Chapter Eleven
I FELT LIKE I KEPT saying this lately, but that did not go how I had anticipated it.
All I had wanted was a nice evening with family and friends to celebrate one of life’s milestones with one of the greatest men on earth, but instead I ended up being manhandled, to put it nicely.
That led to kind of a moment on the porch with my boss, which caused all sorts of confusion, and to top it off, Mr. Greyson was now my brother-in-law’s new BFF.
They were even going golfing when he returned from Colorado.
Oh yeah, and now the office would know that I had a thing with Mr. Greyson, and if that wasn’t enough, Mr. Greyson now knew about my history with Luke.
It was like my life was coming undone stitch by stitch.
My sister said this was a good thing, because I needed a change of wardrobe.
Mr. Greyson was her favorite now, too, since he played hero. I admit I was truly grateful for that. Not like Luke could have really done anything, even if he had got me outside, but I appreciated Mr. Greyson and Zane remedying the situation quickly.
As I lay there in bed thinking about the weirdness that had become my life, my phone rang.
I picked it up and was surprised by the name that appeared and by the lateness of the hour.
I was intrigued by why he would call so late, so I answered it.
“Mr. Greyson, let me guess, you already have a list of directives for me to follow while you’re gone. ”
“Funny, Kelli, but no.”
“Darn it. And here I was hoping you would finally tell me how to properly dispose of the used coffee filters at the office.”
He laughed. “Well, I see I don’t need to ask if you’re okay.”
“Don’t tell me you were worried about me.”
He cleared his throat. “I was.”
“Oh. Well . . . thank you.”
“Luke didn’t come back, did he?” he asked.
“No, I think he knew better.”
“Kelli?” I could hear his hesitation. “What happened between you and him?”
I was taken aback by the inquiry and not exactly sure I wanted to talk about it with him. I didn’t respond for several seconds as I was mulling over what I should or shouldn’t say.
“Kelli?”
“I’m here.” I wasn’t sure why I still was. I wasn’t sure it was professional behavior to be talking to your boss about your love life on a Saturday night near midnight, and in particular, this boss. I took a deep breath and lost my head. “I dated Luke during grad school when he worked for his dad.”
“He used to work for Chandler?”
“Yep. His dad fired him not long after I started working there.”
“Did he do something to you?” The concern in his voice was apparent and confusing.
“No, his termination had nothing to do with me. He let alcohol and drugs consume his life, and his dad caught him stealing funds from the company.”
“Ouch.”
“That’s putting it mildly. His parents were devastated.”
“How about you?”
“If you’re asking if I was devastated by Luke, the answer is no. I was hurt, but by that point, I knew Luke and I didn’t belong together. But as you know from tonight, he disagreed, and he didn’t take it well.”
“I’m sorry, Kelli.”
I sat up in bed. “Why are you sorry?”
It was his turn to pause. I wasn’t sure why; it seemed like a straightforward question.
“You deserve better,” he finally answered.
“Something we agree on,” I replied.
“Do my ears deceive me?” I could hear the smile in his voice.
“Good night, Mr. Greyson.”
All I could hear him say as I went to hit the end button was, “Someday, Kelli.”
I set down the phone and rubbed my face. What a bizarre night, from the beginning to the end. There was a time when him calling me in the middle of the night was expected and even looked forward to, but now it was just plain unnerving. Mr. Greyson needed to quit acting like Ian.
I snuggled down under my blanket and let the sleep I needed take me over.
I woke up early on Sunday and got ready for church.
When I left, I had a surprise taped to my door.
It was an envelope. I recognized the handwriting immediately.
I snatched it and opened it right away. In it I found instructions on how to properly dispose of used coffee filters.
I couldn’t help it—I laughed. I didn’t remember him being playful like that, I wasn’t sure what had gotten into him.
That note was definitely not written by Mr. Greyson, and where Ian had been thoughtful, he was never one to really joke.
I drove to church with the note in my passenger seat.
I wasn’t sure why, but I kept looking over at it.
It was like it held some mysterious power over me.
Even in my head that sounded dumb, but it was true.
I even folded it up and put it in my purse before I headed into church.
Then I did something really dumb: I texted the fool who wrote it.
Only you could have made up ten steps for such a simple task.
