Knight cut me off, “I’ll send a boy today to share with Dick his new relocation plans. I’ll also call you later. When’s your last client leave?”
I blinked repeatedly at the tall, square counter where I did my filing and didn’t speak.
“Anya, babe, someone needs me. When’s your last client leave?”
“Nine, she doesn’t feel chatty,” I said breathily. “Nine thirty more regularly after she shares a glass of wine with me.”
“I’ll call you after nine thirty. Later, baby.”
Then he was gone.
I dropped my hand with the phone to the counter I was still staring at.
Dick had relocation plans because Knight didn’t like me living across the hall from someone creepy.
“Holy crap,” I whispered.
“What?” Beth, one of the front desk ladies asked, walking in.
I looked to her and whispered, “Nothing.”
She stared at me then moved to me and peered closer. “Jeez, Anya. Is everything okay?”
And to that, in the throes of understandable temporary insanity, I blurted, “I have a new boyfriend. He’s awesome. Protective. And scary. And he regularly freaks me out by being all of those at once.”
Her face spread in a huge grin. “You have a new boyfriend?”
“A new boyfriend who’s awesome, protective and scary. A lot of the time mostly the last.”
“Cool,” she said like she didn’t hear me, or, I should say, she selectively heard me.
“Beth, I said he’s scary,” I reminded her.
“Girlfriend,” she said, flipping her hand in the air, “count your blessings. Any dude hooked to you has got to have more than his fair share of scary. He doesn’t, new scary, awesome, protective guy will steal you right out from under his nose. So, my advice, ride the awesome and protective and ignore the scary.” Her eyes narrowed. “Unless… does he do scary shit to you?”
I decided to quit sharing and start lying. “No.”
Her smile came back. “Right on. Tell him he needs to come and take you to lunch. Give me a head’s up. That way, I can amass all the girls up front to give him a once-over and when you get back, we’ll deliver our verdict.”
Unfortunately, my mouth decided to start sharing again so it said, “He’s sheer, raw, aggressive masculine beauty from head-to-toe.”
She blinked. Then she smiled big again.
Then she announced, “I am not surprised. And now, knowing that, his behind better be here soon so you better get on that since I’m walking out, passing this juicy morsel around therefore peer pressure is about to go extreme.”
Me and my big mouth.
Beth dumped some papers in my in tray with a farewell of, “Later, gorgeous.”
Then she hurried out to share the juicy morsel I volunteered very, very stupidly.
I stared at the papers thinking that filing was getting old. It was boring. It was mindless. And it was never ending.
Then I thought about how nice it would be to live without the constant possible disquiet of running into Dick somewhere in the building and then having to find a way politely to get the heck out of his presence.
Then I wondered how Knight’s “boy” would convince Dick to go.
Then I decided not to think about it.