by Claire Angel
“I don’t think that will work this weekend. Maybe another time.”
“Well, enjoy the weekend Sarah. We will be traveling to Chicago next weekend for a conference. You’re all going to have the opportunity to give me a presentation on the company that we were talking about earlier. I have a feeling that you’re going to one of them. I will see you on Monday.”
I walked away, because I wanted to say and do more. The end had worked out far different than I would have hoped for. I would have hoped that she would have went along with it, but I didn’t want to show my disappointment.
As I was leaving, Amber stopped me on the way to the elevator. “Do you mind if I ride down with you?”
It was a strange question that I just kind of nodded my head to. I had known women like Amber for a long time. They wanted to always be the center of attention. The fact that I hadn't fawned over her like some of the other men in the office, gave her the idea that she had to get my attention as well. Or because of whatever was going on between her and Sarah. Maybe she could see that there was something between us as well.
We got in the elevator and she stepped a little closer than she needed to. I could see where this was going already, and I didn't want to be a part of it. I didn't want to have anything to do with Amber. She had been my type at some point, but I had long since outgrown the Ambers of the world. My focus was someone different all together.
“I just wanted to thank you again for the internship, Richard. It has been a dream come true, really.”
“Is that so? I don't think I've ever seen you at any of the speeches that I had at the college. Did I miss you there?”
She acted all bashful and that was supposed to negate everything that was just said. I knew exactly what Amber was doing, I just didn't know the why. The why, did not matter to me though. With women like her, it was best that I kept it all completely professional. Besides that, I didn't want something to look out of the way to Sarah. I was still trying to convince her that whatever was going on between us, was worth working on. I still wasn't sure about it, but I wanted to be.
“Well, I just missed a few of them because I was so busy. You know how it is, there's always something to do. A party to plan, or a paper to write. College was very packed with activities.”
I wasn't sure exactly what that meant, but it didn't really matter. I was watching the numbers on the plate above the door, watching them go lower, but not fast enough. We had another thirty to go and I had no idea what the hell I was even supposed to say to her. I didn’t have to figure it out though, because Amber find plenty to fill in the blanks.
“I just can't believe I'm here in New York. It is such a beautiful city. Do you have any recommendations of what I should see my first weekend here?”
She was fishing for something that I had tried to get Sarah to go with. Now I was stuck in an elevator with Amber. She was talking incessantly, and I already had a headache.
“Everybody seems to really get a kick out of Time Square. I would just take a walk over there and look around. You will find more out of the way places that way. It is hard to tell you, what place to go to in particular.”
“Maybe you can take me to one of your favorite places? I am always up for an adventure.”
Amber was doubling down as she moved towards me and I moved a little bit more towards the corner. I was not going to give her the invite that she was looking for, and I wasn’t very good at being nice about it. I wanted to tell her no and to fuck off. I just didn’t like her, and I wasn't in the mood. She wasn't Sarah. None of that would've went down very well though.
“I would get with Charles. He has a lot more time in the evenings than I do. Also, Charles has been here a little bit longer than me, so maybe you can get with him and he can take you somewhere. I am sure that his company would be a lot more enjoyable than mine. I spend most of my evenings on the telephone, talking to people from other countries.”
“I don't mind really.”
I was being as nice as I could possibly be, but she refused to see what was right in front of her. I did not want to go out with her. Was I not being clear enough?
“I will get your number from HR and if I have some spare time, I will give you a call. Alright?”
I was throwing her a bone and that was it. She was lucky she was getting that, and I was actually kind of perturbed that I had to do it to begin with. Amber was smart enough to know that I wasn't interested in her. She had to be wise enough to learn, that not everyone in the world was going to want her. I was just not one of those people.
The elevator doorbell finally rang, and the stainless-steel doors started to open. It was literally the best sound I could think about at the moment and I sighed loudly to myself. I was finally going to get out of this damn elevator, and I wasn’t going to have to talk to this woman anymore.
As I was leaving, she touched my arm and told me to have a good evening.
“If I don't hear from you this weekend, I hope you have a good one.”
She didn't mean a bit of it; I could tell that she was angry, but she at least had not said anything. I wanted to explain that it wasn't her fault, but I knew that it would just make matters worse. It was better just to pretend like nothing was going on. I didn't want to have to apologize for rebuffing her, because then that would put the act of it, right front and center so everybody could see it.
I walked away, hoping that Amber wasn’t too upset that I rebuffed her. She just wasn’t my type. Not anymore anyways. Not since Sarah.
Chapter 9
Sarah
I tried during the weekend to come to some sort of truce when it came to Amber. I was sick of all the dirty looks and the snide comments every time I saw her. It was really becoming rather tiresome, but after she came home from work Friday afternoon, it seemed to only get worse. Something was obviously pissing her off.
