12. Daniel
12
Daniel
Days of steering clear of Chloe at the office end abruptly when Garamond, the perennial advocate for family gatherings, comes to town. His insistence on having family dinners every couple of months is a well-known thorn in my side, yet I can’t deny how useful they’ve been in the past. We’ve hashed out numerous mergers and acquisitions over these dinners, and I keep telling myself that’s the reason I don’t argue when Michelle pushes for me to invite the bane of my existence to it—Chloe.
Chloe is not family. But she might be helpful when we start talking about business again.
Michelle and I meet Garamond at our favorite steakhouse, House of Prime Rib . The host guides us to his table, and we get seated.
Of course, Chloe’s late.
Despite my irritation with her joining, when she walks in 8 minutes later, I rise and introduce her to my brother, offering her the chair beside me. “Chloe,” I greet.
She rejects my gesture, opting instead to sit by Garamond across the table. “I’d hate for my perfume to aggravate your allergies,” she comments.
Michelle looks skeptical. “Since when do you have a perfume allergy, Dad?”
“I’ve recently come to suffer from it,” I answer, my eyes never leaving Chloe.
Garamond beams a grin and stands to offer Chloe a seat. “Looks like I’m the lucky one then,” he laughs, pretending to sniff the air. “You smell wonderful.”
I mumble about Garamond’s lack of professionalism as we all get situated. I notice Chloe intentionally avoiding my gaze, which I don’t mind at first. The last thing I want is for her to look in my direction because we might just end up getting on each other’s already frayed nerves.
However, I soon find myself taking advantage of her diverted attention to watch her unabashedly. Her presence is incredibly distracting. I frequently shift my focus to my brother, so I can keep my composure.
Garamond is five years older than me, but somehow, he manages to stay young. His dyed hair gleams with the hue of polished silver, his complexion bears the kiss of the sun, and he’s never without his signature tie, adorned with the pin of the American flag. He served as my company’s CPA for a while, but after he resigned to pursue his dreams in real estate, he made it a tradition for us to connect at least four to six times a year.
After the waiter takes our orders, Garamond, ever the charmer, leans toward Chloe and murmurs loud enough for everyone to hear, “I’m actually curious. What is the name of the perfume you’re wearing.”
I can’t bite back my retort. “You might want to reserve flirting with my employee for a more private setting if you wouldn’t like to see your name in tomorrow’s headlines.”
“Oh, come on now,” he chuckles. “I’m not flirting. It’s refreshing.”
“Well, I’ve been warned about being nice and thoughtful. So, for the sake of keeping peace, I’ll keep my fabulous scent a secret,” Chloe responds, winking at him.
Noted on the subtle jabs, Chloe.
Then, she locks eyes with me, shooting me a death glare.
“Why would anyone think being nice is bad?” Michelle whines in disbelief. “What does that even mean—warned about it?”
“Some people are just miserable themselves and want others to join them in their pity party. They probably steal candy from kids for fun,” Garamond adds.
Wait, what just happened? How did this conversation turn so quickly?
“Yeah, or just fire people,” Chloe says, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
I cough once. Twice. Chloe’s eyes are burning holes into my skin, but I don’t return her glare.
“I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks being nice is normal, good even. Right, Daniel?”
I look up to see everyone’s eyes on me. I don’t like being cornered and Chloe pulled it off with ease. I’ll get her back for it.
“I…uh.” Words fail me, and I can only muster a weak shrug.
Garamond shakes his head. “It’s pathetic, really, but let’s talk about why I’m really here.”
Finally .
But my relief only lasts a millisecond as Garamond turns to me, “So, I wanna hear everything about your love life, little bro. Michelle tells me you’re still single.”
“That’s not really a topic for the dinner table, especially not for Michelle’s ears...or Chloe’s.”
Michelle, quick as a whip, chimes in, “Oh, don’t mind me, Dad. I’m all ears, and you should know, that if you’re ready to move on, I’d totally understand.”
