Authors: Carla Parker
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Bonus Story 1 of 17
Anita’s mobile rang for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. Sighing, she looked at the number. She would have to take the call. It was from the office of the American Embassy.
The last four weeks had been a frenzy of organization and planning. Anita didn’t mind that so much. It kept her from moping around and thinking about George, the slime ball! Dependable and generous George had been her partner in crime for the last 13 years. Maybe a little too generous in some respects, for he had decided one day in her absence to spread a little loving with her best friend Sophie, now an ex-friend.
Anita could feel the anger start to pitch in her stomach, the horrid bitter taste of bile rising in the back of her throat. God, it was almost six months ago now since she had discovered the affair, walking in on the couple
in flagrante delicto
. What made it worse was that they were doing it in
her
house, in
her
bed. She had been the bread winner of the pair, allowing George to take a few years off to
‘
find himself
’
and write a novel. What a fool she had been. George had pleaded with her; Sophie had meant nothing, blah di blah. She kicked him out of her house and out of her life.
Within a week she had applied for a new post as Senior Fundraising Manager for an international charity and within a month she had found herself sitting on a plane and flying to Nepal wondering what the hell she was doing!
Nepal was beautiful. She was based in Kathmandu and rented an attractive two-bedroom cottage in Maharajgunj that possessed a wonderful garden full of fruit trees and flowers. It was only a four-minute walk away from the US Embassy and main business quarter so that was a blessing too.
At first she had been lonely, especially during the long dark nights, but gradually she was building up a new circle of friends and slowly getting her life back on track.
Now five months into the job she was planning the biggest fundraiser of the year, the annual Charity Gala Ball at the American Embassy. The invitations had already been issued to the great and good. This was her chance to show off her talents and demonstrate to her CEO what she was capable of. Her contract was subject to six months’ probation and she wanted to impress.
Now with a day to go she felt stressed yet quietly confident that her considerable efforts would be well rewarded. Several high ranking dignitaries and even a couple of well-known celebrities were on the guest list. With only a few remaining activities left on her to-do list, the job would soon be complete. That was until the phone call anyway.
It now seemed that there was an additional layer of security required. A warning level of Black Special had been issued (whatever that meant), and there was to be a debriefing at the embassy that afternoon.
Anita sighed again. She had planned a visit to the salon that afternoon to get her highlights done, give her mousy hair a bit of a boost. She would have to reschedule for the next day now. She hoped they would be able to fit her in at such short notice.
Just before 2pm she walked the short way from her home to the U.S Embassy, a beautiful modern building set in landscaped gardens. Janice, a woman with whom she had become quite friendly, was in charge at reception. By the time they had exchanged a few words and Anita had signed the visitor’s book, it was a little after 2pm. She was quickly shown down the corridor and into a room full of men seated around a large meeting table. She spotted her CEO directly in front of her glancing slyly at his watch, because the meeting had already convened.
“Miss Jackson I presume? Glad you could join us,” a voice boomed sarcastically from across the room.
Anita squinted up at the window as she squirmed into her seat. She could barely see the face of the speaker against the bright sunlight.
As if reading her thoughts, the window blinds were closed with a quick tug on the cord, allowing Anita to get a good view of her protagonist.
“I was just introducing myself, Miss Jackson; I am James Miller, head of security here. I will be in charge of the security for the event taking place tomorrow evening.”
She hated the way he kept referring to her as
“Miss Jackson.”
It made her sound like an old spinster.
James Miller was a handsome man, an exceedingly handsome man and Anita felt her cheeks start to flush under his direct gaze. She already disliked him, not only because he had put her on the back foot and made her feel like she was back in junior high, but he was achingly, jaw-droppingly handsome, and the arrogant man knew it.
Anita pulled herself together and sat up straight, taking command of the situation. She would not let this bunch of testosterone-fuelled men trample all over her. She was an intelligent, well-respected woman and highly competent at her job, and would not let this jumped-up security guard get the better of her.
“I apologise, Mr Miller. Gentlemen, please do continue.”
James started to hand around a printed document, and flicking through it she noticed it was a paper she had prepared a few months ago outlining the schedule of events for the charity ball. She noticed it had been rebranded with the word ‘REVISED’ typed across the front and ‘Official in Confidence’ stamped in red ink in the top right hand corner.
Opening the document, James addressed the group. “Due to security concerns regarding some of the noteworthy attendees on the guest list for tomorrow evening, it has been decided that some of the planned activities will have to be curtailed.”
Anita dropped the pen she had been cradling in her hand. “What do you mean by curtailed?” she said.
Shooting her a dark look, James opened the document in front of him. “If you turn to page five, you will see that the planned outdoor firework display at midnight has now been cancelled.”
At first she couldn’t take in the words he was saying, this was the first she had heard of it. The fireworks display for the grand finale of the evening had been months in the planning stage and had already cost a tidy sum.
“I’m afraid that’s impossible, of course the fireworks display is going ahead. It’s all planned, and is one of the highlights of the evening. It can’t possibly be canned, isn’t that so Geoff?” Anita smiled across at her CEO for support.
Geoff shuffled his papers and gave her a half-smile. “I’m afraid James is correct. Certain international events have led us to tighten up on security and that means that we do not want our guests outside the main building for any length of time.”
“But that’s ridiculous, on whose order?” Anita almost shouted across the table.
“I’m afraid that would be mine Miss Jackson, and unless you can re-arrange for indoor fireworks then your boss is correct, there’s no room for negotiation, I’m afraid.” James smiled smugly down at her, his brown amber eyes twinkling with satisfaction.
