The rest of the weekend was spent moping and gearing myself up to see Alex at work Monday morning because I knew he'd stop by my desk to say hello. Nobody thought anything of it since he brought all four of us in the finance group coffee every morning. Couldn't let it be known I was special.
Since I wasn't.
But Monday I was determined to move ahead because that's who I was now. Wrong or right, I would get back out there. No longer afraid. Just a bit (OK, a lot) bruised. And just a bit (another lie) sad.
I was not going to put my life on hold for "someday, maybe" again. Either I was interested and he was, or I'd move on if we weren't going anywhere after a few dates.
I'd done my hair in the usual curly ponytail, but I'd spent more time on my makeup. I wore my nerd glasses instead of contacts, and my red dress gave me an extra boost of confidence.
Someone like you.
Nope. Somewhere out there was a man who wanted me. Not someone like me.
As always, Alex breezed into the office with our coffees right before eight and I could hear my colleagues sigh. Alex was a handsome man and had his choice of women, so I knew there'd be plenty of candidates if Shelby didn't earn the coveted Mrs. title.
He gave all of us a cheery good morning in his deep, sexy voice, and I just gave him a simple hey. He chatted a few more minutes, confused when I didn't engage about the basketball game—we always argued sports. But I just gave him a generic "didn't watch it" and looked at a fascinating file on my computer after I thanked him for the coffee.
Since I wasn't acting as expected, I wasn't surprised when my phone buzzed with a text.
You OK? You didn't seem like yourself.
Well, that's because I'm not, Alex. But I will be. I simply texted back two words: I'm fine
A text came back right away: My sister and cousins say that and it means bad things
Me: Nope, I'm good.
Alex: Shelby asked to do lunch today
Me: Have fun
Alex: I'll stop by after and you can tell me if it sounds promising
Me: Don't. I'm not getting involved in this.
I was waiting in the lobby about half an hour later than I usually took lunch, hoping I'd avoid seeing Alex and his potential wife. Luck was not on my side. The elevator doors opened and Shelby and Alex walked out. Laughing.
Alex's eyes lit up when he saw me. "Annie! Hey! Do you know Annie, Shelby?"
She looked me over and dismissed me as competition. "Hi."
I'll see your rude, one-syllable greeting and raise you a syllable. "Hello."
I sensed a future bestie in the offing. Or maybe I'd just be offing her.
The other elevator opened and I could have cheered. Creighton walked over to me and smiled. "Hey, Annie. Sorry to keep you waiting. Bill needed a file. You look gorgeous by the way."
I smiled at his sweetness.
"Thank you, kind sir."
"Sir?" Alex asked, his body going rigid.
Maybe not the best choice since I had teasingly called Alex that on numerous occasions and he'd liked it.
"Hey, Alex, Shelby," Creighton said. "Sorry, didn't notice you earlier. Didn't notice anyone but my lunch date here looking like the lady in red."
"We're on our way to lunch, too," Alex was saying. "We should all go together."
"I'll leave that up to Annie," Creighton said.
"No, thanks," I said because no way in hell was that happening.
"Are you sure?" Alex pushed.
"Quite," I returned shortly. "Enjoy your lunch. Ready, Creighton?"
"Absolutely, Annie."
Then he put his hand to the small of my back and we went to lunch.
I didn't even look back once.