BRIELLE
A date!
Ryan Rodriguez… businessman extraordinaire and probably the most beautiful man on the planet wanted to go out with me!
Me… of all people!
Now, don’t get me wrong, I know my worth and know he should actually be considering it an honour to go on a date with me and all that stuff, but I still didn’t understand.
I mean, from the way he had pushed me into such a tight spot, it was obvious that he knew that I would not even be contemplating it had he asked in a normal way, so the question now was, why?
Why waste so much time when you can easily just have anyone else?
I cleared my throat nervously. “You know, Ryan… under other circumstances, I would have been thrilled to go out on a date with you, but this is business… and I really don’t think it is wise to add something such as that to the equation.”
He smiled wanly. “Now, I knew you’d say that… but then again, there are different types of dates aren’t there? This could easily be a business date… or a simple platonic date, anything you want it to be. We don’t even need to call it a date if you find the idea of that so uncomfortable you know?”
Damn, why did he have to be so bloody convincing?
He truly had a point too you know… there were really different types of dates, and we could even call it anything else if I wasn’t okay with calling it a date.
Sighing heavily, I turned to walk back to my seat, and crashed into it heavily. “Alright, fine. I’ll go out with you, but just this once, got it? And you can’t threaten to bail out on the company ever again too, alright?”
He grinned and settled into the chair across from me. “Wow, you do know how to drive a hard bargain Lucia, but alright. I accept.”
I grinned back. “And we’ll not go on this said outing until I actually have your word in writing.” I declared smugly, chuckling slightly when he burst into laughter. “You’re impossible, Lucia. But you shall have it latest by tomorrow morning.”
I nodded in understanding. “You know, I really am sorry for not telling you about Shawn’s illness-”
“Now, that’s quite alright. Even I can understand and appreciate that it was all for the company. Plus it got you to go out with me, so it’s all good.” He declared smugly, causing me to chuckle.
He definitely did have a point there.
“One last thing,” I added, smirking when he scowled and completely tried to cover it up. “Can we schedule this date to somewhere next week? My schedule is packed as it is with Shawn in the hospital.”
“Oh, sure, sure. Of course. Take all the time you need.” He agreed quickly. “Uh… I guess I’ll see you some time next week then?” He questioned as he stood up to leave. I stood up too and grinned. “It’s a date. Come, I’ll walk you out.”
DYLAN
I was taking my sister on a tour around the company, starting from the offices on the top floor.
To be honest we didn’t talk much in my office… I really didn’t know what to say, or what to do. Thankfully, she had seen my discomfort, and it was obvious that she felt uneasy too, and so she had asked to be shown around, and I had gladly obliged.
We were done with the top floor, and she had been silently taking in her surroundings without saying a single word throughout.
We both stepped into the elevator and I quickly punched in keys that would take us to the next floor. We were both silent and lost in thought until she broke the silence. “I have been gone for way too long, haven’t I?” She asked quietly.
Savannah hadn’t changed much physically, apart from a few wrinkles around her eyes and mouth. She was still very slender and still had her blonde hair… something she got from ma, but it was in a short bob now,
Oh, and she had bangs.
But then something seemed different about her,
I actually couldn’t pinpoint what it was exactly.
Even I could sense that she had been through something that had taken the light out of her beautiful blue eyes. She was definitely more mature now, and wasn’t that happy-go-lucky party girl I knew her to be anymore.
I guess you could call that a good thing?
I cleared my throat slightly and turned to look in her direction. “Yes, Anna… you really have been gone for a very long time.” She looked right back at me, a sad look gracing her features.
“I just have one question though,” I continued.
“Why?” I asked. “I was just as hurt as you were because of what had happened with mum and dad, but even then, I had understood your desire to go far away and live your life without them… hell, I had even given you my complete support.” I began to pace. “And then all of a sudden, you just stopped getting in touch. I mean, did I do something wrong?”
She shook her head.
“So, did you ever stop to think about how your sudden distance was going to affect me at all?” I asked. “Because I called, Savannah… I texted. I never stopped calling, I never stopped texting.”
Savannah just stood there, head bent in shame, shaking her head. She wasn’t saying a single damn thing. She wasn’t giving me the answers I fucking deserved.
“Tell me, Anna, because I need to know what the hell had been keeping you so occupied that you couldn’t even reach for your phone and give me a call, or even bloody answer mine when I constantly did.”
“You wouldn’t understand, Dylan-”
“So make me!” My voice rose a little, and I took a deep breath to control myself. “You know what, I’m too glad to have you back to let some long-kept bitterness ruin the beauty of our reunion.” I stretched my hand out for hers and smiled slightly when she placed hers in mine. Then I pulled her to me and wrapped her in a bone-crushing hug. “I really missed you, Anna… and I know that something went on out there, but I hope that you’ll trust me enough to eventually tell me about it.”
She sniffed. “Thank you so much for understanding Dylan, you have no idea how much this means to me.”
I smiled and wiped the tears from her eyes. “Anything for you, Anna.”
BRIELLE
Ryan and I were laughing over a joke he had just shared as I walked him to the elevator.
You know, he was a genuinely nice person… and I could actually see myself liking him.
For real.
He just seemed like those easy-going people that you could try a relationship with and still remain friends even if it didn’t work out.