It only lasts a second, but my eyes don’t miss Michelle’s darting to Chloe. That’s when I realize what this meet-up is about. This dinner, under the guise of business discussions and family reunion, is a setup – a matchmaking attempt where Michelle has taken over Cupid’s role. But Michelle, bless her heart, couldn’t have chosen a more mismatched pair, even if she tried.
“Life, you see,” Garamond begins, “Isn’t meant to be spent in the shadows of the past. It’s too short, and every moment you spend wallowing in what was is a moment you steal from what could be.”
I squirm in my seat, feeling like a kid called into the principal’s office. His well-meaning words feel like weights on my shoulders.
“You gotta let yourself live a little, bro. Take a chance on happiness. What happened was quite unfortunate, but you can’t keep yourself locked away from the world because of it. For example, what are those snacks you love again? Chocolate espresso beans?”
“They were Mom’s favorite, too,” Michelle mumbles. “He won’t even look at them anymore because he feels like he’s betraying Mom. It reminds him of her too much.”
A bead of sweat trickles down my spine despite the air-conditioning working at full capacity, and I dare glance at Chloe. Her eyes are on me, wide with shock, but once they connect with mine, she quickly masks it with a nonchalant shrug.
“Who knows, Dad? Maybe that special someone is closer than you think,” Michelle says, winking at me.
Oh, boy.
“I think it’s best we call it a night.” I stand up abruptly. This is not how I planned this evening to go.
“What? Why? Our order isn’t even ready yet!” Garamond protests.
“We can do this again another night soon. I forgot I have to prepare for an important meeting in the morning,” I declare, leaving no room for argument. “Michelle, come on. I’ll call Chloe an Uber.”
Leaving the dinner behind was a relief, but it wasn’t a ruse…not completely, at least. I couldn’t take much more of the romantic life questions, especially with Chloe around. Yet, for some reason, I find myself looking for her, wondering what she’s doing.
Why? I threatened to fire her for walking on thin ice and for daring to speak to me in that tone, yet she’s still here. Despite my irritation, I can't deny there's something about her that keeps drawing me in. Her resilience, her spark, the way she stands up to me when no one else does—it’s maddening and intriguing all at once.
Maybe Michelle is on to something, and I just keep making things harder by pushing Chloe away.
***
Everything is business as usual at the office. I walk into the boardroom, where my team is already waiting. Chloe is there too, her gaze carefully averted.
We all settle in, and without delay, the meeting starts. “Let’s first revisit the figures from the last quarter,” I begin. “The revenue projections were off by 1.7%, which may not be significant in the grand scheme, but as we all know, accuracy is key, especially if we have to make up for those losses this quarter.”
Nods of agreement follow my critique, but I find myself wondering if Chloe’s head bounced along with the others, even as I deliberately act like she isn’t sitting next to me.
“Bottom line is, we need smarter forecasting and better sales and marketing strategies,” I explain. “Now, I’ll hand it over to Jonathan Hale to dig deeper on these strategies.”
“Thank you, Sir,” Jonathan says, walking up to the front of the room as I lean back into my seat. “Today, I want us to focus on our upcoming campaign to revamp our flagship magazine, Prestige Pulse .”
Again, I feel Chloe’s eyes on me. She must have been shocked since I told her that I was discontinuing the magazine, and now I feel stupid that I can’t find any reason for my decision to continue, other than Chloe’s reaction that day. She seemed so upset, and I hated myself for even noticing. There has to be another reason I listened to her ideas. I don’t care about her feelings enough to let it affect my business decisions… right?
Jonathan continues, “Our target demography is shifting, and we’ve identified the opportunity to capture the 18 – 24 age bracket…”
Jonathan’s voice trails off as the lights go out and the PowerPoint comes on. I dare to seize the opportunity. Chloe isn’t smiling. She’s been a fortress since the fallout in my office – minus last night’s awkward dinner. Her laughter is locked away, at least from me as far as I can tell. I catch my gaze lingering on her, but quickly rip it off, wary of how others might perceive it.
