Love You...Never

by Francesca Penn

  I’d held on to hope until the third period. I anxiously rushed to class, hoping he’d gotten me something.… anything. I found him alone in the class. My heart started beating in slow motion. We’d never been alone in the same space. I was nervous until I saw the way he looked at me. My skin tingled, and my spirit soared. His eyes held something intense that I couldn’t describe as he appreciated my body. Or, it seemed like that is what he was doing. When our eyes met again, his smile was so brilliant and hot. I was downright giddy inside. I was sure he’d at least ask me out before the day was over.

  Then it happened, Amy appeared with the gifts. I’d missed everything our teacher had said as she passed them out. I bit back a bout of jealousy for every gift given to Emiliano. I perked up when she stopped by my desk with the deluxe package. I’d secretly held back my disappointment when I saw the note from Royal. He was watching me far too intently. I’d already told him several times I didn’t want to be with him because I liked someone else. He’d pressed me for a name until I’d broken and told him I wanted to be with Emiliano.

  I shot him a smile of gratitude and looked longingly at the roses on the cart. Amy scooped them up, read the name on the card, then smiled at me. My palms were damp, and my heart started jogging in my chest. She gave them to me. I cheesed hard when I saw the name on the card. That was the moment I was going to get the guy. I opened the card, and each sentence ripped out a piece of my heart. There were some insults mixed in with phrases like:

  You’re not for me.

  Never happening.

  Take the flowers as a consolation prize.

  I took a deep breath to keep the tears inside and looked back at him. He was too busy smiling at Amy to notice my pain. I threw the flowers at him and ran out before he could see the tears he’d caused. I found a quiet spot and pulled myself together. I’d just wiped away a tear when I saw him power walk past me as if I no longer existed and leave the school.

  He didn’t come back for the rest of the week. I prayed never to see him again.

  Emiliano returned.

  Physically.

  But, he was someone else.

  I take a shuddering breath. I want to believe he would wake up one day and be the other guy. Apparently, the guy who came back is the real version of himself, at least he is with me. I hate him with a passion. I’ve gone through entirely too many emotions in the last hour. I shoot Cher a text.

  Caris: Do you have it from here?

  Cher: Do you need me to have it from here?

  Caris: Yeah. I will need a long happy hour after they leave.

  Cher: I bet. Señor Hottie is intense.

  Caris: We’re not doing this right now.

  Cher: Oh, you will hear my opinion at happy hour.

  Caris: In that case. No happy hour tonight.

  Cher: We will discuss this over drinks even if I must break into your house. We’ve avoided this subject for 12 years.

  Caris: ONE hour back in each other’s presence, and he calls me a frigid bitch.

  Cher: Well…to be continued. I have four sets of eyes on me. I’ve missed something.

  I push away from my desk and leave before I have a run-in with my biggest enemy. I need to regroup and polish my armor.

  Chapter 4

  Caris

  “Open up, Caris. I mean it,” Cher yells through the other side of the door. I don’t move from my comfortable spot on the couch. If she wants to make me talk about something I hate discussing, she has to work for it.

  I hear her stomping down the hall five minutes later. Her chocolate eyes blaze at me. I suppress a giggle when I see leaves stuck in her curls, a few branch scrapes on her cinnamon skin, and her chest heaving from exertion. Her childish behind is wearing Dory pajamas, and her tank top reads, “Just keep swimming.” She had to swim her ass up in that tree to get my hide-a-key.

  “Bitch! You made me climb!” Cher’s bark is waaaaay louder than her bite.

  I don’t miss the backpack which probably houses her work clothes and toiletries. This is also what happens when your friend moves in with her parents while finding herself. Nor do I miss the excessive amount of alcohol in her hands.

  “Just keep swimming, Cher.”

  She puffs out her chest then hold up the bottles. “How hard do you want it?”

  One hand held wine and the other tequila. She would bring Mexican alcohol. I shift my gaze back to the television until the screen goes black.