We both stood there waiting for the elevator, and had stopped laughing now, but were stuck in that state where you still had a pleasant smile on your face, and could easily burst into another round of laughter at the least provocation.
Ryan shot me a quick look and raised an eyebrow, and I pursed my lips to control myself. “Stop it, Ryan,” I warned, very close this time.
“Stop, what? This?” He pulled another funny face and we both burst into laughter again. I leaned against him to steady myself as the elevator doors opened and I jumped at its suddenness, but the sight that met my eyes caused me to freeze mid-laugh.
Dylan had a woman in his embrace, and from the way they were hugging, they seemed pretty intimate. I felt a pang shoot through me, and I quickly snuffed it out.
We were friends now, and friends didn’t get jealous did they?
I heard Ryan clear his throat subtly, and the couple slowly pulled away from each other.
Dylan turned to face us, and that was when he, and the lovely woman he was in the elevator with, noticed us.
DYLAN
The first thing that popped into my head when I saw the two of them looking so cosy together was,
One, who the hell was this guy,
And two, why the hell was Brielle with him?
I was really a mess inside, but I covered it up outwardly with a smile. “Hey, Brielle… I have someone here I want you to meet.” I pushed Savannah closer to me. “Meet my elder sister, Savannah. Anna, meet Brielle Jackson, current CFO of Lavish.” I introduced the two of them.
Brielle’s eyes widened. “Oh.”
She seemed to be in some kind of shock for a fleeting moment before it quickly passed, and she stretched out her hand for a handshake. “Uhm, nice to finally meet you, Savannah. I’ve heard so much about you, and I’m genuinely glad to finally be able to put a name to the face.”
Savannah smiled back and shook her hand. “Lovely meeting you too, Brielle.”
The man standing beside Brielle cleared his throat discreetly causing Brielle to wince at her forgetfulness. “I’m so sorry. Dylan, Savannah, please meet Ryan Rodriguez. He’s one of the new investors for RetroCorp.”
Oh, so that explained it.
But he was too close to Brielle for my liking, and even I had to admit that he wasn’t that bad to look at.
I watched him gently kiss my sister’s hand and declare how enchanted he was to meet her and all that shit.
And you know the annoying thing?
The annoying thing was that even Anna who had never really been was bothered by looks and charm actually seemed flustered.
Not a good sign…
At all.
He turned his attention away from my sister to me. “Dylan Thomas! It sincerely is an honour to meet you.” He stretched his hand for a handshake and I reached out to clasp it, pressing so hard as if that was somehow going to erase the fact that he had already charmed two out of the three important women in my life.
“Wow, such a tough grip you’ve got there, man.” He declared, flexing his hand painfully after I had let go.
I struggled to wipe the condescending smirk off my face.
He absolutely deserved it.
The three of us watched him step into the elevator. “It really was nice meeting you two.” He said to Savannah and I, turning his attention to Brielle… like some toddler saving his best candy for last. “Lucia, I shall sleep peacefully tonight,” He said with a smirk. “Because, I know that finally, this date I’ve constantly been dreaming about will definitely happen.”
Wait, what date?
I shifted my attention to Brielle who looked even more flustered at his statement. “It’s somewhere next week, Ryan, and it’s just dinner so stop overreacting.” She shakily admonished with a chuckle but he only grinned. “Honestly speaking, a week seems like a second when you especially have something to look forward to, you know?” He leaned against the elevator wall and winked, right as the elevator doors closed shut.
Cocky bastard.
*******
Brielle had left us to go back to her office, albeit embarrassedly… much to Savannah’s amusement and my irritation, and I was still continuing the tour with Savannah, but I had honestly lost all interest.
So, Brielle was going out on a date.
And she didn’t find anyone but that annoyingly handsome guy who absolutely seemed like a total player. Besides, had she forgotten that she was going to be working with him, and that going out will be mixing business with pleasure?
What did she see in him anyway?
“You like Brielle, don’t you?” Savannah asked unconcernedly.
I wasn’t really thinking when I answered. “Yeah, I actually do… uh what?”
Shit. She wasn’t going to let me live this down.
I tried to play dumb. “What were you saying, I honestly didn’t hear your question.”
She giggled. “It’s not working, man. You’ve already admitted it, stop playing dumb.”
Fuck.
I glared at her evil manipulation. “Alright, fine. I like her, okay? Now, what do you want?”
She chuckled. “I just wanted to hear you admit it, and you have. That’s all I wanted.”
I stopped to stare at my feet bashfully. “Souhmcanyoutellmehowtoeffectivelywinherover?”
This time she full-on burst into laughter. “Come again, please. And in mortal English this time, alright?”
I shot her an annoyed glare. “Look do you have any tip on how I can win her over, because she really isn’t like the other girls I have been with, and I think I need help.” I admitted softly. Savannah was quiet for a moment. “You know what I have learnt about relationships?” She asked, a sad, faraway look on her face.
I shook my head in the negative.
“I have come to learn, that no one needs to tell you what to do when it comes to those things, you know? Most of the time, you just have to trust your instincts, and you can be assured that it will lead you to make the right decision.”
That actually made a lot of sense.
“We haven’t finished the tour, little brother.” She declared in a bright tone, as if that will somehow make me forget how she had answered my question with so much experience, and bitterness.
I decided not to call her on it.
Like she said, she would tell me about it when she was ready.