by Rena Olsen
Great. I knew there would be a catch to her help. And she had the total wrong idea about how I’d spent the night, but it really wasn’t her business, so I didn’t bother correcting her. “Thanks for covering, Micah.”
“Come have lunch with us today. You can tell us about your mystery man.” She turned her attention back to her computer without waiting for a response. Apparently she assumed I would just do what she asked. And she was probably right. I might not have had any interest in playing her games, but I was happy to do what it took to keep things friendly with her. Besides, I liked the other people she typically ate with well enough. We might not even have to speak.
My phone buzzed, and I glanced down at it automatically. Thanks for last night. Hope your day is going well so far. –B
That man could make my stomach flutter even from a distance. It was a pretty tame message, but I felt it to my bones. He cared enough to check in the next day. Proof that he wasn’t into games.
Overslept but everything’s fine, I responded. Someone kept me out past my bedtime.
I would apologize but I’m not actually sorry. ;) Hope you’re not in trouble.
I chuckled quietly. Not yet, but I might be if I don’t get to work. Have a good day!
I’ll call you tonight.
With something else to look forward to, I happily returned to my e-mails, humming through the normally monotonous work and dreaming in the background.
* * *
—
I pulled up to Kate’s house hours later, still smiling. Bryce had texted me a couple more times throughout the day, and I was flying high. I even managed to keep my cool when Derrick, the office copy boy, once again stapled all my reports in the wrong spot, requiring me to redo them. I suspected he did it on purpose, but today it didn’t faze me.
Have fun with your sister tonight. –B
I didn’t respond to Bryce’s text, but I hummed a little tune as I stowed the phone in my purse and climbed out of the car. Kate’s street was filled with all the typical sounds of a suburban neighborhood. Kids playing a pickup game of basketball next door trash-talked each other, snippets of the evening news floated from an open window, and in the distance, a mower roared to life. The smell of fresh-cut grass permeated the air, and I breathed deeply. I loved this neighborhood. Kate and I joked that as soon as I settled down, I could buy a house nearby, and our kids would be able to play together.
My smile fell a bit as I realized that, at this rate, her boys would have zero interest in hanging out with any kids I had. But they’d be great older cousins, anyway. For the first time in a long while, I allowed myself to believe that our little fantasy might become a reality. I just knew Bryce would love this neighborhood, with its quaint old houses and friendly neighbors. I shook my head, laughing that after one date I was already picking out a house. Slow down, Jules.
I could hear the familiar sounds of chaos as I approached the front door to Kate’s house and entered without knocking. As usual, her two boys were running around in their Star Wars gear, brandishing light sabers and trying to beat the crap out of each other.
“Boys!” Kate yelled over their happy shouts. “Aunt Julia is here! Time to put the light sabers away and sit at the table.”
“Never!” Both boys turned to me and stalked closer. “That’s no aunt, that’s Rey, and she’s come to try to beat Kyle Ren again!” Eight-year-old Scott pointed his light saber at me. “But even if he falls, Supreme Leader Snoke never will!”
“Scott! My name is Kylo Ren!” Six-year-old Kyle was indignant. “Kyle Ren doesn’t sound like a Jedi name at all.”
“But it’s your name.”
“Nuh-uh.”
“Boys!” Kate sounded exasperated. I loved visiting, but there was something to be said for going home to a quiet apartment and putting my feet up at the end of the day. Taking pity on her, I stretched both arms out.
“Neither of you can resist the power of the Force,” I said, waving my fingers in the air. “You will drop your light sabers and go sit at the table.”
I could see the conflict in Scott’s eyes. Even though he liked to play the bad guy, he knew the good guy was stronger. Finally, he stiffened and dropped his light saber. “I will drop my light saber and go sit at the table.” He walked like a robot toward the table and sat.
Kyle, ever trying to stay in Scott’s favor, followed suit.