I didn't care enough to ask, and she certainly wasn't going to tell me about it. She didn’t have anybody to really talk to about it, because it seemed like most of her friends had went their separate ways. Now Amber was on the phone all the time with Mia, her BFF that stayed as an intern in the Detroit office.
I kept it in mind, and I tried to work things out with her, but the opportunity never presented itself. Instead she gave me a bunch of hateful looks and didn't say much more to me than that. Whatever had happened Friday afternoon, had made things worse between us. I didn't even want to think about it, but everything came to a head Monday morning.
One bad part about the apartment that I shared with so many other people, was the fact that there was only two bathrooms. Since there were about as many boys as it was girls, we had just decided that there would be one for each. It was not working out that well, because it was hard to get in front of the mirror and get a free plug to do my hair. Someone was always in there. So, I decided that I was going to start going in earlier and then I would have the time that I needed.
That seemed to be a problem to Amber. She did not like the fact that I beat her in there this morning. It was clear that she was pissed off. She wasn’t good at hiding her emotions, although I didn’t know about any of the other ones. All she really showed off was hate.
“Do you mind? I have to get to work.”
She was yelling at me through the door and I didn’t have to see her, to know what kind of mood she was in. It was, surprise, the same one she was always in.
“We work at the same place Amber. I will be out in a few minutes. I haven’t even got in the shower yet.”
I knew she was mad that I had beat her in there, but that didn’t mean that I was going to let her have it. I thought she had gone away, but then she started to bang on the door. I asked her what her problem was, but she just kept banging.
Finally, I pulled the door open and asked her again what the hell she wanted. I didn’t lose my temper all that much, but it was actually pretty easy when it came to Amber.
“I wanted to get my brush
. I can at least start on my hair, while I have to wait for you.”
She started to move forward, and I shook my head. There was no way that she was getting anything out of here, not after how she had acted. I don’t know why I even had to tolerate her. I was thinking about my father’s offer again. Maybe it would be worth it, just to get out of this living situation. This was not going to get any better.
I made sure of that, by closing the door in her face. I wasn’t letting her in, and I locked it, before I got in the shower. I heard banging for a while longer, but I just ignored it. There was nothing that I had to do. I would be out sooner, if she would just leave me alone.
At some point, she left, and I was thankful for the peace. I will admit that I did stay in there a little longer than normal. It was basically because I could, and I was getting her back a bit. I didn’t stay too long though, because there were several other women and I didn’t want everyone to be pissed at me. Just Amber. I was just trying to inconvenience her.
When I did finally get out, I got one of her famous dirty looks, but at this point, I just smiled back at her.
“You think that you’re going to make it because of Richard, but that’s exactly the reason that you’ll be the first to go. He will have a couple of goes at you and that will be it.”
I didn’t miss a step and I didn’t look back, but her words cut me. I wanted to deny it all and tell her that it wasn’t like that. But it was. Richard was making it clear that he wanted to be with me in that way and I hadn’t told him no. I realized that I didn’t want to.
It was a good reminder, one that I sort of needed. It was hard to think straight when it had anything to do with Richard. I found myself doing things and saying things, that I wouldn’t normally do and say. And I knew, that it was all Richard’s fault. He was messing with my head and the worst part about it all, was that I don’t even think he was trying.
Amber helped me focus. It was another work week and I was going to work hard and stay on task. And that meant, not daydreaming about the boss. I had to tell myself, that it was never going to happen.
***
Richard called me into his office as soon as I arrived. I did hear the snarky remark from Amber and I just sighed to myself. The last thing that I wanted to do, was draw more attention to us. But there was no telling Richard no. I guess more than anything, I was afraid that Amber was right and once Richard and I were together, once I allowed such a thing to happen, he would be done with me.
I really hated the idea of that, and I wanted to believe that his attraction to me went a little bit further than that, but I wasn’t sure. How could I be?
“Yes Sir?”
“Please Sarah, shut the door.”
I tried not to feel the alarm that was coursing through me. I didn’t know what in the world he wanted from me. I never really knew, but what I did know for certain, was that I wasn’t going to let it bother me. There was too much going on between us and I was sure that most of it was all in my head. Of course, Amber wasn’t right.
“Yes Sir?”
“How was your weekend?”
I shut the door as he asked me to, but I had no idea what would make him ask such a thing. I knew that he was being nice, but I was in a mood. And his piercing gaze was making me nervous. He was extremely handsome. How the hell can someone be this handsome and hot?
“It was fine. Are you going to bring all of the other interns in here, to ask them the same questions?” He looked surprised and truthfully, I was a little shocked by my behavior as well. I don’t know why I was letting Amber get under my skin, but it was something I hadn’t banked on. It was also something that I couldn’t stop from happening. As much as I wanted to keep it together, I couldn’t. What if she was right? What if he was just playing with me and I was just letting it happen? I didn’t like the idea of that at all.
