Page 6 of Playing Pretend

SWEAT BEADED MY forehead as I ran toward the Callahan Industries building. With my travel mug in one hand, and my purse in the other, I carefully navigated the crowded sidewalk while trying not to fall on my face in the process. After sleeping through my alarm, I was running forty-five minutes late for work, and was forced to take a cab. When we got stuck in gridlock traffic, I jumped out at Lexington Avenue and ran like a bat out of hell to the office. I crossed Park Avenue, my eyes set on the tall, glass and aluminum building in front of me.

A relieved exhalation worked its way up my throat the closer I got, but before I could let it out, I felt the heel of my shoe get caught in a crack on the sidewalk. My step faltered, and my body flew forward until I landed on my hands and knees with an unladylike ‘oomph’. To make matters worse, I felt the sting of hot liquid between my breasts, and on my stomach, and when I looked down I saw that my coffee had spilled down the front of my white blouse. Walkers-by grumbled their annoyance, and promptly walked around me without offering to help while I tried to gather my wits. I stood carefully, taking stock of my bedraggled appearance, and struggled for balance. Looking down, I noticed that my heel had in fact snapped.

Great.

Because falling on your hands and knees in front of a street full of strangers clearly isn’t humiliating enough.

I lifted my foot, and removed the shoe, glaring at the offending accessory as if it alone was responsible for the day I was having.

I blew a loose strand of hair from my face, and after removing my other shoe, started walking towards the entrance of the Callahan Industries building. Naturally I thought things couldn’t get any worse, but fate decided that I needed one more backhand before my workday officially started.

My gaze was downcast, and I was trying to figure out what to do about my ruined blouse when I walked into the back of another body. My arms flew out, and I sucked in a ragged breath right before my butt hit concrete.

“Shit,” I muttered unhappily, wondering if I should just call in sick and go back to bed, especially if I couldn’t even make it inside the damn building. The idea was abruptly halted when a pair of strong, warm hands gripped my upper arms and pulled me up. My mouth parted with a surprised gasp, and when I looked up, my eyes collided with a sharp, icy blue gaze.

I tensed.

“Ms. Kavanagh, are you okay?” Caleb’s voice rumbled, loud enough to shut out the other noises filling the busy streets. My wide-eyed stare was met with raised brows.

“Kadence?”

The sound of my name falling from those sinful lips was enough to drag me from my daze.

“I-I’m so sorry, Mr. Callahan. I wasn’t paying attention.”

Caleb looked me over, and his forehead creased with his frown. “You’re bleeding.”

I looked down, and saw that my knees were in fact bleeding. They stung, but I brushed it off.

“I fell. It’s nothing.”

Caleb cleared his throat, and lifted his head before moving to remove his black suit jacket. It was my turn to frown.

“What are you doing?”

Without replying, he lifted his jacket, and wrapped it around my shoulders. “Your blouse,” he explained vaguely. “It’s um…”

I lowered my head, and the moment I saw what he was referring to I felt my cheeks warm in mortification. My white bra was suddenly visible through the light brown stain on my blouse.

It was official.

This had turned out to be the worst day imaginable, and I wasn’t sure how much longer I could keep myself composed.

“Let me escort you upstairs,” said Caleb. He bent down to lift my shoes from the ground and brought his hand to my back so that he could usher me inside. Despite how surreal the exchange felt, I allowed him to lead me through the glass doors, and through the turnstiles to the bank of elevators. I ignored the furtive glances from the people around us, no doubt as curious about the situation as I was about why Caleb was helping me, and followed him. I was sure I looked a mess, with my hair falling around my face, stained blouse, bloody knees, and bare feet but all I could focus on was the low hum of energy pulsing around me.

I’d thought a lot about how my first interaction with Caleb would go, and this certainly wasn’t what I had in mind. I imagined a slightly more graceful moment, but instead it was awkward, and cringe worthy, and so far removed from what I would have liked it to have been.

I startled when the ding of the elevator signaled our arrival on the top floor, and found myself looking at Caleb for direction.

Beneath the stubble on his jaw, I saw his muscle tick. I realized that I must have been inconveniencing him in some way, impeding on his busy schedule.

“Thank you for the jacket, Mr. Callahan,” I said, stepping from the elevator. “And I’m sorry for bumping into you.”

I moved to lift his jacket from my shoulders, but Caleb stopped me when he said, “You need to get yourself cleaned up. I’ll have Aaliyah get some new clothes for you from Couture. I can’t have you looking like that all day.”

I tried not to flinch at the harshness of his tone, or feel hurt by his comment, but it still stung. He turned to walk away, but then I remembered the documents in my purse.

“Mr. Callahan, wait.”