The CEO and Her Driver

Chapter 20

Have you ever realized that you should be nicer? It shouldn't be a grand realization, but it was for me. Like a slap across the face that shouts, "HEY YOU! YES, YOU! BE NICER TO THE ONES WHO DESERVE IT! DON'T TREAT THEM WORSE THAN A STRANGER! THEY DESERVE THE BEST YOU! NOT THE LEFTOVERS YOU HAVE LEFT AT THE END OF THE DAY!"

That was the "be nice slap," that hit me as I opened the three bags that Tate brought inside my office building. Iz was looking around my office, giving me a moment of privacy to scope out the chocolate cake.

I spotted the chocolate cake in the first bag. A beautiful rich dark chocolate cake covered in chocolate chips and decorated in swirls of chocolate roses.

I popped the lid off and took in the smell, the rich dark cocoa wafting over me and nearly causing me to drool right on the cake. "This smells like my next addiction." 

I laughed when I spotted two bottles of milk in the bag next to the cake. My eyes moved back to the cake, pulled by an invisible force that demanded I keep staring. The cake was beautiful. I stared closer and my eyes grew wide as realization hit.

It wasn't store-bought. The memory of Tate's fingers covered in white powered sprang to mind.

"Did he make this... for me?" I whispered, afraid that if I said it any louder, it would be true. The gesture would real, and the effort and time put in would translate into a sort of declaration I didn't want to think about. He's just being nice.

I cleared my throat, overwhelmed by the gesture, and moved onto the second bag, no longer wanting to stare at the beautiful cake. Two giant containers of fish and chips, a mixed green salad, two boxes of donuts, and a sushi platter filled the second bag. How many people did he bring food for?!? Does Iz eat like Tate? I laughed, moving on to the final bag, wondering what on earth would be next. 

In the third bag, I spotted an entire plate of homemade banana bread filled with chocolate chips, that had been carefully saran wrapped. Four water bottles, two bottles of black coffee, pain medication, and— "a wrist brace," I breathed.

I blinked, my vision swimming. "You sweet idiot," I murmured, finding it hard to breathe. I pulled it out, fingers trembling, beyond touched. I spotted a note underneath the wrist brace. It was short, but that didn't stop it from being the sweetest note I'd ever been given.

"Take care of yourself Fire Hydrant Girl. Once that wrist is better, I fully expect you to keep on swinging at every obstacle that comes your way."

-Tate  "Convertible Guy"

Now that is a letter, I thought, comparing Tate's words and gifts to the dramatic Uggo plant and the letter that came with it, which had a creepy vibe. That stupid plant had been something I would never want in any universe or in any version of my own timeline... EVER. It was a weird spectacle that told me how little the giver knew me. But Tate had given me things I would actually use and need. He had even gone against his love of sugary coffee and gotten me straight black coffee. It was like seeing everything I loved, collected into three incredibly thoughtful bags. 

And it left me feeling vulnerable, seen, and somewhat terrified. You've gotten to know me better than I thought, Dalton.

After putting on the wrist brace, I tucked the note into my pocket, with no intention of throwing it away. It was perfect. A reminder that even if I could never have Tate, there was a brief moment where I felt taken care of by him, that I had found a way into his thoughts and that was beautiful.