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“If you won’t reach out to her online, get her to come here, or go to her house,” Nick said, “then what do you want to do? How are you going to talk to her if you won’t do anything that puts you with her in the same place at the same time?”
Nick was probably thinking back to what he had done to win back Jess. But that had been different. They had been dating and had a history when he showed up on her doorstep.
Claudia and I barely had anything together yet; we didn’t have a foundation. I still needed to build all of that, if she’d let me, and she definitely wouldn’t talk to me in a situation where I had the advantage. So, if I wanted to give her the high ground, I needed to go where she ruled, where she was queen. Where she wouldn’t want to kick me in the nuts the second she saw me, if only because it would get her into trouble.
“Do you think you can find out where they work?”
Ryan laughed and tapped furiously on his phone. “Easily. They might be asleep, so we probably—” He stopped mid-sentence as his phone buzzed in his hand. “Never mind,” he said, shoving his phone toward me so I could read the name of the bank and the branch they worked at.
I glanced over and committed it to memory. “That was too easy.”
Ryan’s phone vibrated again, and he laughed. “Britney says that better have been about Frank and the fact that he’s getting his shit together to win back her friend.”
I forced a half smile as Ryan typed something back to her. “What are you telling her?” I watched as he typed again, then stopped for a second before starting again. “Jesus, Ryan, you even text like a girl. Are you sure you’re a guy?”
He glanced up and stopped typing. “Do you want me to pull out my dick?” Before I could answer, he reached for the zipper on his jeans.
“No, thanks, I’m good.”
He typed away again and cleared his throat. “Anyway, I’m telling her that it is about you and Claudia, but not to say anything. She said good, and I told her we might need her help. She said she’s in. Whatever we need that she can do, she’ll do it. And she said it’s about time.”
That made me smile, knowing that Britney was on my side.
As if Nick could read my mind, he said, “That’s a good sign. If she’s willing to help, then you know Claudia doesn’t hate you.”
“I was just thinking the same thing. Ryan, ask her if I need an appointment to see Claudia for a business loan.”
He gave me a wary look but was typing before I’d even finished talking. “A business loan?”
“That’s what she does at the bank. She’s in charge of small-business loans.”
Nick blew out a breath. “Good idea, getting on her schedule. Smooth.”
Ryan looked up from his phone. “She says it’s best if you do, and she’ll make one for you tomorrow when she gets to the office. She’ll text me and let me know the day and time.”
My throat tightened as I imagined waiting another day, or days, to make things right. I didn’t want to waste any more time. “Tell her to make the appointment for tomorrow, or I’m showing up without one.”
Ryan chuckled as he paused from typing to read Britney’s response. “She says you’re bossy. But she’ll text me tomorrow. She doesn’t think it should be a problem.”
“Tell her I said thanks.”
For the first time in days, I felt like smiling. I had a plan, and I was going to get the girl.
• • •
The next day, I showed up at the bank fifteen minutes early. Not wanting to alert Claudia to my presence, I stayed outside until exactly one minute before my two o’clock appointment time.
Britney had blocked off an hour on Claudia’s calendar and booked me as “Mr. Trout,” knowing that Claudia would freak out if she saw a Mr. Fisher on her schedule. I had laughed at the alias before worry set in, and prayed that Claudia wouldn’t figure out the ploy and suddenly call in sick for the rest of the afternoon. I knew I owed Britney big-time if this worked out in my favor.
My heart pounding, I pulled open the door and headed toward the small reception area in the center of the bank where Britney had told me to wait. I looked around, searching the private-banker offices on the periphery for my girl when I caught sight of Britney in hers. She waved and I smirked, continuing my search for Claudia.
When I spotted her, my heart leaped into my throat. She hadn’t noticed me yet, but watching her, it was like I hadn’t seen her in years. I took in her silky black hair pulled up into a ponytail, the ends brushing her shoulders bared by her sleeveless blue dress as she turned her head to glance at her computer screen.
My entire body perked up, reacting to the sight of her. I was like a starved man in need of food, and Claudia was my next meal. She was like a breath of fresh air after you’d been trapped underground for years without windows or sunlight. She was a drink of water after you’d been lost in the sandy desert, parched and dreaming of something cool to sip. Claudia was a fucking dream.
She grabbed a clipboard from her desk and walked toward the reception area.
“Mr. Tr—” The name stopped on her lips as I pushed to my feet. Her eyes locked onto mine, and I swore I saw her breath catch. “Frank. What are you doing here?”
