by Lauren Wood
“I am looking, sort of. I just know what I want. That isn’t being picky.”
She wasn’t buying it and her brown eyes gave me this look that I knew too well. “What about you?”
“Scott and I are doing okay. I think we should see other people though, you know, keep the options open.”
“Then what is the point of being together?”
“He keeps me from doing stupid things.”
I giggled, “Like Justin?”
“Yes like Justin. That is worth it, right?”
I nodded my head in agreement, but I still wasn’t sure what I was supposed to say. This was a normal thing for us. We went out every Friday night and Amy always tried to talk me into dancing with all these different men. She had found the love of her life in a bar, even if they did split up. I knew I wouldn’t find my husband here. I didn’t know where I would find him, but it wouldn’t be at a place like this.
“That guy is over there staring you down Claire, go say hi.”
I looked where she was looking and I had to admit that she finally found a guy that was easy on the eyes. I certainly liked the look of him and I turned back to Amy when he met my gaze. The man was not what I was looking for, but there was something in his eyes that made me look again.
“Go over there.”
I debated it for a minute and had decided that I didn’t want to go, but that didn’t matter. The guy that was looking our way started to walk over and I fixed a smile on my face.
“Hey ladies.”
Smiling up at the guy, as he got closer, I could tell how handsome he was.
“Hello guy.”
“Tony.”
“Hi Tony.”
“Can I buy you a drink?”
I picked up the glass that I was drinking from. He was a little too late on that one.
“Fair enough, let me take you for a dance.”
He was persistent and with Amy half pushing me out of the bar stool, I didn’t really have a choice but to go dance with him. One dance I told myself. I only have time for one dance and then I was going to go home and work on some resumes.
“You are beautiful, what is your name?”
I smiled at the compliment and told him that my name was Claire.
“I think I have seen you before Claire.”
I shook my head and told him that I doubted it. The man wasn’t listening though. His hands were all over me and I felt his palms tightening up on my ass. What the hell did this guy think he was doing?
I pushed back from him. ‘”Come on, I know where I saw you from Claire. It took me a minute, but I have watched you dance many times before.”
“No, I think you have the wrong girl.” He was not letting go of me and I was getting aggravated to no end. I wanted his hands off of me, right now.
I pushed away and he told me that I was being a tease. This was why I hated coming here, but I came for Amy.
“Don’t think that I don’t know who you are. Do you need a few dollars?”
My face fell and for a moment I was mad at someone else, more than I was this man. But then I had to wonder how I could deal with this every day. When Tony started to pull some money out of his pocket, I turned around and hoped that I didn’t feel his hands on my arm to stop me. I was humiliated and I walked right back to the table where Amy was.
“What just happened?”
“He thought I was someone else and thought he would get liberal with his touching.”
“Oh, ewww, sorry.”
We were both quiet for a while. I wanted to leave right now, but Amy wanted to finish her drink. She at least had the decency to not say anything about Amber. I didn’t want to talk about it and it was nights like this that I hated sharing a face with someone else, that someone who is my twin, someone so different than me, yet close enough to the same that I had encounters like this a couple of times a week since I came to Atlanta.
“Don’t worry about it Claire, that was one guy.”
It was one guy, all the time it felt like. How was I ever supposed to date here if that was how it turned out? “I think we need to try somewhere new. This place isn’t working for me.”
“It’s not so bad. Some of the guys are really nice. I just like the atmosphere.”
The atmosphere was dark and bright all at the same time. Colored strobe lights moved throughout the place. It felt like more of a light show than anything else. The music was loud enough to vibrate my rib cage and I could barely hear without the person doing a sort of shout talk that was only okay in a club.
“I think I have had enough of this atmosphere for the night.” My attention was to Tony who was staring me down from the bar. I didn’t know if he was going to be a problem or not, but he made himself being there uncomfortable.
Amy saw the exchange and agreed that it was time to go. “If he gets up when we do, we need to talk to the bouncer.”
She was getting the same feeling I was and I agreed one hundred percent with her plan. Tony didn’t get up though. He stayed in his stool, eying us as we left. I got a shiver down my spine with the way he was looking at me. I was going to have to warn Amber about him. That guy seemed a little too forceful and I didn’t want her to run into him as well.
I took Amy home and even though she offered to finish the night at her house, I have had enough.
“Come on Claire, it’s not like you have class or work in the morning. You might as well get some of the benefits of being unemployed, think of all of the off time that you get.”
“I would rather have a job.”
“I could always get you a job at the diner.”
She had offered before and I had refused several times. I wasn’t quite to that level yet. I would be soon if I didn’t find something in my field before my savings ran out. I had projected up to nine months to find a good job. I moved to Atlanta for better job prospects, but I was finding it hard to bust into the market. I hadn’t given up, but I was getting discouraged.
