Page 58 of Not As Advertised

“Come in.”

Ethan’s head appeared when the door opened, hesitating to come into my office.

“You sure? I know it’s your lunch hour. I wouldn’t bother you if I didn’t think it’s important.”

“It’s fine. I believe you. Come in and have a seat.” I waved him away from the door and waited while he took a seat.

“So I’m going to cut to the chase. I’m worried about Abbie.” Ethan’s tone was serious but not critical.

“Go on,” I encouraged, trying to keep my cool.

“Well, there’s been some signs over the past week where she wasn’t feeling her best. Our team is pretty great and makes an effort to go out for dinner once a week. Since she was offered the position and while shadowing some of the team, we’ve invited her twice. Abbie declined both times. Which is fine. We don’t pressure her.”

I nodded. The timeline made sense if Abbie was a little off. She’d asked for time while she decided whether she wanted to pursue a relationship with me. Maybe that pressure had taken more of a toll on her than I had realized.

“Between you and me, I have some experience with someone suffering from mental illness in my personal life, so I’m always kind of on the lookout now. Abbie never wants to bother anyone with any problem, always taking it on herself. I know she’s had a lot of learning to do on our team, and it must bother her, but she won’t let herself be a burden to anyone. And what’s got memost worried is that she’s now on her second sick day. I gave her a call this morning just to check on her. She didn’t sound sick but sounded really fatigued. I could be totally wrong, but it set my warning bells off. I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t let you know since you’re technically still her boss.”

Ethan sat back in his chair and watched my expression carefully for my reaction.

“I will keep this confidential. It’s no one’s business, of course. I care about Abbie as a person too, and I don’t want her to struggle if there’s some way I can help. As soon as she’s back in the office, I will talk to her. Off the record. If she needs some support, I’ll make sure she gets it, okay?” What I didn’t say was that I’d do everything personally to make sure she knew she wasn’t alone.

“Sometimes for someone who struggles with their mood, it’s enough to know they have someone in their corner. Everyone is different. But I’m going to do what I can to keep reassuring her that I am on her side here in the office,” Ethan said.

“You’re a good leader, Ethan. We’re all lucky you’re part of the team. This is what separates the truly successful from the people only in it for the money. Seriously, thank you for coming to me.”

Ethan gave me another careful once-over, as if verifying my sincerity. In another situation, this level of scrutiny would be humorous coming from one of his employees. Whatever he saw seemed to satisfy him for the moment. It warmed me to know that Abbie had more people than she knew who cared about her.

With a nod, Ethan left my office. I promised myself that the second Abbie was back in the office, we were going to talk. She was an adult who could manage her own life, but I wanted her to know that I would be there for her if she needed me.

I wasn’t above cornering her in the office if she was determined to keep her distance from me outside of it.

After taking two sick days in a row for the first time since I’d started at Appeal, Wednesday had me back at work, feeling steady enough to start with my new team full-time. First thing this morning, I’d opened my email to a meeting invite from Aiden. I hadn’t thought of anything else since. If pressed, I wouldn’t be able to remember what I’d said to Ethan and Avi this morning. I had been too distracted by the impending conversation with Aiden.

I felt every bit of gravity in my feet as I walked toward Aiden’s closed office door. Pausing with my hand raised to knock, I took a deep breath and asked the universe to be on my side today.

After the softest knock in the history of doors, he called out a low “come in.” My nerves took me back to the first day we met, and it helped me to remember that no matter how these next thirty minutes went, they were not going to be anywhere near as bad as meeting him in his office for the first time.

Gingerly opening the door, I stepped into his office to find Aiden’s attention laser focused on me. His eyes were bright and warm. His mouth was turned up slightly in each corner, sominute that if someone hadn’t watched him as obsessively as I had over the past weeks, he would look all business.

How did he manage to be so composed when I felt like a balloon about to burst?

I didn’t know what to do with my hands. My awkwardness reared its head because of my racing thoughts. I gave a jerky wave hello. Great.This meeting was off to an excellent start.

“Abbie, please come in and sit down.”

I shut the door behind me and took tentative steps toward one of the office chairs in front of his desk. Aiden stood to come around the front of his desk, taking a seat opposite me in the other chair. That made me feel better. His casual seat choice eased some of my nerves.

Nothing had felt right to me since the fundraiser. My mood had plummeted after seeing my mother. I’d already felt a bit off with the challenge of another new role and trying to decide about what to do about Aiden.

It had felt wrong to put Aiden off under the guise of “not feeling well,” especially after telling him I wanted to move forward in our relationship.

His expression had morphed into concern the longer he looked at me. He knew something was wrong, but not what. I wasn’t sure I had the energy to tell him. I wanted him to ask the questions, so I wouldn’t have to offer any more than necessary.

“You’ve been keeping me at arm’s length for days, sweetheart. I’m worried. So is Ethan. He came to see me yesterday.”

Pressing my fingernails into the palms of my hands, I thought about where to start. I didn’t want him thinking that I couldn’t do the job I’d actively pursued, and I definitely didn’t want to go back to my old role now that I’d had the smallest taste of the creative side of the business.

“Aiden, I will tell you what’s been going on with me. But first, I need you to promise me that everything I say in this office will be kept strictly confidential. I am going to tell you these things not as my boss, so nothing I say can get back to HR or be shared with the team. I don’t want it to change how you think of me.”

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