by Tamie Dearen
He shrugged, but didn’t answer. He was so close, she could sense the intensity of his stare, but she kept her eyes closed, praying for self-control. She couldn’t let him know how he affected her. It had been easier to ignore the attraction when she thought he was snobby and obnoxious. But now that she knew him better, she found herself wishing for something she knew would never be possible.
Desperate for a reprieve, she stiffened. “I need to go to the ladies’ room.” She slid away from him and disappeared from his office.
In the restroom, she took a moment to calm herself. She had to go back and work with Gherring, but she needed to be in control, in more ways than one. She walked back into his office, and picked up her laptop.
“Okay, let’s get back to work. We’ve got a lot to do,” she said in her best mom voice. Gherring obeyed, spouting out so many details, she wondered how he could possibly remember that much. When he started to come closer to her, she stopped him.
“Don’t crowd me. I’m on a roll.” Gherring kept his distance, though he seemed a bit agitated. Anne was thrilled at the progress, although she knew how much work lay ahead in creating the actual presentation.
She was engrossed in her editing, when Gherring’s voice pierced her consciousness. “Ms. Best… Anne… it’s after five. I think we should call it a day.”
Anne stretched her arms over her head, realizing how tired and stiff she felt. “Ughh—I’m not used to staying still for this long. But we got a lot done, and tomorrow I’ll be able to put all this into the presentation.” She closed her laptop and stood up to leave.
“Anne, you know I’ve been thinking—”
“Yes, Mr. Gherring?”
He frowned at her. “You know, you could call me Steven.”
She felt the heat rising to her face again and quickly turned her face away from him. “Katie still calls you Mr. Gherring and she’s been here for five years.” Anne knew she needed to keep her perspective with her boss. Calling him by his first name would only make it harder to control her growing attraction.
“Katie’s younger than I am.”
“And I’m younger than you as well.”
“Not that much younger.”
“Still, it wouldn’t be proper.”
“Even Katie calls me Steven when we’re not at work.”
“But we are at work.”
He crossed his arms. “I could order you to call me Steven.”
“Let me know how that works out for you.”
Gherring followed her out to her desk. “Would you like a lift home? It wouldn’t be any problem.”
“No thanks, Mr. Gherring.” She escaped into the elevator. She saw him watching her as the doors closed, and she let out a breath she must have been holding. Her shoulders were sore and tight. She couldn’t handle many more days like this one.
Anne tumbled into her apartment and collapsed on the couch. Her cell rang with the familiar sound of Charlie’s theme song. “Hey sweetie.”
“Hey Mom. Are you getting excited?”
“Of course I am—I can’t wait to see you. Y’all need to pack some workout clothes too.”
“Why? Don’t tell me you’re gonna make us run on treadmills.”
“I’ve arranged a climbing date for you.”
“Climbing date? What are you talking about?”
“Katie’s fiancé owns a gym, and I’ve arranged for us to go climb while you’re here. With a couple of good-looking guys.”
“Awesome. Should I bring my own gear?”
“That might be a bit intimidating for the guys, don’t you think?”
“Tell me about them.”
“The one I think you’ll hit it off with is named Spencer. He’s super cute, twenty-five, very outdoorsy and adventurous. I actually haven’t met the other one—Spencer’s bringing a friend.”
“I’m in love already. But we’ll be lucky if we get Emily to climb. Have you told her yet?”
“Not yet, but I thought you could talk her into it. You know you have better luck with her than I do. You just look at her with those imploring eyes, and she always gives in.”
“Yeah, I usually manage to get my way.”
“Bring some casual clothes and at least one nice outfit. Hopefully we’ll go see a play, if we can get some discount tickets. And we’ve been invited to eat dinner with Mr. Gherring’s grandma. She’s a hoot—you’ll love her. And I’ve got to show you this wood carving shop, and you need to see Ellen’s bookstore. It’s so cool.”