Odious man! That was twice he had belittled her in front of Geoff. Anita could feel her blood start to boil, her cheeks flushed with rage. If there were real threats to the guests then so be it, but to be told at this late stage and in this manner, it was humiliating!
A few more changes had been made to the schedule but nothing as drastic as the fireworks. Soon the meeting was concluded. Anita gathered her things quickly; she wanted to catch Geoff and give him a piece of her mind, in a nice way of course, he was her boss after all.
As she reached the doorway a voice called her back “Miss Jackson, if I could have a word?”
It was that vile man again. Anita turned, giving him a tight-lipped smile.
“Miss Jackson, Anita isn’t it?” James walked over to her. He seemed to have softened slightly, and his deep eyes studied her cautiously.
“Yes”, said Anita. Her voice was sharp and prickly. She wouldn’t let this man try and charm her, however good looking he may be.
“About the firework display ...”
Anita didn’t let him have time to finish.
“And what firework display would that be Mr Miller? I don’t believe there is one planned in the schedule,” she said, and with a toss of the head turned her back on James and walked out of the room and down the corridor. She felt childish, unprofessional, but God it felt good!
The day of the ball arrived and Anita woke early. She hadn’t slept well. She had been thinking all night what could replace the fireworks, what else she could plan at such short notice to send the guests home with a
bang
. One of the celebrities attending was a singer, perhaps she could ask him to perform a short set to end the evening. It was a long shot but it might work.
The rest of the day was frantic, organising the caterers and the florists and seeing to last minute glitches. By 5 o’clock everything was prepared, and Anita felt satisfied that she had done everything possible, everything that is except for her hair appointment and that was the fault of that awful man James.
Anita relaxed and allowed the tension of the day to evaporate under a hot shower. Despite James Miller, she felt good. She hadn’t let that man ruin her big night. The finale was all sorted; the celebrity, his star a little in the descendent, had been more than willing to play an impromptu set of old ‘Rat Pack’ numbers.
Her new dress hung in her bedroom. It had cost more than a month’s wages but it was worth it, a long emerald-green silk dress that showed off her shapely figure perfectly. She looked at her reflection in the mirror. Not bad, not bad at all. She had fixed her hair in a gentle ‘up do’ that flattered her face, a few dark curls framing her face to give her a softer appearance. If only you could see me now George Thompson, she smiled to herself. Perhaps she was finally getting over him after all.
Now all the arrangements were complete she could have a good time. Essentially she was ‘off duty’ tonight. Geoff her boss would be giving the keynote speech to set off proceedings and then the formalities would be over. Guests had already paid an arm and a leg for the exclusive tickets and the secret auction would more than double the amount already raised. Yes, she was going to enjoy the evening.
With a glass of champagne in hand, Anita crossed the ballroom floor to find her seat. She had personally supervised the seating plan to ensure she was sat at a table with people she knew. Brian her co-worker was to be seated to her right, though his wife had just had a baby and was staying at home. On her left would be John, her equivalent from a similar charity in Nepal and they would have a lot to talk about.
Anita took her place. She was the first at the table, and watched the guests as they started to arrive. She loved to people watch. The contrast among the women was amazing. There were mainly two camps: the young, size zero trophy wives, underdressed with their Barbie doll eyes and flashing white smiles, and the older women, overdressed with tight face-lifted skin that made it almost impossible for them to smile. Of course that was an over exaggeration, there were plenty of normal women in the room, too, it’s just that they weren’t as noticeable. A bit like life, Anita shrewdly thought.
She glanced at her watch. It was almost half past seven, and the formalities were due to kick off. All of her table had arrived and were seated except for Brian, and she scanned across the room looking for him. Where on earth was he?
The lights began to lower and she swivelled her chair around so she was facing the stage to hear George’s speech. She had written it and knew every word of what he was about to say. She spotted Brian; he was seated three tables in front of her and gave her a short wave just as Anita felt someone slip into the seat behind her.
If Brian was out there, then who on earth..? Anita turned around to get a glimpse of her new dining partner. Her heart quickly sank, it was James Miller.
How on earth he had managed to switch the seating arrangements she had no idea, but she guessed he had done it purpose – just to irritate her. Well she wasn’t going to let him get under her skin!
Once the formalities were out of the way and the lights restored, Anita turned immediately to her left and engaged in conversation with John, her back turned slightly towards James. If he wanted to play games with her then so be it, she could play harder and faster than most.
As the hors d'oeuvres were being served Anita swivelled back in her seat to face the table. She could feel James looking at her and it made her feel uneasy, this was going to be harder than she had first thought. Now she had deliberately ignored him it would be almost impossible to make small talk, and his presence was a burning coal at her side.
One of the waiting staff passed the table and accidently brushed a linen serviette onto the floor. James immediately bent forward to pick it up.
“I believe this is yours Miss Jackson”, he said. His eyes twinkled with mischief; he was laughing at her. Anita looked away feeling her cheeks start to burn. “Thank you Mr Miller, that is so very kind of you”, she said, a trace of sarcasm revealing he inner thoughts.
James rubbed his chin and took a sip of his water before returning to face her, his eyes narrowing, searching her face, scrutinising.
“I don’t think you like me very much do you Miss Jackson?” Anita reached for her glass of wine. His frankness unnerved her, had thrown her off balance and she could feel her cool start to slip. Honesty was the best policy she guessed.