Page 20 of Love Unwrapped
“Andi, what’s going on with you?”
Her gaze went to the phone on her desk, trying to see if she had, in fact, muted the call.
“The call ended. How doyounot know?” Bree shut the door behind her, coming to stand at the front of her desk. “Your makeup’s a mess and the side of your shirt has been untucked all morning. What can I do to help you?”
One of Andi’s hands went to her face while the other patted around her waistline, confirming she was rumpled. While Bree pulled off fashionably rumpled remarkably well, Andi kept a strict professional look all the time. “I’m going through something…”
Bree lifted a hand, stopping her in midsentence. “Talk to me, Andi. It’s not just me noticing. It’s everyone. You’re not yourself.”
“I think it’s these flowers. Maybe I’m allergic to them.” Which could be true. She’d never had anyone send her flowers before. “Take them to your desk for me.”
Bree shook her head and came forward, holding two message slips. “I’m not buying it. Just because you keep your cell phone turned off and have these flowers removed, doesn’t mean you aren’t going to have to deal with Blake at some point. He called again. He’s not going to stop, and he sounds like you look. What happened between you two that’s caused this? He’s threatening to come up here if you don’t talk to him.”
“Oh no, don’t let him do that.” Panic at the idea of Blake showing up and catching her off guard had every other thought fleeing. When the flowers had been delivered, his note had asked for her to meet him at the coffee shop in town. She hadn’t responded to that request, nor did she go at the time he had requested. Of course, he’d take it to the next level. “Please tell him I’m not ready to see him.”
“I’ve said that to him. I’m not sure he’s a listening kind of guy. He knows what he wants, Andi, and that’s you. He seems sincere, if a bit hurt by your disappearance.” Bree stood there, staring at Andi, her face softening. “It’s okay to like him. Ryan says he’s a real good guy who’s held a torch for you all these years. I know you two are different—I see it—but sometimes opposites do attract. You could use a little good chaos in your life. Open your heart and take a chance.”
If only it were that easy. For Bree, she fell in and out of love as the wind blew. She never let herself experience too much emotion either way. Andi wasn’t like that. Her feet were firmly planted on the ground. She had seen the dark side of the world for all it was worth, she never wanted to go there again.
“I can see you’re not going to listen to me.” Bree sighed. “One of these calls is your grandmother. She’s worried about you. She keeps calling your cell and getting voicemail. You should call her and let her know you’re okay or she will come up here. And you know that’s not an idle threat. She told me she stormed your house on Saturday.” Bree left her office, making her feel like a complete heel. This wasn’t her fault.
Andi had been steadfast in her ways until Blake had roared through her life again. It was his fault, but the idea of her grandmother worrying did have her picking up her desk telephone and dialing her number. She was too antsy to continue to sit, so she stretched the cord and anchored her butt along the desk’s edge.
“There you are. I’ve been calling and calling. You promised me this weekend that you’d keep your phone on for me,” her grandmother said by way of a greeting.
“Missing so much work has me behind…” Her grandmother knew her too well and must have heard the lie in her voice but didn’t scold her or blow her off, instead she gave one of her rare grandmotherly toned responses.
“I’ve talked to Blake, Andi. He’s worried.” Of course, she had. Andi’s chin hit her chest. Why would Blake have gotten her grandmother involved in this? What had he hoped to accomplish? She could feel the blush instantly staining her cheek. Andi didn’t try to avoid the subject of Blake or the tension between them.
“Why did you have to bring him back into our lives, Grams?”
“Babe, you’ve always struggled seeing past yourself. He’s not the man you’ve believe him to be, no matter what you heard from Nat or your parents years ago. I only want your happiness.” Grams sighed. “If I could prove it to you, I would. I think you’re one of the smartest people I know, so I hope when you ruminate over the past, like I know you’re going to do”—she could feel her grandmother wagging a finger at her—“that you’ll at least try to step back enough to see the truth. Not how it affected you or what you did in response to their words, but see the truth.” Grams cleared her throat. “Granddaughter, I need your commitment to be at our holiday party this Saturday evening at our event center. There’s an award ceremony, and my family’s invited. You’re all I’ve got, so I shouldn’t have to beg for you to come, right?”
