Chapter 4
Richard
She’s sweet, but firm at the same time, and her communication skills are impressive, to say the least. She always makes sure that her team isn’t overloaded without ruffling any feathers on the client side. That takes some mad skills.
We meet up a lot to discuss her progress, and my expectations, and every time we do, she’s the picture of professionalism, and…well, it’s disappointing, to say the least. It wasn’t like I expected this epic office romance to unfold or anything, but the cold professionalism was unexpected as well.
At this stage, I would take hate-filled stares and drinks thrown at me over the complete indifference she’s shown me on a professional level.
I just don’t know how to get to her. My hands are tied as well, because I’ve hired her for a job, which technically makes me her boss, and if I’m not careful, I’ll be overstepping my bounds as an employer, and an accusation like that would not be pretty.
I’ve tried everything I could to get her to talk to me without addressing the elephant in the room.
More often than not, we’re surrounded by either of our employees, so I don’t want to discuss personal stuff in front of them.
And once the meeting is over, she always makes sure to leave right away with a hasty goodbye thrown over her shoulder.
She’s obviously avoiding me, and trust me, I don’t blame her.
I deserve this, and more. But I just can’t help but want more than what I’m getting from her right now.
I’ve met her after so long, and I’ve yearned to be with her for 5 whole years, and now that she’s right here, within reach, it feels like she’s farther than she’s ever been.
I know I did her dirty. I know I deserve to die alone for the way I hurt her.
I know I shouldn’t expect her to forgive me ever again, but I do.
I want her to forgive me. I want her to give me another chance, because I know that I’ll do right by her this time.
I’ll love her, I’ll take care of her, and I’ll spend the rest of my life making up for all the hurt I’ve caused her.
I know all of that, but the only problem is in how I’m going to get her to believe me.
I love this woman with all my heart. In fact, I don’t believe I ever stopped loving her.
I was young, impulsive and greedy and I made the biggest mistake of my life, and I suffered for it for the past 5 years.
Now I just need to find a way to prove to her that I’m not the same man I was before, that I am not the playboy I was when I was 25, that I am so sorry about what happened, and I want to start over.
She’ll be here any minute, and if I miss this chance, then I’m sure I’ll regret it.
Where would I see her so frequently after this project is done?
I can’t hire her again for a bogus job. She’ll see right through it, and she has too much self-respect to accept something like that.
I can ask one of my brothers to hire her, but then again, I won’t get the one-on-one time I’ve gotten here so far in this project.
Ahh dammit. I can’t believe I let six months slip away without making any headway with her. I was so stupid! And now I have exactly one conversation to get Katie to see me as anything other than the monster who dumped her to sleep around with other women.
God, I’m going crazy.
Just then, I heard the polite knock that was Katie’s signature.
She’s here. When the project started, I’d asked my assistant to let Katie in directly.
I still remember her shocked look at my bizarre request. I never do this, not even with my brother, and he co-runs the company with me.
Well, what can I say. Katie is not other people. I just wish she knew that.
I sighed again. Ah well, here goes nothing.
“Please come in”, I called out, and the door opened and her blonde head peeked in.
“Good morning, Mr. Cartright”.
The same polite smile and formal greeting and I was already feeling depressed. What I wouldn’t give to see her full smile again.
“Good morning, Ms. Moore”, I smiled back and gestured her to take a seat.
For the next hour, we finished the formalities. She’d already handed over the website to our tech team. We just had to sign the retainer paperwork and discuss a few final issues. Everything went smoothly.
Before we knew it, the meeting was over, and Katie was standing up and holding her hand out to me.
“It was nice working with you Mr. Cartright. I hope you’ll recommend us to your partners”.
I looked at her outstretched hand like a dumbass, unable to move a muscle. She didn’t seem fazed by my reaction though.
“Mr. Cartright?”, she prompted, one eyebrow raised, and I sprang into action.
I immediately got up and returned her handshake.
“Certainly Ms. Moore. You did a great job. We were very impressed with the quality of your work and the speed of your delivery”.
“Thank you, Mr. Cartright”, she smiled again and started pulling her hand from mine.
