by Tia Wylder
“Certainly, sir.” The waiter carried their menus to the new table and helped them choose dishes to suit their tastes.
“That was really nice of you. Thank you.” She couldn’t help the butterflies flitting in her stomach. It was the first decent moment she could remember during a storm. She was still uneasy, but it was more tolerable now.
“Not a problem.” Derrick took a sip of wine. He wanted to protect her. Moving tables was the most comfort he could offer her without holding her. He could still smell her perfume and feel her hand on his chest from earlier. He was confident he could escalate things between them if he wanted to. The desire was growing inside of him, and the wine only made it harder to resist. He needed to get his mind off her. He needed a distraction. A redhead at the bar caught his eye.
Chapter 7: Distractions
After dinner, Elizabeth folded her napkin, “I guess I should go back to my room.” Part of her wanted him to take it as a hint. Part of her was terrified that he would.
“I’m going to do a walk around and make sure everything is going smoothly. If you need anything, just let the front desk know.” She nodded politely and disappeared towards the elevator. Once she was gone, he took the rest of the bottle of wine and approached the redhead at the bar. A slinky green dress hung off of her shoulder. “Chad, could I have another bottle, please?”
“Are you drinking alone?” The woman brushed her hair over her shoulder, clearing his view of her cleavage.
“Not anymore.” He motioned for a clean glass and poured her some wine. “I do love a good red.”
“Well, that’s terrible.” She took a sip seductively.
“Why is that?”
She leaned in and whispered in his ear, “Because I’m a bad one.”
Derrick smirked. She would do nicely. “Shall we?” He pulled his keycard out of his pocket. The woman stood up and followed him to his room.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. Her red lipstick stained his lips. Derrick tossed her on the bed and let his hands roam over her body. If he closed his eyes, he could imagine it was Lizzie. Lizzie. He stopped and pulled away.
“What’s wrong?” She traced her fingers up his thigh, but he stopped her hand.
“You should go.”
“What?” Confusion and disbelief puckered her lips.
“Just go.” He pointed to the door and ran his fingers through his hair. He couldn’t go through with it. His frustration mounted. Against his better judgement, it felt like a betrayal to be here with this woman. For the first time, Derrick realized that perhaps his attraction for his intern was more than just a physical desire. After spending today with Lizzie, he had developed feelings for her. She had opened up to him and made him laugh. Until he could figure out what to do, it was best if he kept his conscience clear. It had been years since he had felt anything of merit for a woman. The fact that it was happening now with her was confusing and conflicting.
“Suit yourself.” The woman stood up and shrugged her shoulders, heading for the door.
Chapter 8: Revelations
Back in her room, Elizabeth flopped down on the bed. A smile had come to rest permanently on her lips. It was becoming harder to push down the feelings that were bubbling to the surface. In her mind, she pictured the photo they had taken earlier. Was it too farfetched to think that the desire in his eyes could have been real? Was she the only one feeling the sexual tension between them? There seemed to be an easy chemistry between them. Even him calling her Lizzie was starting to grow on her, though she would never admit it.
If she took a risk and told him how she was feeling, the worse he could do was tell her he didn’t feel the same way, right? “Just give me a sign.” She stared up at the ceiling. “What should I do?” Outside the window, the sun broke through the clouds. The rain was just a drizzle now. Her heart pounded faster in her chest. If that wasn’t a sign, then nothing was. She mentally prepared herself to take a chance. Would he be back yet from checking on his business? Elizabeth jumped to her feet and bounced on the balls of her feet. Only one way to find out.
Quickly, before she lost her nerve, she forced herself across the hall to his room and raiser her fist to knock. A large smile lit up her face, but before she could knock, the door opened. Elizabeth’s face immediately fell. A redheaded woman stared back at her. An elegant finger smoothed the edges of her smudged lipstick. In one instant, Elizabeth’s heart shattered.