  “No, ma’am, you’ve had years to prepare for this conversation,” Cher preaches as she puts the tequila on the table. “We’ll have the hard stuff. Do you want a mixer, or do you want it straight?”

  Silence. I can’t help but feel she’s talking about her opinions as well as the drinks. Cher disappears and returns with two shot glasses and says, “Straight, it is.” She settles into her spot, opens the bottle, and pours two shots. “Drink up because we are talking about this.”

  Resigned, I sigh and scoop up a shot. Cher is a bully, and she has nothing better to do than harass me until she gets her way. I take it. It burns everything on the way down, just like her words are about to when she decides to speak.

  “Okay, me first or you?” I set my jaw in a last-ditch effort to be firm. “Me, it is. I know it stung when he called you a bitch, but you went too far. You know how that man feels about his parents. Hell, I know that, and I haven’t seen him in twelve years either. I wasn’t obsessed with his fine ass in high school, and I know not to mock his parents! What were you thinking?” I’m mute, so she continues. “I know he can be an asshole, it takes two to tangle, and all that jazz, but this is crazy. Y’all need to handle it like adults; either talk or fuck. Either way, you need him for this project.”

  Cher downs her shot. “He really is the best in his field. He’s sharp, organized, knows a lot about lingerie, and is very easy on the eyes.” I start searching her shirt. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m looking for your Team Emiliano shirt.”

  Laughing, Cher sends another jab. “Now you know how to pronounce his name properly.”

  “Shut up.”

  “I will not shut up because I AM team Caris and as a member of your team I must tell you when it’s your foul. I know you two can’t stand each other…”

  “I can’t stand him. He hates me,” I say with a little more hurt than I wanted to display.

  “He called you an evil lunatic and a psychopath in response to a question his friend asked about his high school enemy. You had the choice to walk in there and not show him that version of you. I think his words bother you so much because some part of you still want him.”

  “I do not!”

  Cher was not convinced. “Oh, really? You’re saying Emiliano can show up tomorrow with gifts, sweet words, and apologies, and you would not be moved?”

  My heart flutters. “No.”

  She pours me another shot. “Bullshit. I’ve never wanted him like that, and I’d fuck the adult version of him. That man is delicious.”

  My lady parts tingle at the idea, but I keep my mouth shut.

  “Okay, how about this. I saw the way both of you used to look at each other. I really think this is a major mix up or miscommunication, and you two are too stubborn to talk it out.”

  “Now, I’m calling bullshit. He started this war.”

  “How?”

  “Valentine’s Day.” I seethe. “I showed you the note.”

  “Yes, I remember,” she nods. “And as your best friend, I was in the middle of giving him an epic stank eye when you threw the roses at him and left. I felt like he was embarrassed and deserved it then, but now my adult brain revisited the incident, and I can’t shake the feeling that he was surprised by your reaction. Also, after you left his demeanor changed; he stared into space for a moment then jumped up, grabbed his shit, and left.”

  “I’d embarrassed lover boy in front of Amy. That’s all. From the sounds of it, she’s still in his life, anyway. So why the hate?”

  “Why do y
ou hate him?”

  “He’s a rude asshole!”

  “And he told you that you were the biggest asshole in the room! All I’m saying is, try to consider the possibility that one of you unknowingly started a war. A war that neither one of you actually wants. Who spends twenty plus dollars just to be an asshole? Annnnd he didn’t start dating Amy until months later. Something doesn’t add up. I just never considered it until I saw both you – two grown adults – acting like bitter teenagers.”

  I nod and take the other shot. I will appease her and agree to disagree. I’m not bending until he does.

  Emiliano

  We’d agreed a little after Caris disappeared to meet again in the morning. I’m here; Connor will be arriving after lunch. Now, I’m sitting in a conference room that I’ve grown to hate, waiting for someone I hate, to finish a project themed for a holiday I hate. To say I’m not in a good mood is an understatement. I don’t let it show. I’m armed with my favorite coffee, and I’d had a rigorous session at the gym to burn some of my rage. Cher waltzes in all smiles, as usual, and begins stocking the room with refreshments. How long are we going to be here?