“No, I wasn’t planning on it.”
Richard paused for a moment and sat back in his chair. He motioned for me to sit down in the one across from him. I wanted to tell him no. There was already regret in my mind, I didn’t want to make it worse, by opening my big, fat mouth. But I was already being rude, so I hurriedly sat down and steeled myself for what was going to come next. I knew that it wasn’t going to be good.
“It seems like something is bothering you Sarah. Would you like to talk about it?”
This was one of the richest men in the city and he was trying to council me. It all made no sense whatsoever, but I knew that it didn’t matter. What mattered, was the fact that I wasn’t going to let it get to me.
“I don’t really want to talk about it, Richard.”
And if I did want to talk about it, which I actually did, it wouldn’t be with him. There was no way that I was going to let it come out to him.
“Come on Sarah. Ever since you got here, things have been different between us.”
“Well, now you’re my boss Richard. People notice that you’re treating me different and they’re not too happy about it. I guess I don’t blame them, but I don’t want to hear about it either, you know?”
“I did not realize that I was treating you differently.”
“Well as soon as I came in, you're already pulling me into your office. That's why I asked if you were going to ask anybody else. It is just going to be me in here and I'm already getting flack about it. This is just not how I wanted to start things here. I want to be here because of my own ingenuity and my own steam. I don't want someone to base it on something else.”
I didn’t have the guts to just come out with it. I wanted to be able to let it all go, but I knew that I couldn’t. He was trying his best to understand, but I was leaving a lot out. How could I mention Amber, without mentioning other things?
“There is a lot of jealousy in that one. I think she was coming on to me Friday and I kind of blew her off. It’s most likely why you're hearing about it. Women are far more brutal than men.”
I was surprised that he did understand. Men didn’t usually seem to get the small intricacies that women ran off of. It was a cat fight and I had to wonder what he thought about all of it. But I didn’t really know if I wanted to get into any more details about it.
“Of course, I do. I wouldn't worry about her too much though. She is not going to be around that long.”
“Why would you say that?”
“I know she is already looking into something easier. Amber was never meant to be here, but I work with her father in a lot of business and he wanted me to do it as a favor. I felt obliged to bring her here...”
“If she ever knew...”
“Now don't go telling her. That would just make it worse. I wouldn't worry about whatever Amber has to say about anything. Please just don’t let her affect you this much. She is not even on your level Sarah.”
It was exactly what I needed to hear. I was so worried about what Amber was going to say and I really liked the idea that I wouldn’t have to listen to her. I liked the idea even more, that she was going to be moving on soon. I know that it wasn’t a guarantee or anything, but just the thought was enough.
“So, I am just supposed to ignore her?”
“Basically. It will cause you less grief. You’re doing great and I was just wanting to see you. I was hoping that we would go out last weekend.”
I was sidestepping now, because I didn’t know what to say to that. Just because I wasn’t to worry about Amber, didn’t mean that I could get her damn words out of my mind. What if she was right and he was paying all this attention to me, because he was worried about getting me in the sack? Then what?
“It still may be good, to keep it professional. I want to do a good job for you. It is hard to concentrate on that, when we talk about anything else.”
That was not at all the answer that he was looking for and he kind of pouted. It was adorable and it made me smile.
“Why can't we have both? Why do they have to be exclusive, one or the other?”
&
nbsp; “Haven't you ever heard the expression that you can't have your cake and eat it too?”
That had his frown a little bit deeper. I guess my dad and all of his sayings, was finally starting to rub off on me. Richard was taking the little gem of wisdom, about like I did. While I wanted to think that it was true, I wasn’t sure. I wanted to believe it could be true, because then I could have everything that I wanted and more. That certainly sounded like a good idea to me.
“I am living proof that you can have everything you want and so much more, you just got to be willing to go for it.”
“I would imagine that is the case for you, but it is certainly not the case for me Richard.”
“Come on, we both come from wealth and a lot of family clout. You’re intelligent, funny, beautiful. I would imagine that those things will open any door that you want it to.”
“Yes, but I don’t want it to be because of the last thing. I want it to be for all of the other reasons that you listed.”
I was being hard on him, even though he was really being amazing. I wanted to believe that what he said was all crap, but it wasn’t. I did have a lot going for me and I was thankful for that.
“I didn’t mean it like that. I guess I don’t have the same temperament as you. I have learned a lot about you through the years. You’ve given a lot of interviews. You went for things when you were my age, that I can’t imagine. I just look up to you.”
“I don’t want you to look up to me Sarah. I want you to see me as a man, that is very interested in you as an incredible woman.”
How was I supposed to respond to that? He really was impossible, and it was only twenty minutes into the first day of the week. I questioned if I was going to survive my second week or not.
Chapter 10
Richard