10. Chapter 10
Chapter 10
Jenna
“Okay, thank you Bobby,” said. “I know that tomorrow is going to go off without a hitch.”
I couldn’t believe that the fundraiser was the very next night, but I knew that it was going to go well. Everything has been so organized and taken care of. All that I had to do was meet one time with the event manager, Bobby, to make sure that everything was in place. Bobby had been working with the venue for over 10 years, and I knew I had nothing to worry about.
I went outside and looked at my watch, and I was happy to see that it was only 8 o’clock. I was so excited to be back in Manhattan, and I couldn’t wait to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. Shanna and Kevin weren’t going to be arriving until the next morning. I knew that Ryan was in town, but I wasn’t going to bother him. My plan was to walk across the bridge, get myself some pizza, and then head back to my room.
I knew that Tyler was having fun with my parents. They were going to have a baseball movie marathon, and my mom had even made special cupcakes for the evening. They had the entire weekend planned out, and I was pretty certain that Tyler wasn’t going to give me even a second thought.
As I walked down the stairs into the subway, I couldn’t help but think about the last time I had been there. I smiled as I thought about how much fun Tyler had had, and how Ryan had been so attentive and helpful. Suddenly my phone buzzed in my hand, and for some reason I was not surprised to look down and see Ryan’s name pop up on the screen. I smiled as I read his text.
I just got off the phone with Addie. She said that Bobby from the event center called her and said that as much as he missed working with her, the beautiful young lady taking her place was absolutely fantastic. I thought I’d pass along the compliment.
I knew better than to be distracted while waiting on the subway platform, but once I was settled on the train, I wrote back.
Thank you for passing that along. Bobby is awesome, and tomorrow’s going to be great. I plan on arriving at the venue at 4 o’clock. What time will you be there?
I was assuming that he would get there around six or so, since the event started at seven. His answer surprised me.
How about Kevin and I pick you ladies up at three? That will give us plenty of time to get there. That way we can all help if there’s any last-minute things, and we’re not leaving you alone. After all, this is my company and I would feel strange not being there with you. Also, I don’t really want to be a third wheel for the lovebirds.
His reasoning made sense. I once again shook my head as I remembered the awful things that I had been told about him, especially how he always dumped all of the work on his other employees. I wasn’t sure who started all of the nasty rumors, but as I had done several times since getting to know him, I realized that the rumors were not true. I was just about to agree to his plan when he texted me again.
What are you up to now?
I felt a bit embarrassed telling him what I was doing because I didn’t want to seem like the inexperienced tourist that I was. I figured that those who lived in the city at one point got tired of seeing the landmarks, but to me it was so exciting. However, I wasn’t going to lie to him either, so I told him that I was riding the subway towards Brooklyn. He responded within a minute, and his response filled me with delight.
I am about 10 minutes away from the bridge. I’ll meet you there… if that’s okay.
I told him that of course it was okay, and I felt the surge of energy for the rest of the ride. 10 minutes later my heart skipped a beat as I walked up the subway stairs and saw him standing there waiting for me. He was dressed casually, and he looked so comfortable and at ease.
“Hey,” he said, smiling at me as I got close to him.
“Hi,” I responded.
“So, you couldn’t resist the bridge at night?” he asked, smirking.
I laughed. “No, no I could not.”
“I don’t blame you,” he said. “Shall we?”
We walked across the bridge and truly enjoyed one another’s company. Although we talked a little bit about work, we mostly just chit chatted. I felt so relaxed and natural, as if it was something that we had been doing for years.
Once we crossed into Manhattan, I told him I wanted to get some pizza. He recommended his favorite place, which happened to be just down the street from his apartment. I agreed to go, excited to see what his go-to restaurant was like.
As he walked into the restaurant I could immediately see why he liked it so much. It was comfortable, and I immediately felt like I was among friends. Everyone there knew him, and they greeted him by name. I saw a few of the servers look at me and raise their eyebrows at Ryan. He just smiled and shook his head. Once we sat down, the server didn’t bother bringing menus.
“Hey Ryan,” she said, smiling brightly. “Your usual?”
Ryan looked at me. “How much do you trust me?”
“Completely,” I answered.
I noticed the server nodded approvingly, and I knew that I had said the right thing.
Ryan looked at the server. “The usual,” he said. “Plus an extra order of garlic bread.”