“Mom, we’re only gonna be there two days.”
“I know, I know. I’m just really excited. And I’m really tired too. I’ve got to get to bed early tonight.”
“Have you talked to Henri lately?”
“Not since yesterday, but hopefully I’ll talk to him tomorrow.”
“Let me get this straight, about the climbing date. I’m getting the best-looking guy, right? I just want to know so I can tell Emily about it.”
“Don’t you dare get me in trouble with Em.”
“Hmmm… I can be bribed.”
“I’ll remember this when your birthday comes.”
“Birthday presents make great bribes. By the way I have some things picked out on my wish list already.”
“I know, but everything on that list is about three or four hundred dollars. Don’t you want anything small and inexpensive?”
“What can I say? I have expensive taste.”
With her teeth brushed and her mascara scrubbed off, Anne collapsed on the bed in exhaustion. But the sleep she sought eluded her. She tossed and turned for an hour. Finally she surrendered to her insomnia and got out of bed. She took one Benadryl, considered for a moment, and downed another. She really needed a good night’s sleep. She decided to pull on sweatpants and grab a blanket to go for some fresh air on the rooftop patio while waiting for the antihistamines to kick in.
With her feet clad in furry house shoes and a cup of chamomile tea in hand, she wrapped the blanket over her shoulders and headed up the elevator. She’d only discovered the peaceful haven the previous weekend and had been itching to sit outside ever since. Her home in Weatherford had a big back porch with comfy chairs where she often sat to have tea in the early morning or at night before bed.
She opened the exterior door and peeked outside, assuring herself the retreat was deserted. She settled in on a comfy cushioned couch and sipped on her tea in solitude, enjoying the feeling of being outside with a clear view of the sky. Gradually she became drowsy and slunk down on the couch, snuggled warmly in her blanket and breathing the cool air. She could almost imagine she was camping.
“Anne… Anne…” The voice broke into her consciousness. Woozy from the residual Benadryl, she ignored the voice, refusing to give up her sleep. “Anne!” This time the voice was more urgent, and she felt a gentle shake on her shoulder. “Anne, it’s morning. You need to wake up.”
Whose voice was that? Was it Tom? She felt someone brush her hair gently off of her face. She peeled open her groggy eyes and tried to decipher her surroundings. Steven Gherring was peering at her, only a few inches away.
He smiled. “Sorry to disturb you, but you were still out like a light. I was afraid to let you sleep past six. That’s what time it is now.”
She sat up abruptly. “I fell asleep outside! How did you find me?”
“I sometimes come out here when I can’t sleep.” He chuckled. “But this time, Goldilocks was asleep on my couch.”
“Why didn’t you wake me up last night?”
“Believe me, I tried. Are you on something? You would not wake up.” He shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair. “So I decided I had two choices: carry you down to your room or stay out here with you. I was afraid to do the first one. I thought you might be offended.”
“You stayed out here with me all night? Where did you sleep? You must have been freezing.”
“I left you alone long enough to bring both of us extra blankets. And I slept on that loun
ge chair. It was comfortable enough.”
Anne surveyed her surroundings, taking in the fluffy down comforter that surrounded her and the pillow she’d slept on.
“I’m so sorry you had to do all this and sleep outside. I couldn’t sleep so I took a couple of Benadryl. But I’m glad you happened to find me. I probably wouldn’t have woken up ‘til nine or ten o’clock. Unless I froze to death.”
She stood up and gathered her things. They walked inside to the elevator. Though Gherring tried to hide his discomfort from the long night on a lounger, she could tell his movements were stiff. The man was so sweet. She felt so guilty he’d had a cold, uncomfortable night just to keep her safe.
“I didn’t actually say it, but thank you. I really mean it,” said Anne.
