Page 25 of The Vegas Rerun
“I will, thank you,” I say.
“Hang on a second,” she says.
She opens her top drawer and takes out a leather-bound organizer and from that, she takes a black and gold business card. She writes something down on a piece of paper and holds it out to me.
“That’s their number,” she says.
“Thank you. I owe you one,” I say, taking the paper from her.
As I leave the room, Sarah surprises me by smiling at me and this time, it looks like a real smile. Well as close as Sarah gets to a real smile at least.
“It’s really nice there,” she says. “My sister works there.”
“If I can’t get a table, I’ll come back for you then,” I say, returning her smile.
“Feel free,” she says.
I go back to my desk, feeling pretty good now that even Sarah seems to be getting over herself and being reasonably friendly. I sit down and then I lift the receiver of my desk phone up. I type in the number Frieda has given me and bring the receiver up to my face. I listen to the phone ringing down the line. It rings for a fairly long time, and I’m about to give up and try again later when my call is finally answered.
“Arrici, Melanie speaking, how can I help you,” the person who answers the phone says.
“Hi,” I say. “Is there any chance of a table for two for lunch today? I’m sorry for the short notice.”
“Hold on one moment please,” Melanie says, and the line goes quiet. After a few seconds, Melanie speaks again. “I can get you in for a one o’clock sitting. Is that ok for you?”
“That’s perfect, thank you,” I say.
“Table for two at one o’clock,” Melanie reiterates. “And what name should I put the reservation under?”
“Redfern,” I say.
“Got it,” Melissa says. “So that’s a table for two at one o’clock, name of Redfern.”
“Yes,” I say. “Thank you.”
We say our goodbyes and I put the receiver back down and I get up and go to Joshua’s office door. It’s still open and he looks up when I reach the doorway.
“I got you a one o’clock booking at Arrici,” I say. “The reservation is under Redfern.”
“Great. Thank you, Molly,” he says, and I go back to my desk, trying to pretend I don’t feel a tingle go through my body when he says my name.
By the time Joshua’s lunch with the potential client rolls around, I’m feeling pretty pleased with myself. I’m not far from sorting out a pile of old files and digitizing them. I reckon another half an hour or so and I’ll be done.
I get the job finished and I have moved onto another task when I see Joshua coming along the hallway after his lunch. I’m still feeling good, and I smile widely at him as he reaches my desk.
He not only doesn’t return my smile, but he looks absolutely livid when he looks at me.
"Molly. My office. Now," he says and again, he sounds absolutely livid too.
I barely have time to set down my pen before I’m following him into his office, my stomach knotting with nerves. I have no idea what I’ve done wrong, and I can only hope it’s some sort of misunderstanding.
Joshua tells me to close the door behind me, which I do. He goes to his desk, but he doesn’t sit down. Instead, he leans his ass against the desk and folds his arms. He looks at me and his face is still full of thunder. His eyes seem darker when he’s angry, and it reminds me of how dark they go when he’s turned on.
God, Molly, don’t be thinking about that now, I think to myself.
"Do you still think your little joke was funny?" Joshua demands and I’m pulled rudely back into the moment.
Maybe this is going to be a misunderstanding after all, because I know I haven’t played any jokes on Joshua. I’m not that stupid. I blink at him.