“You got it,” she said, winking at Ryan and walking away.
“How often do you come here?” I asked.
Ryan laughed. “At least twice a week. I know, it’s not exactly the healthiest habit, but I can’t help myself. I love being here, and you’ll see that the food is incredible.”
“I believe it,” I said. “It’s not like there is a shortage of pizza places in Manhattan, so if you are coming to a place twice a week, I’m sure it has to be fantastic.”
Five minutes later all doubt was removed as the server placed a basket of steaming, tantalizing garlic bread in front of me. I took one bite and knew that I was about to enjoy some of the best food I had ever eaten.
“Oh my word,” I said.
Ryan smiled and said, “Yep.”
The pizza was even better than the garlic bread, and an hour later I headed back to my hotel room, feeling completely full, and completely happy. Ryan and I had truly enjoyed our evening, and when he left me at the entrance to my hotel, he had asked if he could give me a hug.
“Is that okay?” he asked. “I feel like we’ve actually become friends now, and I always hug my friends.”
“Of course that’s okay,” I said.
He had wrapped his arms around me, and aside from it lasting shorter than I wanted to, it was a perfect hug.
That night I fell asleep with a smile on my face, and the next morning, I woke up, giddy with excitement over what the day would bring.
The morning was a buzz of activity, and when Shanna arrived it only added to the excitement.
She had called me from the airport to let me know she was on her way, and she was chattering so excitedly that I couldn’t help but smile. She brought the same energy with her when she came into the hotel room about an hour later, and I knew we were going to have a fun evening.
“I cannot believe that I am in Manhattan,” she said, throwing up the curtains and looking out over the city. “I mean, I’ve been to New York City before, but this was just such a fun, last-minute trip and I feel like I’m doing something so spontaneous and exciting.”
“I am so glad that you were able to make it,” I said. “I know that was last minute, and such a strange thing to ask you to go and be someone else’s date, but I am happy you’re here, and I appreciate you just being so willing to just jump in.”
“It’s going to be so much fun! I have a great dress, and I just can’t wait for a fun night.”
I looked at my watch. “Well,” I said. “It’s noon. The guys are picking us up at three, so how about we go and get some bagels so we have some food on our stomachs, and then start getting ready for the evening? How does that sound?” .
“That sounds perfect, and so very New York!”
I laughed. “Yeah, as I was suggesting it, I realized I sounded like a local. Well, either a local, or a complete tourist. But either way, there’s a bagel shop about three blocks away from here, and I have heard that they are delightful.”
“Well, let’s go,” Shanna said.
We headed out to get our bagels, and during that time I enjoyed getting to know her even more. She was usually pretty reserved whenever she was at the ballfields, but understandably so. The field is a strange environment to try to make friends. However, that morning she was very friendly, and I realized that we had a lot in common. She had also played softball, and she was studying to be an English teacher.
After we ate the bagels, we returned to the hotel room and helped each other get ready. We zipped each other’s dresses, helped each other put the finishing touches on our hair, and by the time it was 2:55 I felt like I had made a lifelong friend.
Ryan called to let me know that he and Kevin were downstairs, and Shannon and I excitedly grabbed our purses and headed out the door.
Shanna got off the elevator before I did, and I smiled as I watched Kevin’s face light up.
“Wow,” he said. “You look absolutely incredible.”
“Thank you,” Shanna said, smiling. “You look very handsome, too.”
I turned from them, glanced at Ryan, and couldn’t help but notice he was staring at me.
“Hello,” I said.
“Hello,” he answered. “You are beautiful. I mean, absolutely beautiful.”
I was a bit surprised by his compliment and his intensity, but I appreciated what he said.
“You don’t look so bad yourself,” I replied, hoping to lighten the moment a bit. I felt the intense attraction between us, and I knew there was nothing that either of us could do about it.
Ryan chuckled. “Thanks,” he said.
Ryan greeted Shanna while I said hello to Kevin.
We started to walk out of the lobby when Ryan turned to Kevin with a sly grin. “Hey,” he said, a mischievous glint in his eye. “You better give your fiance one last smooch before we go. Once we walk out those doors people will be watching, and we need to sell it that she’s my date.”
Kevin laughed. “Well, if you say so,” he said, pulling Shanna into his arms.
I laughed and looked at Ryan. “Do you think we can pull this off?” I asked.
“We have to,” Ryan answered.
