I have to go into the office. One of the alarms went off in the lab, and I have to go check it out.”
Jain reached for her sweater.
“No, Jain, you stay. We need to get this information so we don’t look out of place when we attend the big event.” Colin winked at her as he gathered his coat and coffee.
“Are you sure?” Her eyes bored into him.
If I had to guess, I’d say Jain didn’t want to be alone with me.
“Yes, I’m sure. I’ll see you later.” He turned to me, offering me his hand. “Braydon, I want to thank you again for this opportunity. You might know this already, but this means a lot to us, to everyone at Bastion Medical Research. We owe you; we won’t forget this.”
“No problem,” I replied. Now, I felt a little uncomfortable. I always did whenever anyone praised me. I never felt like I deserved it.
Once Colin left, there was an awkward silence. Avoiding eye contact, Jain studied the drink menu stuck on a metal placeholder in the middle of the table.
“You were saying, Colin sometimes..?” I asked.
Her gaze left the menu and moved up to meet my eyes. I felt the energy between us. I wanted to reach over and take her hand. I wanted to take all of her. Damn. I needed to get her out of my system.
“I was hoping you’d forgotten that.” She smiled.
God, when she smiled and looked at me like that, I was powerless. No. I had to take back control.
“I’m going to be straight with you.” She tilted her head up, took a deep breath, and continued. “As you can probably tell, Colin and I are good friends.”
I made sure not to speak, so I nodded my understanding.
“We’ve been working together for years, and, for some reason, he thinks he knows me, knows what I need. But he’s wrong.” She shifted and straightened the collar on her shirt. “I’m just going to blurt this out. It’s quite funny, but Colin thinks there’s something between us.” She held her palm up. “Of course, that’s ridiculous! I mean, you and me?” She shook her head and laughed softly.
The old feeling of rejection gnawed at me. Why would she think it was ridiculous? I knew my reputation was bad, but she didn’t even know me yet. I felt so drawn to her, wanting her. Didn’t she feel the same? I wasn’t sure why, but a deep sense of disappointment flooded my system. I told myself it didn’t matter. Perhaps I was having some mid-life crisis. That would explain all these foreign feelings for someone I barely knew. This wasn’t me. I felt a strong desire to leave, to get away from her. I wasn’t sure I could handle sitting across from her as she rejected me.
She continued. “Anyway, he thinks we have some things in common.”
“Why is that?” I wondered how Colin came to that conclusion so soon.
“Well, for one, our pets.” She lifted the hem of her shirt and showed me some red scratch marks. “My cat, Nancy, likes to use me as a scratching post. I don’t think it’s a big deal, but Colin thinks I’m crazy for keeping her. Now, I’m sure you’ve been added to his ‘crazy’ list for your dog.” She giggled. Her face softened, and she looked different…younger.
“What else do we have in common?” I liked seeing her relax.
“You remember his comment about your shirt? By coincidence, we were just talking about how much my mother loved the color purple. I’m sure he thinks it’s some kind of sign.”
“Why would he think that’s something we had in common? It’s your mom who loves the color.”
“Loved. As in past tense.”
Oh .
“It’s okay; she died when I was nineteen. I’ve had a lot of time to adjust to her being gone. Colin refers to her as my guardian angel, so I’m sure he’ll make a big deal about you wearing purple today.” She grinned, “By the way, that is a nice color on you.”
Her face flushed a little. I didn’t think she planned on complimenting my shirt. I smiled back and asked, “So, how about your dad? Are you close with him?”
Her smile
Jain reached for her sweater.
“No, Jain, you stay. We need to get this information so we don’t look out of place when we attend the big event.” Colin winked at her as he gathered his coat and coffee.
“Are you sure?” Her eyes bored into him.
If I had to guess, I’d say Jain didn’t want to be alone with me.
“Yes, I’m sure. I’ll see you later.” He turned to me, offering me his hand. “Braydon, I want to thank you again for this opportunity. You might know this already, but this means a lot to us, to everyone at Bastion Medical Research. We owe you; we won’t forget this.”
“No problem,” I replied. Now, I felt a little uncomfortable. I always did whenever anyone praised me. I never felt like I deserved it.
Once Colin left, there was an awkward silence. Avoiding eye contact, Jain studied the drink menu stuck on a metal placeholder in the middle of the table.
“You were saying, Colin sometimes..?” I asked.
Her gaze left the menu and moved up to meet my eyes. I felt the energy between us. I wanted to reach over and take her hand. I wanted to take all of her. Damn. I needed to get her out of my system.
“I was hoping you’d forgotten that.” She smiled.
God, when she smiled and looked at me like that, I was powerless. No. I had to take back control.
“I’m going to be straight with you.” She tilted her head up, took a deep breath, and continued. “As you can probably tell, Colin and I are good friends.”
I made sure not to speak, so I nodded my understanding.
“We’ve been working together for years, and, for some reason, he thinks he knows me, knows what I need. But he’s wrong.” She shifted and straightened the collar on her shirt. “I’m just going to blurt this out. It’s quite funny, but Colin thinks there’s something between us.” She held her palm up. “Of course, that’s ridiculous! I mean, you and me?” She shook her head and laughed softly.
The old feeling of rejection gnawed at me. Why would she think it was ridiculous? I knew my reputation was bad, but she didn’t even know me yet. I felt so drawn to her, wanting her. Didn’t she feel the same? I wasn’t sure why, but a deep sense of disappointment flooded my system. I told myself it didn’t matter. Perhaps I was having some mid-life crisis. That would explain all these foreign feelings for someone I barely knew. This wasn’t me. I felt a strong desire to leave, to get away from her. I wasn’t sure I could handle sitting across from her as she rejected me.
She continued. “Anyway, he thinks we have some things in common.”
“Why is that?” I wondered how Colin came to that conclusion so soon.
“Well, for one, our pets.” She lifted the hem of her shirt and showed me some red scratch marks. “My cat, Nancy, likes to use me as a scratching post. I don’t think it’s a big deal, but Colin thinks I’m crazy for keeping her. Now, I’m sure you’ve been added to his ‘crazy’ list for your dog.” She giggled. Her face softened, and she looked different…younger.
“What else do we have in common?” I liked seeing her relax.
“You remember his comment about your shirt? By coincidence, we were just talking about how much my mother loved the color purple. I’m sure he thinks it’s some kind of sign.”
“Why would he think that’s something we had in common? It’s your mom who loves the color.”
“Loved. As in past tense.”
Oh .
“It’s okay; she died when I was nineteen. I’ve had a lot of time to adjust to her being gone. Colin refers to her as my guardian angel, so I’m sure he’ll make a big deal about you wearing purple today.” She grinned, “By the way, that is a nice color on you.”
Her face flushed a little. I didn’t think she planned on complimenting my shirt. I smiled back and asked, “So, how about your dad? Are you close with him?”
Her smile
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