  “Good morning!” She smiles, but I feel her eyes assessing me. I don’t know why, but I stare back and let her. She gets a thoughtful look on her face. “What do you want me to call you?”

  The question catches me off guard, and I answer honestly. “You’ve always known me as Emiliano, but whatever is comfortable for you.”

  “Where did you get Thomas?”

  “My name is Emiliano Tomás Morín. Thomas is just easier for people to remember.”

  She smiles thoughtfully then slides into the chair in front of me. “I’ve meant to ask you som-” She doesn’t finish her sentence because Medusa bursts in and glares at her like she shitted in her cornflakes.

  “What are you doing?” She wants to know.

  “She was being a lady and greeting her guest,” I say pointedly. Caris ignores me as expected.

  “Okay, you two. Play nice. Getting this done benefit all of us. Right?” Cher looks at Caris, then at me. “Right?”

  Neither one of us speaks. Cher sighs. “You need to rebrand and drop your Eros line for Valentine’s Day,” she says to Caris. She turns her attention to me,

  “And you have been working very hard to get partner, and this could be the thing to tip it in your favor. Right?”

  I tilt my head at her.

  “What? Loli is a lovely lady. She thinks you’re the greatest Ad Exec and boss ever to walk this earth.”

  That pulls a surprised laugh out of me. I don’t know what I’m going to do with that woman. I can’t help the smile on my face. “Did she teach you the art of buttering me up? That reminds me.” I reach in my suitcase and slide Loli’s baby shower invitation over. “Your presence has been requested.”

  Cher’s face lights up, and she spins in a circle. “I loooooove baby showers!”

  “I’ve noticed,” I say with another smile. “Make sure she makes it to the shower,” I warn.

  “How?”

  “Tell her to stop gossiping about me before I shake the baby out of her.”

  Cher rolled her eyes. “Not happening, because she also declared that you’re the biggest softie ever to walk this earth. That’s why Amy calls you Milano. Just like the cookie – crunchy on the outside and soft gooey chocolate on the inside.”

  Surprised, I pick up my phone. “I’m calling Loli right now.”

  She picks up on the second ring. I put her on speaker. “Thomas Morín’s office. How may I help you?”

  “Hey Loli, I’ve been thinking it’s time for you reorganize all of my files by the last name of each client. Pick up my dry cleaning, and I need more of my special coffee blend from the other side of town…”

  I smile when she gasps. “Milo! You can’t be serious!”

  “I am, and it needs to be done COB since I’m the world’s biggest softie and all.”

  “Don’t play with me E.T.! I almost passed out. I’ll tell you what. You get the coffee. I’ll get the dry cleaning, and we can forget about those files.”

  “You are aware you work for me, right?”

  “Boss, bossman, jefe…I’m the sunshine in your world. We need each other.” I laugh because she’s full of shit.

  “And the files?”

  “Oh, I have a pregnancy cramp…”

  Cher laughs with me. “Go get the baby some breakfast, and do actual work instead of gossiping about me, or that will be your life as my assistant.”

  “Sure thing, Tommy,” she pauses, and I already know what’s coming. “About that breakfast…”

  “Let me get this straight,” I cut her off. “You don’t want to work, and you want me to pay for your breakfast?”

  “That’s the kind of stuff awesome bosses are made of, sir.”

  “Now, I’m “sir”? No more than fifteen dollars, and I better see my dry cleaning when I return.”

  “Sure thing, Millster. Best boss ever!”

  Cher laughs with me when Loli disconnects. “Now, that’s living the assistant life. If you need a temp during her maternity leave…” Caris glares at her. “Kidding.” Cher pushes open the door. “Play nice you two; I don’t want to call the cops, fire department, or ambulance today. Let’s have a Zen Thursday.”

  “Where are you going?” Caris probes, her posture tense.

  Cher smiled. “Unlike Loli, I have actual assistant tasks to fulfill.” She’s gone before Caris could protest.

