Page 26 of Small Town CEO Grump

Jenna

“Okay, thank you Bobby,” said. “I know that tomorrow is going to go off without a hitch.”

I couldn’t believe that the fundraiser was the very next night, but I knew that it was going to go well. Everything has been so organized and taken care of. All that I had to do was meet one time with the event manager, Bobby, to make sure that everything was in place. Bobby had been working with the venue for over 10 years, and I knew I had nothing to worry about.

I went outside and looked at my watch, and I was happy to see that it was only 8 o’clock. I was so excited to be back in Manhattan, and I couldn’t wait to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. Shanna and Kevin weren’t going to be arriving until the next morning. I knew that Ryan was in town, but I wasn’t going to bother him. My plan was to walk across the bridge, get myself some pizza, and then head back to my room.

I knew that Tyler was having fun with my parents. They were going to have a baseball movie marathon, and my mom had even made special cupcakes for the evening. They had the entire weekend planned out, and I was pretty certain that Tyler wasn’t going to give me even a second thought.

As I walked down the stairs into the subway, I couldn’t help but think about the last time I had been there. I smiled as I thought about how much fun Tyler had had, and how Ryan had been so attentive and helpful. Suddenly my phone buzzed in my hand, and for some reason I was not surprised to look down and see Ryan’s name pop up on the screen. I smiled as I read his text.

I just got off the phone with Addie. She said that Bobby from the event center called her and said that as much as he missed working with her, the beautiful young lady taking her place was absolutely fantastic. I thought I’d pass along the compliment.

I knew better than to be distracted while waiting on the subway platform, but once I was settled on the train, I wrote back.

Thank you for passing that along. Bobby is awesome, and tomorrow’s going to be great. I plan on arriving at the venue at 4 o’clock. What time will you be there?

I was assuming that he would get there around six or so, since the event started at seven. His answer surprised me.

How about Kevin and I pick you ladies up at three? That will give us plenty of time to get there. That way we can all help if there’s any last-minute things, and we’re not leaving you alone. After all, this is my company and I would feel strange not being there with you. Also, I don’t really want to be a third wheel for the lovebirds.

His reasoning made sense. I once again shook my head as I remembered the awful things that I had been told about him, especially how he always dumped all of the work on his other employees. I wasn’t sure who started all of the nasty rumors, but as I had done several times since getting to know him, I realized that the rumors were not true. I was just about to agree to his plan when he texted me again.

What are you up to now?

I felt a bit embarrassed telling him what I was doing because I didn’t want to seem like the inexperienced tourist that I was. I figured that those who lived in the city at one point got tired of seeing the landmarks, but to me it was so exciting. However, I wasn’t going to lie to him either, so I told him that I was riding the subway towards Brooklyn. He responded within a minute, and his response filled me with delight.

I am about 10 minutes away from the bridge. I’ll meet you there… if that’s okay.

I told him that of course it was okay, and I felt the surge of energy for the rest of the ride. 10 minutes later my heart skipped a beat as I walked up the subway stairs and saw him standing there waiting for me. He was dressed casually, and he looked so comfortable and at ease.

“Hey,” he said, smiling at me as I got close to him.

“Hi,” I responded.

“So, you couldn’t resist the bridge at night?” he asked, smirking.

I laughed. “No, no I could not.”

“I don’t blame you,” he said. “Shall we?”

We walked across the bridge and truly enjoyed one another’s company. Although we talked a little bit about work, we mostly just chit chatted. I felt so relaxed and natural, as if it was something that we had been doing for years.

Once we crossed into Manhattan, I told him I wanted to get some pizza. He recommended his favorite place, which happened to be just down the street from his apartment. I agreed to go, excited to see what his go-to restaurant was like.

As he walked into the restaurant I could immediately see why he liked it so much. It was comfortable, and I immediately felt like I was among friends. Everyone there knew him, and they greeted him by name. I saw a few of the servers look at me and raise their eyebrows at Ryan. He just smiled and shook his head. Once we sat down, the server didn’t bother bringing menus.

“Hey Ryan,” she said, smiling brightly. “Your usual?”

Ryan looked at me. “How much do you trust me?”

“Completely,” I answered.

I noticed the server nodded approvingly, and I knew that I had said the right thing.

Ryan looked at the server. “The usual,” he said. “Plus an extra order of garlic bread.”

“You got it,” she said, winking at Ryan and walking away.

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