All of these thoughts and questions. The entire situation is maddening, really.
I’m Daniel Andrews, the man at the helm. Why should I even care that I’m the only one in the entire office that Chloe is walled off from? Just yesterday, during working hours, I heard her laughter echoing throughout the office and full of life that it made my office feel like a tomb.
First, I’d find myself getting mad at her, and next, I’d admit I was too harsh on her and would want to make things right.
Dang it, I don’t care.
She’s not relevant enough to have this effect on me.
I return my attention to Jonathan in time to catch a loophole in his presentation. “Hold on. The projections for Q3 on slide seventeen – there’s an oversight there. The market analysis doesn’t account for the recent regulatory changes. How does this affect our publication?”
Silence descends into the room, and everyone exchanges glances. Ugh. I hate it when they do that.
“I need a solution, not blank stares,” I press impatiently.
“There’s an easy way around it,” Chloe says softly after another minute of silence, automatically earning everyone’s attention. She comes in swiftly with yet another home run idea.
Silence.
“That is brill –” I catch myself and draw in a breath. “That’s a possibility.”
Nods of agreement ripple through the room again. However, my pride is disrupted when I catch Alex, ever so casually, placing a hand on Chloe’s under the table, eliciting a smile from her. Suddenly, the room feels a hundred times hotter, and a tightness grips my throat. With a subtle tug, I loosen my collar.
“Is the air-conditioning still on?” I ask.
This is ridiculous. I’m the CEO, not a schoolboy with a crush.
Get a grip, Daniel. Figure it out. Figure out what you want.
As if on cue, my phone buzzes. “I have to take this. Let’s reconvene on Monday morning.” The words are barely out of my mouth before I stand up and bolt out of there.
Back in my office, I pace frantically, my thoughts on nothing and everything all at the same time. After a few minutes, I can’t stand the tension anymore. I pick up the phone to dial Chloe’s office. “Can you come into my office, please?”
When she enters seconds later, I don’t waste a moment before I circle her to close the door. “What was all that about?”
“You asked for a solution, and I gave one. I’m not trying to score points if that’s what you think.” She clearly prepared for this.
I take a step closer to her so that we can feel each other’s breaths.
“I’m sick of hearing that!” I retort, the words tumbling from my lips like coins from an old school slot machine. “If an apology is what it takes for you to stop driving me crazy, then so be it. I’m sorry for being mean and unreasonable. Heck, I’ll even buy you lunch for the month.”
“You’re the one who’s driving me insane, not the other way around,” Chloe exclaims, jabbing her finger in my chest, sending a jolt of electricity through my veins.
My pulse quickens. I’m tempted to grasp her finger, pull her close, and plant my lips firmly against hers in a passionate embrace. It takes every muscle in my body to stop me from caressing her, giving into this overwhelming urge to taste her.
OMG. No, Daniel.
How did I get here? How did we get here? And why can’t I fire this woman already?
“It’s too late for apologies. And I sure don’t want your food.”
“Then stop it. Whatever it is you’re doing to me, because it’s making me very uncomfortable.”
“What am I doing?”
I search for words, but they’re elusive. What is she doing to me?
Breathing heavily, I muster the only words I can. “Just … leave, please.”
Chloe’s eyes flare wide. She stares at me with piercing, yet innocent eyes, and for a moment, I recoil under its intensity. I imagine she’s thinking of ways to murder me in cold blood, but she suddenly leans in closer. There’s a significant height difference between us, but right now, Chloe seems like a giant.
“Move,” she commands. I hesitantly do as she instructs.
Jeez. She can be vicious when she wants to be.
And she’s totally nuts.
She’s equally driving me crazy.
And she’s unbelievably hot when she’s mad.
Chloe reaches the door but pauses when her hand touches the knob. “If you don’t understand what it is you’re feeling, I’ll spell it out for you. G-U-I-L-T.” But before I can say anything else, Chloe flips her hair and walks out of my office.
I watch her hips sway from side to side.
Ugh. Where’s that old therapist’s number?