Chapter 9 Elijah
ELIJAH
It’s like I have a permanent scowl on my face.
It’s been a week since Sam’s doctor appointment, and it has taken everything in me not to claim her as mine.
I want to. Hell, I want to more than anything, but I don’t think she’s ready for it.
And the fact that every one of my single male employees has been in and out of the office to flirt with her is making me crazy.
She’s polite to them, and I’ve asked her if anyone is bothering her, but she says she’s fine.
I roll my eyes. Fine.
I push the button on my phone. “Carrie, can I see you for a minute?”
Carrie comes in seconds later with notepad in hand.
“Do you have lunch plans?”
She shakes her head.
I nod. “Can you please take Sam out for lunch? She’s going to say no, she needs to work, but it’s not good for her to sit at her desk all day. She needs to know she can go out for lunch.”
Carrie tilts her head at me. “It’s like that, is it?”
I don’t even blink. “Yeah, it’s like that.”
Her smile widens. “Yeah, I’m happy to take her to lunch. With all the work she’s done, we’re completely caught up.”
I snap my hand on the desk. “Good. Take a long lunch. Enjoy it. Use the company credit card.”
She stands up and is about to walk out the door and then stops and turns. “You know… I bet a pedicure with a foot massage would really be good for her too.”
I point at her with a chuckle. “I see what you’re doing there.” With a laugh, I tell her, “Do it. She’s not going to want to, but you two enjoy lunch and pedicures, massages, whatever.”
Carrie claps her hands together. “Great, I’ll forward the phones to my cell.”
I shake my head. “No, I want you to enjoy this too. I know you’ve worked really hard to get this hospital project ready. Enjoy it. I’m going out for a few minutes, but I’ll have the phones.”
Carrie nods excitedly. It’s only a few minutes later that Sam knocks on my open door.
I rise from my seat and come around my desk. “What’s up, honey? You okay?”
She looks worried. “Carrie wants to go to lunch and get pedicures, but I don’t think—”
I take a step toward her because that’s just how it is. I’m drawn to her. I can’t keep my distance. “I want you both to go and enjoy yourselves. You’ve been working hard and deserve this.”
She takes a deep breath. “Right. I deserve this. I can transfer the phones to my cell and—”
I shake my head. “It’s already taken care of.”
She doesn’t want to, but she agrees. She feels uncomfortable because she isn’t used to someone caring for her, but that’s all I want to do.
A few minutes later, Sam and Carrie leave. There are a few people still in the building, but I forward the phones to my cell, grab my keys, and then head over to the florist down the street.
“Hey, Janice,” I call out.
The woman that has worked here for as long as I can remember comes out from behind the counter. “How’s it going, Elijah?”
I nod as I look around the store. “Good, good. I know we still have a few weeks, but I wanted to make sure I got the order in for the delivery to the nursing home on Valentine’s Day.”
She nods. “Yes, yes, I got it. You’ve been doing this for ten years. I won’t forget it.”
I’m looking at all the flower arrangements as Janice continues to talk.
“Elijah, I think it’s so sweet that you started sending flowers to the nursing home on Valentine’s Day.
And the fact that you continue sending them after your sweet grandma passed away.
” She sighs. “You’re a good man is all I’m saying. ”
I look at the sweet older woman and smile. “Thank you for helping me with it all these years. I know it’s a busy day for you, but I appreciate you making them all feel special.”
She waves me off and notices me looking at the other arrangements. “Can I help you find something else?”
I look into a refrigerator of flowers. “Yeah, I’m looking for a bouquet.”
“What’s the occasion?”
I replay the conversation I overheard between Samantha and Carrie last week. When Sam said no one has given her any flowers before, I knew I needed to remedy that fast. I would have done it before now, but it’s been crazy at the office.
“I just want to make someone feel special.”
She turns to look, and that is when I spot it. “Yes, that is perfect!”
It’s a huge bouquet in a red heart-shaped vase. It’s got beautiful red roses, and just the arrangement is bold. “I want that one.” I nod. “Yes, that’s the one. It’s perfect.”
“Oh!” Janice says in surprise, looking between me and the perfect bouquet. “I made that one this morning for another client, but they’re not picking it up until this afternoon. Go ahead and take it. I can make up another one real quick.”
I’m pulling out my credit card from my wallet. “Thank you, Janice. You’re the best.”
As soon as I sign my name to the receipt, I head back to the office. I carry the flowers to Sam’s desk and leave them there, already imagining how happy she’s going to be to receive them.
I go back to my desk, and I’m on a phone call when Carrie and Sam come back in the afternoon.
The call lasts way longer than I thought it would, and when I finally make it toward Sam’s office, I’m surprised when Carrie says, “Hey, boss man, did you hear? Sam has a secret admirer.”
My mouth drops, but I recover quickly. At least on the surface, deep down, my heart starts to race, and my palms start to sweat. “I didn’t hear that.”
Carrie grabs a little white card from Sam’s hand.
All I can do is look at it, and that’s when I realize that when I bought the bouquet, it already had the card in it. I completely missed that, and Janice must have too.
Carrie starts to read. “Roses are red, violets are blue, I saw something beautiful today and thought of you.” She sighs. “Signed, your secret admirer.”
Carrie drops her hands to her sides. “Isn’t that the sweetest thing?”
I look at Sam. Her cheeks are a ruddy red. She’s embarrassed, but there’s no hiding the pleasure in her expression.
Carrie’s excitement brings people out of their offices to see what the commotion is. Even Russ, who saw me carrying the flowers in, doesn’t give me away. Say it, Elijah. Just tell her that you brought her flowers. But I keep my mouth shut while everyone talks around us.
When people start to disperse, I stay rooted to my spot in the doorway.
Sam is holding her hands together in front of her. “Thank you for the lunch and pedicure. Carrie and I had a really good time.”
I nod and clear my throat. “You’re welcome.”
My gaze flicks between her and the flowers.
She looks at the huge bouquet on her desk. “Uh, do you know where they came from?”
I almost tell her. I want to tell her, but she seems so happy right now. Like something light and simple made her feel appreciated.
If she knows it’s me, will that feeling disappear? Is she going to think I’m doing this because she’s my best friend’s little sister? Because I feel sorry for her? I shrug. “Does it matter? It looks like someone just wanted to make you smile.”
She tilts her head, searching my eyes, and I know I need to get out of here because she’s going to see the truth on my face. I point over my shoulder. “Uh, I need to go check out a work site. I’m going to be out the rest of the day. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She barely gets out, “Okay” and I’m backing out the door. It’s like I’m walking through a tunnel as I go into my office and shut the door behind me. I lean against it and take a deep breath. I’m not sure how long I can keep this up because holding Sam at a distance is not working for me at all.