Norma shook her head. “I want to offer you a job.”
I blinked. “Oh, no, is this a stress dream? I used to have one where I showed up to class with loose teeth. Is this going to replace it?”
“Ina, no.” Norma laughed. “This isn’t a dream.”
“Okay, because I haven’t been getting a lot of sleep and everything is kind of running together now.” I took a long swig of latte. “Work your magic, sweet caffeine.”
“So the job,” Norma said, getting me back on track. “It’s a different position within Cupid’s Arrow. Head of the Matchmaking Department. We’re separating the matchmakers from IT, giving them their own budget and autonomy. You’d be responsible for building the team, managing operations and basically overseeing the department.”
I stared at her. “Norma, I can’t. I don’t work for Cupid’s Arrow anymore.”
“I understand that,” she said, waving my words away. “Which is why I’m offering you a new job.”
“Is this Dane’s idea?” I snapped. “Promoting me? Moving me to a different department? Is this his way of trying to fix things? Is he trying to buy me off?”
“No.” Norma’s voice was firm. “This is my idea. And before you interrupt again, let me finish.”
I closed my mouth. Norma could be very commanding when she wanted to be.
“I’ve been working on this for weeks, even before everything happened with you and Dane. The matchmakers need their own department. Dane and I already talked about opening the position last week. The job wasn’t created just for you. I’ve been interviewing people, but I already know you’d be perfect for this role.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You know this company inside and out. And you actually believe in what we do. You believe in love. You understand it in a way that most people at Cupid’s Arrow don’t, including Dane.”
I laughed, but it came out bitter. “I don’t know anything about love, Norma. If I did, I wouldn’t have fallen for my boss who needed an algorithm to tell him it was okay to care about me.”
“You know more about it than anyone at this company,” Norma said quietly. “You know that it’s messy and complicated and doesn’t always make sense. That’s exactly what the matchmakers need in a leader.”
“Even if that were true—and I’m not saying it is—I can’t take a job from Dane. I can’t work at Cupid’s Arrow anymore. Not after everything that happened.”
“You wouldn’t be working for Dane. You’d be a department head, same level as Heidi and Lucas. You’d report to the board, not to him. Completely separate chains of command.”
“That doesn’t change the fact that he’s the CEO. I would have to see him. I can’t see him every day and know he’s never going to reciprocate those feelings.”
Norma sighed and almost looked sad. “You misheard him.”
“What?”
“What Dane said to Keith—you misheard him. Or misunderstood him.” She seemed to be choosing her words carefully, which I didn’t understand. “He was lying to protect you and said things he didn’t mean.”
“He said love wasn’t real. Those words came out of his mouth, Norma. I was standing right there.”
“Keith was threatening to destroy both of your careers, and Dane was trying to make it go away.” She leaned forward. “I’m not saying what he said was right. It wasn’t. It was stupid and hurtful and exactly the wrong thing to say. But it wasn’t true.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I was in a board meeting with him this morning. And when they tried to make him fire you and gave him the easy out, he told them the truth. He put his entire position as CEO at risk to protect you.”
I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach. “What?”
“The board wanted him to fire you. It would have been the easiest solution. But Dane refused. He told them if anyone should be reprimanded, it should be him. He admitted everything, knowing it could cost him leadership of the company.”
I couldn’t breathe. “Why didn’t he tell me?”
“Are you taking his calls?”
I winced because obviously I hadn’t. I stared at my coffee with my mind racing.