  A loaded silence fills the room, and an intense staredown ensues. She doesn’t want to be here any more than I do. If she doesn’t engage, I won’t either. The quicker we finish this, the quicker I can move on to forgetting her.

  “Ready to work?” I ask somewhat neutrally.

  “I’ve been ready; you’re the one chatting it up and flirting with everyone.”

  “But you.”

  “I don’t need you to flirt with me. I need you to do your job.”

  “I would be doing my job right now if you didn’t keep coming at me with your bullshit.” I sigh and rub my face. “Look, I would love nothing more than to wrap this up and never speak to you again. But, I can’t until you get on board with this project.”

  The stubborn mule stares at me but doesn’t speak. “Are you really this stubborn or dense? Did you really do all this work to get your business to this point just to let personal shit stop you from getting to the next level? If so, you just as an ineffective, incompetent partner as you were in high school.”

  After our war started, we were forced to work together on a science project. We argued the entire time, and she’d either turn in the work incomplete or not at all.

  I start writing notes on my notebook. If she doesn’t care, I don’t care. I focus on her when she starts reciting the periodic table correctly. I give her a questioning look.

  “I’m not incompetent, you ass. I was just willing to take a fail to tarnish your GPA.” She lifted her brows daring me to care.

  I want to shake her until her pretty teeth rattle. Out of all the cruel things she could try, she chose to mess with my future? Focus on business.

  “Well, you didn’t. I did extra credit and still left that class with an A. The only thing you did was make yourself look like an idiot. Is that what you want to do this time? Do you want to let down the women who like your brand? Your whole business could burn to the ground, and it wouldn’t change my life, not one bit. I’ll still have a job; my bills will be paid; and I’ll still sleep like a rock. Is that the hand you want to deal?”

  “No, the hand I was dealt is being forced back in your presence.”

  I shake my head; my patience is almost gone. “Look at me. Do I look happy to be here? But I am; like an adult. I’m pretty sure I hate you, but I’m giving your brand the same care and attention as I would a stranger or someone I like. Because I am a professional. How about you join me? Let’s pretend we’ve had twelve birthdays since we last saw each other.”


  “It’s only January, so eleven birthdays.” I sigh hard and rub my temples.

  “Out of everything I said, that’s where you focus your attention? How about this, let’s pretend your birthday is January 2nd instead of May 2nd. Do those extra four months make you feel more mature?”

  I could be mistaken, but I believe surprise flashes in her eyes before they turn into slits. She stares at me for a moment, then starts giving me the information I need to do my job.

  Chapter 5

  Caris

  “He knew your birthday?” Cher questioned from the other side of my couch.

  “Yes.” It was still a shock to me. I don’t know his birthday. How in the hell did he know mine?

  “Maybe there’s some merit in my theory. Maybe he wants you on some level.”

  “He gave me a whole speech about me being childish and unprofessional.”

  “Were you?”

  “Then he said his life wouldn’t change one bit if my business burned down.”

  “Big facts.”

  “Then he said he was not happy to be there, and he hated me.”

  “Well, you don’t want him there, and you hate him…”

  “Damn, Cher! Do you work for him already?”

  “No, I work for you, and I would like to have a job to go to for many, many years to come. It’s in your best interest to focus on your dream of having a huge brand and let him help. I’ve seen his portfolio. Your business is much smaller than his usual clients, but you’ve made such an impact on the ladies in his and his boss’s life that they are working with a small fry.”

  Cher leaned in with huge eyes. “DO YOUR THING! Either ignore the fact that you’re super attracted to him and hate it or seduce him and move on with your life.”

  “Where do you see an opportunity to seduce him? Enemies remember. I hate him; he hates me…”

  “And hate sex is hot and dirty. I’ll create an opportunity. If he looks remotely interested or turned on, pounce. Maybe the unresolved attraction is fucking you up in the head. Maybe if you jump his bones, you can get over this and move on.”

  I look at my glass then put it down. “I’ve had too much wine because you’re starting to make sense. And me trying to sleep with Emiliano makes no sense.”