CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
M iriam runs her hand through her thick, dark auburn curls. She’s sitting, her back straight like a board, tall in her expensive leather chair, watching me. She reminds me a bit of Briar.
She’s just asked me to join her team as a junior editorial correspondent, and I’m stunned. “I had no idea there were even any openings,” I say, fidgeting with the fringe on my bag.
“There wasn’t.” She smiles. “You’re great to work with, and the people love reading your articles. It’s a win-win for me. I’ll make room for you. There is one condition, though.” She purses her lips.
I feel nerves run through my body and eye her, waiting for her to continue.
“You have to write one more article on your dating segment.”
“But I’ve finished all the articles, I don’t have any more dates, and I’ve deleted the App.”
I hear her laptop ping with a new email, and she ignores it, her gaze not faltering.
“Your readers want to know who this guy is that you mentioned in your last article. You’ve left them all wanting more.” She leans onto her desk, coming in closer to me as if she’s about to tell me a secret. “Who is he?”
“Oh.” I look down at my hands. “He’s just a friend, actually.”
“Is he, Sofia? Tell me about him,” she says.
I brief her on our relationship. The kiss, the stolen moments between us. “But nothing will happen between us,” I claim.
“Why won’t it?” she asks. “You know, Sofia, you have to go after what you want. And you clearly want Ben.” She winks at me. “I want you to go after him, get your guy, and when you do, I want the article.” She straightens her back again.
“What if I don’t get him? Is the job still mine?” I say, unsure about going after Ben. “I mean, I need to think about it - the article.”
“You’ll get him, and you’ll write the article,” she says confidently.
My heart begins to race. “I’m not so sure.”
“I think you know that he wants to be with you, and you clearly want to be with him. Take this as your push. And you start in three weeks. Is that enough time to notify your current employer?”
She’s turned back into business boss mode.
I look right at her, fear mixing with nerves now. I’m excited, I’m going to be working full time for Lace & Dots magazine, and I’m thrilled. “I really was not expecting this,” I say. “Yes, three weeks is enough time to notify Jeffrey and find a replacement. About the article though, and Ben…”
“Have it sent to my email in two weeks,” she says.
“And if I don’t?” I’m nervous as hell. What if Ben doesn’t want me?
“You will.” She speaks as if she knows something that I don’t. As if she’s looking into a crystal ball and can see my future.
We go over all the details of the new job, salary, and expectations. I can’t believe this is happening. I’m going to miss working at the bookstore with Emily and the local authors…and with Ben. I can’t believe I’m going to do this. Am I really going to chance things with Ben? I think back to a few nights ago when I woke up on my couch, and he was gone. I was covered with a blanket and sleeping so peacefully, dreaming of his lips on mine, when I remembered the brush of his lips so softly on my forehead. I texted him that morning, apologizing for falling asleep.
I stand and shake her hand. “Thank you so much for this opportunity.”
I decide to accept her offer, and I’ll write the piece whether Ben rejects me or not. “I’m super excited and can’t wait to get started.”
“Welcome aboard, Sofia. I’ll send you all the details we’ve gone over in writing, and if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask.”
I thank her again. Miriam is great, and I can’t believe she actually offered me a job. I can’t wait to tell Lucy, Briar, and Ben. But I can’t exactly tell Ben about the article, can I?
I walk out of the large glass building and turn to look up. I can’t believe I’m going to be working for Lace & Dots!
* * *
I text Lucy and Briar as soon as I get home. They’re thrilled. We’re all excited to celebrate my new job and Lucy’s promotion at her big event on Friday. It’s confirmed that Briar, Alex, Ben, and I are all going together. I’m so excited to get all glammed up.
These events are glamorous. I have a couple of dresses from past events that I kept and will try on later, but I might take a stroll to the cute little vintage shop near Plants, Pottery & Books and see if they have anything that stands out. They always have dresses in the window.
And I have to talk to Ben.
I don’t know how I’m going to tell Ben that I won’t be seeing him every day anymore.
I’m kind of sad about it. But I’m also really nervous. I want Ben. I just don’t know how to tell him that. I feel like a character in a romance novel. Like I lost the girl, and now I need to do some big grand gesture. Although in my case, the tables are turned, and I lost a great guy.
I work the afternoon shift today, and I have another couple of hours.