“Oh, excuse me.” The woman brushed past her and left Derrick’s room leaving Elizabeth staring past her to where her boss stood.
“Lizzie,” he started to try to explain, but tears were welling up in her eyes. She took a step backwards and then bolted down the stairwell. “Lizzie, wait!” He called after her, but she wasn’t stopping.
Her feet pounded down the stairs. She felt foolish for getting her hopes up. Of course he wasn’t interested in her. She had fed herself a stupid fantasy. At least she hadn’t admitted it out loud to him. Elizabeth burst out of the bottom of the stairwell and ran outside. The sidewalks were still sodden from the rain. She held out her hand to flag down a cab. Hoping in the back, she dug through her wallet for some cash.
“Where to, Miss?” The cabbie glanced at her in the rearview mirror.
“Can you take me to the airport, please?”
“Yeah, I can do that.” He drove through the streets and ended their ride in front of the airport. “Twenty bucks.”
She could feel herself about to cry again, “I only have fifteen.”
He couldn’t stand it when women cried. “Hey, hey, hey. No need for tears. Looks like you’re having a rough day. Why don’t you give me the fifteen and a smile, and we will call it good?”
“Really? You would do that?” His kindness was touching, and through the tears she managed a small smile.
“There. See? That’s definitely worth five bucks.” She passed him the cash she had. “Take care of yourself, Miss.”
“I will. Thank you so much.” He waved goodbye as she climbed out, barely succeeding in holding back her tears.
Her savings account was scraping bare bones. She needed to get home. Her fingers found the emergency credit card tucked in a secret compartment of her wallet. She would have to deal with the consequences later.
The flight was cramped and less accommodating than the one she had been on earlier, but she was thankful just to be going home. How could she have been so stupid? She thumped her head on the back of her headrest. This day had been emotionally draining. So much had happened since she had woken up this morning. The most exciting day of her life had quickly soured. The look on the redheaded woman’s face swam before her eyes. Jealousy and hurt curled their fingers around her heart. How could she go back to work after this? How could she live next to him and relive that embarrassment every time she saw him?
When the plane landed, her heart dropped again. She didn’t have a car close by or any money for another cab. She didn’t think that she would get lucky enough to get a second cabbie who was nice enough to take smiles as a form of payment. Fighting back mental and emotional exhaustion, she fished out her phone. “Miranda? Could you come get me?”
After a few minutes, Miranda’s car pulled up to the entrance. When Elizabeth climbed in, she handed her some coffee to cheer her up. “Hey, are you okay? You sounded so upset on the phone.”
“Today has been…eventful.”
“Ut oh. Do you want to talk about it? You look like someone threw a bucket of water on you, kitten.”
“Miranda, do you think it’s crazy for me to think something could happen between Derr—Mr. Page—and I?”
“Ah.” Miranda sucked in a breath through her teeth. “Yes.”
“Wow. Thanks.”
“Let me finish. Yes, it is crazy for you to think that, but not for the reason you think. Derrick’s wife had an affair with one of his employees about four years ago. It really changed the way he felt about women. When they were married, he was head over heels
for this woman. Super romantic. He did everything for her. One day, he caught her having an affair with one of his employees. He was betrayed by two people he trusted, and it really did a number on him. After the divorce, he just went into total playboy mode. He hasn’t had a real relationship since they split.”
“That’s terrible.” Elizabeth sank lower in her seat. She felt bad for him. He was so nice and thoughtful to everyone. How could someone do that to him? There really was no hope. He had closed himself off to protect himself. Who could blame him after going through that?
“Yeah, so don’t be too hard on yourself.” Miranda took her to where she had left her car the other night. “Do you want me to follow you home? I can stay for a bit if you need me to.”
“Nah, I’ll be fine.” She offered up an unconvincing smile.
“If you change your mind, just give me a call.”
“Thanks, girl.” Elizabeth waved goodbye and got in her car.
