More than that, she was confused and sad and lonely. She missed Red.
She missed his calls, his humor; the way he looked at her and made wry comments and little observations about things she said or did. He was so attentive, so watchful over her.
She wished again and again that somehow she could have erased that first night at the house when everything had gone so inexplicably and horribly wrong.
Nicole still didn’t understand what had happened.
The weekend came and went, and Nicole spent the majority of it on the couch with Danielle, watching television and trying to act like she was fine. However, the nights were long and mostly sleepless, as she went back in her mind to the good nights with Red, and the way he’d looked at her and touched her.
The next Monday morning, after their weekly team meeting, Edward approached Nicole at her desk. “I just got a message from Red,” he told her.
Instantly, her heart skipped a beat and she couldn’t speak. She simply nodded at him.
“He wants me to come up to his office at eleven, to present the organizational changes I’m making on the network. Since you’re kind of taking the lead on that project, I figured you should come too.”
“Red wants us to tell him about the new file structure?” she asked, flabbergasted. It was hardly a major undertaking relative to the company as a whole. Sure, it would mean some changes for the creative group, but nothing that should concern the CEO.
Edward laughed. “Red’s always been this way. Sometimes you can be working on a two hundred thousand dollar contract and he doesn’t want to hear a peep about it. Other times, you’re doing some pro bono work for a local supermarket and he’s totally involved in every last piece of the thing.”
“That’s…” She shook her head. “I don’t know what that is.”
Edward smiled sympathetically. “Also, I just want to say that you don’t have to do this if you’re uncomfortable. Red didn’t specifically ask for you to come.” At the last sentence, his expression turned serious.
“He didn’t?”
“No. I’m sure he’d be fine either way.”
Now she was more confused than ever. She’d assumed that Red had specifically requested her presence, that this little presentation about the file structure changes was just a ruse for him to see her.
She took a deep breath and let it out. “Of course I’ll go. I’m the one working on the changes, so it would be silly not to.”
“Okay, then. See you in a few. I’ll swing by.”
Edward left and went back to his office, and Nicole went to the bathroom, where she freshened up. She was dressed in tight white slacks, dark red heels, and a blue blouse with a plunging neckline. Last week she hadn’t been herself, and some of her outfits had suffered. Luckily, today she’d worn one of her best and was feeling more confident as a result.
Nicole found she was getting butterflies. Incredibly, she wanted to see Red again. Despite everything that had happened last week, the time apart had given her time to really think about things. Red hadn’t contacted her, hadn’t sent a text or email, nothing. Red had done none of those things, and for all she knew, was glad to be rid of her.
She was sweating as Edward swung by her desk and told her it was time to go up for the presentation. On the elevator ride, he studied her closely. “Don’t be nervous,” he said. “Red’s going to grill me at least as much as he does you.”
“I’m not worried about that.” She smiled briefly and it was enough to tell Edward that it was everything else she was worried about.
The elevator came to a halt and they made their way to the office. The door was ajar and she could see Red behind his desk—instantly her heart ached for him. He was wearing a dark blue suit and vest with a purple tie. He looked perfect, magnificent, as always—like a movie superhero ready to jump from his office and climb buildings, fight evil villains.
It occurred to her that Red would fight and kill and even die for her, and she’d discarded him as easily as a child leaves its toys when they’re no longer new and exciting.
When they entered, Red looked up and his eyes momentarily locked on hers with that same burst of intensity she remembered. Her breath stopped in her chest.
It felt like minutes but in reality she knew it had only been a second or two at most.
“Morning, Red,” Edward said, crossing to the seats near his desk.
“Good morning, both of you,” Red replied as if nothing was wrong, standing up to greet them.
Nicole smiled and muttered a good morning, but it barely escaped her lips. As usual, she was a child in front of him—nervous, without armor.
This was the first time she’d been in his office with someone else here, though.
It felt different. And Red had prepared for the two of them. He’d pulled up two chairs next to one another.