“Bless you,” Kate said. “I never imagined parenting would involve so many swords.”
“Light sabers!” Scott corrected, falling silent when I held up a hand again.
Kate crossed the room, giving me a quick hug and then threading her arm through mine. “So, now that we have peace and quiet for a few minutes, I want to hear all about last night.”
I took a seat at the table and peeked at my curious nephews. “Maybe we should wait until Kylo Ren and the Supreme Leader have finished.”
“Fine, but you’re not getting out of telling me,” Kate said, disappearing into the kitchen and reappearing with a pan of lasagna. “I need details, woman.”
I rolled my eyes. “Where’s Eddie?”
“Working late. Again.” There was an edge to Kate’s voice. She and Eddie were the perfect couple at times, but lately he’d been working a lot of overtime for no extra money, and the wear on the marriage was showing. Not to anyone outside the family, of course, but I knew them too well. I let it slide for now, but Kate wasn’t the only one who would be pressing for details later.
* * *
—
“Ahhh, peace and quiet,” Kate said. She was lounging on the couch when I came out to the living room after tucking my nephews into bed. Scott was still clutching his light saber as he drifted off to sleep, despite our argument over whether the Supreme Leader actually used a light saber or not. Spending time with my nephews made my heart ache for kids of my own, and I couldn’t help picturing what my babies with Bryce might look like. I definitely had it bad already.
“Did Eddie come home?” I asked, jumping in before Kate could divert attention to my date.
She jerked her head toward the basement door. “Came home, grabbed a slice of cold lasagna, and went downstairs. He won’t come back up until one a.m. or so.”
I frowned. “Is this normal?”
“Lately,” Kate said, sighing. She looked at the basement door as if she wanted to say more, but instead took a deep breath and forced a pleasant look onto her face. “But enough about the boring old married couple. I want to know more about this guy who has clearly swept you off your feet.” She studied me, a smirk on her lips. “Seriously, Jules, you’ve hardly stopped smiling since you got here.”
“Scott and Kyle,” I began, but Kate shushed me.
“Don’t even try it. I know you love my kids, but they’ve never made you glow quite like that. And that’s a good thing. So. Spill.” She leaned forward, eyes eager, and that was all it took for me to launch into a step-by-step playback of my date.
After I finished, Kate flopped back onto the cushions, sighing. “Seriously, Jules, he sounds fantastic.” She eyed me, a thoughtful look on her face. “I’d wondered if you would ever let yourself like someone again after Jake . . .”
“Ugh, and this conversation was going so well,” I said. I had no desire to talk about my ex-fiancé.
Jake had promised me the world. We’d met in college, and he had seemed so different from the other guys. He took an entirely different approach to life. He expected that good things would happen for him, and he was usually right. He told me once that he just listened to his heart, and he knew what to do. I’d ended up taking the assistant job instead of moving to a different city and a more promising position because he didn’t want to leave. He’d proposed to me when I’d told him I wasn’t moving, and I trusted him when he said he felt that he needed to stay put.
Two months later, he was inspired to take
a six-month assignment learning how to work on an organic farm. After that, he wanted to hike the Appalachian Trail. And all the while I waited, certain that he would come back to me so we could start our life together.
When he broke off the engagement, Jake told me that he assumed I knew that we were headed in different directions, that we were no longer on the same page. He said that we existed in different worlds, that I was stuck, and would only hold him back. He laughed when I suggested we try to work it out. Laughed at me even as I cried and handed the ring back.
Now he was living abroad with his childhood sweetheart, doing humanitarian work in some developing country. I saw updates sometimes from mutual friends. I was glad to still be by Kate and the boys, but it had been a big blow to my confidence. Only recently had I started to think I might be open to the idea of a relationship again.
“Fine,” Kate said, bringing me back to the present. “You’re right, we won’t talk about that douche-canoe. Let’s focus more on your fairy-tale prince. What did you say he did for a living?”
