Page 12 of In Love and War
“You haven’t been able to sit still since I got here.” He wiped his hands with a napkin and came over to stand next to me as I readjusted the collar of my silk navy blouse.
“Stop. Fidgeting.” He playfully swatted at my restless hands, and I finally gave up, resting them on my hips instead.
“Fine, I’m a little nervous. I just don’t know why,” I said honestly, taking a deep breath.
“The problem isn’t how you look, Mills. You have quite literally gone through the glow-up of the century, and you know it.”
He came up behind me, studying my reflection and playing with my chocolate-brown, shoulder-length curls.
“I’d kill for those lips and that pout…” he mentioned, almost as an afterthought.
Kai and I had met in kindergarten and had been inseparable ever since. He’d always been beautiful. Like really, trulybeautiful. Born to a Japanese mother and Irish father, his features were the perfect blend of both delicate and masculine. He was tall, perfectly filled out with a killer sense of style, and looked like he belonged the cover of every major fashion magazine you could think of. He’d actually been scouted a bunch of times but never had any interest in modeling.
I’d lost count of the number of times growing up that girls had asked me about him or tried to befriend me to get to him. Once he’d come out, it switched to boys doing the same.
I hadn’t been as fortunate in my youth, but I’d been told that I’d more than made up for it by growing into my looks in my early twenties. My eyes were the same distinct pale green they’d always been (exactly like my mother’s), but learning how to do my makeup and getting my eyebrows professionally done had been a game changer in making them stand out against my olive skin. And the baby fat I’d shed off my face, thanks to my obsession with spin classes, had proven that I had, in fact, also inherited my mother’s coveted cheekbones.
But the thing that had changed the most were my full oval lips. They had been my least favorite feature when I was younger, oversized and awkward. But man had that changed when I grew into them.
Also, credit where it’s due, Dr. Mwangi had been a miracle worker with the braces. My smile was near perfect.
But none of it mattered because, for whatever reason, today I felt like I was seventeen years old again. It was the same feeling of nervousness, insecurity, and nausea I’d felt last week as I waited outside of Zac’s office. I hated it and felt a desperate need to get it under control. I wasn’t the same person I’d been back then, so I shouldn’t feel like her either.
“You’re right, I look fine.” I finally caved and went to sit back down at the counter, taking a sip of my coffee. The caffeine probably wasn’t helping.
“You’re going to kill it, Milly. They won’t know what hit ’em.”
He was right. I had spent the last seven years making sure of it.
As instructedin the introductory email I’d actually read this time around, I met Margaret in the guest reception area at 9:00 a.m. where she handed me my building access card. We then made our way to the elevators to go up to my new office.
“So, you excited? Nervous? First days are always a little nerve-racking I find. You just don’t really know what to expect,” she said as she tapped her pen on the binder she was holding.
I estimated my new boss, one of the marketing directors at Bloom & Co., to be in her midfifties. She was quite tall in her heels, wore a black fitted pantsuit, and her bright red hair was pulled back into a tight bun.
Her outfit was tastefully accessorized with a dainty watch and small hooped earrings.
When I’d first met her during my interview, I’d thought she looked a little like Julianne Moore and dressed like Miranda Priestly.
“Mostly excited.” I smiled as we got in. We continued to make conversation, and I didn’t notice which button she’d selected until our arrival prompted the auto-announcement of the floor we’d landed on.
You have got to be kidding me.
The doors opened up, and Margaret walked out. I hesitated for half a second before following her.
“We share the floor with the other marketing director and his team. We have a bit of a friendly rivalry going on between the two groups, so prepare yourself for that.” She looked back at me and smiled. “He’s in a meeting at the moment, but I’ll introduce you to the rest of the floor for now.”
I waved at Andrew, who looked just as perplexed as I felt, while Margaret and I began the introductory rounds.
“And this,” she said as she finally walked me over to a small room once she was satisfied that I’d met almost everyone, “is your new office.”
At first, I thought it might be a prank. Ithadto be a prank. But she seemed quite serious about the fact that the door to my new office was three feet away from the door to Zac’s. The two rooms were actually attached. A quick glance to my right showed Andrew, who was still seated at his desk, doing his best to suppress a laugh behind his hand.
Attempting to keep my composure intact, I walked in slowly after Margaret. The room was small but bright. It had the same white marble tiles as the rest of the floor that looked freshly polished. To my left was an elegant glass desk featuring a matte brushed-gold frame, with a computer as its only current occupant. Behind it sat a white leather swivel chair.
Two of the four walls, the one across from where I was standing and the one directly behind my desk, were a soft grey. The other two were made entirely of glass.
I had begun noting some decorating options in my head when I looked over to my right and stopped in my tracks to process what I was seeing. One of the two glass walls gave a clear view into the large office next to mine, at the end of which stood Zac with his back turned to us. He was on the phone and looking out onto his view of the city skyline.