“Maybe in another week or two. I am going to go online and see if I can find anything. I haven’t done too much of that yet. I took too much time off after college because I thought finding something would be a breeze.”
“Well I am here if you want to do something. I can’t sleep. I might call Justin over.”
I told her that it was a bad idea. He was an ex-boyfriend for her and most of the time a person was an ex for a reason. Justin was like her kryptonite and I didn’t want to see her get hurt again. Amy was an absolute mess last time she broke up with Justin.
“Don’t call him over Amy. You will regret it when he is asking you for gas money in the morning.”
“I know, but he is good at some things.”
I rolled my eyes and shook my head. I would never get how some people could put up with so much because of sex. That was the real reason, I knew that, but I didn’t understand why. I was still waiting for the right one. I wasn’t going to waste my time with the Justins of the world. I was looking for the real thing. “You will regret it in the morning Amy.”
“I know, but what else is youth for but regrets?”
There was no arguing with her and I wasn’t even going to try. “I will see you in the morning. Are we still on for lunch?”
“Yeah, I will see you then. You sure you don’t want to stay over?”
I declined again and wondered if she was that worried about calling Justin. Why did she act like an addict when it came to him? Would I ever find that? I wasn’t sure if I wanted to. It didn’t seem to be that fun.
Driving home, I thought of Amber and what she was doing right now. I hadn’t seen her in a couple of days, but after meeting Tony, I thought I would give her a call. She didn’t answer, that was usual and I left a voicemail for her to call me back when she got it. It would most likely be three or four in the morning when she got off of work, but I was used to her late hours.
I got home to Rosco and fed him for the second time today. It was like a peace offering because I had been gone s
o much today. He purred after I sat down at the computer and started to weave his way around my feet. I had this cat since college and he cheered me up about as much as he cleaned me out of tuna.
“Not now Rosco. I need to find a job.”
He looked at me disinterested and lay on my feet, purring like a small motor on the tops of them. I ignored the weight on my feet, settling for that instead of him lying on my keyboard and went to the job board in Atlanta. I was looking for a few different key words and for once there was more than a few new ones. It was two in the morning when I started to apply to a couple jobs around the city. I didn’t want to go to work at the diner, but I knew it was going to happen soon if I didn’t get something that would use this degree I was going to be paying back for the next decade or two.
I wasn’t too hopeful that I would get a call back. When I first starting looking I was sure that it would be an easy thing. Now I knew different and I felt like I was just plugging along, hoping that something would change, even though I had a fear that it wouldn’t.
Turning the computer off, I sighed to myself and checked my phone to see if Amber had called. I would talk to her later and went to lie down. I didn’t want to wait up for her, but I knew she would wake me up one way or another.
My thoughts raced when I lay down as they did most nights, uncertainty at the core. I thought of Amy and Justin. I didn’t get why she kept going back, but I had to wonder what the draw was. I knew the basics, but the emotions and feelings I didn’t get at all. Why in the world would someone put themselves through that over and over again, for a guy? It just didn’t make sense to me.
Amber and her line of work didn’t make sense to me either. Why would she choose to be around men like Tony?
The phone rang around four in the morning and I answered, not even needing to look at who it was. I already knew.
“Hey sis, long night?”
Chapter 2
Claire
I woke up groggy and the phone going off next to me. It was late, I could tell by the sunshine coming through the window like tiny little blades of glass in my eyes. I closed my eyes and lay back down. My head hurt, most likely from the few drinks I’d imbibed.
The phone stopped ringing and I laid there for several minutes in the silence before I braved opening my eyes again. It was pretty outside when I finally pulled the curtain back. It was like jumping in cold water, get it over with quick. Pulling the shade back had me squinting, but I was finally able to see the day in front of me.
I wanted to be positive, even though my head was throbbing incessantly. I picked up my phone only after I had a cup of coffee in my hands. I had a feeling that it was going to be Amy. She always drank more and recovered quicker. It was proof I was a light weight or she was a witch, not sure which one.
I didn’t even look to see if she was the one that had called. I just dialed her number and let it ring while I took my first sip of coffee. It was heavenly.
“Hey Amy, I can’t believe you are up so early. I was going to give you some time to wake up before I called, but since you already did, what’s up?”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“Didn’t you call a little while ago?”
“No, I am trying to figure out why I am even awake right now. It is only nine Claire.”
I laughed and apologized. “I will call you back when you have gotten your beauty sleep. Just answer me one thing?”
“What?”
“Is Justin there?”
There was a pause that spoke volumes and I just shook my head. I should have known that she would call him up.
“It’s your fault because you wouldn’t stay over.”
“Bye Amy. Call me when you have rolled out of bed and gotten rid of him.”
“Okay.”
I hung up and just shook my head in disbelief. Amy really was a bit off when it came to men. If sex is what made a woman like that, I was thankful that I hadn’t gone that way. How exhausting it would be to make bad decisions based on a few minutes in bed.
