Chapter Seven
MEREDITH
I had an addiction, and my addiction had a name: texting Cade Whitley.
I had no idea how it even started, but ever since our phone call last week, my heart somersaulted every time my phone vibrated.
Five times out of ten, I was disappointed because it wasn't from him.
The other five times, my knees weakened, and then butterflies churned in my stomach.
I felt like that nerdy girl again, waiting for the popular guy to text her.
That evening when I went to my parents’ house, I texted back more in jest than anything else. I liked riling him up.
But lately, he was the one riling me up.
“Oh, this is a great day,” I said as I picked up my Starbucks: a pumpkin spice latte. Tonight after work, I was attending the second event of the competition. I was heading straight there from the office, so I was wearing a dress that could be considered office attire and a cocktail dress as well.
Once inside, I went directly to my desk. I turned on my computer and glanced at my phone. I noticed a message.
Cade: I can't wait to see you tonight. You looked deliciously gorgeous last time.
Oh Lord. That was exactly what I meant. I was already riled up.
I rolled my shoulders, ready to tackle the day, and tried to shake off the tingles in my body from Cade’s message.
A few seconds later, Sonya came into my office. "Morning, Meredith."
"Good morning." Sonya had been super supportive. She was overall the best boss ever. I pinched myself every day that I'd landed this job.
"Excited about tonight?" she asked.
I nodded eagerly. "Oh yeah. I have a good feeling about it.
" We were having yet another "gala," as they called it, this evening, when the committee would announce who was moving on to the next stage of the competition.
I was confident we had nothing to worry about.
I'd asked our team to send me a report twice a day, informing me of how many customers we had and how many flavors they tasted.
I didn't know anyone else's scores, but my gut feeling told me we were a sure thing.
"I'm coming tonight too," Sonya said.
"That's great! I've been thinking of ways to convince you to join me. I think it'll look good to the judges to have the CEO there."
"Are there other CEOs who attend?" she asked.
"I’ve noticed a couple." I’d really only noticed Cade, but Sonya didn’t need to know that.
"Okay, I'll meet you here at six o’clock, and then we'll ride together?"
"Yes, sounds great." There was another reason I was grateful that she was coming. Sonya would be a great chaperone and keep me out of trouble.
Not a chaperone, a voice in my mind said. There was absolutely no need for that. I wasn't interested in Cade like that. Did my body go up in flames every time I was around him? Yes, it most certainly did. But I knew better than to act on that chemistry.
Why, then, was I on pins and needles the whole day? It wasn't because I feared we wouldn't make it to the next stage of the competition.
As the afternoon went by, I became downright restless.
At five, I threw in the towel. I wasn't going to do anything productive today, so instead, I looked up Cade online.
He didn't have much going on. Not much was posted on his social media profile—that the public could see, anyway.
I had to friend or follow him if I wanted to see his timeline, and I wanted to do neither.
I could imagine his smug smile if he saw me following him.
He had both high schools listed on his profile, though. I searched around for the status, but it didn’t say if he was in a relationship or not. He’d referred to himself as a flirt, so probably not, but still.
Oh damn it, Meredith. It doesn't matter.
But I wanted to know. How silly was that?
"Meredith, you went to the same high school as Cade Whitley?" Sonya's voice startled me so badly that I nearly fell off my chair. I hadn't heard her come in, and now she was standing beside me, looking over my shoulder.
"Yes, we were classmates," I said. There was no reason for me to lie.
My heart started beating faster.
Calm down, Meredith. You're not doing anything wrong.
"Well, well," Sonya said with an uncharacteristic smile. "Now, that's some very interesting news."
Was it good or bad news? I couldn't tell from her expression.
"I came to tell you that I need to do some errands before we go, so I'll meet you there," she continued.
I pressed my lips together. She was going to leave me hanging like that?
"Sure. I'll meet you there, Sonya."
"We'll talk more about it later."
It was on the tip of my tongue to ask if it was a problem that I knew Cade, but I couldn’t see why it would be.
I wasn't required to disclose everyone I knew, even if that someone was a competitor.
But despite my confident pep talk when Sonya left, I wasn't just on pins and needles anymore. I was a basket case.
Forty-five minutes later, I hurried to the bathroom, checking my appearance in the mirror. I was conscious of the fact that I was unnecessarily refreshing my makeup. My mood lifted as I left the building.
