Chapter 7 - Personal Space
Ethan Cole had been stealing things from my desk for approximately eight months.
Pens.
Sticky notes.
Paper clips.
Once, inexplicably, a ruler.
So when a hand appeared over my shoulder Tuesday morning and stole the blueberry muffin sitting beside my keyboard, I didn't even look up.
"Put it back."
A bite disappeared.
"No."
I turned in my chair.
Ethan was chewing my breakfast.
"You have three seconds."
"You weren't eating it."
"I was working."
"You've been staring at the same drawing for ten minutes."
"I was thinking."
"You looked dead."
"That's how architects think."
He took another bite.
I slapped his arm.
"Asshole."
"Ow."
"That was my breakfast."
"I'll buy you another one."
"You'll buy me two."
"One."
"Two."
"One and coffee."
I considered.
"What size?"
"Large."
"Fine."
Ethan grinned.
"Pleasure doing business with you, Angel."
He was thirty, an architect on another design team, and one of those irritating people who could walk into almost any conversation as if he'd been invited.
We'd become friends sometime during my first few months at Vale Architecture.
I couldn't remember exactly how.
One day he'd been some guy from another team.
Then suddenly he was stealing my office supplies and insulting my lunch choices.
Life happened like that sometimes.
He leaned over the back of my chair to look at my screen, one arm braced beside my shoulder.
"What is that?"
"Work."
"It's ugly."
"That's your face reflected in my monitor."
"Cruel."
I reached up, planted my palm against his forehead, and pushed him away.
"Go do your own job."
"My job is boring."
"Sounds personal."
His hand caught my wrist before I could pull it back.
"Wait."
"What?"
He turned my wrist slightly.
I was wearing a thin silver bracelet I'd bought over the weekend.
"This is new."
I looked at it.
"Oh. Yeah."
"Nice."
"Thank you."
He released my wrist.
"Still doesn't compensate for your personality."
"Get away from me."
He laughed and wandered off.
I turned back to my monitor.
Three seconds later, another blueberry muffin landed beside my keyboard.
I looked up.
Ethan was already walking backward toward his side of the office.
"Debt paid."
"You owe me coffee!"
He pointed at me.
"Extortion."
"Large!"
He disappeared around the corner.
I smiled and went back to work.
At 9:48, Adrian rejected one of my revisions.
At 10:03, he rejected the revision of the revision.
At 10:26, he summoned me to his office.
At 10:28, I seriously considered throwing myself out of his window.
"The eastern elevation still isn't resolved."
"It is resolved."
"It isn't."
"It has walls, windows, and a roof. That's pretty resolved."
Adrian looked at me.
I looked at him.
He looked back at the drawing.
"This."
He tapped the page.
"Too heavy."
I stared.
That phrase.
Again.
"You really like those two words."
"They're useful."
"You've said 'too heavy' to me enough times that I'm beginning to think it's your architectural philosophy."
"If you'd stop designing things that are too heavy, I'd stop saying it."
I narrowed my eyes.
"You know what?"
"Yes?"
I stopped.
He waited.
I smiled.
"Nothing."
"Good decision."
"I hate when you do that."
"Do what?"
"Know I'm about to say something."
"You're not difficult to read, Ms. Stone."
Excuse me?
"I am extremely difficult to read."
"No."
"You don't know what I'm thinking."
"You're currently deciding whether arguing with me is worth having to redo this a third time."
I stared at him.
His eyes remained on the drawing.
"And?"
"And you've decided it isn't."
That was irritatingly accurate.
I gathered the pages.
"You're insufferable."
His eyes lifted.
"Was that the thing you decided not to say?"
"No. That one was worse."
"I assumed."
I turned toward the door.
"Ms. Stone."
I stopped.
"Lunch meeting at twelve thirty."
I looked back.
"What lunch meeting?"
"Solara."
"Nobody told me."
"I just did."
"I have plans."
"With?"
I frowned.
"People."
"What people?"
"Human ones, generally."
His expression didn't change.
"Reschedule."
My mouth fell open.
"You can't just-"
"Twelve thirty."
"I was supposed to go out."
"Then go afterward."
"You don't even know how long the meeting is going to take."
"Neither do you."
"You are becoming increasingly inconvenient to my life."
"I'll try to recover."
I stared at him.
Was that-
No.
Probably not.
"Anything else?"
"No."
"Wonderful."
I walked out.
Ethan was at my desk when I returned.
With coffee.
Large.
He held it out.
"Your ransom."
I took it.
"I knew there was something useful about you."
"Lunch at twelve?"
I groaned.
"Can't."
"Why?"
I pointed toward Adrian's office.
Ethan followed my finger.
"Adrian?"
"Solara meeting."
"I thought you weren't meeting until tomorrow."
"So did I."
"Come after."
"I'll probably be late."
"We'll wait."
"You don't have to."
"We're going to that Thai place you like."
I stopped.
"The good one?"
"The one you claim is the only restaurant in Miami capable of making curry."
