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Evan
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By the time we’re done eating our bagels and drinking our coffee, we only have about ten minutes to get to the office. It’s only a few blocks away, so we head back outside and start walking in that direction. As we walk, I reach out and take Sophia’s hand, relishing how good it is to be walking with her and holding hands again.
The office building is older, but its age seems to give it character rather than making it look dumpy. I let go of Sophia’s hand to open the door for her, but also because I want to keep a professional appearance while we’re in the office building.
It’s going to be hard keeping my eyes off her because my attraction is back in full force. I remind myself to save it for tonight.
The interior of the building is a bit more modern and the lobby is decorated in neutral colors. We walk up to the front desk and are told that our meeting is up on the third floor. After signing in to the visitor’s log, we walk over to the elevator bank and grab an elevator up to the third floor.
In the small space, I’m even more aware of Sophia’s presence with her body so close to me. I’m not sure how I’m going to keep my hands off her all day.
Sophia looks over at me and says, “This is going to be harder than I expected.”
“What do you mean?” I ask.
“Keeping our hands off each other,” she answers with a mischievous smile.
I laugh a little, glad to know that I wasn’t the only one thinking the same thing. “I know what you mean,” I say to her, smiling back.
She scratches her nose, reminding me of our old signal we used at parties. I scratch my nose back, a warmth spreading in my chest as I bask in how good it is to be with Sophia again.
The elevator doors open and we can see Sarah ahead of us, bustling around a large conference room surrounded by glass walls. It looks like she’s busy setting out packets and folders at each seat. So far, she’s the only one in the room. We walk into the conference room and she looks up, then breaks out into a huge grin when she realizes it’s the two of us.
Sarah says, “What I really want to do is give both of you huge hugs and pop open a bottle of champagne, but I have to be professional right now. I just want you to know how happy I am for you guys.”
“Thank you, Sarah,” I say, “I appreciate that. And I’m excited to drink some champagne with you both later tonight. Until then, let’s get down to business.”
I walk over to the conference table and find the folder with my name on the front of it. I unload my laptop from my bag and start setting up for the introductions we’ll all be giving. Sophia walks around the table and takes her assigned spot across the way from me. It will be hard enough to keep from staring at her across the table, so I’m glad Sarah had the foresight not to sit her right next to me, where it would be impossible not to touch her or hold her hand.
People start to file into the room, including the other out-of-towners from my team. I stand up and start shaking the hands of the people I haven’t met before, introducing myself and thanking them for taking the time to meet with us this week. Before I know it, everyone has arrived and we’re all settled in around the conference table. I stand up and walk to the front of the room, ready to kick things off with introductions.
After following the agenda for a couple of hours, I can tell that people are getting restless and we’re losing their attention. I suggest that we take a fifteen-minute break to stretch our legs. Everyone gratefully stands up and starts to disperse, probably headed to the bathroom or to the kitchen to refresh their coffee.
Sophia walks over to me and says, “You’re doing a great job! Even though I only understand about half of the financial jargon, it still seems like everyone is receptive to what you’re presenting.”
“Thanks,” I say, “I’m glad to hear it. For a few minutes there I was worried that I was going to put everyone to sleep.”
She laughs and touches my arm for a second, saying, “Nope, I’m pretty sure we were all awake that whole time.”
The spot on my arm where she touched me seems to be warmer than the rest of my arm, almost like her touch has woken up my nerves and reminded them to do their job. I want to reach out and wrap my arms around her, but I hold myself back, knowing that now is definitely not the time or the place.
“This isn’t getting any easier,” I say to her in a low voice.
“I know,” she says. “This feels like torture being in the same room as you and not being able to touch you. I’m just glad we’re talking again. I don’t know if I could have handled being in this glass room with you if you weren’t even looking at me, let alone talking to me.”
A pang of sadness tinged with regret hits me as she says this. I know she isn’t trying to make me feel bad, but remembering how rude I was and how awful I treated her still puts a pit in my stomach.
“Never again,” I say to her gently, wanting her to know that I mean it.
“I know,” she says, looking at me intently. She looks up quickly and smiles over my shoulder at someone who must have just walked back into the conference room. She walks over to them and starts talking about the presentation that she’ll be giving the next day.
The rest of the morning meetings finish after a couple of hours and soon enough, we are given a break for lunch. With so many of us being from out of town, the local people decided not to order lunch in and instead let us go enjoy some of the city and get out of the office for fresh air. I take the elevator with Sophia down to the lobby.
The minute we are outside and around the corner from the front door, I take her face into my hands and kiss her, pressing against her until her back is against the side of the building. We’re tucked away in a small alcove, so I’m not too worried about causing a scene with our makeout session. We’re both breathless as we pull apart a few moments later. We rest our foreheads together, both catching our breaths.
“I’ve missed that,” Sophia says, “a lot.”
“Same here,” I say. “I wish we weren’t stuck in that conference room, forced to look at each other but not touch.”
“I know,” Sophia says, “but it’s our job. At least we were both assigned to this trip and ended up talking. Who knows how long it could have been until we resolved things, if ever?”
“I’m positive we would have found a way,” I say, kissing her forehead.
Having used a good portion of our lunch break making out in an alley, we quickly head back to the coffee shop we went to for breakfast. Not only is it nearby, but they also serve soup and sandwiches for lunch. We repeat our morning routine, where Sophia goes to save us a table and I grab our food.
I set down a tray of food and drinks on the table and we both dive in. For a few moments, we eat in silence.
Then I ask, “Are you ready for your presentation tomorrow?”
“I am,” she says confidently. “It’s kind of funny, actually. When we were first apart, I thought my confidence was completely gone. I was ashamed for ruining things and was convinced that I’d never find another great guy like you again. But then somewhere along the line, I started to gain my confidence back. Not that I was looking to date or anything, but I spent so much time focusing on my job to get you out of my mind that I knew I was going to do great at this presentation. So, in a way, our time apart has taught me a lot, both about relationships and about myself.”
“That’s awesome, Sophia,” I say, meaning it. “I wish you didn’t feel like you hated yourself, of course, but I’m glad you came full circle and got your confidence back. I can relate when it comes to work stuff. I used to almost hate my job because it was too easy. Now that I’ve put so much time and energy into this project, I can remember why I got into finance in the first place. I still wish I didn’t work for such a wanker like Jeff though, especially because he made me do his work on top of my own.”
“What do you mean?” she asks. “Weren’t you slammed with the prep work for this trip?”
“Yeah,” I say, “I was. But Jeff kept piling more stuff on me that he should have been doing himself. It was extremely annoying.”
Sophia says, “What a jerk! I’ve always thought he was a crappy manager. You should say something to the leadership team when we get back.”
“You’re right,” I say. “He needs to get his shit sorted out and start being a better boss. I know for a fact that he makes a ton more money than I do, and that’s because he’s a senior manager. But I’m the one who does all the hard work. I should definitely say something.”
We finish our lunches and head back towards the office, with only a few minutes until we’re due back in the conference room. I pull Sophia back into our little alcove and give her a long kiss, wrapping my hands into her hair.
“One for the road,” I say with a wink.