Fall into my Heart (The Subzero Series, #1) (8 page)

“Currently
I represent Subzero, Julissa Patton and Kyle Anderson.” I said cautiously. I
started to feel like this lady was up to something.

Fiona’s
eyes widen and a smile formed on her lips. “We should talk sometime.” She
pulled a business card out of her satchel and handed it to me.

I
took her card and handed her one of mine. Just as she took it, someone called
her name.

“I’ve
got to jet, but I will definitely be in touch.” She said before walking away.

I
glanced down at her card and it all made sense. Fiona was an entertainment
journalist. I stuck her business card in my purse. Maybe if I could get an
exclusive interview for Julissa it would get her off of my back. Probably not,
or at least not as long as I would like but it was worth a try. What would make
Julissa happier than getting a chance to talk about herself to people that
would eat up every word that came out of her overly plumped mouth?

As
soon as lunch was announced, everyone pretty much swarmed the buffet tables. I was
somehow herded up towards the front of the buffet line. Grabbing a plate off of
the plate warmer, I scooped on baked ziti, salad and mixed fruit before
selecting a slice of strawberry cheesecake and a bottle of water.

Since
we weren’t supposed to sit with anyone we work with, I tried to find a table
that the friendliest looking people. I saw a couple of empty tables but I
didn’t want to chance being the only person sitting there. How embarrassing
that would be? The lone diner at a networking luncheon! I finally found a table
that had two men and one woman sitting there.

“Is
this seat taken?” I asked flashing my friendliest smile.

“It
is now.” A guy wearing a brown sweater vest and a white dress shirt with a
brown and white striped tie said. I hate when people say that. I mean, isn’t a
simple “No” enough?

“I’m
Liam Frederick with Indigo Communications.” Sweater vest said.

“Hi
Liam, I’m Chloe Carver with Drayton McGuire.” I said cheerfully.

“Not
from around here it sounds.” The other guy, who was wearing a pretty sharp
looking black suit with a maroon dress shirt said.

Gee nothing gets by him
.

“No,
I’m from New York originally. I’ve been here for a couple weeks now.”

“Are
you rude?” The woman asked.

“Well
apparently you are Amelia.” Black suit said.

“I
am not Alex. It’s a known fact that New Yorkers are rude.” Amelia said
annoyingly.

Alex
opened his mouth to respond, but I started talking before he got a chance.

“Well
first of all, New Yorker’s aren’t rude, we just tell it like it is and second
of all, to answer your question, I consider myself to be a nice person, up
front when I need to be, but not rude, and I definitely try not to insult
people when I first meet them.” I said. The other girl blushed and looked away
quickly.

“Nice.”
Alex said as he held his hand up. I slapped him a high five, feeling completely
satisfied as I dug into my cheesecake.

On
the way back from the luncheon, Skylar and I started discussing plans for
tonight. I mentioned that Jocalyn was meeting me at my house.

“You
realize she may never leave!” Skylar pointed out.

“Yeah
I thought about that and the fact that she may just start showing up!” I said.

“Tonight
should be fun though. Do you think Jack will come?” Skylar asked.

“Not
sure,” I shrugged. “To tell you the truth I haven’t talked to him since we went
out.”

“Do
you think maybe he’s not interested?” Wes piped up from the back seat.

“Oh
piss off Wes! Of course he’s interested in her. I’m sure he’s been busy is
all.” Skylar said swatting at him.

“Yeah
I think you’re right. He did say they were working in the studio. We’ll see I
guess.” I replied.

Jonathan
pulled up to the curb and we all scrambled out of his SUV.

“Alright
well I will see everyone bright and early Monday morning.” Jonathan said before
he sped away.

The
rest of us said our goodbyes before heading off in different directions.

––––––––

T
en
minutes before Jocalyn arrived I decided I didn’t like the outfit I had picked
out the day before. I returned to the madness of my closet in a mad rush to
find something, anything that jumped out as THE outfit. I was still searching
when Jocalyn knocked at my door.

“Is
that what you’re wearing.......It’s cute.” Jocalyn said pointing to my pajamas.

