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“I don’t think we’ve met,” he said, extending his hand. “I’m Codrin Tradat.”
“J…Jasmine,” I stuttered and took a hand that was not warm. It wasn’t cold, but it was chilly.
“Nice to meet you. I won’t keep you. I believe Doak is anxious to talk to you.” He held out a card that I hadn’t seen him pull out of a pocket. Unlike most people, his card was black. “I know this is a bit forward, but I would like to discuss an upcoming project with you. I need input from HR as to how I should structure my team. Call me at your convenience.”
I was too shocked to answer. He placed the card between my fingers and spun away, my tongue still stuck to the roof of my mouth. I watched him leave. I was completely stunned.
“He does that to people.”
I turned to the secretary, who smiled. “There’s no one like him in the building or in Chicago, as far as I know.”
“I…I…that usually doesn’t happen to me.”
“I once bumped into Leonardo DiCaprio in a Las Vegas casino. He was the same way. He apologized and was gone before I could admit that I was the one in the wrong. Mr. Prescott will see you now.”
I managed to push Codrin to the back of my mind as I verified that Doak had received Josh’s email. That cleared up the problem, and Doak informed the director of the mistake.
“Josh doesn’t usually make a mistake like that,” Doak said.
“I know, and I don’t think it will happen again.” That was a lie, but I didn’t want to sound an alarm when there wasn’t a fire in sight.
“Good. Keep me informed. Oh, I see you met Codrin.”
“What?”
He pointed to the card still in my fingers. “Lots of us forget things when we’re with Codrin. God, I wish I knew how he does it.”
“Has he always been that way?”
“Ever since he joined us. It’s just…him. He’ll have it when he leaves, which won’t be long.”
“Oh? Did he say something?”
“No, but this bank is too small for him. A man like that is going to climb the ladder. Mark my words, he’ll be running something much bigger than this bank before long.”
On my way back to the office, I felt an urge to call Codrin. I pulled out my phone and started to tap out his number.
I stopped myself.
That was exactly the wrong thing to do. I would, no doubt, sound like some fangirl who had managed to find the number of her number one crush. No, I wasn’t going to gush. I was going to put the card in my wallet and wait a day or two. I might even wait a week. I might wait until he calls me.
Who was I kidding?
If I made it till the next morning, I would be showing more restraint than I thought I had. There was something about him that was mesmerizing. I couldn’t name it, but I felt it. Smitten, I was smitten. That made me blush. No one became smitten anymore. Only the people who met…Codrin.
Josh left me a message. He was going to take the afternoon off…headache. I knew better. He was taking the coward’s way out. If he disappeared for a day or two, my anger would collapse. That was a good strategy. He was right. My rage came and went like the wind. There was always a better way to spend my time and energy. In a way, I was thankful. I wouldn’t have to buy a rearview mirror to see if he was sneaking up behind me, knife in hand.
On my way home, I picked up Emily from her daycare. The sun had set by the time I pulled into the garage and plugged in my EV. I stepped out, and even in the dark, I noticed the lawn covered with leaves. I could almost hear Sylvester chiding me for not raking them to the curb like a good homeowner. I told myself I would do it on Saturday. It might take all day, but Emily and I could handle it. Then Emily bring to my notice something on the porch.
“There’s something on the porch.”
“What is it?”
“Something? Like a box or envelope?”
“No, something icky.”
“What kind of icky?”