Her grandmother was a whirlwind of activity, but that change in topics was more difficult to follow than her usual flights of ideas. Andi held her tongue, wanting to decline. The idea of a party seemed torturous, but her Grams had hit the nail on the head: they were all each other had. She’d never make her beg for anything.
“Send me the details. Of course I’ll come for your awards ceremony, but I can’t stay long.” Why did everything she did right now make her feel worse? She should be there all night to support her grandmother’s hard work.
“That’s all I want.” There was a pause in the conversation, something Grams rarely did. “Andi, remember… The best of life happens in the unexpected moments. Be open to them, dear. Don’t let other people, especially those no longer in your life, dictate your actions. You deserve happiness.”
“All right, Grams.” Her heart just couldn’t take anymore advice from well-meaning friends and family. “I love you. I’ll see you Saturday.” She hung up and reached to tuck her clothes back in place. She’d think about Grams’s advice later, like she’d promised. But right now, she had to get ahold of herself. No more wallowing. It was unprofessional, and work had to be completed.
~~~
When Andi hadn’t arrived on Saturday to finish packaging the cookies or returned his calls or texts, he’d started to worry. Bree had even tried calling her, to no avail. Blake had tried her cell phone a number of times that evening as well, and again on Sunday, to the point that Ryan had confiscated the device to stop Blake’s insanity—Ryan’s words, not Blake’s. When Blake had almost tackled Ryan to the ground to get the phone back, he’d stopped himself, admitting Ryan might not be wrong. He’d give Andi space. But what the hell had happened? They’d shared a magical night. They’d cleared the air about the past. They’d made plans for the future.
Who knew where it would lead, but that was any budding relationship. You let it play out, followed the flow, had fun, got to know each other. But Andi had freaked out at some point. He should have just insisted she stay the night, but he figured she needed to get home and rest, change her clothes, so she wasn’t in the same outfit when Ryan did eventually show up on Saturday. There was no way Bree wouldn’t have noticed her in the same clothes either. He didn’t want Andi embarrassed, even though he’d have been perfectly fine with it.
He slumped into his chair in his office and threw his head back against the rest, letting out a long sigh. He’d sent her numerous texts, called her office, and chatted with Bree. That woman may have been fun-loving outside a business environment, but she exuded hard-nosed administrative assistant in the workplace. She wouldn’t give a single inch on getting him in touch with Andi. And Blake’s intel gathering skills weren’tthatrusty.
Blake tapped his lower lip, considering his next move. His cell phone rang where he’d tossed it on his desk after his last conversation with Bree. He jackknifed the chair forward and answered without looking at the screen.
“Hi, Blake. It’s Babs.” The woman sighed but continued without waiting for him to respond. “I’m confirming you’ll be there Saturday night for the awards presentation.”
It took him a second to realize she wasn’t calling with news about Andi and how he could get through to her…or at least in touch with her. “I don’t know. I don’t need an award. Like I said, I was happy to help. And I’m glad it was such a success.” He ran a hand through his hair. Maybe he should just let Andi go.
His chest constricted at the thought. They’d had a connection. Andi had to have felt that too. Blake had never had an experience like that in his life. There was no way she’d been unaffected. Blake snorted to himself. That was probably what had made her run. God, they’d been good together. And not just the sex, but the intimacy, the conversation. For fuck’s sake, he sounded like a sap, but he’d never been one to willingly lie to himself and he wouldn’t start now. He doubted there was another woman on the planet that would send the cells of his body zinging around the stratosphere merely by slamming him with a sarcastic comeback. And then…when all the sarcasm faded into passion… He had no compass to navigate the sensations and emotions that rolled through him.
“Blake!” Bab’s sounded exasperated. At his non-committal “hmm,” she growled. “I said your name four times. Are you too busy to talk to me?” She didn’t sound upset. Was that amusement in her voice? Did the woman have ESP and know where his mind had gone?