“No
I can’t find anything to wear.” I sighed.

“Oh
I’ll help!” Jocalyn said enthusiastically as she followed me into my bedroom.

Jocalyn
walked into my closet and her eyes almost popped out of her face. She looked
like a little kid that was just given full run of a toy store. She looked all
around as she held her hand out and ran her fingertips over the different
fabrics hanging from the chrome bars.

“Wow!
Look at all of your clothes! I could live in here! Oh I love this!” She gushed
pulling out a light pink satin dress with beading across the chest. I had worn
it when I was a bridesmaid in my cousins wedding.

“It’s
pretty but I think it might be a little fancy for tonight.” I said.

“Right,”
Jocalyn said as she browsed through my shirts. “What about this?” She pulled
out a tan peasant top that had the outlines of pink and yellow flowers on it.

I
scrunched my nose. I hated that shirt. I didn’t even know why I still had it or
why I bought it in the first place. I wondered if there was any way I could sneak
it in with my sister’s luggage when she comes for a visit. If she asks about it
I can just pretend I’ve never seen it before. Probably won’t work though. My
sister is really into fashion and if I hate that shirt there is no way she
would even consider wearing it.

“Okay
picky. What about this then? It’s cute.” She held up a pair of gray cords and a
green sweater.

“Jocalyn
that’s the same thing you’re wearing.” I pointed to her outfit.

“We
could be twins for the night!” She squealed.

I
shook my head. “Absolutely not.”

Her
face fell for a moment but brightened back up as she reached for another
outfit. I was almost afraid to see what she was pulling out. When I turned to
her though, she was holding up a pair of jeans and a satin low cut emerald
green top.

“That’s
actually a great outfit.” I said as I took it from her.

I
put it on and checked myself out in the oval shaped cheval mirror in the corner
of my bedroom. Jocalyn jumped up and down clapping her hands, her blonde curls
bouncing around her head.

“You
look fantastic!” She said.

“Thanks.”
I said as we grabbed our purses and headed off to Barnaby’s.

As
we walked up to the bar, we could see Wes and Skylar standing up against the
wall on the other side of the room close to where the band was playing. Their
heads were bent close together and it looked as if they were possibly holding
hands but I wasn’t sure. I could see Wes’ lips moving as a smile widened on
Skylar’s face.

“Are
they holding hands?” I asked as we waited for the bartender to make us both sweet
tea vodkas.   

“Probably.
They’ve been dating for a while now. They think no one knows but everybody
does.”

I
paid for our drinks and we started to make our way through the sea of people.
As soon as Wes saw us he dropped Skylar’s hand.

“What
took you guys so long?” Wes asked.

“We
were playing dress up.” Jocalyn said.

Skylar
raised an eyebrow. “Dress up huh?”

I
shook my head. “I couldn’t decide what to wear. Jocalyn was helping me.” I
explained.

Jocalyn
started talking nonstop, which was quite funny because none of us could hear
her over the music. We just kept nodding our heads at everything she said. We
were there for about forty five minutes when Wes leaned over and said into my
ear “Don’t look now but your boyfriend just walked in.”

It
took everything I had to not turn around but I was trying to play it cool. I
looked over at Jocalyn and laughed. She had apparently spotted Jack as well.
Her mouth was moving a mile a minute and she was bouncing up and down pointing
at him like crazy. A few minutes later Jack appeared by my side with a beer in
his hand. Jack bent down to give me a hug, and as he did, I got a whiff of that
sage and musk scented cologne. Oh my god he smelled so good!

Skylar
leaned in and shouted for us to see if we could find a table we could all sit
at. Amazingly we did find a booth. It was farther away from the band but we
were actually able to hear each other.

“I
don’t want to sit between the love birds.” Jocalyn announced.

Out
of the corner of my eye I saw both Wes and Skylar stiffen. I wonder why it is
they don’t want anyone to know they are seeing each other. I mean no one ever
mentioned anything about interoffice dating being against the rules to me. The
two of them seeing each other is hardly any more scandalous than whatever this
is that is going on between me and Jack. They have to know that people know
right?