The restaurant was downtown. The second I entered, I was on alert. I wasn’t on the lookout for Sonya but for Cade. My heart was hammering in my rib cage.
Would he be even more shameless than usual? Would I? I wasn’t sure.
"Meredith!" I heard his voice behind me. My entire body lit up before I even turned around. I could smell his aftershave. There were a gazillion men around me, but somehow I knew it was his fragrance. I turned slowly, just as I gave my coat to the attendant.
“Cade!" I drew in a sharp breath, watching him take off his coat. I was fixating on his hands undoing every button with care and dexterity, and I had a flash of dirty images. I'd bet he was good with his hands in every way.
Jesus, Meredith, you definitely have a second personality when you’re around him.
"You look amazing tonight," he said as he took off his coat.
It was on the tip of my tongue to return the compliment, but I simply couldn't. I needed to tell him that Sonya knew we knew each other. I had no clue if that was relevant, but knowing his impulsive nature, I figured it was better if he was prepared. I had no idea what Sonya had in mind.
"We need to talk," I said.
He gave me a wicked grin. "I'm all ears. What are you going to challenge me about tonight? Work events seem to be our favorite places for sparring."
I sucked in a breath as we moved away from the coat room to make space for others. "I wasn't challenging you last time."
"Really? That's just the way you talk to everyone?" he questioned.
"No," I replied.
"Just me, then? I see."
"Oh my God, you’re insufferable. Will you just let me finish my thought?"
"No, I enjoy rattling you. Your blush is delicious.” He wasn’t making this easy.
I licked my lips, clearing my throat.
"Meredith, you're here!" Sonya exclaimed, coming up behind us. Cade's expression changed immediately. His smile was instantly polite, not wicked. His eyes expressed a pleasant interest. "And you must be Cade Whitley," she said.
If Cade was surprised that she knew who he was, he didn’t let it show.
“Yes, I am. A pleasure to meet you. You must be Sonya."
"Yes." She smiled when he shook her hand. I had a flash of memory from years ago. Cade and I were studying at his home, and his mom came home with a friend. She introduced her to both of us.
Cade just greeted her, but then his mom pinned him with her stare, and he immediately shook the woman's hand.
"Meredith tells me you two know each other from way back when. High school, was it, Meredith?"
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cade's expression change once more. His smile faded, and there was a slight crease on his forehead.
Damn it. I really should've warned him earlier.
"That's right," I said.
"What a small world, huh? Let’s go inside and see what they’ll feed us tonight," Sonya said.
Really? This woman's driving me crazy.
The setup was different tonight. There were three long tables, and the seats were assigned once more. I couldn't help but wonder if Cade would've switched seats again if Sonya wasn't here. I peeked at him at the other end of the table and saw him look right back at me.
Holy shit, my entire body turned to goose bumps.
Even from this distance, his gaze affected me.
And by the way he was looking directly at me, I had my answer.
He definitely would've switched seats. And look at that—I had sweaty palms and a dry mouth.
My traitorous body was signaling that it would've liked that very much.
I didn't even recognize myself when he was near.
Sonya and I sat next to each other. Her expression was too neutral for me to be able to tell if she was pleased or not. It was unnerving.
"Welcome back, everyone," Harley—the head of the competition—said, standing up at her table. “I know everyone is anxiously waiting to find out, and I wanted to reassure you that everyone we've invited here tonight is going forward to the next stage.”
There was a round of applause. I let out a breath of relief. Even though I'd been certain of our success, you never really knew.
"Oh, that's clever of them," Sonya said. “Even though it would've been very awkward otherwise.”
She had a point. I was too nervous to enjoy the food. I’d worked for Sonya for six years, and she wasn’t a secretive or mysterious boss. On the contrary, she was always to the point, and we worked well together, but tonight she was holding back.
We’d been asked for feedback after the last event at the Plaza, and I was sure they’d gotten several complaints about everything ending so abruptly. Tonight, however, they left plenty of time to mingle after dessert. There were no speeches either; it was much more of a meet-and-greet atmosphere.
Sonya was way more sociable than usual. Later on in the evening, I noticed her conversing with the CEO of Boston Masters, Alfred Danvers, at the bar.
“Is this seat empty?” Cade startled me for the second time tonight.