The more she thought about the situation, the worse she felt. She didn’t want to be here anymore. Maybe she could lease out the house and just get an apartment. Right now, she was willing to do anything to get away from him, away from her feelings. She parked her car in the driveway. The homeowners’ association could suck it.
She shoved the key into the lock in frustration. She didn’t want to stay here anymore. Elizabeth shoved loose items back into a box and hauled it outside. Shoving the box into the backseat, she went back inside and grabbed another box. Her eyes were focused on the where she was walking as she lugged another large box out to her car.
“What are you doing?” Derrick’s voice made her head snap up. He was standing in her driveway with his arms crossed.
“I’m packing up. What does it look like I’m doing?” She moved around him and tossed the box unceremoniously into her backseat.
“Why?”
Elizabeth turned on him, her eyes brimming with fresh tears, “Because I don’t want to be around you anymore, okay?”
“Why? Because you saw another woman leaving my room? You and I are not dating, Miss Adams. I know we spent some time together today, but we are not in any relationship aside from working together. This,” he gestured between her and the boxes in the car, “is childish. Instead of being an adult and dealing with your feelings, you are leaving after you just bought a house. How could I be with a girl like that? I need a woman who can take care of business not a little girl who lets her emotions get the best of her.” Derrick turned and walked away from her.
“You’re one to talk!” Elizabeth yelled after him. “You won’t date because four years later you’re still upset that your wife cheated on you!” She clamped her hands over her mouth. The words had come out before she could stop them. Derrick stood still for a second and clenched his fists before continuing walking back to his house.
Elizabeth stormed back inside, slamming the door behind her. “Ugh!” She huffed to herself. He made her so mad! Childish? She was being childish? Elizabeth stomped her foot on the ground and crossed her arms over her chest. She caught her reflection in the glass of the oven door. Childish. She looked like a little kid throwing a tantrum. Elizabeth quickly lowered her arms. Fine. If that was what he thought of her, then she would have to prove him wrong. She could act more mature.
Chapter 9: Potential
Derrick shut the door behind him. His fists were still clenched as he dug a beer out of the fridge. Embarrassment and shame burned his skin. How dare she bring up Catherine? He chugged the alcohol angrily. Had it really been four years now? It seemed like only a few months had passed. He had buried himself in work and meaningless sex as a distraction from the pain she had caused him. When he married her, he had meant for it to last. As soon as he had found out about the affair, everything had changed. It was like a switch had been flipped inside of him, cutting off all the love he had for her. She had betrayed his trust. Something like that couldn’t be rebuilt.
It was his anger and resentment towards Catherine and her lover that had made him promise never to date an employee, or anyone really. Now, this girl next door was in the picture, and he was on the brink of breaking his promise. She was impulsive, childish, and lacked any sort of real plan for her life. She was everything he hated in a person, so why was he so drawn to her?
His thoughts wandered back to her first night in that house when the alarm went off. She had been so beside herself and frazzled. It was easy to tease her and get under her skin. She wore her emotions on her sleeve and fought for what she believed in. Her first day on the job, she had gone viral in a coffee shop defending him. Derrick smiled remembering the video footage. She was so passionate, and despite himself he craved that. He had become so closed off to love ever since the divorce. Being exposed to someone with that much life in them was entrancing.
Maybe four years was long enough to punish himself. Maybe he had paid his penance for failing at his marriage. The truth was, he blamed himself for Catherine cheating. He had always felt if he had just done more then maybe she would have been satisfied. That was why he had thrown so much of himself into his business. He needed something in his life that he could control when everything else fell apart. Now, here he was calling Lizzie childish when he had been running away from his own emotions for four years. If there was one thing he couldn’t stand, it was a hypocrite.
Derrick peered out his window towards Elizabeth’s house. She wasn’t bringing any more boxes out. If she could set aside her childishness and show up at work tomorrow, then he could set aside his own issues and give her a chance. It would show she was at least trying to improve herself after he pointed out a flaw. He pounded down the rest of his beer.