“I
meant Chloe and Jack.” Jocalyn said.

Jack
grinned and I could feel my face turning three shades of red. I slid into the
booth first and Jack scooted in next to me. Skylar, Wes and Jocalyn slid into
the seat across from us.

“Jack
how do you think Chloe looks?” Jocalyn asked putting him on the spot.

“She
looks absolutely beautiful. She always looks beautiful.” Jack said, his blue
eyes gazing into mine.

I
could feel myself start to blush again.

“I
picked out her outfit!” Jocalyn said proudly.

“They
played dress up.” Wes announced.

“Dress
up?” Jack asked with an amused look on his face.

“It’s
a long story.” I said.

“I
wish Dex was here and this could be a triple date.” Jocalyn sighed.

Wes
and Skylar tensed up again and this time everyone noticed.

“Alright
well I see some friends so I am going to go dance with them.” Jocalyn said as
she looked back and forth between Wes and Skylar’s faces. She hopped up from
her seat, bounced over to where the band was playing and started bopping up and
down.

I
gave Wes and Skylar a quizzical look. I wanted to ask them about their
relationship but knew I didn’t really have the nerve to be so blatantly nosy
without having a few drinks in me first. Maybe they will just freely give the
information so I don’t have to feel like I am meddling in their business.

“Well
I guess the secrets out.” Wes said as he put his arm around Skylar’s shoulder.

“If
it’s any consolation Jocalyn said that everyone already knew you guys were
dating.” I told them.

Skylar
cleared her throat. “We’re uh.....we’re not exactly dating.”

“What
do you mean not exactly dating?” I asked.

Wes
and Skylar looked at each other and smiled. I thought I was going to have to
pry an answer out of it when they finally turned towards me and Wes said to me,
“We’re not dating. We’re married.”

“You’re
what? How long has this little charade been going on?” I asked jokingly.

Wes
laughed. “Well we’ve been going together for two years and we got engaged a few
months ago and decided to get married right before you came. All of our
families were here and Skye’s brother is an ordained minister so we said let’s
do it.”

“So
why keep it a secret? Isn’t that hard, especially when you see each other every
day at work?”

Skylar
shook her head. “There used to be a strict no dating policy but then about a
year ago it was changed so you could date a coworker but you had to sign some
paper. We decided we liked having this little secret between us. Besides we
don’t have to worry about people treating us differently or if I’m mad at Wes
and want to ignore him, no one notices. When you’re married and you ignore your
spouse, everyone notices. We just didn’t want to have to deal with any nonsense
that would come with it.”

I
nodded. It made sense. I probably should have been that way with my
relationship – or whatever you want to call it - with Jack. Although, the only
people that knew were Skylar, Wes and Jocalyn – who surprisingly hasn’t said
anything to anyone.

A
waitress carrying around a tray of shots passed us then. We each took a shot to
celebrate Wes and Skylar’s marriage announcement. After that, we decided to
join Jocalyn on the dance floor. Jack stared into my eyes as he placed his
hands on my hips and pulled my body close to his. It wasn’t a slow song but
Jack seemed determined to keep me as close him as possible and that was fine
with me. I wrapped my arms around his neck, sliding my hands up into his hair.

Jack
licked his lips as his gaze slid from my eyes down to my mouth. All I could
think about was how his lips felt against mine the other night. I wanted to
feel his lips against mine again.....badly. Maybe he needed some encouragement. I
bent my head down, leaned in so that there was no room left in between us.
Slowly I moved my head back up and parted my lips as we gazed in to each
other’s eyes again. For a moment, I thought my tactic wasn’t going to work but
then Jack moved his hands up, cradling my face in his palms. He smiled as he
pulled my face to his, gently kissing my lips one, two, three times.  

I
glanced over at Skylar when we parted. She smiled at me and motioned with her
head for us to follow her. I grabbed Jacks hand, following Skylar and Wes
through the crowd to a high table with four empty seats. Wes pulled out his
cellphone and glanced down at the screen.