Gherring smiled, his gaze intense over the pile of pillows and blankets he held. He took a slow breath, as if searching for words. “Anne, I’ve only known you for a few weeks—”
“Yes, but I hope you won’t judge me yet. I know I’ve been clumsy and sensitive and disrespectful, and I’ve mixed up the time by an hour. And now I’ve fallen asleep outside alone on the roof and almost missed work. But I’m usually very responsible. I really can do this job. I hope you won’t fire me before my three months is over.”
“Anne, I would never—”
“Thank you, Mr. Gherring—you won’t regret it!”
She gave him a hug with her arms full of blanket and her tea mug in hand, and rushed off the elevator to her apartment.
Gherring’s posture was still rigid when he arrived at the office. Knowing she was responsible for his state she resolved to make it up to him. Somehow. She threw herself into her work, plowing through the PowerPoint Presentation. She added creative graphics and animation, but not so much as to be distracting. Photographs of Bern, Switzerland proved the presentation was personalized for their company. She was working so hard she jumped when someone called her name.
“Anne!”
“Oh! Hey Sam. You scared me.”
“That was the third time I said your name.”
“Sorry, When I’m absorbed in something I’m in another world.”
“Impressive powers of concentration. Tanner and I wanted to take you to lunch today.”
“I’d love to if I make enough progress on this presentation. I can’t get this one slide to look right. I’m about to pull out my hair. It has to be perfect.”
“You’re the one who always says you shouldn’t skip meals. Right?”
Anne grimaced. “I did say that, didn’t I? Twelve o’clock? Next door?”
“We’d be glad to take you some place new, but I know you’re devoted to Papa’s Place.” Sam smiled.
“Do you have something to tell me?” Anne winked, please when pink rose in Sam’s cheeks.
“It’s only been a few weeks.”
“I notice you didn’t deny it was a future possibility.”
“You’re impossible. Did you know that?”
“So I’ve been told,” Anne laughed. “See ya later.”
She went back to work, but shortly after got a call from Gram.
“Hello dear. I just wanted to ask about this date you’ve planned for Steven. Who did you say this girl is?”
“She’s a news reporter. She hasn’t made it big yet, but she’s getting a lot of attention. I think she’s very intelligent and well informed. She’ll be able to carry on a decent conversation.”
“But is she the kind of girl who knows the importance of family? She may be totally self-centered. Steven doesn’t need a girl like that.”
“I have no way of knowing, but it’s worth a shot. Mr. Gherring is a wonderful, caring man. Any girl would be lucky to have him. Surely she’ll recognize that and be sensitive to his needs.”
“But that’s just it. These women decide they want Steven, but what they really want is to be ‘Mrs. Steven Gherring.’ It has nothing to do with caring about him and putting him first.”
“If she tries to take advantage of him like that, I’ll beat her up.”
“That’s more like it,” laughed Gram.
“But we should at least give her a chance, don’t you think?”
“I’ll reserve my judgment, but do you have a backup plan?”
“I’m evaluating everyone I meet as possible wife candidates. That is… every smart, pretty, sophisticated female between the age of thirty and forty.”
“Humph! How did you come up with that age range?”
“First off, Mr. Gherring always goes out with younger women, so that must be what he likes. But personally, I think girls under age thirty just don’t have enough life experience to go with Steven. And over forty, they’re not pretty enough and too set in their ways to change. You know how it is. Marriage is all about compromise. It’ll be hard enough for Mr. Gherring, having been single for so long, without saddling him with a bossy woman who’s inflexible.”
“It does seem like you’ve given this a lot of thought, but we may have to re-evaluate along the way. I’m having dinner with Steven tonight. He somehow discovered I’m staying in town, and he’s a little suspicious.”
“But he can’t know we’re plotting against him—I mean, plotting for him—can he?”
Gram laughed. “Don’t worry, dear. I have a feeling this time I’m going to get my way.”
“I’m glad I’m on your team and not playing against you.”
“We can talk on Sunday night when you bring the girls to dinner. I’ll send a car for you.”
“Thanks Gram, that’ll be great.”
