Chapter 7
Jason
“Jason, our client with the amphitheater in Nashville has some changes they want to discuss and with the changes, their budget is going to increase. We’ll need to go in person to view the space to get a better idea.”
Wait a minute. That’s my project, how in the hell is Thomas aware of this? This conference is giving me a headache and my focus isn’t here this morning. After yesterday’s bullshit with Jen and the scheduling conflict, my headspace is a mess.
Vivienne wasn’t quite herself yesterday and this morning she was quiet. She sits beside me taking notes meticulously. She really is a sweetheart. Yesterday during lunch, I got her to open up to me about her reaction to the calendar issue. She confided in me that her husband is really harsh on her when she messes something up, so she was expecting me to lose my shit on her. Which is why she kept apologizing to me profusely. I finally had to stop her and tell her that I would never demean her and that everyone makes mistakes. She seemed to accept my words but stayed quiet.
We eventually changed subjects when she was reluctant to talk about her marriage. Instead, I told her about my love for sailing. Something I haven’t done since Leslie passed. She told me about her love for being on the boat with her husband while he fished. I learned that Vivienne loved reading romance books; everything from contemporary to dark romance. But every book she read always had a HEA. She said that while her husband fished, she read. When I asked about about why she read so much, she told me it was her escape from life’s bullshit.
At one point during lunch, I placed my hand on her arm. It was a moment of offering her comfort, to show her that I understood where
she was coming from. My hand lingered a lot longer than it should have for a boss and assistant. Our eyes met and for a brief moment, I leaned into her slightly. Viv’s eyes widened and I abruptly pulled back and made a lame excuse on having to go to the restroom.
The rest of the afternoon left us with a noticeable tension. We were both confused and we didn’t know where to go from there.
“Thomas, why are you involved in the Nashville project?”
“Well, apparently since you were offsite yesterday with your assistant….”
I feel Vivienne bristle beside me. “Thomas, I’m going to stop you right there. You know as well as I do that we were in meetings that were offsite yesterday.”
“Ah, yes. Meetings that for some reason were blocked on your schedule. I remember Jen mentioning that briefly when she transferred a call to my office. A call that just happened to be Mr. Yen with the Nashville project. He briefed me on some things that he wanted to incorporate in the design.”
“First of all, we’re looking into the scheduling conflicts, not that I need to explain this to you. Second, Nashville is not your project, so Jen overstepped when she transferred that call to you. Third, we aren’t going to Nashville; however, myself and Vivienne will be attending that meeting.”
“Why does she need to attend?” Thomas complains.
“That’s enough, Thomas. You’re overstepping and this meeting is done.” Lucas says as he slams his laptop closed.
Thomas huffs, but says nothing as he leaves the conference room. I look over at Vivienne and once again she’s quiet as she pulls her bottom lip between her teeth. What I wouldn’t do to pull that lip of hers away from her teeth and lick them.
Yesterday, I freaked out and shut her out. I went home that night and sat in my den thinking about my life with Leslie. My thoughts haunted me. I needed to be a better father and a better man. I needed to find a way to move forward, away from my past regrets.