by Unknown
She brushed this line of thinking aside angrily, and chided herself, “Jessica Ellis! You’re a professional HR manager, not a 16-yr old schoolgirl going out on her first date. You need to act a little more mature than you’ve been thinking today. And you, an HR manager to boot! That would be just a little ironic to have the manager guilty of impropriety with company personnel. Forget about this foolishness, and just stick to your job! Besides – don’t forget why you’re here in the first place.”
But somehow she knew right from that first day – it was going to be hard to stop thinking about Nick Marino. It was pretty obvious, considering that she couldn’t remember what the other two candidates looked like, or what their names were, even after spending an hour with each of them.
Eventually, Jessica drifted off into a fitful sleep, with events of the day still swirling around inside her brain. The swirls which surrounded the hypnotic Mr. Marino dissipated gradually, and re-formed as five-year old images that looked more like her attorney husband, William Armitage.
Her husband. At first, some pleasant pictures came to her, about their meeting, their starry-eyed love story – and the baby. William had been so energetic in the pursuit of justice, so idealistic in his approach, so worthy of admiration as a man of character. Until he crossed the Aiellos – the most notorious organized crime family in Philadelphia. As part of the governor’s war on organized crime, William had developed a strong case which, at the very least could make things uncomfortable for them, and if things went well, might cripple their operations altogether in the state. Pushing it to the limit, William put in long hours gathering evidence and researching local crime history, even working weekends to bolster his case.
Then came that last Saturday. Feeling a little lonesome, pregnant Rachel Armitage goes into the firm’s office to keep her child’s father company for just a little while – and becomes a witness to the most shattering single event of her lifetime. Just as she rounds a hallway corner and William’s office comes into view, she sees a horrifying spectacle. Sitting in his office chair, both arms raised in a posture of defense, William is confronted by a man with a handgun, which has the extra-long barrel suggestive of a silencer.
And then it comes – a sudden muffled report, and a small, bleeding wound in the center of her husband’s forehead. He slumps down forward on his desk, and Rachel lets out a terrified gasp – which is instantly heard by the assailant. As he turns his attention to her, his hardened features become etched in her brain for all time. He points his gun at the new target – and has it knocked from his hand, with a paperweight flung at him by the expiring William. The shooter scrambles to retrieve the weapon on the floor, but by the time he has it in hand, Rachel has raced down the hallway, out to the street and around the corner, where her car is parked. At the police station, the enormity of it all hits her, and she breaks down, sobbing hysterically.
Her marriage is over, and within two days, so is her pregnancy. In fact, her whole life up to that point is over. Even with solid identification and a major police effort, the shooter cannot be found anywhere, and authorities feel that the only way Rachel can be kept safe from further attempts on her life is by putting her in the Witness Protection Program. It will change her entire life, and relocate her to a place she cannot be found. Someplace like southwest Florida.
Jessica woke up with a start, realizing that she was drenched with sweat, despite the cool, air-conditioned environment of her bedroom. For a moment, she shook uncontrollably, and wrapped a blanket around her to make it stop. That same nightmare again. When would it finally leave her? Maybe she could geographically leave her old life behind, but she was beginning to wonder if it would all stay in her head forever.
Chapter 3 – Three for Lunch
A week later found Jessica and Lauren together in the cafeteria on another Monday morning, enjoying coffee and a bagel at mid-morning. Since last week, there had been several conversations about the new hire, but in each case, Jessica had truthfully pointed out that there was nothing new to report about the process. Until today.
“Before you even ask, Miss Curiosity, I’ll just blurt it out”, Jessica began, “I had a meeting with Harland Butler this morning to go over the candidates, and he wants me to hire Nick Marino. I’ve contacted him, and he’s coming in to discuss the job with me. I’ll talk with him awhile, and if he accepts, I’ll explain our benefits to him, and see if he’d like to have lunch. You’re welcome to come along if you like. We’ll probably just go across the street to Logan’s, if he’s ok with a bagel sandwich.”