“Bye, now. Have fun with your girls.”
“Thanks, I will. Bye.”
Soon Anne was immersed in the presentation again. Time flew by until Sam and Tanner stopped by her desk. “I figured you wouldn’t stop working if we didn’t come get you,” said Sam.
“Ready for lunch already?”
“It’s after noon, sweetie.”
Anne picked up her cell phone. “You’re right.” She hit save and closed her laptop. “Let’s go. I want to hear everything that’s happened between y’all. And I want to hear both of you admit I was right.” She began singing “Matchmaker” from Fiddler on the Roof.
Gherring’s voice came from his doorway. “I didn’t know you could sing.”
Anne choked as she twirled to face him. “Mr. Gherring, I didn’t know you were there.”
“Don’t stop on my account; you have a nice voice—”
“We’re going to lunch. Would you like to come?”
“No thanks. I think I’m going to take a nap. I didn’t sleep very well last night.”
Anne felt the blood rush to her face. Sam and Tanner were staring at her. She escaped to the elevator while they trailed behind her.
“Wait up. Why are you so embarrassed? You actually sing really well,” said Sam.
As the elevator doors closed, Anne saw Gherring chuckle before giving an exaggerated yawn.
After lunch, Anne called Jared and Jeff to make sure they were on schedule with turning in their PowerPoint data. Both agreed to bring up what they had before five o’clock.
She wondered what it would take to do something more than being a secretary. Perhaps if she went back to school and got an MBA, she could have a job like Jeff’s. It would be exciting to have an important job and travel around the world. She didn’t regret the decision she’d made to pursue motherhood rather than a career. But what was to stop her from doing something different with her life? With the confidence she gained from taking on this job and moving to New York, something entirely out of her comfort zone, maybe she could do something really interesting. Maybe after she found Mr. Gherring a wife, she would check into night school.
Hoping Gherring wouldn’t overhear her conversation, she took her phone and personal laptop and headed to the break room to talk to Henri. When Henri’s face appeared on the computer screen, he looked ecstatic to see her. “Mon bel ange—I have missed you.”
Every time she saw Henri, she could
n’t believe a man that handsome would be interested in her. “Wow, I love your new scruffy look. I think this is my favorite so far.”
“I am glad you like it.” He grinned at her. “I have been doing nothing but work, work, work. Anna-Laure had a birthday party yesterday. I bought her a pony.”
“A pony? You bought her a real pony? I wish you’d been my uncle when I was a little girl.”
“But I am very glad not to be your uncle. There would be no kissing, if you were my niece.” He chuckled. “And I will buy you as many ponies as you want. But perhaps you would prefer diamonds or sapphires…”
“You’re not buying me anything. This trip to Paris is too much already.”
“But the Paris trip is for me, so I can see you.”
“I’m excited about coming—less than two weeks.”
“What have you been doing? You were too busy for me yesterday?” He pouted a little.
“I was working with Mr. Gherring on a presentation all afternoon.”
“Gherring! He is always interfering between us.”
“I’m sure it wasn’t on purpose. He pays me to work, you know.”
“And I will forever be grateful that he hired you, because if not, you and I would never have met.”
“So maybe you could go easy on him. He’s usually pretty nice to me.”
“Maybe I do not like him being so nice to you. Maybe he is trying to steal you from me.”
“You’ve got to be kidding. Mr. Gherring would never be interested in me like that.”
“Maybe he would steal you so I cannot have you. It is in our history.”
“Let’s not waste our time talking about Mr. Gherring. I learned how to climb. On Tuesday night, I went climbing at the gym Katie’s fiancé owns. I climbed up to the top, twice.”
“I think I would have enjoyed that sight. You are not afraid of falling?”
“I was nervous, but it wasn’t really dangerous. Do you climb?”
“I do. Would you like to climb in Paris when you come?”
Anne grinned. “Maybe I’d just like to watch you climbing. You know… enjoy the scenery.”