I feed Bob and myself lunch, change out of my professional clothes, and swap them for jeans and a t-shirt. The fear of rejection sets in as I apply a fresh coat of lip gloss.
I drive to work, leave my car at the store, and walk around the shops on Main Street. I step in front of Indian Summer, the vintage dress shop, and in the window is an amazing black sequin dress. Excited, I open the door and walk in, setting off the jingling bells hanging above me. The shop owner, Jane, greets me while she rings up a customer.
I roam the selection, touching everything. There are beaded dresses, sequin dresses, thick cotton, silky satin, and lacy dresses. I’m looking at a rack of cocktail dresses when Jane comes over.
“What can I help you find today?” she asks.
“I’m going to an event tomorrow, kinda last minute,” I reveal.
“Well then, let’s find you something. What are you leaning towards?” she asks, ruffling through the rack I just looked at.
I pull out a black lace, knee-length dress and smile. “I love this one.”
“Good choice.”
“Yeah, I think so.”
“I have a few others I think you might like too. Let me get you started in a change room, and I will pull them while you try this on.”
I follow her to a dressing room at the back of the store. She hangs up the dress and closes the curtain behind her.
I manage to pull the dress over my head and down my body as she returns.
“How are you doing in there?”
I pull open the curtain. “Can you zip me?”
She zips me up, and I look at my reflection in the large antique mirror on the wall. “Oh, wow! I love this.”
She clasps her hands. “You look amazing.”
I look across at my reflection and see how the hem lands straight above my knee. The thin lace stretches smoothly over my curves. The neckline is in a low scoop, half off each shoulder, revealing my neck and short hairstyle.
“I brought these for you.” She gestures to more dresses. “But honestly, I think the one you have on is it.”
I run my hands down the front of my body and turn to catch my butt in the mirror.
She laughs. “Your ass looks great, don’t worry about that.” I laugh as I see how I look in the mirror, twisting and turning, trying to get a glimpse.
“I think you’re right. This is it.”
I’m beaming. I can’t wait for tomorrow night. I go back into the changing room and stare at myself in the mirror for a few seconds before changing into my jeans.
* * *
I walk into the front door of Plants, Pottery & Books with my dress bag in hand. I haven’t been able to stop smiling since this morning. First, the job, and now I find the perfect dress on the first try. My smile fades, though, when I see Ben look up at me. I have to tell him. Now. My heart sinks. How am I going to go to work every day without him there? The weight of leaving is finally sinking in.
He approaches me. “What did you buy?”
“I got a new dress for tomorrow night.”
“Didn’t you just get rid of a ton of clothes?”
“Yeah, to make room for new ones,” I say, laughing. “Kidding, tomorrow is kind of a special night.”
“Yeah, it’ll be fun. I hope Lucy gets that promotion.”
“Yeah, she will. I know she will.” I take my dress and set it down on the edge of a table. “There’s also something else to celebrate tomorrow…”
His eyebrows raise. “Oh, yeah? What are we celebrating?”
“I, uh, I saw Miriam this morning.”
“And how did that go?”
I pull at the fringe of my purse again, urging myself to go on. I need to just let it out. The longer I keep it to myself, the more it will cause me stress. Ben sees the discomfort on my face and takes a step closer to me, grabbing my hands. It sends a shock through me. I glance into his beautiful eyes and smile. Shit, I’m nervous as hell.
“Miriam offered me a job, full time.”
I watch his reaction, waiting for him to take it in.
He lets go of my hand. “That’s great, Sof.” He pulls me into a tight hug. “I’m so happy for you.” I smell his body wash, the scent sending tingles through me. His tight embrace wakes the butterflies that have been dormant since the other night, waiting to fly. He pulls back and faces me. “I’m sure as hell going to miss you here, though.”
“I know, me too.” I let go of his hands and pick up my dress to put some distance between us. Now is not the time to tell him how I feel. I’ll tell him tomorrow, at the event. “It will be weird, for sure, not coming in here. I’m going to miss this place.”
I look around at the plants. I will miss it here. This has been my home for two years.
“It’s time for you to begin your next adventure,” he says, returning behind his counter and moving some empty pots around, busying himself.
This is weird. This feels so weird. I’m not sure what to do. I look up at the clock.
I start backing up. “I better get to the bookstore so Emily can go.”