"I never said that."
"You gave me a seven-minute lecture about the last place."
"Because it was terrible."
"It was curry."
"It was an insult wearing curry's clothes."
Ethan laughed.
"Come when you're done."
"Fine."
"Text me."
"Okay."
He reached over and took one of my sticky notes.
I slapped his hand.
"Stop stealing my shit."
"Company property."
"Then steal from your own desk."
"My colors aren't as good."
He walked away.
I took a sip of coffee.
Not bad.
Good man.
The meeting ran until 1:18.
Of course it did.
By the time I got downstairs, Ethan and two other people from the office were waiting in the lobby.
"You waited?"
Ethan looked offended.
"We said we would."
"You could've gone."
"And listened to you complain for the next three weeks?"
"Smart."
We headed outside.
Someone from interiors passed us near the entrance.
"Angel!"
"Hey!"
"You're still coming Friday, right?"
"Yes!"
"Good!"
I had absolutely no idea what Friday was.
I'd figure it out later.
A woman from accounting waved from across the lobby.
I waved back.
Then someone near reception called my name because apparently I'd promised to send them something.
I had.
Probably.
Ethan caught my elbow.
"Come on, celebrity."
"Shut up."
"You know everyone."
"I do not."
"You just had three conversations walking thirty feet."
"I'm friendly."
"You're exhausting."
I shoved him with my shoulder.
He bumped me back.
"Violence."
"Keep walking."
Lunch was easy.
That was the best word for Ethan.
Easy.
He stole one of my spring rolls.
I stole two of his fries.
He complained.
I ignored him.
At one point he reached across me for the chili sauce and practically leaned over my entire plate.
"Personal space?"
"You stole my fries."
"That's unrelated."
"Nothing is unrelated."
I shoved him away with my elbow.
He laughed.
I didn't think about how close he was.
Why would I?
It was Ethan.
At 2:31, I was back at my desk when Ethan appeared again.
"Friday."
I looked up.
"What about it?"
"Bowling."
"Oh."
"You just told Natalie you're coming."
"Apparently I did."
"You don't remember agreeing?"
"I agree to a lot of things."
He stared at me.
"You had no idea what she was talking about."
"Not a clue."
He laughed.
"You're unbelievable."
"Who else is going?"
"Me. Natalie. Ben. Maya. Daniel. A few people from interiors. Whoever else decides to show up."
"Okay."
"So you're coming?"
"Probably."
"That's not yes."
"Fine. Yes."
"Good."
He leaned against the edge of my desk.
"You want me to pick you up?"
I looked at him.
"Why?"
"So we don't have to take two cars."
"I can drive myself."
"I know you can drive yourself."
"Then why are you offering?"
"Because we live fifteen minutes apart?"
Fair.
"Maybe. I'll let you know."
"Do that."
"Ms. Stone."
Oh, for fuck's sake.
I didn't even have to turn anymore.
Adrian.
Ethan looked over my shoulder.
"Hey, Adrian."
I turned.
Adrian stood several feet away.
Dark charcoal shirt.
Tie.
Sleeves buttoned.
Daytime armor fully operational.
His eyes moved from Ethan to me.
Then back.
"Ethan."
"What's up?"
Adrian's gaze returned to me.
"Ms. Stone. I need the revised material board."
"I sent it."
"I need the physical board."
"It's in the project room."
"Show me."
I blinked.
"You know where the project room is."
"I need you to walk me through the changes."
"Oh."
Ethan pushed away from my desk.
"I'll let you work."
"Friday," he reminded me.
"I remember now."
"I'll believe that when I see you."
He tapped the edge of my desk twice and walked away.
I stood.
For a second, Adrian's eyes followed him.
Then they returned to me.
His expression had changed.
Not much.
Just enough to make me wonder what I'd done now.
"Are you coming?"
"Unfortunately."
His jaw tightened.
There it was.
Whatever mood he'd arrived in, apparently I'd made it worse.
Excellent.
The project room was too small for the amount of shit inside it.
Samples.
Boards.
Drawings.
Material binders.
Three chairs nobody ever sat in.
A table that could comfortably accommodate six people and regularly accommodated twelve.
I laid the Solara board flat.
"Here."
Adrian stepped beside me.
"Walk me through it."
I pointed.
"Changed the limestone here. Updated the glazing specification. This is the revised metal finish you asked for, and this-"
"No."
I stopped.
"What?"
He leaned closer.
"This isn't the sample we approved."
"Yes, it is."
"No."
"Yes."
"Ms. Stone."
"Mr. Vale."
His eyes moved to mine.
I held them.
Then reached across the board.
"Look at the code."
He leaned over beside me.
"This code."
"I see it."
"Then congratulations."
"On?"
"Being wrong."
His eyes narrowed.
I smiled.
He checked the specification sheet.
Then the sample.
Then the sheet again.
Silence.
Oh.
Oh, this was beautiful.
I waited.
Adrian straightened slightly.