Until You Believe Me

by Lindsey Woods

  "I'm sorry, I have to go take care of something important. Thank you for coming Madison. I will see you soon hopefully."

  "Oh yeah, I mean, I understand. Thank you for the invitation and for lunch." I nervously reached for the car door and hopped out. I gave Connor a weak smile as I jumped out and closed the door. Connor drove his truck out of the parking lot a few seconds later and sped off into the street.

  My lightheartedness I had been feeling all week, especially today was gone. Replaced with a heavy feeling of embarrassment or maybe it was nervousness. Rather than walking back to the office I walked to my car and decided to go home.

  Chapter 6

  The weekend passed by uneventfully and yet again it was Monday morning. Without fail I pulled into the parking lot and made the trek to the office. I felt my pulse speed up and a huge smile spread across my face as I saw the familiar envelope pinned to my door, I snatched it down and went into the office.

  Madison,

  Sorry about my abruptness. Something with the family had come up. I need a favor. Come see me when you can.

  I'm sorry,

  Connor

  I suddenly felt worried that something was wrong, whatever was involved in the family situation from Friday. I had to get ready for class, but I would go over right after.

  I noticed that again, my time spent doing what I had to was so slow with the prospect of getting to see Connor. Was this really me? I remembered feeling this way only one other time and that was a long time ago.

  I practically raced from class to the familiar trailer in the front of campus. I walked right up to it, knocking softly.

  "Come in." The familiar deep voice with a hint of southern gentleman in it.

  I stepped in and had to consciously keep my frown hidden. He was not alone. Standing next to him, entirely too close was a petite redhead. She was dressed in a moderately short black pencil skirt and an extremely fitted light blue blouse tucked in. Who wears stilettos to a construction site?

  I suddenly felt very self conscious. My tan wedged heels and capris with a much less fitted blouse seemed cheap and dirty next to this woman.

  "Madison, I'm so glad to see you!" Connor got up from his seat and came over. I was shocked when he put his arms around me to hug me. I felt small, almost childlike wrapped in his strong arms and enormous frame. The softness of his T-shirt was intensified by the warmth that was radiating from him. When he pulled back I felt my knees start to buckle at the gorgeous white smile that was plastered on his face.

  "I felt so bad all weekend, like I had blown you off. I was worried that you'd assume I was just trying to get away." He ran a hand through his hair and I realized that was his nervous energy. I stuttered, he tousled that gorgeous brown hair.

  "Not at all. I was fine." Liar. That's exactly what you thought and you're full of shit.

  I saw him visibly relax and the look of concern almost left his face. Everything he said or did he did with genuine concern or caring. You could read how genuine of a person he was from his face.

  "I'm glad. I want you to meet somebody." He gestured to the hot redhead behind him.

  Wife, girlfriend, fiance?

  "This is Chantel, she is a interior designer that I like to use on jobs that it calls for. The university asked if I knew anyone who would do the inside part of the job and she's the best."

  The breath that was caught in my throat finally escaped in a larger exhale.

  "Nice to meet you Madison, Chantel Wilson." She shook my hand in a very firm and professional manner. Suddenly she was very cute, and no longer threatening.

  "My pleasure. If you guys are busy I can stop by before I leave for the day," I said as I turned my attention away from Chantel and to Connor's beautiful green eyes.

  "No, Chantel is here for you. The university is trusting the office to her and if they like what they see then they are putting her on the whole renovation. They recommended we polled some faculty to see what they are interested in for the administration building. So we're polling you. Chantel is going to take you over to the building, give you a tour and jot down some ideas. Now it's not completely finished but you'll be able to see what it's going to look like."

  "Why me? I'm pretty sure they wanted more than one perspective. And to someone who actually has taste." I was shocked and a little nervous. I wasn't the most stylish or color coordinated person.

  "Why? Because I trust you and Chantel will filter anything she doesn't feel will work. She's very good at what she does and you have to live with it. Besides, are you going to tell on me that you were on the only one?" The way he looked at me gave me an involuntary shiver. It was a playful, almost boyish look. His eyes sparkled and he had the hint of a questioning smile on his lips.

  "No." Good answer. So articulate Madison!

  "Good. Chantel will take you around now or if you need her to come back."

  "Now's fine." Another gem.

  "Right this way then. I'll touch base later Matthews." Chantel had a clipboard and waved over her shoulder as she started out of the trailer.

