Chapter 17 #2
Not for the first time, he wondered if he had too much on his plate—if something was in danger of falling through the cracks.
And he’d just added a charity event. There wasn’t a single thing he wanted to back off from, but each day he didn’t show up in New York City was another day Kat might decide the distance was too great a barrier and dump him.
He ran a hand across his jaw, debating the pros and cons of the proposal. Upgrades to the neighborhood could make it more appealing to tourists, but those costs would have to be passed on to the consumers. His artists couldn’t absorb the increase, and neither could Nick.
Animated voices from the showroom drew his attention.
He stretched his legs then stood and peeked out the office door.
Trena walked toward him with a couple of business owners close behind.
He guessed they’d received the same letter.
Marcy owned a women’s clothing store not far from Nick’s shop, and Wayne operated a popular coffee shop and mercantile across the street.
“Uh-oh, this looks like trouble,” Nick said with a chuckle.
Marcy waved a paper in front of her. “You’ve got that right. This is trouble.”
“About the improvement district?”
“Yeah. Have you seen the preliminary plan?” Wayne made quotation marks in the air with his fingers.
“No. Just got the letter.”
The two visitors exchanged glances. “I got mine last week,” Marcy said.
“Same.”
“Sorry, guys. I’ve got a lot going on, so I’m just getting to it. What else do you know about the proposal?”
“They’ve scheduled this hearing, but it feels like a lot has already happened behind the scenes,” Marcy said.
“These two guys pushing for this just don’t get it,” Wayne chimed in. “They think bigger is better. Bigger venue, bigger crowds, more money…”
“But it doesn’t mean more money for us. If they build this big pavilion and a parking structure, not only does it not fit the community, it lets people go to concerts and events without ever walking into the shopping district at all.”
“That’s bad for business,” Nick agreed. The status quo was to pepper musicians and pop-ups throughout the business district, which encouraged meandering through the area to hear and see all the entertainment and special exhibits.
A completely different feel. Looked like another battle loomed in their future—one he didn’t have time for.
“Seems like every time we get new people on the Council, we have to go through an education process,” Wayne said.
“It’s ridiculous,” Marcy snapped, hands on her hips.
“We need to set up a task force and get on this quick,” Wayne added. “These bozos are already talking about hiring consultants and drawing up plans.”
“We’ll help,” Marcy said.
The expectation in her eyes flashed like a roadside warning sign. Help? Were they thinking… No. No way. “Um, great. I can help, too,” Nick told them, sensing the jaws of a trap close on his heels.
Wayne cleared his throat. “We hoped you might be willing to head this up since you–”
“You already know a lot of those people,” Marcy cut in.
Yeah, because he’d done this before. He shook his head. “Sorry, I’m not in a position to take this on. I’ve got a lot of jobs in the works, and one might require a fair amount of time out of town.”
“The thing is, you’re practically the face of the business district already, and people like you, respond to you.”
Lucky him . “Thanks for that, but I gotta say no this time. Have you talked to others?”
Marcy sighed. “You were our first choice.”
A wave of guilt splashed at his ankles. If he didn’t step back, he knew how quickly it could pull him in and drown him. “I put the hearing date on my calendar,” he told them. “I might be able to attend some other meetings and make a few calls, but I can’t lead a committee.”
“We’ll put out some feelers and see who else can step up,” Wayne said.
“That’d be great. Keep me posted. I’ll put the word out to my artists and see if anyone can pitch in, too.”
When the door closed behind them, Nick blew out a long breath. He couldn’t ignore the issue. He’d have to attend that meeting. And that meant he’d have to wait a few more weeks to see Kat.
* * *
Kat couldn’t remember a more unproductive day.
Good thing she’d done the proofing on the info plaques before she got the message from HR.
She’d planned to spend the evening nailing down the itinerary and making reservations for opening weekend with her family and Nick, but the museum’s brush-off still stung.
Instead of going home alone, she was meeting Mia for dinner. That would take the edge off.
Breaking the news to Nick would have to wait.
Kat felt too raw, too vulnerable. And she knew how awful she looked in an ugly cry.
No need to subject him to that. Still, she wondered what his reaction would be.
Would he tell her to buck up, she’d get it next time?
Would he be outraged on her behalf, agree she’d been unfairly pushed aside?
Would he get on an airplane and come to comfort and console her?
She liked to think she didn’t need any of those things. She didn’t need a man’s shoulder to cry on. But a tiny voice inside whispered how nice it might be to lean into those broad shoulders, to sink into the warmth of his chest, to be pampered a little.
Inside the quaint Italian bistro that served traditional Italian comfort food, Kat slid into a booth and waited for Mia.
A moment later, Mia stood beside her. Instead of scooting in across from her, she motioned Kat up then wrapped her in a tight hug. “Well, damn,” she whispered. “One good cry, then we order wine.”
Kat clung to her friend, laughing and sniffling. Finally, she pulled back and dropped onto the padded booth. Almost immediately, a server arrived with warm bread and took their drink order.
“So they hired that guy you met?”
