Page 30 of The Physical Attraction Seminar
Is there any particular reason you chose to commit section eighty-four, clause three to memory, Miss Hayward?
Yours,
Newly Appointed CEO of Banks Brothers Enterprises
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NewlyAppointed,
Per my last email, I advised you to exercise caution when posing questions.However, I will entertain it just this one.
There is no particular reason I memorized section eighty-four, clause three. I am simply a girl who likes to be well informed about company policies and procedures.
Anyway,
Out Of Office for Lunch
P.S. Stop calling me that. The only “Miss Hayward” I know is a fifty-nine-year-old accountant living in the suburbs of West Connecticut.
“Good morning, Reid.”
“Aspen,” he replies as he steps into the elevator behind me and takes the open spot next to her so they’re standing shoulder to shoulder.
“How was your weekend?”
“Fine.” His tone is clipped, and he doesn’t spare her a glance, keeping his eyes locked on his phone.
“Did you do anything fun? The weather was fantastic, wasn’t it?” Aspen pipes up, filling the silence as we soar past the fourteenth floor.
“Played golf.”
“How exciting!” Aspen beams while snapping off the lid of the lavender colored cupcake carrier she’s holding in her hands. “Would you like a blueberry muffin? I made them fresh this morning.”
Reid snaps his gaze to the right, and the tension in his shoulders eases while he gives Aspen a long once-over. I catch a glimpse of wonder in his eyes, but it’s so subtle, so fleeting, that I nearly miss it.
It’s still early, and I haven’t had my coffee yet, so maybe I’m still half asleep and imagining things, but I think Reid has a crush on her. I never thought I'd see Reid—quiet and grumpy Reid—looking flustered and shy.
I’m fighting back a smile when a loud beep fills the air, signaling our arrival to the 44th floor, and the elevator doors ease open.
“I don’t like muffins,” he huffs, stepping out into the lobby without so much as a goodbye.
“Oh… uh, alright then,” Aspen sputters. “Have a great day!”
With a sigh, her shoulders drop, and her face falls. I don’t know her all that well, but there’s something about her that gives off the impression of someone who craves approval and wants to be universally liked.
“If it counts, I think that’s the most I’ve ever heard him talk.”
“One time, a couple years ago, I got two full sentences out of him, and it felt like I won the lottery. Nina still doesn’t believe me whenever I bring it up.”
“Consecutivesentences?” I ask indisbelief. A triumphant smile pulls at her cheeks as she nods. “Impressive.”
Aspen extends the cupcake tray toward me, her eyes sweeping across my features as she tilts her head to one side. “I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but I think that it’s a shame that you’re working for Barrett.”
“Why is that?” I rear back my head, confused at the sudden change in conversation.
I find it odd that Aspen would spend so much time hanging out on our company’s floors if she didn’t like the CEO. Since I started, she and Barrett have had a couple of meetings together. From my desk, I can hear the muffled sound of their laughter and friendly chatter drifting out from the closed door.
Not to mention, apparently, she’s known Harrison ever since they were teenagers. Apparently, he moved away for a few years and recently came back, but from what I’ve gathered from eavesdropping, it seems they’ve stayed close despite the distance.
