Page 52 of The Hometown Dilemma
“In more ways than one.” Vanessa leaned forward and lowered her voice conspiratorially. “Between you and me, I know Colm wants you to work at the consultancy. While it’s not a formal offer because it’s coming from me, I suggest you start thinking long and hard about the opportunity of moving back to New York.
I almost spat out my mouthful of wine, digesting what she’d said.
Colm Green wantedme.
Me, the junior designer who’d left to follow her dream of running her own business and couldn’t even get that off the ground.
For a moment, I couldn’t form a response.
“Really? Are you sure?”
Vanessa tilted her head to one side. “Do you think I’d lie to you about something like this?”
All I could do was shake my head. For all her other faults, Vanessa was nothing if not honest. And what would she have to gain by giving me a fake job offer? Particularly as Colm was her new boss too.
“He said he wanted me to feel you out a bit more. You came across as a bit hesitant over dinner and he needs to know you’re serious about the offer.” She gestured to the bar tender to get us another couple of drinks, asking for champagne.
“To new opportunities.” Vanessa clinked her glass with mine.
“To new opportunities,” I echoed, despite the knot of apprehension forming in my stomach.
The celebration might have been a bit presumptuous because I had some serious thinking to do.
Not to mention talking to Wade and talking with him about the options.
By the time I got back to the hotel, a pleasant buzz filled my body due to the combination of alcohol and excitement. I tried to temper my mood, knowing I’d walked out on Wade earlier and I’d have some making up to do.
I flashed the key card over the lock and opened the door to find the room in darkness. Quietly, I tiptoed in so as not to wake Wade. When I switched one of the bedside lights on, his side of the bed hadn’t been slept in. The bathroom door was open and the room empty. Had he stayed in the hotel bar all this time?
Kicking off my heels, I opened the wardrobe, ready to find some comfortable boots to put on to go and find him. Glancing over towards where Wade had left his rucksack, I noticed it was gone. My gaze scanned the room. There was nothing to suggest he had even been there. His charger wasn’t on the side, and there was no evidence of his belongings in the bathroom either.
Sinking down on the bed, I put my head in my hands.
Where was he?
Scrambling for my purse I found my phone, only to see it had run out of battery. Surely Wade must have called or messaged, he wouldn’t walk out like that. Once I’d plugged it in, I waited. Three messages pinged up.
Cami:Hope everything went well tonight! Looking forward to visiting you in NYC again if you get the job! XX
Sylvie:Wishing you all the best for your meeting tonight. Do let me know how it goes.
Vanessa:So good to see you, Jaime. Colm will be in touch soon. Don’t keep him hanging x
Nothing from Wade. I drummed my fingers against the edge of the dressing table. Picking up my phone, I found his number and pressed the call button.
Hi, you’ve reached Wade. Leave me a message after the beep and I’ll call you back.
Not knowing what to say, I hung up.
But I needed to know he was okay, at least, so I called back.
“Wade, it’s me. Um, where are you? Call me when you get this.”
I fired off a similar message, so he knew I’d tried to reach him.
Storming off to go and meet Vanessa earlier had been childish, and I regretted it. Perhaps if we’d talked about things rationally, I wouldn’t be here now, wondering where the hell he was.
Carefully, I took off the Marchesa dress and hung it in the wardrobe, staring at my reflection in the gorgeous rose colored lingerie Wade had picked out for me. I’m sure in his mind the evening would have ended with him peeling it from my skin, and we’d have celebrated by making love all night. I wanted him to know about Colm’s offer and I wanted us to talk about it. If I had the first clue where he was.
