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I was beginning to wonder if this job just plain sucked or if maybe Eli did remember me. I did check the calendar I was synced to on my way up from HR this morning and I could have sworn that the meeting was only on Eli’s agenda and not mine. But when I checked it while Serena was ranting at him, there I was. If he added me and didn’t give me a head’s up, and I didn’t hear the notification because I was weaving through pedestrian traffic to get his stupid drinks to him on time, that was kind of his fault. But, ultimately, I needed to stay on top of the calendar. The only thing I could do was apologize and scramble, asking people I only just met to help me get the notes for that meeting. Thankfully, the writers here were extremely welcoming, telling me that Eli was easygoing and great to work for and I’d do fine once I settled in.
Was Eli great to work for? I didn’t think getting sent on a half marathon for coffee and pastries was so easygoing. When I finally found someone to recap the meeting for me and I brought the neatly typed notes to him, I saw that he hadn’t so much as taken a sip of the frothy drink. And unless his first meeting of the day disappeared off the calendar as mysteriously as I was added onto the fall issue meeting, it was starting to seem like he completely made that up just so I’d have to turn around and go back for another order. But that was crazy thinking. Why would he do that?
I went around to his side to put the notes squarely in his line of sight when he returned, so he couldn’t accuse me of not getting them. I didn’t want to cover what he was currently working on though, so moved that pile slightly to the side, edging another pile to the floor. Damn it. For the digital age, we still used way too much paper. All I needed was for him to come back and think I was snooping so I quickly scooped the stack up and straightened it, a yellow sticky note floating off the top and lodging itself on the edge of my skirt. When I plucked it off, my heart nearly stopped, then began beating alarmingly fast.
There was one word on the note. A name. Marti. It was circled twice. I looked more closely at the pile it had been attached to and saw it was a stack of resumés. Mine was on the top.
This couldn’t be a coincidence, could it? Marti wasn’t a common name, but it certainly wasn’t rare. My stomach twisted and turned over. Did he remember me and now he was torturing me for… not sleeping with him? What an absolute ass. It made me all the more ashamed of myself for thinking how handsome he looked that morning, freshly shaved but still with slightly tousled hair. I even had a quick stab of jealousy when I wondered if he’d found a replacement for me that night.
I put everything back where it was and hurried out to my own desk, twisting my computer screen so it wouldn’t have the sun blazing down on it from the bank of windows. Every single person I came across this morning said how great Eli was to work for. I had to be imagining things. My fake name being on a sticky note attached to my resumé had to be a coincidence. Either way it didn’t matter. If he was determined to be so childish, I’d have to deal with it if I wanted to keep this job. And I very much did. I prayed I was only being paranoid and forced it out of my mind.
Thankfully, my other tasks were straightforward, and I had a lunch date with Jed, the sports writer. He seemed nice and was handsome in an everyday way. I was hoping he could take my mind off of Eli. It couldn’t be healthy to go from confused to infuriated to wanting to straighten his collar just so my fingers could brush against his neck.
I thought I would get used to him with repeated exposure, but every time I saw him, he was more handsome than ever. And ruthlessly sexy, even just sitting behind his desk. I thought I could outsex him with my carefully curated outfit, but when I did my little lean across to teach him a lesson for the blisters I now had on my heels, I was the one getting hot and bothered. The way his eyes raked over my skin, all I could do was wish it was his fingers. Or his tongue. Whew. Yes, I needed to get out of there for lunch and I was going to give Jed a real chance. A nice, healthy relationship wouldn’t hurt me, and if it made Eli seethe with jealousy, well, there was nothing I could do about that.
I was getting extra frustrated from not being able to find a stapler when I was supposed to staple a bunch of articles together. Also, I knew part of my bad mood was that there was no way Eli would be jealous. It was my wishful thinking that he remembered me, when he clearly didn’t. Sticky note or no sticky note, he couldn’t possibly be that good of an actor.
He was the kind of guy who simply didn’t place any importance on relationships and viewed women as interchangeable. If I didn’t want to be miserable in this job, I needed to quit obsessing over him. If he wanted fancy coffee from a very specific shop every morning, then he’d get it. So what if I had to wake up earlier than usual and go well out of my way for it? I both wanted and needed this job. I had to stop being paranoid because my ego was bruised over some wealthy Casanova finding me forgettable.