  "Be careful with her, she might be a magnet for trouble!" Connor called as I was about out of the door and I turned to see his wide grin across his face as he chuckled at my exasperation.

  The building was state of the art Chantel explained during our time there. Apparently part of the money for this huge renovation was a grant from the government that everything would be state of the art and energy efficient.

  "It really is going to be a new type of building. Connor specializes in using products that are the best for the environment as possible. Sometimes it's just the lesser of the evils but his company tries more than most," I followed closely behind her as we walked two flights of steps.

  "What have they done here specifically?" I haven't heard much from Connor about what his crew is doing so I figured I could try to get information from Chantel.

  "Oh the basics, efficient windows and insulation. He is going to be installing some solar panels on the roof when they're done with that. This whole building should be able to be heated and cooled with those panels. This right here will be the main offices. Obviously downstairs will be secretaries and the like. This, according to Connor's plans will be the English department floor which is where he wanted me to start with you." Chantel walked down a long hallway that was full of wood beams. The supports were there and you could almost make out each individual office. All that was left was to put up the drywall separating each.

  At the end of the long hallway we came to an office, the drywall had already been started. Outside of the office, stapled to a support structure was a big white lily.

  "This must be it. Connor wanted to make sure I took you to see your office." Chantel smiled as I pulled the flower from the staple. Unfortunately I had to break the stem in order to get the flower freed. I held it up to my face and breathed it in. I thought that I could faintly smell Connor's cologne, but that could have been in my head.

  "I kind of came up with a few color options, the university has approved all of them, so what do you think?" Chantel showed me papers which had a number of different fabrics stapled to each. A pale gray paint swatch was sitting next to a pale yellow plaid fabric. Hints and swirls of green were intertwined in another piece of fabric.

  "This is gorgeous. It seems manly enough with the gray but the yellow balances it out with femininity. I think anyway." I looked at Chantel who was nodding.

  "I think you're right. This one is my favorite too. That way we can still use some of the furniture from the old building which will make the powers that be happy." She was writing a few things down on the paper.

  We walked a few other floors before we headed back down to ground level.

  "I need to be at another appointment. If you'll stop in and tell Connor that we've decided and I'll see him on Wednesday when we start installation."

  "Of course. I"ll head over there right now before my class. Thank you Chantel. I'm sure it would have been easier to do it alone
, but I appreciate you taking me with you."

  She smiled and waved as she started walking towards the parking lot. "No problem, it was important to Connor so it was important to me."

  I walked over to the familiar trailer and gave a knock. There was no answer so after a few seconds I peeked my head in. It was empty. I didn't really know what to do considering that Connor had always been in here. I stepped into the trailer as I got an idea. I walked to his desk and took a piece of paper off of a pad.

  Connor,

  Chantel will see you Wednesday for installation, whatever that means. It looks great. It could use some walls, unless you are too super high-tech for those. Thank you for the flower. It's beautiful, as is my office. If only I didn't have to walk down a 50 foot hallway to get there. See you soon.

  Madison

  I ripped a small piece of tape from the dispenser and left the trailer. Closing the door behind me I fastened the note to the trailer door.

  I nearly skipped to my next classroom, smiling at the flower, my note and Connor's irresistible grin.

  Chapter 7

  I had survived my last class for the day and walked back to my office. This week seemed to be off to a great start and I was hoping it would continue.

  My already giddy mood only increased when I saw the rectangle of paper that I hoped would be waiting for me.

  I snatched it down and closed my office door behind me. I couldn't stop smiling just holding the paper. I quickly opened it and sighed happily when I saw the now familiar handwriting.

  Madison,

  Nice touch with the note. However I will be hearing about it from the guys for months. We do believe in walls, and I needed to keep you safe. End of the hallway means anything bad that comes through the door will have a lot more options before it gets to you. Can I see you tonight? I'm planning on leaving this evening at a decent time, and I'd love to see you. Call me.

  Connor

  My heart beat quickly and stomach filled with butterflies. I felt entirely too giddy to be myself. How could one person instill this much emotion into me, let alone after barely seeing each other. I didn't know the answer to that, but I passed that second guessing away. He wanted to see me tonight and that thought warmed my heart beyond anything I could imagine.

  I picked up the phone and dialed the number from the other note.

  "I've been waiting for you to call. More like hoping you'd call. How was class?"