“Well
love, are you about ready to head out?” Wes asked Skylar.

“Yes,
we should double date for real sometime.” Skylar said as she stood up.

“Sounds
good. I’ll see you guys Monday.” I said as they turned to leave.

“How
about you? Are you ready to leave?” Jack asked me.

I
looked at my watch. I was still kind of early, almost eleven. I didn’t mind
leaving but I wasn’t ready to leave Jack yet.

“Yeah
let me find Jocalyn and tell her we’re leaving.” I said.

Jocalyn
was still bopping around on the dance floor with a bunch of people I didn’t
know. I told her we were leaving and she waved goodbye without breaking a step.
Jack grabbed my hand as we walked out of Barnaby’s and down the street towards our
building.

“Do
you want to do something completely crazy?” Jack asked me as we walked.

“Define
crazy.” I asked curiously.

“What
if we went home, packed a few things and got out of here for the weekend.” Jack
said.

“That’s
very spontaneous of you.” I wasn’t sure if he was serious or if he was joking.
He had to be joking right?

“So
what do you say?” He asked me.

“You’re
serious?”

“Yes.”

“Okay.....let’s
do it!” I agreed.

Jack
turned to me as we reached our doors. “I’ll meet you at my truck in ten
minutes.”

I
ran into my condo and leaned against my door as panic momentarily coursed
through my body. I just agreed to go away for the weekend with Jack. Jack, whom
I haven’t known very long and have only had one date with. Well two dates if
you counted tonight, which I guess I should considering the way the events of
the evening are playing out.  I had no idea what to pack because I didn’t know
where we were going. For a split second I thought about telling him I changed
my mind, but I couldn’t do that. I want him to think I’m fun. Fun girls don’t agree
to go away with guys and then change their minds. He’ll think I’m indecisive
and a tease and......wait does he think we’re gonna.....
Focus Chloe
. You only
have ten minutes.

I
grabbed my carryon so that I didn’t appear to be high maintenance. I threw in
my toiletries and makeup first. Undergarments came next – cute ones of course,
just in case. I tossed in two pairs of pajamas, two t-shirts, two long sleeved
shirts, two pairs of jeans, a pair of cords, a sweater, a dress, a pair of
boots, a pair of heels, my brush and my cell phone charger. I had a few minutes
to spare, so I decided to change into a pair of black workout pants, a light
pink t-shirt and a pink and black pullover fleece. After slipping my feet into
a pair of sneakers, I grabbed two bottles of water, a bag of chips, my carry on
and my purse. I locked my door and went down to meet Jack.

Jack
was standing next to his truck wearing a pair of faded blue jeans, a green
t-shirt and a tan hoodie.  He had his cellphone in his hands and I could see
his fingers moving quickly over it. I wondered if he was texting someone, and
if he was, I wondered who it was and what he was saying. I’d never ask him, of
course, because it’s none of my business but still.....I was curious. He glanced
up at me just as I reached his truck and he shoved his phone into the front
pocket of his jeans.

“Ready?”
He asked as he tossed my carryon into the back seat.

“I
am.” I said as I pitched my purse into the front of the truck and hoisted
myself up.

“Let’s
roll.” Jack said as he hopped up into the driver’s seat.

“Where
are we going?” I asked.

“Well
my family has this cottage along a river about an hour from here. Is that okay?
No one is there right now.”

“That
sounds great.” I said.

Jack
put a cd into the player as we pulled out of the parking lot.

“I
love this band.” I said as rock music filled the truck.

“I
do too. Best band ever.” Jack agreed.

“Second
best.” I said as I looked out the window.

“Who’s
the first?” Jack asked.

“Subzero
of course.” I said with mock surprise that he would even ask.

Jack
laughed. “You’re just saying that because you’re my publicist and you have to.”

I
shrugged and gave him a smile.

We
both sang along with the music as we drove. Jack, of course, was a much better
singer then I was. Although, even if he wasn’t in a band and had a terrible
singing voice, he would still be a much better singer then I am. I’ve actually
had people ask me to stop singing before but Jack didn’t comment about my lack
of talent or anything.