‘I said I’m fine … ’ he repeated through gritted teeth, his complexion reddening, and she noticed his eyes had turned a much darker shade of green now, emerald almost.
Frank duly pulled across one of the window stools, and the guy leaned back against it, stretching his right foot – the bad one obviously – out in front of him, while his face twisted in agony.
Shite, what had she done? Hannah stood there uncertain of what to do next, her mouth open and closing like a fish, her hands jittery. Her instinct was to keep apologizing but there was little point in that. She’d done enough.
‘Can I get you a drink of water or something or … ’ She trailedoff awkwardly, realizing everyone was looking at her now. ‘I really hope you’re OK, but just know that I feelterribleand … ’
The look of frustration he shot her suggested that Hannah’s repeated protests weren’t helping. To say nothing of the fact that the entire incident seemed all the worse for the fact that he was being so kind and doing her a favour.
No good deed goes unpunished…
‘OK, well … thanks again.’ Raising her coffee cup in one final attempt at an apology, Hannah backed out the door and onto the city street, grateful to be swallowed up by the pedestrian masses.
And escape Cannoli Guy’s now considerably less friendly gaze.
Chapter 3
Later that same evening, Hannah stared at what was supposed to be baked salmon with teriyaki sauce, but the blackened material in front of her didn’t look like something anyone should eat. While she was great with meal prep, somehow she always managed to lose track of time after putting everything in the oven and so her culinary creations always wound up blackened – except for the ones that were supposed to be. Conversely, for some reason, those ended up underdone.
‘So much for “foolproof”,’ she muttered, scraping it all into the garbage.
And that had been pretty much the theme of the day.
Following that terrible start at the coffee place, she’d struggled to regain her composure.
The same company notwithstanding, it was still difficult starting over in a different location, with a brand-new working environment, and new colleagues too. While everyone in the Lotus office in Rockefeller Centre had been quietly welcoming, and her new boss Wes, had assured her she’d settle in in no time, Hannah still knew she had a lot to prove. And she wasn’t sure either whether the rumour mill had managed to follow her over to this side of the country. Nothing had been said, of course, but since it was the same company she guessed it was probably only a matter of time.Which would inevitably make her office-newbie getting-to-know you opportunities much trickier. Hannah winced at the thought.
Well, regardless of recent personal wobbles, when it came to the job she knew she was one of the best in the business and, social challenges aside, was definitely champing at the bit to get started on her new client list to truly prove her worth.
Her stomach rumbled. She’d grabbed a bagel at her desk between a succession of welcome meetings, and save for that and this morning’s cannoli, she thought – cringing afresh at the memory – she’d had very little to eat and was starving.
Having burned through most of Courtney’s delectable Dean & DeLuca stash at the weekend, she scrolled through her phone in the hope of finding a takeout option that could deliver at warp speed. Just then, it buzzed in her hand.
Seeing the Caller ID, she grinned. ‘Hi!’
‘Hey East Coast,’ her best friend and sadly former colleague Zoe, greeted. ‘How’d your first day go?’
When she and Hannah first met at Lotus PR’s Century City office all those years ago, the Texan redhead had been very standoffish and aloof. At the time, they were the only women in their department on a male-dominated floor. Hannah had made repeated attempts to be friendly but had been met with nothing but resistance. She’d decided she probably wouldn’t ever get close to renowned ballbreaker Zoe Maxwell but just didn’t have it in her to stop trying to break the ice at least.
One day, during a meeting, a senior executive had jokingly suggested that if they really wanted to land a client they’d been pursuing for months, Zoe might consider combining business with some good old-fashioned pillow talk.
Hannah had stood up before she’d even realized it and glared at the guy, her heart pounding.
‘Is that something you consider part of your own repertoire?’ she’d challenged, before she could stop herself.
To his credit, the executive’s face had turned beet-red and he’d looked properly ashamed. And after stammering out an apology, he’d proclaimed the meeting adjourned.
As Hannah was leaving the office that evening, Zoe had caught up with her at the elevator.
‘You know, you didn’t have to do that.’
She’d shrugged. ‘I know.’
‘Why did you then?’
‘We’re the only two women here – if we don’t have each other’s backs, who will?’
Zoe had stared at her. ‘You really believe that?’