I breathed a sigh of relief as the topic moved away from the pain of my past. I was over it, mostly, but it still wasn’t fun to think about. No one likes to be reminded that they weren’t good enough. But even as I told Kate about the importance of Bryce’s job, doubts started creeping in. Jake had seemed so wonderful at first, too. A little selfish, maybe. A bit shallow. But we were young. We didn’t know better. Now I was older and wiser. Wasn’t I?
* * *
—
It was almost eleven by the time I drove home. I was going to pay for it in the morning, but it was worth it for some real girl talk with my sister. It seemed lately we mostly talked about her kids, and before that it was Eddie. I hadn’t had much more than my job to talk about since Jake took off. I probably needed to get some hobbies.
I was climbing into bed when I realized I’d almost forgotten to set the alarm on my phone, which was still in my purse. I wasn’t sure I could count on Micah to cover for me two days in a row, so I planned to set at least three alarms.
When I unlocked the phone I saw the text from Bryce still open on the screen. Bryce couldn’t be a hobby, but maybe he could help me find some.
Not wanting to wake him if he was already asleep, I texted. Hey, just got home. Thanks for the texts. We had a nice time, but we talked longer than planned. Don’t want to wake you, but give me a call tomorrow when you get this.
I hit send and plugged the phone in, preparing to turn out the light and go to sleep, but the phone rang almost immediately. My heart fluttered when Bryce’s name lit up the display.
“Hey,” I said, smiling into the phone, glad he was awake. “I thought you’d be sleeping already.”
“Nah, I was hoping you’d call,” Bryce replied. “I wanted to hear how your evening went.”
“It was good.” I paused, and decided I wasn’t ready to open up to Bryce about my concerns about my sister’s marriage. “We mostly talked about boring stuff. Work, the kids, you know.”
His laughter vibrated the earpiece on the phone. “Nothing else?”
“Hmm,” I said. “Nope, can’t think of anything else interesting there was to talk about.”
He laughed again. “Sure, sure. Okay. I just wanted to check in, but I’ll let you go to bed. For someone who claims to not stay out late on weeknights, you’ve sure been a night owl the past couple of days!”
I laughed. “This is rare for me, I promise you. I’m going to pay for it at work tomorrow, and probably fall face-first on the couch when I get home.”
“No plans tomorrow?” His voice rang with the smooth confidence that I associated with him already.
“Nope. I’m simply too exhausted from my busy social life this week,” I teased.
“What about Friday?” he asked. “Plans then?”
“Hmmm.” I pretended to think about it, knowing full well my calendar was wide open. “I had considered doing some of my complicated chores on Friday. Cleaning behind the stove, scrubbing the grout in the bathroom. You know, exciting stuff.”
He laughed. “Perhaps I could persuade you to postpone those plans and spend the evening with me instead?”
I sighed. “Well. I suppose I could move those things to Saturday. If I had to.”
“I appreciate your sacrifice.”
Settling back into my pillow, I reached over and turned the light off. “I should probably go to sleep. My boss prefers me when I’m conscious at work. Sweet dreams.”
He didn’t say anything for a moment, and I thought he might have drifted off himself. Finally, he spoke. “My dreams will be sweet as long as you’re in them, Julia Hawthorne.”
Pleasure rushed through me at his words. “Keep saying things like that and I’ll keep you around for a while.”
“I’m counting on it,” he said, chuckling. “Sleep well, Julia. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“Goodnight, Bryce.”
Chapter 4
I was beginning to wonder if I was in the middle of some elaborate dream. As things with Bryce continued to go well, things at work also improved. Whereas Elaine had been generally dismissive of me in the past, since our discussion about electronic filing and databases, she had been practically friendly. She started sending me on small errands, not just to pick up lunch or coffee. I even ran a message to the president of the company, who very few of us had access to. On Friday, she called me into her office to ask my opinion on a design she’d been working on.