The next day, Derrick got out of bed early and dressed himself for work. For the first time in years, he was looking forward to work for more than one reason. Nerves rolled in his stomach. He hadn’t been this hopeful about a woman in years. Now all she had to do was show up.
He paced back and forth at the office, waiting. In his excitement, he had shown up early. He checked his watch one more time. Derrick silently prayed for her to walk through the door. Each person who came in offered false hope. The minutes ticked by. There were only a few minutes left now before she was either late or not coming at all. A sad boulder of disappointment sat on his chest. He turned to walk back to his office when the sound of heels clicking across the tiles caught his attention. Derrick turned towards the door hopefully.
It was her! Elizabeth had worn a simple black dress with no frills or trace of childish abandon. She was all sharp lines and strictly secured hair wrapped up in a neat bun. She had taken his criticism to heart. He fought to keep his joy from showing too vividly on his face.
“Miss Adams, may I speak with you for a moment?”
“Yes, Mr. Page.” Her tone was cold and removed. It hurt him more than he expected.
He led her to his office so that they could talk alone. A thin layer of sweat had formed on his palms. It had been so long since he had asked a woman out for a proper date. He was out of practice. “I see you made it in today.”
“Yes, sir. I realized that you were right, and it was time for me to put away my childish emotions.” Her voice and face were bland as she spoke. Her spark was missing. “Did you have something work related to talk with me about? I really should be getting started.”
“I guess that will be all then.” Derrick couldn’t bring himself to do it. Not like this. She was being so distant with him. Everything felt wrong. He hadn’t wanted her to change completely. “Lizzie, it wasn’t my attention to hurt your feelings yesterday, I—”
Elizabeth held up her hand, “Not at all, Mr. Page. No need to explain. I should be going now.” She opened the door and left him standing there with an ache in his chest.
His computer chimed. Derrick clicked to open the attachment of the email that had just come through. The picture of him holding her from the photoshoot. The Page Industries logo was placed in the bottom righthand corner with the slogan, “Page In
dustries: Luxury Awaits,” written in curling letters. As he stared at the picture, he realized that the couple in the photo could become an actual reality. He had to admit, they looked good together. A smile crept across his face as he stared at her. Determination settled in his heart. He had to win her over, no matter what it took.
Chapter 10: Leap of Faith
Maturity was not Elizabeth’s strong suit. She felt boxed in and confined. Even if she appeared calm on the outside, she was still a jumbled mess on the inside. Seeing Derrick still made her heart jump involuntarily. It was hard to keep her composure in front of him. She couldn’t bear to hear him utter excuses for why he had shut her down yesterday, so she bolted.
Miranda caught her in the hallway, “Hey, where are you going?”
“I’m going to get the intern training I’ve missed the last two days.”
“Mr. Page just called an emergency meeting.”
“What? Why?” Had something happened to him? She quickly followed her friend to the auditorium, biting her lip in apprehension.
The building was crammed into the seats by the time they got there. Derrick was leaning against the wall, waiting for something. A hush fell over the room. Elizabeth felt like his eyes were staring into her, but she pushed the thought quickly out of her mind. Thinking like that was going to get her nowhere. She needed to put that behind her.
“I want to thank you all for coming here today.” Derrick’s voice boomed across the room. “I want to thank one of you. Even though she had only been with us one day, she has already helped our company and myself move forward.” He pressed a button, and the picture of the new ad popped up on the electronic whiteboard behind him. “Miss Adams, I owe you an apology. I told you that you were childish, and while that may be true, it is your passion that sets you apart from everyone else. Even if you have emotional outbreaks, that is part of the core of who you are. The truth is, you were right about me, too. I’ve been childish in my own way. Today, I would like to take a big step towards fixing that part of myself. Elizabeth, would you do me the honor of going on a date with me?”