her lower lip trembled for a moment. Then she glanced down again.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“He came clean to me, Riley. He told me.”
“He’s lying. He just wants to hurt you. He’s a creep. ”
Geez, did she think that every guy was a creep? I could understand feeling skeptical about romance. I had once too. “No, you’re the one who’s lying. I saw your IMs, Ri. I know the whole story.”
She grabbed a towel, her expression sour as she dried her hands. “So you snooped?”
I threw my hands in the air, exasperated. “Quit trying to deflect. You hired Simon to break my heart. And it didn’t even work, Riley. We—we’ve fallen for each other. We love each other. You hired Simon so you could win a bet, but you lost.”
Riley stood in front of the garbage can, her shoulders slumped. She still wasn’t looking at me. She only shook her head.
“The bet’s off,” she said softly. “If you think you’re going to get your money, you’re a fool.”
I laughed. Did she think that was what this was all about? The bet didn’t matter to me. Not anymore.
And then my laughter faded, and I let my voice go soft. I wanted her to know how much she’d hurt me. Because I’d cared about her once, thought of her as a true friend, and it all meant nothing to her.
“I really thought we were friends,” I told her. “That’s what sucks so bad about this. I can’t believe you’d throw it all away for nine hundred bucks.”
She just let out a sigh and headed for the door.
“Goodbye, Tazzy,” was all she said.
I let her go. Figured it would be good to give her some space and let her cool off before we had to share the same air at a work party. After a moment passed, I took a deep breath, saying a silent farewell to our friendship, and headed back toward the ballroom.
Riley was nowhere to be seen when I got there. But someone else was waiting for me, standing alone by the punchbowl in a tux. Simon. I smiled as I rushed toward him, pushing my hurt feelings and thoughts of Riley from my mind. She didn’t matter, not anymore. I had other friends. I had a good job. And best of all, I had a guy with a heart of gold.
If Simon in jeans or Simon in a suit could take my breath away, then Simon in a tuxedo left me completely asthmatic. His hair was carefully disheveled, his dark eyes piercing. He was the handsomest man in the room.
And he was all mine.
“Is that your date?” Jim asked me as I passed him.
“What, you don’t think I can bag a good looking guy?”
“Not that good looking!” he said. I punched him in the arm. He let out a good natured chuckle, but I shook my finger at him anyway.
“Watch it,” I said. “Or you’ll be wearing two drinks.”
“Oh, I’m only teasing you,” he said. “Don’t let me keep you from true love.”
Who was I to argue? I was drawn to Simon by some invisible thread. His wicked eyes touched mine. He reached out, placing his hand on the small of my back, drawing me close and locking lips with me in a way that suggested we were the only people in the room. And for a moment, we were.
I leaned into his embrace, opening my mouth to his. In that moment, I didn’t care who was watching. I didn’t care that my company’s top investors were there, or that we were dressed in fancy black tie get-up that I didn’t want to get wrinkled. All I cared about was my mouth, and Simon’s, and the breath that was flowing between us.
“You look beautiful,” he said as we finally pulled away from one another, though he kept his hand on the top of my ass. My face heated.
“Like an angel?” I asked, a wry smile glancing my lips. He laughed.
“More like a devil in that blue dress.” He ran his hand down my spine, over the curve of my hip. Goose bumps ran up and down my arms.
I’d worn a slinky little thing, all blue satin. And matching blue lace underneath. I couldn’t wait to show him. I glanced toward the bathrooms, contemplating making a run for it. A little work party quickie never hurt anyone. But something pulled at the back of my mind.
“Just a reminder,” I whispered to him, “Don’t tell a soul we met on the site.”
Simon nodded firmly. “My lips are sealed,” he said. Before I could respond, Travis got up in front of the crowd, gripping the microphone in hand. I watched Simon as he squared his chin, listening respectfully.
Travis talked about our ad revenue goals and how we’d exceeded every one. I felt proud, excited about the future—for Perfect Click, and for me.
“And now, here’s Tamsin Matthews. She’ll update you on our fourth quarter projections. Tazzy?”
There was a smattering of polite applause. Simon slid his hand down and gave my ass a squeeze.
“Go get ‘em,” he purred in my ear. I could feel myself flush as I headed for the front of the room, but I held my head high. This was going to be my moment of professional triumph.
Bolstered by Simon’s support, I headed up to the podium. All eyes were on me.
“Good evening, ladies, gentlemen,” I began, letting my attention glide over t
he investors in the audience. “It’s an honor to come before you on Valentine’s Day—it’s an important day for any dating website, the day that so many connections begin, and then blossom. I’m here to speak to you about the state of our website and our company, but in a way, I’m here to talk to you about the state of romance in the era of online dating. And I’m here to tell you: the outlook is great.”
I could see the investors up front, murmuring to one another. Not whispering, or speaking poorly of me, but nodding their approval. I fought to keep down my smile as I spoke, doing my best to appear utterly professional despite my own excitement. I was nailing it. I guess my relationship with Simon didn’t mean my life was falling apart. Maybe it had even helped—after all, this presentation never would have been possible without him.
As I clicked through the slides, my eyes slid over the crowd and found Simon. At first, I felt relief. He was watching me, his hands folded behind his back, that handsome chin held firm. He wasn’t quite smiling at me, but his dark eyes glinted with pride. I gestured to the projected screen behind me, discussing our search algorithms and how we’d been perfecting our match rate.
And that’s when it all went to hell.
Riley stormed through the door, accidentally ramming into Simon as she passed. She looked back at him, ready to pick a fight with him even before she saw who he was.
“What the hell—” she began, her voice crackling over mine. I spoke louder, but some of the investors had begun to turn. He said something to her, his expression easy. But Riley’s eyes were big and intense.
I glanced at Travis, who was nodding thoughtfully at me, and at the investors, who were taking down notes on their iPads.
Riley spun on her spiky heels and stalked toward the podium.
Shit.
I was holding the microphone in one hand, speaking easily into it. But Riley wasn’t having any of that. She pushed right past Travis and wrestled the microphone from my hand.