About ten minutes before lunch, Eli called me in and told me I had to go buy some birthday present for one of the women he did remember. Doing personal errands for my employer was something I was used to, so I didn’t understand why it upset me so much. Jed was completely understanding, promising we’d do it another time, and it wasn’t as if I was that excited about it. It was something about how excited Eli seemed when he told me I’d have to do it. He couldn’t have even known about my plans with Jed, could he? No, that wasn’t it. He was excited about having dinner with the woman, that was all. And he wanted her to have something extra special and romantic.
I went to the closest department store and wandered around the jewelry section. I asked to see a bracelet and tried it on. It was a simple brushed gold bangle with a small heart charm hanging off it. Very romantic and sweet. I’d never received a gift like that from a man. My friend Ella would have told me I could always buy it for myself. That is, if it was in my price range, which it wasn’t. My stomach turned over and I moved on to silk scarves. Still pricey, and something useful that I would have loved to get from anyone. Not very romantic, though. I found myself wondering who this woman was that rated this very important present. Then I started stewing, which soon turned to bubbling anger. People didn’t normally go on dates for their birthday with people who weren’t important to them. Had Eli been hitting on me while in a relationship with this poor woman? Surely it was low blood sugar making my feelings go haywire.
I wavered back and forth between pity and jealousy and finally decided on an expensive wallet so I could get it over with and grab a sandwich. If he wanted it to be romantic he could tuck a freaking love poem in one of the pockets.
Where are you? We’re due at a meeting in ten minutes.
The message from Eli nearly put me over the edge as I scrolled to our shared calendars. Sure enough, there was time blocked out that hadn’t been there when I left on this errand. I dropped the wallet and ran out of the store in a panic, thinking I could make it, then stopped dead in the middle of the sidewalk. Fresh panic at not buying a gift for his girlfriend washed over me. Why had I dawdled so long picking something out? I should have gotten the bracelet and been done with it. It was my bizarre jealousy that wouldn’t let me get her something that nice, and then that strange pity that wouldn’t let me get her something too awful.
My phone rang and it was Eli. I forced myself to sound calm and pleasant when I answered.
“Violet, this is unacceptable. Did you go to Long Island for the gift? There’s a jewelry store half a block from the office.”
“Sorry,” I said through gritted teeth. This was technically my lunch break, after all. And I was positive that the meeting wasn’t scheduled when I left the office. “I’ve got the gift, and I’m on my way back. Less than ten.”
“See to it.”
He clicked off, and I pounded toward the office, wondering how I was going to cover my lie about having the present. Claim I was mugged? Might get me the rest of this terrible day off.
At the corner there was a pop up stand selling huge stuffed animals, similar to the kind people tried to win at county fairs. I skidded to a halt in front of it and pointed to the tackiest one, a huge purple elephant with a giant, floppy red bow around its neck. A plastic heart charm dangled from the bow that said, ‘Don’t ever forget you’re mine.’ Perfect.
“That one,” I said, feeling a fury like I never had before, completely overshadowing any pity I had left for his girlfriend. I paid the fifty bucks in cash since he didn’t take a card and hoisted the massive thing along with me, nearly knocking people into the street as I passed.
I was sweaty and winded by the time I wrangled it into his office and plopped it into one of the chairs. I beamed at it proudly, my joy in life restored when I saw the look on his face.
“What is that?” he asked.
I kept grinning and patted its fluffy head. “Isn’t it so sweet and romantic?”
“It’s a giant purple elephant…” He seemed lost for any other words.
“Women love big stuffed animals,” I said, clasping my hands together like it was so dreamy. It didn’t hurt that the gesture pushed my breasts up. His eyes lasered in on them and I took another deep breath, watching his eyes rise and fall with my chest. “She’ll love it, believe me. This is exactly what I’d want, just like you said.” Then I turned serious, and hurried toward the door, no time to savor my victory. “We better head to that meeting.”
He had his eyes closed when I turned back to see if he was following me. Like he was praying for patience. Or deliverance. He couldn’t berate me for my choice when he told me to get what I would want. I felt a little stab of guilt underneath my glee.
“The meeting was canceled. Can you please set your notifications properly or pay better attention to your phone?”
The tiny stab of guilt vanished, and I nodded curtly. Now I was certain he was messing with me. He had to be. Well, it backfired on him because if he hadn’t pulled that crap, his girlfriend would have a beautiful designer wallet instead of a tacky carnival prize.