Kevin came and stood by my side. “I can do it,” he said.
Shanna put her arm through Ryan’s. “So can I," she added.”
“Well then, let’s go,” Ryan announced, and the four of us walked out of the hotel and climbed into the waiting limo.
***
“This evening is going so well,” Ryan said. “I won’t tell Addie, but you would never even know she wasn’t here.”
I smiled. “Well, that’s a testament to how well she had it organized,” I said.
It was nearly 9:00, and I had to agree with Ryan that everything was going so smoothly. There had been several members of the press there to take photos and do interviews while everyone was arriving. The food was delicious, the band was very good, and everyone at the event seemed to be having a great time.
Ryan looked down at his phone. “I keep getting alerts about this event!” He said. “People are posting about it so often on social media that I think my phone is going to explode.”
“That’s awesome,” I said. “That means it is the place to be.”
Ryan chuckled. “And apparently everyone believes that Shanna is my girlfriend. Or at least that’s what all of the headlines seem to indicate.”
I shook my head and laughed. “Yeah, I noticed that all of the reporters seemed to be particularly interested in asking you about her.”
“Yep. Honestly, it can get really annoying. But thank you so much for thinking of Shanna. It was the absolutely perfect solution,” Ryan said.
“I am glad it could work out,” I answered.
At that moment a colleague called to Ryan, and he indicated he would be right there. He turned back to me with a gentle smile on his face.
“I should go,” he said. “If I stay talking with you too much longer people are going to start asking questions. Thank you again for everything, and I am really looking forward to breakfast tomorrow.”
I couldn’t help it smile. I could sense people from the office watching us, and I knew that people were wondering what was going on. I knew that Shanna had helped take suspicion off of us a little bit, but I also knew that we were being watched so closely.
“I’m looking forward to breakfast, too,” I said. “I will see you later.”
I went to find Kevin as Ryan walked across the room to find his friend.
The rest of the evening went by in a blur, and before I knew it, the last of the guests were leaving.
Bobby walked across the room to me, a big smile on his face. I smiled as he approached and realized that I hadn’t seen much of him during the night. He had been so busy taking care of all of the details, and I had been so busy working on my responsibilities that our paths had not crossed.
“Well,” he said, “We did it!”
“Thank you so much, Bobby,” I said, shaking his hand. “It was a truly wonderful night.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it. I enjoyed working with you as well, and I hope that we’ll get to work together again in the future.”
“I’m sure I will see you a lot more,” I said.
Kevin was standing beside me, waiting to see me back to my hotel. Ryan and Shanna had gone a few moments earlier since we didn’t want to all leave at the same time.
I got the rest of my things and we left.
That night when I got back into the hotel room, Shanna and I talked about how well the evening had gone.
“I am glad that I was able to do this,” she said. “Thank you for thinking of me.”
I shook my head. You don’t need to thank me! I am the one indebted to you. You were such a huge help. And did you see the pictures that were posted online? You are absolutely gorgeous.”
All of the gossip pages had posted stories about the night, and there were several pictures of Shanna and Ryan. They were all speculating as to who she was, and some even seemed to imply that she and Ryan were secretly engaged. Although she had left her engagement ring in the hotel, she had a slight tan line on her finger and some of the more salacious sites had actually zoomed in on her finger.
Shanna laughed. “Thank you. It was really fun to be that glamorous. Although the cameras were blinding.”
“I’m sure!” I said.
“One thing that surprised me, though, was how much I was able to spend time with Kevin too. We had assumed we would hardly be able to see each other at all during the night, but we actually got to spend quite a bit of time together. We were in groups, of course, but it was still so enjoyable.”
“Yeah, I just love the way it all worked out,” I said, stretching out on my bed.
My feet hurt from standing all night, and I was glad to finally be able to relax.
Shanna looked at me for a minute as if she was trying to decide if she was going to say something.
“What is it?” I asked. “You look like you have something on your mind.”
Shanna nodded. “Okay, yeah. I will say it. Are you dating Ryan?”
I shook my head. “No, he’s my boss! Why?”
“He just asked an awful lot about you, and always seemed to know exactly where you were tonight and exactly what you were up to. Basically he couldn’t keep his eyes off you.”
“Oh,” I said, feeling my face blush. “I don’t know what to say to that.”
“There’s nothing you need to say,” Shannon said, her voice teasing. “That smile on your face says it all.”