The tech guy, Dennis, came down again to install updates and she had to stand by while he sat at her desk.
“Couldn’t you do this remotely?” she asked with just a hint of a smile.
He gave her a weird look and went back to staring at her computer.Okay, not Dennis. She took her water bottle to the water cooler and took her time refilling it. Dennis was still at her desk so she headed over to say hi to Chase. He was typing away at something but when she sat down next to him, he looked over and smiled. She loved his smile. It made everything feel right in the world.
“How are you?” she asked.
“Good.”
She reached over and tapped his knee. “I like your pants.” They were the olive green ones he’d questioned trying on.
“Whoa, am I interrupting something?” Flynn walked up, raising his eyebrows. “I like your pants too, Chase.”
“Shut up, Flynn. They’re his new pants. I can say that.” If Flynn knew Ashley had picked them out, she could only imagine the jokes he’d come up with. Chase was red enough already.
“What do you think ofmypants?” Flynn asked with a grin.
Thankfully, Mr. Davidson chose that moment to stick his head out of his office door. “Flynn, I need you ASAP. Get in here.” Flynn scurried to obey.
“I’ll let you get back to work.” Ashley stood up. Even if she had her desk back, she’d already finished all her assignments, which meant it was time to find things to do. “I think I’ll water the plants.”
Chase cocked his head, trying to hide a smile. “Aren’t they all plastic?”
“Chase, do you think I’d water plastic plants?”
“I figured you might pretend to water plastic plants. I know sometimes you’re looking for stuff to do around here.”
She shook her head. “I’m doomed. It’s that obvious, isn’t it?”
He crooked his finger at her, and she came back to sit with him. Aware of her growing attraction, everything that used to feel casual and normal made the butterflies in her stomach kick up a notch. The little cleft in his chin, his perfect eyebrows, his brown eyes studying her.
“They’re real plants, Chase. The one in the corner is a peace lily, and the two spikey ones on the back counter are snake plants.”
“How do you know that?” He glanced around as if he’d never noticed the plants at all. Which he probably hadn’t. Nobody had time to notice them except her.
She shrugged, not wanting to admit to doing an image search on them about a month ago, just so she knew what she was watering.
“Ash, what would you do if you didn’t work here?”
“They’re going to fire me, aren’t they? I hate this. I thought a move into typesetting would be exciting, but sometimes I just want endless ringing phones so I feel needed around here.”
“I need you around here.” He said it with such sincerity. She had to remind herself he only meant that he needed her friendship. “I just finished this article, and I’m sending it over right now. Look, Dennis is all done on your computer. The plants can wait. You fake watered them yesterday.”
“Real watered them,” she corrected, bumping her shoulder with his. “Please tell me you’re joking and you don’t think I walk around every day with an empty watering can.”
“I was only teasing. I promise.”
She wasn’t sure whether she believed him or not, but she went back to her desk and pulled open his article titled,Should I Insure My Jet Skis?and started searching around for a stock photo image to go with it. She recognized the smiling stock photo woman riding a jet ski because she’d seen her in hundreds of other images—woman picnicking in the park, woman watching TV, hiking, baking, you name it. Maybe that’s what Ashley should do for a living. Team up with a photographer and sell her smiling image to every ad department in America.
That same nagging worry came back to her, now reinforced by her conversation with Chase. He’d never reassured her she wasn’t getting fired. Maybe she should look for another job. She’d miss everyone here, especially Chase. And then there was the secret admirer thing. She’d keep an eye out for job opportunities, but the thought of dragging out her old resume and applying for positions sounded as fun as a root canal. Hopefully, it wouldn’t come to that.
***
Chase wanted to tell Ashley about their department downsize so badly. Clearly, she already suspected. But Mr. Davidson’s continual paranoid warnings rang in his head. Chase needed that recommendation from him. He’d set up a few more job interviews, ones he actually hoped to succeed at, and they’d be calling Mr. Davidson and asking about Chase’s time here. Not to mention the time off Mr. Davidson was allowing him for an interview that very afternoon.
Filled with guilt, he went back to creating ads and tried unsuccessfully to push Ashley out of his head. When she left for lunch, he snuck over to her desk and left a couple of Hershey’s kisses above her keyboard. There was no one he could consult on these kinds of things. He was just winging it and hoping not to come off stalkery. And where was he going with this? One of these days she’d catch him. And then what? He wished he knew how she’d react to that kind of news.
Ashley was coming back with her usual sub sandwich when he walked out of the building. As was his norm, he’d packed his lunch. They usually staggered their break times so the department was never empty, but with his afternoon interview, Chase was taking an early lunch. She smiled when she spotted him.
“Hey, want to eat together?” he asked.
Her smile dimmed a little. “I would love to, but I ran into Allen, and he asked me to sit with him. She motioned over to where Allen, their old customer service buddy, was waiting for her under a tree. “You can come along.”
He would totally not be coming along. Not as an afterthought anyway. He gave her what he hoped was a convincing smile and went to find a spot out of sight of them. Allen? Really?
And then it occurred to him. She might think anyone here, including Allen, was her secret admirer. And that was all his fault. He wanted her to move on, to date again, just not with anyone else. Typical jealous male. But no amount of logic made him feel better about it.