“I like the font in this one, but the colors are so much better over here,” she said, wrinkling her nose as she studied the options for the ad she was creating.
Biting my lip, I contemplated whether I should actually offer a suggestion or just agree with her. I had an idea, but I didn’t want to overstep.
“Spit it out, Julia,” Elaine said. “You’ll never get anywhere in this company if you don’t speak your mind.”
I also wouldn’t get anywhere if I said something Elaine didn’t like, but I definitely couldn’t speak my mind about that. Instead, I nodded and pointed to the computer. “May I?”
“Go ahead,” she said, gesturing to the keyboard.
I saved what she had and then merged the two options.
“That won’t work,” Elaine said. “The font doesn’t fit right.”
“Hold on,” I said. “Just give me a minute.”
Elaine’s intake of breath told me that she wasn’t used to assistants speaking to her like that, and I cringed internally, but then again, she was the one who had told me to speak my mind. I selected a font similar to the one she liked but better suited to the design, moved it into place, and stepped back.
The room was silent as Elaine stepped forward, leaning in until her nose was almost touching the screen, studying my work. I held my breath.
“This . . . this is actually quite good,” Elaine said finally, and I sagged in relief. “Do you know much about graphic design?”
“No,” I said. “Not really. I took a couple classes in undergrad, but most of what I know I’ve learned here, from you and some of the other designers.”
Elaine studied me. “How would you like to learn more? You have an eye for this, but could use some refinement. The company would pay for some classes if you could give us a commitment to stick around for a few years after you’re properly trained.”
I was speechless, and clenched my teeth to keep my jaw from dropping. After snagging the job here, my interest in advertising and graphic design had grown, but I’d never been able to spare money to take more classes. It really was like a dream. When I was sure I could speak calmly, I cleared my throat. “I would love that.”
“I’ll see what’s coming up and let you know,” Elaine said, sitting back at her desk and turning to her work. It was her way of dismissing me. I turned to leave. “Julia?”
I looked back, working to keep
my expression smooth and professional. “Good work today. You’re destined for greater things than that desk out there.”
It was higher praise than I’d ever expected from Elaine. She wasn’t the type to dole out compliments just for doing a job, even if it was done well. In fact, she was more likely to find the smallest possible error and point it out. Loudly.
“Thank you, Elaine,” I said before exiting her office and heading straight for the break room. As soon as the door closed behind me, I jumped up and down, squealing quietly. It was an entirely inappropriate display, but I was bursting. I couldn’t wait to tell Kate. I couldn’t wait to tell Bryce. I stopped jumping as his name crossed my mind. How quickly he had become one of the first people I wanted to share good news with. I knew he’d be just as excited as I was. I could hardly wait.
* * *
—
A knock sounded on my door at exactly six that evening. I had just slipped the charm bracelet that matched my sister’s over my wrist, and I took one final look before hurrying to the door. I’d dressed a little more subdued that night, but I prayed I looked elegant and classy and not like I was on the way to a funeral in my black sleeveless dress. The skirt was just a little swishy, and fell to the top of my knees, and I jazzed it up with a red belt. I hated high heels, and my feet were still a little sore from wearing them the other night, so I slipped into a pair of flat strappy sandals before swinging the door open. My mouth dropped.
Bryce looked incredible. He wore a suit, making me grateful I had chosen something more formal. He had skipped the tie, and his dress shirt lay open at his throat. He stood with his hands in his pockets, looking as if he’d just stepped off the cover of a men’s fashion magazine, and when my eyes finally made it to his face, it was to see him laughing at me.
“Should I change?” he asked. “You seem pretty distracted.”
“Don’t you dare,” I said, reaching for my purse. “Oh, I have something for you!” I was a little reluctant to give up the jacket he’d loaned me the other night, but I hoped I’d have an opportunity to borrow another one at some point. Plucking the jacket from the coat-rack by the door, I presented it to him with a flourish.