Seeing who did call me if it wasn’t Amy, I didn’t recognize the number. Pushing the recall button, I heard a recording that I had reached the offices of Future Plans HR Department. My heart instantly started to race. This was the call that I had been waiting for and I had been lying about in bed.
Waiting for someone to come on the line, I told them that my name was Claire Adams and I was returning a phone call. When she didn’t automatically know what they had called me for, I told her that I had recently put in an application. It was very recent, like a few hours ago, but I was holding out for this being what I needed.
“Yes, Claire. We were calling to set up an interview later this afternoon if you are available. I have a couple of positions for someone with your degree as a starting position. I would like to fill those as soon as possible if you are interested.”
I was, far more interested than I would be able to express. “Yes of course. Just let me know the time and place.”
“Very good, we like eager. I will connect you to Andrea and she will take care of you.”
I thanked the woman, never catching her name. Staring at myself in the mirror, I frowned at my appearance. My blonde hair was hanging limp around my face and my blue eyes were dull. The best thing I could do was get started on straightening myself up. I was going to worry about it for the next few hours anyways, so I might as well look my best. This was the interview that I was waiting for and everything had to be perfect.
***
The building in and of itself was enough to be impressed. It was at least fifteen floors and I felt quite small standing in front of it, looking up to the top. I couldn’t actually see where it all ended. From this vantage point, Future Plans looked like something from the future. I just had to find out if this was going to be part of my own future or not.
I gave my name to the lady in the front. She was a general secretary and she was the one that had the information. “You have an appointment at four with Caroline Channing.”
I nodded my head that her information was correct. I was given a visitor badge that I wasn’t expecting and instructions on where to go after I got off the elevator. There were several people behind me as I was leaving and I hoped that they weren’t there for the job as well. I needed this and no matter what, I had to get this job today. All I wanted to hear was that I was hired.
The elevator was slow and it took several minutes to get almost to the top. I would be meeting Caroline on floor fourteen and as the elevator went up, so did my anxiety. This was the big time and I was scared to death to mess this up.
The instructions from the elevator were a little confusing, but it made more sense when I got there. The financial level was a maze of cubicles and offices and the four turns were necessary to find the office of Caroline Channing. I took a deep breath and knocked. It was now or never.
***
“Come in.”
I opened the door slowly and was almost instantly relieved at the smiling woman that was in front of me. She wasn’t much older than me and I don’t know why I felt better. I felt like I had a chance now, as she hadn’t been out of college that long either.
“Claire Adams?”
I nodded my head that I was her and she motioned me to the seat across from her desk. “Nice to meet you. I was glad to see your resume in my inbox this morning. You have all of the educational requirements that we are looking for. Sadly that has been a hard thing to find it seems and even with several recruiters I have two open positions.”
She was babbling and I was just to the point of smiling and nodding. I was listening, but more just waiting for her to get to the interview. Her desk was covered in work and I could tell that she was scattered brain for a reason. It seemed like she needed me, as much as I needed the job.
Caroline asked me about school and my grades. I had a copy of my transcripts with me just in case and when I offered to show her she took a few minutes going over everything. “Great gra
des and I can see that Stats was your best class. Very impressive Claire.”
“Thank you.” I was waiting for the but now. Like I had all of the education, but we were looking for someone with a little more experience. That was the but I was waiting to come out of Caroline’s mouth.
“Well everything looks to be in order Claire and I think you would be a great fit here. We focus on efficiency and I can see that you will be perfect. I have talked to a couple of your professors and bosses and everyone raves about you. We need the passion they describe here. I need people that are passionate about numbers.”
It was a silly thing to say, but I could relate. Numbers were easy because they didn’t change. Everything else changed and I liked the simplicity of numbers. I found it soothing, while most found it mind numbing.
Caroline went over the pay packet and the benefits that they offered. It was higher than I would have thought and there were many perks to working there. While Future Plans was still small in comparison to their rivals, they were making a name for themselves and apparently believed in taking care of the employees. “The employees take care of the customers, so Rick likes to make sure that we are taken care of. You couldn’t ask for a better boss. He is demanding, but I am sure you won’t have any trouble here. I have a good feeling about you Claire.”
I thanked her for her kind words and the opportunity. I almost wanted to get out of there quickly so that she couldn’t change her mind. I don’t know why I was so worried about it, but I was. I needed this job and it had just fallen on my lap a little too easily. I wasn’t used to it and I am sure that is why I felt this way.
“Do you have any questions for me Claire?”
I couldn’t think of a thing. “When do you want me to start?”
Caroline smiled and the woman looked beautiful for a moment. Her smile made the rest of her face more inviting and it was almost like seeing an eclipse with the belief that you wouldn’t see it again for a very long time.
“Start tomorrow at nine sharp. Make sure you are on time. You will have a meeting with the rest of the consultants and with the CEO Rick in the morning.”