Chapter 11
Grace
“I ’m headed out, Grace .”
I looked up at Mercy as she stopped next to my desk.
“I’m showing the office space up off of Brookfield and after that I’m meeting Alan Teller for happy hour at the Green Room. Then I’m calling it a week.”
“Okay.” I pushed back from my desk a little, searching my brain for the name Mercy had mentioned. “Alan Teller is a big developer, right?”
“Yep, got it in one.” Mercy perched her hip on the edge of the desk. “Current senior vice president and future CEO of Teller Development, the second biggest development firm in the area on a mission to become number one.”
Satisfaction swirled through me that I’d made the right connection. I’d learned so much in the weeks I’d worked with Mercy. It was nice to see that some of it was sinking in.
“Feel free to shut things down a little early here if you want to. It’s a gorgeous Friday afternoon. No reason to spend it cooped up in an office if you don’t absolutely have to. Especially this time of year.”
I glanced out the big windows that lined the front of our space to the blue sky beyond. It was a beautiful early fall day, as Mercy had said. Who knew how many more we’d have before the dreary gray of winter set in?
“I think I’ll take you up on that, thanks.” Not that I had anything to do or anywhere to go, but I’d think of something.
It was as if Mercy could read my mind.
“Have you got any plans this weekend?”
I considered how to answer her without sounding pathetic. I settled on a shrug and noncommittal, “Not really.”
“You should come hang out with us at Levi’s this Sunday. Michael’s off so all of us will be there.” My stomach jumped at the mention of Michael though I tried not to show it. “Levi and I do all the cooking except for dessert, which Michael usually brings, and we let Ace and Ry off with bringing the drinks. It would be fun to have you there.”
“I don’t know.” It didn’t feel like a pity invite but still... “It sounds like a family thing.”
“Not necessarily.” It was Mercy’s turn to shrug. “Other people pop in from time to time. Ace brought his former girlfriend a few times, though thank God that’s over. She was a joy.” Mercy’s expression made it clear that was anything but true. “As it is, though, there’s a lot of testosterone clogging up the air. I could use some female company to help even things out a little.”
I was tempted. I liked Mercy and it was a chance to see Michael. I probably shouldn’t accept the invitation, but I was going to.
“If you’re sure, I’m in. It sounds like fun.”
“I’m sure.” Mercy stood and looped her bag over her shoulder. “I’ll text you the details.”
After Mercy left, I turned back to my computer, determined to get my last few tasks done and get out into the sunshine.
I’d worked hard for weeks on reorganizing the files for the property management side of the business and I’d made great progress. I knew nothing about either property management or real estate, but I had good organizational skills, and I was putting them to use.
Mercy’s previous assistant had a system, but it was ineffective and cumbersome. He’d alphabetized everything by client, which made some sense, but also often caused wasted time sorting through old files not related to the current information Mercy needed.
I was reorganizing everything first by property, then by client, then date, so Mercy could quickly put her hands on exactly what she needed. She loved the new system, and I felt a huge sense of relief and accomplishment that I was able to help make things easier for her.
I finished up quickly, gathered my things together, locked up behind me, and crossed the street to my apartment building. Once inside my apartment, I changed into shorts and a t-shirt and headed back out.
I planned to get an early dinner from the deli and take it back to my apartment, but it was so nice out that I changed direction and ended up in the park with my dinner instead. I sat on a bench and ate my sandwich while I watched the activity around me.
I loved the neighborhood. There were enough people and businesses to make it feel vibrant and lively, but not so many that it felt cramped or overcrowded. There was foot traffic and vehicle traffic, but not too much of either. In the words of Goldilocks and the bears, it was just right.
I had everything I needed within a few block radius, so much so that I’d only driven the car Jamey and Meg were lending me once, for a trip to a major grocery store for items not offered by the small market three blocks away.
There were days I had to pinch myself to be sure it was real. It felt too good to be true, and I found myself wondering when the cracks would start to show, when the illusion would shatter. Then I’d hope against hope that it never would because it wasn’t an illusion at all. Even though there was simply no way this could be my life – to be safe and happy with an apartment and job that I loved – somehow, impossibly, it was.
I was walking back to my apartment when my phone rang. I pulled it from my pocket and couldn’t help the smile that bloomed on my face.
This was another part of my too-good-to-be-believed world – my daily conversation with Michael. Sometimes we talked, sometimes – especially when he was closing – we texted, but not a day had gone by without contact since I’d moved back.
We just talked about our days or casual topics, nothing serious or deep. I was still fighting hard not to read too much into it, but it had become my favorite part of the day.
I tapped to connect the call. “Hey, Michael.”
“Hey, Grace. Whatcha doing?”
I could almost swear I could hear his smile. Could he hear mine?
Did he look forward to this like I did?
“Walking back to my apartment after enjoying my dinner in the sunshine at the park. You?”
Michael laughed. “Slaving over a hot oven and grill feeding a hungry Friday happy hour crowd while you’re out living your life of leisure.”
“Poor baby.” Michael wasn’t exaggerating, I knew. Happy hours were popular at the pub on any day, but the Friday ones were always packed. “Sucks to be you,” I teased.
Michael laughed again. “Yeah, thanks for the sympathy. Hey, Mercy tells me you’ll be at Levi’s on Sunday.”
I looked at my phone in surprise. How did he know already?
“That’s the plan. If you think it’s okay.”
“I think it’s fantastic. I should have thought of it myself. I was thinking I could pick you up if you want to ride with me. Levi’s place it out a ways.”
Like I was going to turn that down?
I tried to temper my enthusiasm as I answered. “That would be great, thanks.”
“Perfect. I’ve gotta run but I’ll call you tomorrow and we can figure out times and everything, okay?”
“Perfect,” I echoed. “I hope things slow down a little for you.” They wouldn’t...not for hours. If anything, it was about to get worse as the Friday dinner rush started to kick in. I cringed, feeling a little guilty that I wasn’t there to help, which I knew was silly, but still.
“Don’t let Kendrick or Jamey hear you say that. Talk to you tomorrow.”
“Bye, Michael.”
I walked the last block to my apartment and when I got there, flopped down on the couch, thinking.
I’d been surprised when Michael had asked if I’d mind helping Mercy rather than coming back to Brothers Pub, at least in the short term. I’d enjoyed my time there and had been a little disappointed that either Michael or Jamey or both maybe weren’t as anxious to have me back as I was to be there.
Now that I saw the magnitude of the help that Mercy needed, I was honored in a way that Michael thought I could handle it. She’d been absolutely drowning without an assistant. Even with me there she was busy enough for three people. As I’d thought earlier in the day, it was very satisfying to be able to help her and to see the direct impact of my efforts. If Michael asked me to go back to the pub now I would – I owed him far too much to ever say no – but I’d miss working with Mercy.
Leaving all that for another day, I headed up to my bedroom to change into comfy sweats and grab my latest book. It was time to get my wild Friday night of reading on my couch started.