Page 5 of Tell Me the Truth

“Even if that is true, and I highly doubt it, I’m sure you’ll do something important that helps the world on a global scale. And soon.” I’m in awe that she could be the reason for such incredible innovation and be so modest.

“How do you know?” Her eyes are still searching mine.

“I just do,” I say without thought.

I can see from her expression that my remark has caused her to pause. I’m not exactly sure why, but I hope I haven’t said anything to scare her off. “I just mean that I can tell from your face that you love what you do. If anyone can discover amazing things in the biotech field, it will be someone with as much passion for it as you obviously have.”

After I say this, it does look like she relaxes a bit. But then she looks away from me to check the weather outside.She is looking for a reason to leave.

“It’s just a light rain now,” she notes to herself, aloud. Alexandra rises from her chair, and I stand as well, taking one more whiff of her scent, which sends a bolt of lightning traveling through my spine. But instead of enjoying what she’s doing to me, I have to think.

I’m scrambling to figure out what I can do to get her to stay with me longer. I check my cup to see if there is any coffee left, but I have finished mine. And by the looks of it, she has finished hers too.What can I do? What else can I talk about to make her stay?

I clumsily blurt out, “I want to see you again.”

When I opened the door to the coffee shop and first saw her, I was telling myself to turn around and walk away. But, I didn’t. Instead, I’ve been sitting with her for the past half hour getting to know her. Really coming to like her. Wanting to spend more time together.

I gather my bearings and hope that I appear confident. I don’t want to accept no for an answer. “Tonight.”What the hell are you doing, Ellis?I question myself.

She parts her lips to speak, and I’m hopeful that she’s going to say yes. But it’s apparent to me that she’s indecisive. I can tell that I’ve surprised her. Frankly, I am surprised at my directness.She has to say yes to me. I want to see her again.So, I place my hand over hers, and tell her, “Don’t say no.”

She knocks my socks off when she smiles and asks, “You don’t give up, do you?”

It’s not a ‘no’, so that’s a good sign, I think. “One of the many benefits of being in the military. Just one drink. At Notre Terre. After that, if you want to bury yourself in work, I won’t stop you. Maybe I’ll even get you to fix that back of yours.”

When she looks up at me, she seems to be searching my eyes again. It makes me wonder if she’s asking herself the same exact question as I am.What the hell are you doing, Alexandra?

“Alright, one drink. Eight o’clock.” She decides.

Chapter Two

Alexandra

Wednesday

Everyone.Tracey’s answer is ringing in my ears.Everyoneknows about me and Ellis.

After several seconds of just standing there trying to process the bombardment of thoughts and worrying about their implications, I begin calculating my next move.

Trying to compose myself, I smooth any stray hairs from my ponytail and ask her, “How do I look? Do I look OK?”

I ignore Tracey’s piteous look that tells meYou should really look in a mirror.She lies to me and nods, saying, “You look fine Alexandra.”

Ugh!! Everyone’s lying to me! And, don’t fucking pity me. I shoot her an angry glare and turn on my heel to step into the restroom.

Luckily, I keep eye drops in the laboratory bathroom. After all, I have spent many late nights and early mornings in the lab. Getting rid of red eyes is a necessity before last-minute meetings. I place a couple of drops in each of my eyes and think about how I am going to get control of the situation.

First, I need to talk to my CEO, Lance, and clear up what the news means. Or, more importantly, what it doesn’t mean.

I exit the laboratory bathroom, step over to the elevators, and press the Up button. When the doors open I press the button to take the elevator up to the CEO’s office on the top floor.

Another woman is already in the elevator. She gives me a look like she is judging me, so it’s fortunate for her that we share the elevator car for just two floors before the doors open and she steps off. I was on the verge of telling her she was fired, for eyeing me strangely. That would not be a good look for me.

When she gets off the elevator, two men are about to get on. But I step forward to block their way and say, “Take the next one.” They know who I am and have a look in their eyes that shows they’ve made the connection between me and the headlines. The doors close as I see one man’s mouth start to open.

While I’m riding alone in the elevator, I think back to Monday. This whole mess started on Monday.

As usual, I woke up at 5:00 a.m. and opened my email messages while drinking my morning coffee. It was then that I found out about the potential buyout.

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