Chapter 3: Curveballs

Why did I decide to wear heels? I make it down the final block and feel like I'm going to melt on the sidewalk. The sun cheers me on as the humid air wraps around my neck like an unwanted scarf. I nearly push a lady out of the way, trying to get through the revolving door and into the sweet AC. The lobby smells like lemon cleaner and the crest of Ocean Tech sits largely on the wall behind the front desk. The elevators are blocked by one of those short security gates—a reminder that those grim bar days are long behind me. I now work at a place that has standards. I straighten up and walk to the front desk, my confidence bursting through my sweaty pits. The petite blonde at the counter looks up and clicks a button on her headset.

"How can I help you today?"

I clear my throat, reminding myself to smile, "Hi. My name is Allie Demarco. I'm here for my first day as an office clerk in research and development."

She smiles at me before turning to her computer screen, her bright nails clicking across the keys. Her brow furrows. More clicking. She turns to me. "I'm sorry, miss. But I don't see your name on our clerk roaster."

I swallow hard, trying not to panic. "Would you mind checking again?"

Her smile turns from friendly to forced. "Let me try a different way and see if you're in the system at all."

More clicking. I lean on the edge of the counter to give my pits some time to air dry. Not that this situation is giving me a break from sweating my entire outfit off. The blonde's head cocks to one side, her face a mask of confusion.

"Everything okay?" I laugh nervously.

She looks at me, "You said you were here for an office clerk position?"

"Yeah." My confidence has now officially flown out of the window. Did I read the email wrong? I could've sworn I saw "congratulations" instead of "thank you for applying."

"Well, it looks like you were hired for research and development, but you've been assigned to a special project."

"Oh?"

Her fingers fly across the keys, clicking and typing like she suddenly has somewhere to be. She whips out a camera from under the counter and sets it down with authority. "Stand in front of this, please." I take two steps forward and smooth out my hair. Like that's going to do anything. She looks up at me and groans, walking around the desk. Her heels clack loudly against the white tile as she stands right in front of me. "Don't move." She fluffs my hair around my face, dragging a tissue under my eyes. She twists my sleeves in the opposite direction, hiding my pit stains. It's like I'm in a cartoon and she just became my fairy godmother. She steps back, nodding at her handiwork before running back behind the desk. "Alright chin up. Big smiles. And..."

SNAP. A few more clicks and beeps and soon I'm being handed a name badge with the Ocean Tech crest right above my name. I look at my photo and smile from ear to ear. I may not look like a movie star, but I look good enough to wave this thing around proudly.

"Thank you," I gush to the receptionist.

She smiles at me, amused. "I'm Holly."

"Seriously, Holly, thank you. I really want this day to go well."

"That badge gives you access to the elevators and all the main exits. It's $40 to replace it, so don't even think about losing it. Elevators are over on your right. Go to the 14th floor and knock on the large doors at the end of the hall. I'll let Mr. Fairweather know you're on your way up."

"Thank you. I—" I blink at her. "Did you say, Fairweather?"

Her smile widens. "Yeah, Saz Fairweather. He's the new VP that you'll be working with on the special project."

I pick up my jaw off of the floor long enough to mutter an "oh, wow" before walking towards the elevators. I scan my badge and the security arms fall away. The elevator dings and I am on my way up to the fourteenth floor. I lean against the wall of the elevator in a panic. Saz? Fairweather? This has to be some kind of cosmic joke. Maybe there are hidden cameras somewhere and when the doors open, an old guy in a suit will tell me I've been pranked and give me a million dollars.

I wipe my sweaty hands on my pants as the doors ding open. No cameras. No check. This was reality. I step off the elevator and stare at the doors at the end of the hallway. You know that moment where you see something, but it looks distorted? Kind of like a funhouse mirror but without all the fun? That's what this hallway is now. One hallway that looks like it stretches for miles is all that stands between me and that door. I could always leave. No. I've worked too hard for this. I must see this through. I muster up what little courage I have left in me and take a step forward. All too soon I'm face to face with the large, oak doors and my knuckles rap against it.

"Come in."

It's faint but clear enough to make my insides flutter. My breath shakes. Get it together Allie. You're going to walk in there and you are going to stand up to that lanky boy who left you behind. You can do this.

I yank the door open and walk inside, the bright sunlight shining through the floor-to-ceiling windows. It's like another world in here. Is this how all offices are?

"Hello there, Allie."

My head snaps past the open floor plan to see him standing in front of me. Tall, muscular build. Eyes that blur the line of hazel and honey. His lips just as they were last night—that small cut now more than just familiar. There was no way that this was the same lanky guy from high school. There was no way my mysterious stranger could be Saz Fairweather. And yet, as I drank in his figure in the bright morning light, I knew in my heart that it was.