Barely able to contain herself, Lauren wriggled excitedly in her seat and exclaimed, “I knew it! As soon as I saw him, I knew he would be the guy we chose. I’m so happy for you, Jessie – I mean I’m glad for the company and everything, but who knows – maybe you’ll actually have a chance to get a little bit of romance in your life for a change. Lord knows it would do you good!”
“Lauren honey, I think you’re losing sight of the big picture here. I’m not hiring a boyfriend, and I’m most definitely not looking for a relationship. I like keeping things on an even keel, and that’s where I’m at right now. I’m in no hurry to sacrifice all that. I appreciate all the good wishes, and I know you have good intentions, but really – can we please just cool it on the dating talk? If anything is meant to happen in my love life, it’ll just happen, without either one of us campaigning for it.”
“I know, I know,” rejoined the undeterred Lauren, “it’s just that I’d like you to add some depth to your existence. Your life should consist of a little more than work and sleep and whatever it is that you do over at Tanglewood every evening, before you get up early and come in to work again. You’re a great gal, Jess, and any guy would be lucky to have you.” With a wry smile she added, “We just need to let a few of them know you are available.”
“Well do me a favor, will you? When Mr. Marino gets here, could you please hold off on broadcasting anything about my marital status? If there’s ever a reason why he would need to know that, I’ll be happy to mention it, but until that time, let’s just keep it our little secret. Okay?”
When her friend frowned back at her and rolled her eyes, Jessica pressed the point. “Are we agreed, Lauren?”
“Yes, yes – we’re agreed. We’re agreed that the lovely and vivacious Jessica Ellis will avoid the light of day at all times, and refuse all possibility of romance, so that she can become the greatest spinster the state of Florida has ever known.”
“Close enough. I’ll take you at your word. I have to get back to my office and take care of a few things. I’ll call or text you about lunch.”
“Cool beans. I’ll wait to hear from you then.” And with that, Lauren arose to take her leave, carefully clutching the still hot paper cup of coffee, striding unhurriedly back to her workplace.
The call from Jessica came about 20 minutes after 12:00, and Lauren had just about decided that lunch wasn’t happening, and that she should fend for herself with something light in the cafeteria. But Jessie did eventually make the call, and informed her friend that they would be meeting Nick Marino at Logan’s in 15 minutes, just across Seminole Highway, on the other side of the foot bridge. The two women met in the lobby, and trekked across the span over to Logan’s Café, where they frequently had lunch together, in lieu of less exciting cafeteria fare.
Since a good number of the workers in the area had preceded them by 15 or 20 minutes, Logan’s was fairly busy, and Jessica began to think they would have to wait for a table, when she suddenly spotted Marino at one of the outside tables, with three empty chairs available for them. Casually dressed in loose-fitting slacks and a short-sleeved dress shirt with the first three buttons open, he stood up as soon as he saw them, and waved them over to the table.
“Good afternoon, Miss Ellis – and your friend?” As far as Lauren was concerned, he might as well have recited the Periodic Table of Elements in greeting them, because she didn’t hear a word of what he said initially. She coul
d hardly have been more swept away with his charming manner, and the comfortable grace with which he moved and spoke. She thought he had the practiced air of a politician, or maybe a celebrity - at least someone very much attuned to public life and dealing with people. He seemed like the kind of man who knew the effect he had on women, but chose not to exploit it or take advantage of the situation. Could he really be the Last Nice Man?
Jessica smiled, and nodded toward her friend. “Nick Marino, this is my close friend Lauren Evans. Lauren was the first friend I made when I joined the company four years ago, and she’s been a great support to me ever since. She goes off the deep end about things once in a while, but she’s as trustworthy as they come, and I love her dearly.”
Then speaking directly to Lauren, she continued, “Lauren, this is our newest employee at Southwest Tours, Mr. Nicholas Marino – he prefers to be called Nick - and I have no doubt that he’s going to lurch us forward into the 21st century of marketing, and get a little more recognition for the company.” As she introduced the two of them, Marino extended his right hand and firmly grasped Lauren’s in a friendly handshake. The three of them all sat down together, and while Marino resumed scanning one of the menus which had been brought, neither of the two ladies bothered, being quite familiar with it already.
