When they finally called my flight to board, I got on, and it turned out I had the whole row to myself. Talk about luxury. Once the flight was in the air, I lifted all the armrests and lay down for a good night’s sleep. Things felt like they were lining up for me.
Before I knew it, the fasten seatbelt sign was back on and it was time for the plane to start its final descent into LAX. Excitement bubbled up inside me. I was almost there. Carter was going to lose his mind when he saw me.
I didn’t know where he lived, but during our many conversations, Carter had told me he basically lived at the office. I knew the address for his building, so that was where I was going to surprise him.
I wondered if he had a big office. He must, since he was the big boss. More importantly, I wondered how private his office was. Could we lock the door and give each other a proper greeting?
Hell, he could send everyone home for the day and we could have the whole place to ourselves.
After we landed, I got my bag from the carousel and went outside to get an Uber. The sun was shining brightly already. It was a little disconcerting to fall asleep in Kentucky and wake up in California, but this was where Carter was, so it wasn’t like I had much of a choice.
The Uber picked me up and we immediately got stuck in LA traffic. It was annoying, but the thought of seeing Cater again kept my spirits up. And it gave me a chance to rehearse all the things I wanted to say to him. I was going to spill my heart out to him, finally tell him I loved him too, which I should have told him when he said it to me.
I couldn’t go back in time to fix that mistake but I could try fixing it now.
I was also going to tell him I was sorry for not asking him to stay. I should have fought harder. The end had just felt inevitable, so I had accepted our fate. But not anymore.
The car dropped me outside of an enormous building, towering over me like a castle in the sky. The whole building wasn’t Allory’s. The address said they were up near the top floor.
Inside the lobby, I asked one of the receptionists where Allory was, and she told me where the elevators were and how to get up there. The elevator ride took a long time, stopping at various floors to drop off other people. I was all alone by the time it dropped me off on Allory’s floor.
A well put together woman with a bright professional smile greeted me behind a huge desk sitting under a sign that readAllory Enterprises. I felt like a slob in my jeans and blouse, but I knew Carter didn’t care. He had seen me at my worst, and if anything, it seemed to turn him on more than when I tried dressing up.
“Welcome to Allory Enterprises,” the woman said. “How can I help you today?”
I tried to smile at her like I belonged there, but it was difficult to contain my excitement. “Hi, I’m here to see Carter Allory please.”
She looked at me like she could feel the weird energy coming off me, like I might be some kind of crazy stalker. And sure, I had just flown across the country without asking Carter or even giving him a heads-up. And sure, I was going to jump his bones the moment I saw him. But it was romantic, not crazy.
I just hoped Carter saw it that way too.
“Did you have an appointment?” she asked politely.
I smiled and shrugged. “I don’t but if you just tell him it’s Shelby, he’ll know.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am, but Mr. Allory isn’t here,” the woman told me, but there was a tightness around her eyes that suggested she wasn’t telling me the truth.
I figured it was standard operating procedure to tell people he was busy if they didn’t have an appointment. “I know I don’t have a meeting scheduled but we’re friends. If you could just send him a quick message?—”
“I’m sorry, ma’am, but he’s really not here.” She glanced around like she was making sure there was no one else around to hear her. “I’m not supposed to say anything but I don’t know when he’ll be back in the office. I wish I had more for you than that, but I’ve already said too much.”
I wanted to argue with her and try to convince her I wasn’t just some random person off the street. Carter would want to see me, or so I assumed. A sudden thought chilled me to the bone.
What if he didn’t want to see me? What if he had given his staff specific instructions to not let me in if I ever showed up here? Maybe that was why the woman was being weird with me.
If that was the case, no amount of arguing or convincing would get her to let me through. And it was clear she wasn’t evengoing to try getting a hold of Carter or anyone who might answer my questions. I couldn’t see any other option than to leave.
As I turned to walk away, the woman stopped me. “Hey, listen, if you’re really his friend, you should call him. He’s really not here. I’m just not allowed to say why.”
I nodded and thanked her, believing her that he wasn’t in the office.
I felt like an idiot riding the elevator back down to street level. Surprising Carter had been the plan, but it probably would have been a good idea to call him first. It would have ruined the surprise, but I wouldn’t be fleeing his building with my face red and my tail between my legs.
We hadn’t talked since he left Kentucky, though. I thought showing up and talking through things face to face would be better than texting or a phone call. It would have been way more romantic—if it had actually worked.
I tried calling him while I stood in the lobby. With any luck, he would answer and tell me where he was. I was thinking he might have been sent out into the field again, trying to remedy another PR disaster in some other place. And that was why the receptionist couldn’t tell me when Carter would be back.
If he was in town, then I was hoping he could just come get me. It would be way less of a fun surprise, but it would mean I hadn’t made this trip for nothing.
