Page 13 of Reply All
To:
Subject: Re: Re: A case of the Tuesdays
What’s wrong? Are you okay? What does ‘interesting’ mean, exactly?
From:
To:
Subject: Re: Re: Re: A case of the Tuesdays
Everything’s fine, I swear! Just tired. Your team is apparently turning up the heat, so my boss is stressing a bit. She’s so scared of losing this contract. Not sure why, since she won’t tell me much, and I’m sure you don’t know either, being part of the finance team. But it looks like there’s some tension between our two companies.
Anyway, Lena’s getting a lot of pushback from you guys, apparently. She made the sourcing team work until late last night so that they could have a call with our overseas suppliers and negotiate a lower cost of materials. No one thought she’d be able to, and everyone was hating on her behind her back for making them stay late, but she got it done.
Anyway, she’s been extra stressed and I guess taking it out on me.
Not gonna lie, Will. Your bosses are proving to be impossible to please. We’re getting you everything you ask for, but pricing never seems to be good enough.
(And this is the last I’ll go into semi-detail, btw. I would never want us to cross that line. I like this friendship we’ve got going for us.)
- Bridget
From:
To:
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: A case of the Tuesdays
Yeah, I heard something along those lines with regards to pricing… But I promise I won’t say anything more. I agree—let’s be careful about what we share regarding work. This odd thing we have going for us? There’s not a thing I would do to ruin it. I enjoy talking to you too much.
- Will
My heart fluttersin my throat as I read and reread the last two sentences of his email. As soon as it does, I push it back down becausewhat am I thinking?A pen pal relationship with someone I have a cool connection with is fine. But having a crush on a literal stranger who could be anyone? Nope, that definitely isn’t cool.
Still, I can’t help my reply:
From:
To:
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: A case of the Tuesdays
I enjoy talking to you, too. A lot.
We don’t talk againuntil the following day, the longest we’ve gone without speaking.
WILL
If you’d have asked him just a few weeks ago to describe what the best part of his day is, he’d have told you it’s the scalding hot forty-five minute shower he takes after his hour-long workout session. It’s the only time Will allows himself to decompress properly and soak in any type of true feeling of accomplishment he may have earned throughout the day or even week.
Lately, however, the best part of his day has been whenever Will receives any message fromher. From the assistant that works for Stevenson’s vendor who he has yet to meet in person. The notification of an email on his phone or computer no longer fills him with dread and disappointment. Now, all he feels is a rush of adrenaline—the kind he gets during one of his workouts, but better—just from the thought that it might be a message fromBridget Quinn.
4
MURPHY BEDS ARE SEVERELY UNDERRATED
When my phone goes off during lunch, a thrill courses through my entire body. I don’t even have to check my phone to know it’shim.My face breaks into a giant grin.