Again looking at Lauren, Jessica explained, “Lauren, I didn’t have a chance to tell you this yet, but I had a phone conversation earlier with Mr. Marino and he did agree to accept our offer to come work for us, starting this Wednesday. He’s anxious to get right to work, and start collaborating with our group to see how he can help us.”
Lauren smiled sweetly, and using her most welcoming manner, said to the new hire, “Well, on behalf of everyone at Southwest Tours, I hereby unofficially welcome you to the company, and I hope that it becomes a mutually beneficial arrangement for quite some time. On behalf of myself, I’m officially very glad to have you on board, and I think it will be great to have a little more class around the office. I don’t know much about the marketing side myself, because I work mostly with Bookings, but I can’t wait to see what kind of ideas you have for promoting Southwest. One of the reasons I’m so glad we finally hired someone is that now, maybe Miss Ellis here can be a little less frantic at work, trying so hard to fill the position. She really spends too much time at work, and not enough on her social life.”
Jessica shot a warning glance at her friend before continuing the warm wishes, “I would just like to add my own welcome to Lauren’s, along with the hope that it becomes a long-lasting work relationship. Now let’s order lunch, shall we? Lauren, I don’t want the boss to think that you and I have taken the rest of the day off, so we should get the ball rolling. Does everyone know what they want?”
Lunch at Logan’s was a very friendly affair, with the three of them exchanging brief personal histories, and a good deal of small talk about July weather, business objectives, and the success of Walt Disney. Lauren was in favor of extending lunchtime with a small dessert, but when Jessica vetoed the idea, she realized there would be no appeal, and conceded the point.
When the two woman rose to leave, Marino also rose and shook both their hands. “Thank you very much for a lovely luncheon, and I look forward to rolling up my sleeves and getting to work in a couple of days. Miss Ellis, perhaps I’ll see you at Tanglewood before then, and if not, I’ll see you at 9 AM on Wednesday. Until then – arrivederci!”
As the two women returned over the foot bridge, neither said anything for the first couple minutes. Then Lauren looked at Jessica, and broke out in an impish smile.
“Don’t even bother saying it, Lauren Evans!” Jessica rebuked her friend, “I know what you’re thinking, and I don’t want to hear it. Yes, he’s handsome. Yes, he looks like young Andy Garcia – but I won’t be dating either one of them!”
Lauren held up her hands in mock protest. “I didn’t say a word. Especially about dating. I was just thinking he would be a good professional addition to the team.” When they reached the building entrance, they paused in the lobby before separating for the afternoon.
There was the same impish twinkle in Lauren’s eyes as there had been earlier. “See ya later, Jess.” She turned to walk toward the cubicles, but stopped in her tracks to smile for a long moment and tossed one last taunt at her friend, “Andy Garcia, huh?”
Chapter 4 – A Change of Heart
Within two weeks, Nick Marino knew as much as he needed to know about Southwest Tours, and was up to speed on virtually every aspect of the company business. He had spent long hours with booking agents, travel experts, IT personnel, and even old Harland Butler himself, to find out just what the company was all about, and where it wanted to be.
He was a quick learner and was fast becoming one of the most popular employees in the company, except to those males jealous of his appeal to the female population. To no one’s surprise, he became an instant contributor, by devising a promotional scheme that discounted tour packages by 25% for clients who referred another paying customer to Southwest. In just one week, eight customers took advantage of the offer, thereby gaining an additional eight clients for the company, and solidifying Marino’s growing reputation for creativity.
During those first few weeks, Jessica checked in on her star new hire frequently to see if he had everything he needed, and to see how he was progressing. A few checks with those who worked around him and above him, were all that was needed to tell her Southwest had hired the right man for the job, and that he was fitting in extremely well with the rest of the workforce.