“Amy wouldn’t say for sure. Waiting for an official announcement. But I’m betting that’s who it is. I’m actually more annoyed by that than anything. This was a personal favor, a behind-the-scenes deal. It wouldn’t have mattered what kind of hoops I jumped through.”
“That’s right, my friend. You got hijacked, so you can’t take it personally.” She cocked her head. “Does it ever occur to you that you are seriously rocking the under thirty and amazing category?”
Kat sputtered a laugh. “Is that a nice way of saying I’m being impatient and need to lower my expectations?”
The server brought their drinks, and they ordered a pasta sampler to share.
“Nah, it just means you can’t obsess over this. You’re good.” Mia lifted her glass. “To strong women. May we know them. May we be them. To you.”
“Cheers,” Kat said softly. “I’m glad I didn’t tell very many people I’d applied. Now the only other person I have to tell is Nick.”
Mia’s brows shot up. “You didn’t tell Nana?”
“Nope. The Loft show was enough. Guess I kind of had a feeling.” Her eyes watered again.
“I wish the new guy had started today so we could get it over with. Now I have two weeks of anticipating his arrival.” She shook her head.
“Terrible timing. If the exhibit wasn’t opening next week, I’d take a few days off and get out of here. ”
“To where?”
Kat’s heart fluttered. She knew exactly where she’d go. And it wasn’t anyplace exotic. “Colorado Springs.” Her voice cracked, and in the next instant, her face crumpled. She couldn’t help it. The tears spilled over again.
Mia gaped at her. “Katlyn Jane Andrews, I have never seen you this emotional about anything.” She moved to Kat’s side of the booth and linked arms. “You, my friend, just might be in love.” She handed Kat a napkin.
Kat dabbed her eyes and choked out a laugh. “With a cyber man, unfortunately.”
“We’ve got to fix that.”
Their confused server hovered at the table with two plates. “Umm…”
Mia laughed. “You can set mine over there.” She gave Kat’s arm another squeeze then resumed her place across the booth. “Seriously. We need a plan.”
For the first time today, Kat smiled. But she shook her head. “I can’t go. I already looked into it. We need a plan for opening weekend, though.”
“He’ll be here, right?”
Kat held up crossed fingers. “He has plane tickets.” She pulled her phone from her purse to make some notes. “While we eat, you can help me with some ideas. Which restaurants should we go to? Everything has to be easy for Nana.”
Mia grinned. “I can’t wait to see how all this goes down.”
* * *
Kat sent Nick a text message to open his video chat, and a moment later, his image filled the screen on her laptop. Her heart somersaulted, and she swallowed hard. “Hi.”
“Hey–” The grin on his face quickly changed to a frown. “You okay? Another crazy day in the world of modern art?”
Obviously, she didn’t have much of a poker face. So she didn’t bother with a fake smile. “It sure was.” There was no way she could hide the disgusted edge to her voice, either.
He leaned in. “Uh-oh. What’s up?”
“I didn’t get the promotion.”
Nick’s face went blank, and he stared at her. After an eternity, he shook his head. “Oh, Kat.”
His green eyes clouded, but the warmth, the silent empathy in that deep gaze touched her soul. She sucked in a shaky breath.
“I’m sorry, babe.”
He asked all the same questions Mia did. Was indignant on her behalf.
“Did she give you any other feedback or reason?”
Kat pushed back the hair from her face. “Made it sound like timing. I’m such a great team member, my time will come. I guess this Blake guy was pretty desperate for a job right now.” Sarcasm dripped from her voice. “Can’t wait to find out the real scoop behind all this.”
“Don’t worry, the story will come out eventually. But by then, you won’t care. You’ll be on to bigger and better things.”
She attempted a smile. “Hello, Mister Optimism.”
He hitched his shoulders. “It sucks now, but you never know where a twist in the road will lead. I wish I was there.”
Kat brushed away the tears that stubbornly kept leaking out. “I wish you were, too.”
“You know I would be if I could, right? I’ve looked at my calendar every which way. I thought about finishing up these scripts at the HB offices or even a coffee shop there, but something else keeps getting in the way.”
“Nick, it’s okay.” She gave a “cut” motion with her hands. “Enough about my sad little story. How was your day?”
“Nothing more important than yours. I want you in my arms so badly.”
The emotion in his voice warmed her all over. “That’s a lovely place to be.”
They talked a few more minutes, but Kat was talked out. Worn out. “I think I’m ready to call it a day,” she told him. “I need some sleep. And I still have to show up for work tomorrow.”
“’Night, sweetheart. Go to sleep with these two words in your head. ‘You’re amazing.’”
She returned the kiss he blew then closed the computer.
But she lingered a moment as a vague sense of uneasiness stole over her.
He wanted to be here, but… She wanted to be there , but…
Were they each too busy, too committed to their careers for a relationship?
Did they separately have too many meetings and too much ambition?
Were they on track to be the world’s most boring couple?
Always sticking to a plan? Always following a calendar? Never doing anything spontaneous?