And that’s when I panicked. And held tighter. Oh shit.
Katie’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Mr. Cartright?”, she prompted again, and her tone wasn’t as polite as it was before, and I reluctantly let go of her hand.
“Sorry about that”, I sent a sheepish smile her way. God, stop acting like a creep, Richard! You’re going to make her run away faster than she’s obviously planned.
“That’s okay”. She gave me an awkward smile, and I cringed at how obviously fake it was. Did I just blow this before I even asked her out? Oh man! “Well…if that’s all, I’ll get going…”, she started.
“No!” I cut her off.
That eyebrow raise again. If I didn’t know any better, I would say she’s been taking classes with some strong-willed mothers. This woman’s eyebrow game is strong.
“No?”
“Well, not no…just…”. Ah, fuck this. I’m just going to go ahead and say it. “We’ve been working together for six months, and I don’t like the idea of just sending you away like this”.
“You did just pay me”, she quirked her first genuine smile of the day, and I laughed.
“That I did. But, what about a thank you dinner? You did go above and beyond for our website, after all, and I feel like I owe you at least that much to show my appreciation. Believe me, we’ve had nightmare contractors who broke more than they fixed.
It was such a breath of fresh air working with you and your team”, I finished in one go, not willing to let her interrupt with a rejection.
She didn’t respond for a few seconds, and the anticipation was killing me. What would I do if she refused? I can’t force her to go to dinner with me.
“I don’t know, Mr. Cartright…”
“Richard, please, Katie. We’re not working together anymore”, I told her softly, and she looked at me in surprise.
“Richard…what are you doing?”, she asked with a sigh.
“Just one dinner, please. For old time’s sake. You can walk out in the middle if you’re uncomfortable, and I won’t bother you again, I promise. Just…give me this one chance?”.
I know I was practically begging her for a pseudo-date. I know I should feel embarrassed, but I didn’t. There was too much at stake and my ego had no place in this conversation. I need to win over the love of my life.
She closed her eyes, and sighed again, and I knew I was close to victory. Just a little push, and she’ll accept. I just knew it.
“This’ll just end in disaster, Richard”.
“If it does, let it. But what if it doesn’t?”, I prompted, anticipation building up in me. If I was ten years younger, I’d be bouncing on my feet by now.
“I don’t want to start anything again”, she told me firmly, looking me directly in the eye.
And that made my heart drop. She really does hate me, doesn’t she, so much so that getting back together with me is totally off the table for her. But I was determined to change her mind, and this dinner was my way in.
“I totally understand. Think of it as dinner between old friends and new colleagues. No strings attached. Please? Just two hours of your time, and I’ll let you go. I promise”, I smiled at her.
“You drive a hard bargain, Mr. Cartright”, she gave me an amused smile. I was finally getting to her. Whoohoo!
“I’ve been known to do that”, I winked at her, and she laughed, her first real laugh in my presence since we started working together.
That laugh gave me hope.
“So, shall I pick you up at 7, Katie?”, I offered. I remember asking her to meet me at the restaurant the day we broke up. That decision has haunted me ever since. I never want to do that again if I can help it.
But Katie seemed to have other plans. The minute I suggested picking her up, her smile dropped. I saw a brief look of panic cross over her face before she quickly masked it. What was that about?
“No, that’s alright. Just text me the location and I’ll meet you there at 7. I really need to get going now Richard. I have another meeting in half an hour. I’ll see you tonight”, she was back to her polite smiles and professional tone again.
And before I could stop her, she was out the door. What just happened? I thought things were going great, and then I suggested picking her up, and the mood abruptly changed.
Wait! Did she remember our breakup, and how I’d made her come to the restaurant by herself? She must have. No wonder she was so upset and couldn’t wait to get out of my presence. I’m just glad that she didn’t cancel our “date” on her way out.
That’s it! I’m going to make sure that I show her the real me.
She’s seen the professional side of me; but it’s time to show her the personal side.
She needs to see that I’ve grown up, matured, and that I’m ready for a real relationship.
She needs to know that it’s always been her for me, and there’ll never be anyone else as long as I live.
I am going to get my woman back, come hell or high water.