  The voice that filled the phone made me feel so excited I was about to burst. My smile was practically going to crack my face in half.

  "It was ok and why wouldn't I call?" I twirled the phone cord around my finger like some pre-teen girl in an 80's movie.

  "Like I said, I was just hoping. I'd like to see you tonight. Can you pencil me into your schedule or is it already too filled?" As much as I as smiling, I thought I heard his own playful smile coming through the phone line.

  "I assure you my schedule is far from filled, and I'd love to get together. What did you have in mind?" I was nearly on the edge of my seat in anticipation.

  "I was thinking of inviting you over for dinner, away from work, away from campus, just dinner."

  "That sounds great. What time do you want me?"

  "I was thinking about 7:30. That will give me some time to get cleaned up and run to the grocery store. Let me give you my address ,and some directions."

  I wrote down his address and tried my best to write his directions.

  "I think I got it, should I bring anything?"

  "Just yourself, I have the rest covered. Until later Madison, have a great day."

  "Do the same Connor."

  Even after the phone had been hung up for a couple minutes I was still grinning like an idiot. The short knock at the door shook me from my daydream and then Ben's head popped in.

  "Well hey there stranger. How the hell are ya." He sat down and stretched out in the chair across from me.

  "I'm well, how are you Benjamin." I watched his face, he looked mischievous and that look on Ben could be dangerous.

  "Well I'm fine now that I know you're alive. I've been trying to catch up with you for a few days now, you've been MIA. Once I ventured out to the parking lot to make sure you hadn't been car-jacked and raped and your car was in the parking lot but you were not. Another time I peeked into your office only to see you had already left. Does this have to do with Construction Connor?" He smiled devilishly at me and I couldn't help but let out a little laugh.

  "I'm fine, all in one piece. I wasn't feeling well on Friday so I left around four. I figured you'd be eager to get out on the town so you wouldn't miss me. And I have no idea who this construction man you're talking about is." At the thought of Connor I felt my stomach do a little flip but tried to keep the look off of my face.

  "Those mysterious letters are piling up on your desk Ma'am. I'm not being nosy. Just concerned and nosy."

  I got up as he rose to leave. "I'm fine, nothing to be concerned about. He's nice and nothing is going on." That thought made my giddy heart a little heavy. I was getting all teeny bopper over this dinner and who knew what it meant to Connor? That not-knowing of dating sucks!

  "Well let me know if I need to kick any ass." Ben hugged me briefly and kissed the top of my head. Sometimes he knew just how to be the perfect best friend. He nodded as he left and I waved at him. For all of my routine and my monotony Ben was a shining beacon of constant and I loved and appreciated him more than I ever told him.

  I gave Ben one more smile in my head and started to head out. I didn't know how long it would take me to get out to Connor's but I would rather be early than late.

  ***

  The drive to Connor's was painstakingly long. Though it was only forty-five minutes from my house the excitement, nerves and giddiness were making me restless.

  I didn't really know what to expect when dressing so I decided on a dark pair of jeans, which seemed dressier than any others I owned. I also decided to wear deep purple and black print blouse with a thin black cardigan over it. My mother had also taught me that it was never ok to arrive empty handed so I had stopped by the bakery and picked up a small cheesecake.

  My GPS was barking out orders. As I made the required left I noticed the drastic change in houses from that of the main road. The height of these houses had skyrocketed at least 10 feet. Some had large black fences and gates. Others even had shaped bushes and trees. One house reminded me of Edward Scissorhands and that kind of creeped me out.

  As the GPS barked out its last directions I made a right into an extremely long driveway. My mouth hung open as I saw the behemoth mansion sitting in front of me. One of the three garages was open revealing Connor's Land Rover so I assumed I was at the right place. At the end of the driveway my car set off a motion sensor light. Putting my car in park I steadied my breathing as I turned it off and got up. Cheesecake in hand I started walking up to the front door.

  Halfway up the long walkway the huge front door opened and Connor stepped out. It was that moment that I realized I had never seen him out of his work element. He wore jeans that hung on his slim waist perfectly. A dark blue T-shirt that perfectly displayed his build and a light blue button up shirt that was halfway unbuttoned. His hard was brushed back. My legs nearly gave out right there in front of his house.

  He stepped down and came to greet me on the walkway. He took the small cake box in my hand and gave me a too-short hug. He smelled like fresh shower and cologne, a heavenly mixture.