Also during that time, Jessica realized that she was growing more and more attracted to him, despite her best efforts to remain neutral and uninvolved. For his part, Marino was aware that Jessica was falling for him, and he did nothing to discourage it. He was well aware that she stopped by his small corner office far more often than she needed to, but whatever he thought about it, he kept it to himself.
It seemed that every other day she stood in front of 126 Tanglewood Place, fumbling for her keys and chiding herself for letting her guard down a little more that day, and for making herself that much more vulnerable. It frightened her. She realized that becoming deeply involved with someone might very well lead to disclosures about her past and her former identity, and that was something she was just not prepared to do. She might never be prepared for that in fact.
But on the other hand – all that was four years ago, wasn’t it? No one had ever come around asking about Rachel Armitage in all that time, and she had never gotten any reports from her WPP contact that suggested any kind of problem. As far as she knew, Salvatore Aiello, the shooter who had killed her husband, and son of the big boss himself, Benvenuto Aiello, had simply disappeared off the face of the earth, and was content to let sleeping dogs lie.
Why shouldn’t he? Jessica had identified the man, told police everything she knew about the whole incident, and absolutely nothing had ever come of it. She was no threat to them anymore, so why shouldn’t they leave her alone after all this time?
She waffled back and forth daily like this, wrestling with the temptation to follow her heart and allow herself to love again. But every time she reached the conclusion that it was the right thing to do, and that she should waste no time in doing it, her fearful, practical side intervened again, and told her that caution was the best policy. After all, caution had kept her alive this long, and there was every reason to expect that caution would allow her to live a long fulfilling life - as long as she didn’t allow her heart to become fulfilled, she thought to herself, biting her lip. She was vexed that tonight would be yet another night of doubts, self-recriminations, and ultimately, tossing and turning.
Coincidentally, the following day, a Tuesday, was the day when Jessica was scheduled to work with Marino on a campaign to attract more qualified personnel to the company. Right from the beginning that morning, Jessica was impressed again with his business savvy, and his knack for finding different approaches to traditional challe
nges. Time flew by as they discussed strategies, and beyond the professional aspect of their collaboration, both realized that they were enjoying each other’s company tremendously.
When Jessica noticed that she had already spent more time than she intended on this now lengthy meeting, she suggested that they wrap it up over lunch at the cafeteria.
“Yes of course, we can do that if you like,” countered the agreeable Marino with a smile, “or – perhaps we could take a walk along your bike path, and draw the most useful conclusions from our morning discussions. We’ve been sitting a while now, and the exercise would do us both some good. Besides, I had a big breakfast and I’m not really in the mood for lunch yet.”
“That would be wonderful,” Jessica smiled, “and I think you’re right – I can certainly stand to stretch my legs a little. If you don’t mind, give me some time to change into walking shoes and I’ll join you in the lobby. I just need five minutes.”
“Excellent!” He replied. “I’ll join you in the lobby.”
The Walk, as Jessica later came to think of it, was far from a wrap-up to a business meeting. In fact, not a word was spoken between the two about Southwest Tours personnel, or about any other aspect of the company business. From the very first step, it was about Jessica and Nick, and the bond that was forming between them.
“I have always sensed about you Jessica, certain standoffishness, a detachment – you seem determined to avoid relationships in your life,” he began, “is that my imagination, or is there really some reason that you want to live a solitary life?”
Jessica was caught off guard by the directness of this query, and she temporarily fumbled for an answer that would be honest, yet not too revealing. “I know I probably come across that way, but I don’t really mean to. I’ve had some – well, some disappointments – with relationships in the past, and a lot of hurt was involved. It was very hard to get over. I guess I’ve been afraid that something like that might happen again if I become really close to someone. I suppose part of it is my lifestyle too – I really put a lot of time in on the job, and I don’t get out a lot, so I’m not exactly circulating. I’m sure you’re aware that the population at Southwest runs about 3 to 1 in favor of females, so the male pool at work is pretty slim. Even if it weren’t, I think I’ve developed something of a reputation as a cold fish. That wasn’t exactly by design, but that’s how things are. I suppose I just never made much of an effort to change it all.”