Page 37 of Falling for Mr. Bossy Pants

Lacey:No. Not yet. Just getting some interesting looks from people.

Me: Ok. Well, I just wouldn’t say anything yet. I’m going to talk to HR, and I’ll be back in the office tomorrow afternoon. I’ll touch base then.

Lacey:Ok. I’m sorry Jared.

I let out a frustrated groan. I don’t text back. I should tell her she has nothing to be sorry about and I’m the one who is sorry. This was all created by me. I should have listened to my head when it was telling me it wasn’t a good idea to get involved with an employee. Then my heart squeezes like a vice; thinking of Lacey as just an employee doesn’t feel right. My head is a mess. I stand back up and face my laptop. It’s seven p.m. and I have to edit this pitch for my presentation tomorrow morning. I sit down, roll up my sleeves and get to work thankful for a distraction.

It's one a.m. when I close my laptop. I have all my talking points, and all I can do is just hope it all goes well. I brush my teeth and climb into bed knowing the chances of me sleeping are slim. I pick up my phone and go to my music app. I click on my newly created playlist that I have named‘For Lacey.’I press play and place it on my nightstand hoping Handel can calm my mind.

***

I’m awake at six a.m. I think I slept for a few hours but I’m not sure. I do know I had a dream about Lacey, but the details aren’t all there. I just remember her being in a pale-yellow dress looking beautiful and talking to me about planting flowers in my backyard. She looked happy. I was happy. I jump out of bed grabbing my phone. I go to my inbox but there’s nothing new. I look at my texts. Nothing. I take a quick shower, get dressed and get on the road to my meeting.

The meeting starts off a little rough with everyone asking a thousand questions, but I field them all, giving the answers they want to hear. I know how this works. After two hours I wrap things up and head to the airport. I call Shane to give him an update.

I hear him pick up but before he even greets me, I say, “Hey, the meeting went well. I think they’ll buy in. Should know by tomorrow.”

I can tell by his silence he either can’t talk or doesn’t want to. “Shane?”

“Yeah, I’m here. Look that’s great. Just come find me when you get in this afternoon okay?”

“Will do. See you then.”

I hang up with Shane. A part of me wants to text Lacey to see how her morning is going. She’s probably only been in the office a few hours fielding curious looks and comments. I hate being away from her right now, but I definitely don’t want to call her when she’s in the office. I sit back and let out a frustrated breath knowing it’s going to be a long day.

Chapter twenty-three

Lacey

The last twenty-four hours have turned from bad to worse. After Jared pulled me off the project, I wallowed in my office with my door shut. Then after lunch I was making a cup of tea when several members of my team walked by me without saying hello. I let it go knowing everyone is working really hard on multiple projects, but when I saw David in the hall, I hurried to catch up to him and he dodged me by going into the men’s room. Then I saw the email which made my heart drop and my stomach curl.

I spent the night with chocolate brownies and Beth by my side. Now I’m back at the office hoping Jared gets here fast. Within thirty minutes of being here I’ve had at least five people stare me down and multiple people avoid me in the hall. My email ‘bings’ and I see an invite from HR. It’s labeled ‘HR Discussion’ and it’s in one hour. I can’t tell if Jared is on it but it doesn’t matter because at this point we all know what it’s about and he’s not even here. Not knowing when Jared plans to arrive, I send him a text. I feel I should at least keep him apprised of the situation.

Me:Hi. Just got an invite to meet with HR in one hour. I’ll let you know how it goes.

I don’t get a response, but that’s not surprising as he’s probably still in the air. I stay in my office until I have to go meet with HR. My walk to HR seems much longer than it should be. As I make the right down the hall my palms begin to sweat. I sit at a table with Amanda. She looks serious which is making me sweat even more.

Amanda can barely look at me, but she clears her throat and says, “Lacey, I know this situation is uncomfortable. But we are required to do an investigation of the recent email and picture that was sent. It’s our policy during these types of investigations that the parties involved are suspended, with pay, until we conclude our investigation.”

I sit still for a few moments. Suddenly, the reality of the situation hits me in my gut. I am being investigated. I can’t even stomach the thought of this, and I know this is going to cause Jared so many problems. I don’t want to do this to him. I feel my cheeks heat. I grab a tissue off the table and dab my eyes. I want to defend myself. I want to defend Jared. The fact that this is making me feel like I’m in trouble for simply dating someone seems absurd. I take a breath and blow it out slowly knowing what I need to do.

“Amanda. There’s no need to investigate. I’m handing in my resignation.”

“Lacey---” Amanda starts to say, but I cut her off. “No, it’s fine. It makes the most sense. I’ll send it to you in an email. I’ll leave today.”

I get up briskly walking to the door happy not to hear her call after me. I’m sure she’s sitting in shock but talking to anyone in this office right now is not what I need. I close my office door, type up my resignation email and send it to HR. I grab my few personal belongings off my desk and stuff them in my bag. I snatch my phone off my desk. This will be easier said in a text.

Me to Jared: Hi. Don’t worry too much about everything. I handed in my resignation.

***

By the time I get to the bakery my tears have dried but by the way Beth greets me I can only assume I look like a mess which is fitting because that’s how my insides feel. I’m not sure I’ve been on this much of an emotional roller coaster since my mom died. Beth hugs me as she takes me over to the table to sit. She brings me an iced coffee while not saying a word. This is when fifteen years of friendship comes in handy. She knows I’m not ready to talk about it yet. She goes in the back then waits on a few customers. After about twenty minutes she comes back to the table.

She puts her hand on my arm. “You ready now?”

I nod. “Yeah. I think so.”

I tell her about the HR meeting and my resignation. I know she understands why I did it but the uncertainty on her face is not making me feel any better.

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