Page 10 of What If I See You

His smile fades and he steps quietly inside the room, placing the extra blankets at the foot of the bed and then taking a seat next to me. “You want to talk about it?”

I lift a shoulder and shake my head. “What’s there to talk about? I didn’t have seniority, so I lost.”

“Right.” He nods slowly. “So, you losing your job has nothing to do with what you do or do not know. You know that much, right?”

I try to scrape together a smile even though in this moment, I sort of feel that tightness in my chest that comes right before I start to cry. “Yeah. You’re right. It just sometimes feels like…” My voice trails off and I pick at a piece of invisible lint because if I say what I’m thinking, I will cry and I don’t want that.

“You’ll never amount to anything.”

He nudges me with is arm. “Sometimes feels like what?”

I take a deep breath and turn my face to look into his eyes.

His mesmerizingly blue eyes.

I know I’ve spent time ogling over Griffin with Corrigan and talking about my silly crush, but looking into his eyes now, I see nothing but sincerity staring back at me.

A real person.

A person who at the moment oozes calm and comfort.

Someone I feel like I can trust with my very real emotions, so rather than hold them in and cry myself to sleep, I take a deep breath and let them out.

“Do you ever have those times where you feel like nobody sees you? Like no matter what you do or how hard you work nobody notices?”

“All the fucking time,” he tells me. I notice when his gaze slips from mine, as if his mind is somewhere far away for a minute and then he swallows. “It’s nice being on a team in that we all work together for a common goal, but there are many days I’m busting ass…on the ice or in the gym to help get the team to where we need to be, and it feels like every effort goes unnoticed.”

“Yeah,” I whisper. My chin quivers as I fight back tears. It’s late and I know I’m exhausted after an emotional day. I’m really not used to being this vulnerable.

“Hey.” His hand connects with my forearm, his touch oddly comforting as he slides his hand down my arm to grasp my hand. “You’ve got this, you know? And you’re not alone.”

I nod, allowing a few of my stray tears to sprinkle down my face. “Yeah. I know. I’m a badass bitch who will bounce back.”

It’s what Corrigan would say.

He reaches over to wipe my tears from my cheek with his thumb, a movement oddly intimate, though I don’t think he means it to be that way. “Even badass bitches have hard days,” he sympathizes. “It’s the way they overcome them that makes them so badass. And when we get back from Napa, I’ll gladly help you in your search for a new position or I can listen while you talk through what you want to do. Hell, I’ll help you come up with a bunch of super sexy stories to write if that’s what you want.” He points to his temple. “I’ve got all kinds of random shit stored inside here. I’m like a rolodex of ideas.”

His kindness puts me at ease and his now goofy expression makes me smile. “You know, I can only imagine what kind of romantic story Griffin Ollenberg might come up with so I may just take you up on that.”

He holds up his pinky finger. “Pinky swear?”

My smile widens. “You are someone who pinky swears?”

“Pfbt! Of course. A pinky swear is the biggest baddest promise of all time. I take them very seriously.”

“Alright then.” I hook my pinky around his. “I pinky swear.”

“Great.” He stands from the bed. “Let’s discuss story lines on the plane tomorrow. That is, if you don’t mind sitting with me.”

“Really? You’re serious?”

“Of course.” He shrugs. “Why not?”

“Uh…I’m…well, I’m me. And you’re…” My eyes drift up his body until they reach that questioning blue stare he’s got going on. “You.”

With all the sincerity in the world, Griffin shakes his head and says, “I’m just a person, Layken. And I wouldn’t mind sharing a seat with you on the plane if you’re interested.” He shrugs again. “But if you have some other hot date in mind then?—"

“No.” I laugh, also shaking my head. “No, I certainly don’t have that. I’ll gladly sit with you, Griffin. I think that would be fun and Lord knows I could sure use a little fun right now.”

---