I was surprised he texted right back. I wondered if he was at the airport or already in Colorado. I could have added at least five more.
I had no doubt. I smiled at the phone as I walked into the chapel area.
I looked up to find my sister and her family waving me over.
I made my way over to sit in the pew we had been sitting in for at least the last twenty years.
Before I sat down, I turned off my phone and threw it in my purse next to the note.
I sat in-between my nieces, who both looked very pretty in pink today.
The pastels were a sure sign that spring had arrived.
“What were you smiling about?” Amanda asked.
“Nothing.”
She eyed me warily.
I ignored her and turned my attention to Sam and Court, who were now fighting over who rightly owned the purple marker.
Court had it in her hand. It was funny until they both started reaching over me and grabbing each other.
The argument was short lived. All Zane had to do was look their way and they ceased and desisted, but true to form, Sam made a very sassy under-her-breath comment. I tried not to crack a smile.
Zane leaned over Amanda. “You should’ve brought Ian over earlier. He’s the first guy you’ve dated that I like,” he spoke in hushed tones.
I felt my eyeballs dilate. “I’m not dating Mr. Greyson, Zane.”
“Yet,” he laughed.
Louder than I should have in church, and of course just as the pastor stood up, out of complete frustration I blurted out, “I think you mean when hell freezes over.”
The pastor looked my way, as did most everyone. Amanda lost it and began shaking uncontrollably, trying not to laugh out loud. Zane was grinning like an idiot, and Sam and Court put the final nail in the coffin. “Ohhh, you said hell in church,” they said in stereo.
That did it. Amanda lost it for reals, and so did I. We both had to leave to the stares of our fellow church goers. I’m sure they all thought we had lost our minds, and in my case they were correct. Once in the foyer, we laughed so hard it hurt. We were going to hell for sure.
Our little indiscretion at church was played over and over at the Culver dinner table that night.
Maybe it was sacrilegious, but I needed the laugh after the month I had been having.
To make up for it, I would put a hefty donation in the plate next week at church.
Annoyingly, another thing that was overplayed that night at dinner was Amanda and Zane’s obsession with Mr. Greyson, whom they called Ian.
They were both convinced he had it bad for me and it was just a matter of time before we rekindled our romance. I adamantly disagreed and left early.
Monday dawned and I thought I would be happy that I had a Mr. Greyson-free week or two to look forward to, but oddly I didn’t feel that way. I found myself poring over that stupid note again. I should have just chucked it, but for some reason I couldn’t. I did wear jeans though, just for spite.
I rushed into the office, hoping to head Delfia off at the pass.
I hoped she hadn’t already started to blab about the news my traitorous sister shared with her at the retirement party.
My hopes rose as I noticed hers was the only car in the parking lot.
I jogged in as best I could in heels and raced up to the executive level.
There I found her as usual; busy as a bee, typing away, but as soon as she heard me, she turned to face me.
A Cheshire grin broke out across her face.
I shook my head at her, and she laughed.
“I knew you and Mr. Greyson had a thing.”
I placed my hands on my hips. “I could say the same thing about you and Matt.”
She blushed. I don’t think I had ever seen her do that. “I know he’s kind of young.”
I walked toward her and touched her arm. “I think it’s great, and he’s a lucky guy,” but I had to throw in, “you cougar.”
She chuckled a little. “We kind of want to keep it quiet. Well, at least Matt does. He’s not a big fan of interoffice dating.”
Perfect. “Well . . . I’ll keep your secret if you keep mine.”
She held out her hand. “Deal, my friend.”
Inwardly, I took a big sigh of relief while shaking her hand.
“But,” she said, “I want details.”
I laughed as I walked away toward my office.
There would be no divulging of details. When I walked into my office, I shut my door.
It was weird that had become a habit. Before Mr. Greyson, I never really shut that door, but now it was commonplace.
I wondered if it would ever be different.
Would I ever become comfortable with him being my boss?
I found myself staring at my credenza that remained in front of the adjoining door, and I found myself wondering why he had to go back to Colorado so soon.
He said it was personal. I wondered if it was the woman who he had tried to get over.
Then I wondered why I wondered before I told myself to enjoy my Mr. Greyson-free zone and to get to work.