Crossing the Line

Chapter 4

Naturally, I did the mature thing: put my phone down, roll over and fall asleep to avoid answering. But I wish I could say that I slept well. My dreams were filled with flashbacks of Alec and myself. The first time I realized I had feelings for him, our first date, our first time, family vacations, prom, graduation, college, the first time we said "I love you” and everything in between. But all the good memories were overshadowed by the pain of losing him. Those memories turned to nightmares. Our relationship ending was drawn out and yet I never saw it coming, not until I stumbled on him and Kayla together at a party. I’ll never forget opening that door and seeing her wrapped around him. It was that exact moment that all the plans I had made for my future were obliterated. These images swirled in my head before turning into the images from my office. Every touch. Every kiss. Every laugh. Every tear.

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

I shot out of bed. Reliving the life of the girl I was before law school was not something I signed up for, and I’m sure the quality of sleep is reflected all over my face. Not willing to let it impact me any more than it already has, I take a deep breath and go about my morning routine. In less than an hour I’ve showered, styled my hair, put on a light amount of makeup, and gotten dressed. Grabbing my phone to check the time, I see Alec’s text, but tell myself not to answer until I’m at work. I’m not willing to set the standard of answering him outside of working hours. As I slip into my commuter shoes, I grab my purse and keys and slip out the door.

By the time I arrive at the office, I’m regretting not stopping for coffee. I’m not in my office for two minutes before my phone starts ringing. Answering it, I switch into attorney mode, and from there my day is a blur of phone calls, emails, meetings, and contracts. By now, I’ve forgotten about Alec’s text and before I know it, I’m slipping out the door at 5:15 to grab dinner and something to wear to dinner tomorrow.

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Two hours and what feels like a million dresses later, I give up and call Liz. The amazing human she is, she meets me at Bergdorf’s fifteen minutes later. By 9 pm, I have the perfect dress, heels, and bag for dinner tomorrow and Liz is completely filled in on the past 48 hours..

“Sam, there is no chance either of those boys are going be able to focus on anything but you tomorrow night. You are gonna look so H-O-T.”

“Liz. It’s not a date. I need them both to focus on the conversation. That’s how we bring this client into the firm’s portfolio.”

She laughs as she flags a cab. As she climbs into the back, she turns over her shoulder and looks at me. “I get that. But, Sam, live a little. What if you can have what happened yesterday on the daily? Enjoy the attention tomorrow, and Friday, we’re going out and finding you a hot guy for the night.”

I laugh as the taxi door shuts. No matter how many times I tell her I’m content with my life as it is, she’s made it her mission to get me laid in the hopes of finding a boyfriend. So far she’s forced me out to many, many bars and clubs and has had no success.

I turned to head home and made it less than a block before I heard my name called.

“Samantha?”

I stopped and turned towards the sound, finding a familiar face in the crowd. Luke Lyons.

“Luke! How are you? I didn’t know you were in town!”

Luke works for the Chiefs. We have been in constant contact for months due to Alec’s negotiations and I reached out to his office just yesterday to schedule a meeting. Weird enough, his secretary didn’t mention that he would be in NYC.

“I flew in earlier this week to take some meetings and be local in case there was a hiccup in signing Alec’s contract.”

“Fortunately it went smoothly. I know everyone had a lot riding on this one.”

He grinned. “Yes, we did. And be prepared for the avalanche of Chiefs apparel that is coming your way in thanks. But as smooth as it went, I must admit I’m a little disappointed I won’t have a reason to talk to you daily.”

Obviously my request for a meeting hasn’t made it’s way to him just yet. Not wanting to let on to the McKnight possibility before tomorrow plays out, I keep my response broader. “I wouldn’t worry too much about that. Our clientele is always growing, and with how crazy this offseason has been who knows when I’ll adding more players to your roster.”

Something in his expression shifts, and his eyes look a little brighter when he responds, “Well, until then, is there something I can do to keep in contact? Are you free for a drink, say…now?”

It takes me a second to realize what he’s saying. I have gone months without any men so much as sparing me a second glance. Now I’m two-for-two in less than a week? But as cute as Josh is, I can’t go out with him as anything but colleagues without getting myself kicked off the McKnight deal, but I also don’t want to burn a bridge by flat out rejecting him. So instead, I give him the most believable lie I can think of.

“I’m so sorry, but I can’t tonight, I actually have to get back to the office for a conference call, but when are you in town until? I would love to get together — I’ll even clear my schedule for a lunch if works better.” There is a conference call, but I’m not on it.

He doesn’t miss a beat before responding. “I head out to Nevada Friday night, does tomorrow work for you?”

Of course. If we can get McKnight to sign on, it’ll be a great opportunity for me to show him there’s no chance of us dating anytime soon. But if we can’t…I don’t even let myself finish the thought because Luke is a nice guy, I’m sure ONE date really wouldn’t be bad, but I really don’t want to make it a habit of mixing business and pleasure.

“I have a client dinner at 6 tomorrow and I’m not sure when it will end, but if you’re around to meet up later…” I trail off.

“That sounds perfect. Do you want to just text me a time and place to meet? I mean I totally understand you may not know an exact time, but I am perfectly content to meet you somewhere close by your meeting or even closer to home if you prefer.” He’s blushing now and starting to stumble over his words. “I mean not that I’m trying to see who you’re meeting or where you live — I just — it might be easier —“

“Absolutely,” I cut him off. “I totally appreciate that. I’ll be honest, I can’t remember where I’ll be tomorrow night, but as soon as I get back to the office and then look at a map I’ll let you know.”

He’s beaming. “Can I offer you a ride back to your office?” He asked, gesturing towards the street. I never even noticed the Black Escalade idling next to us.

I can’t help but laugh. “As sweet as that is, you’re showing you’re not from around here. At this time of night, you’ll probably still be sitting on this block by the time I walk back to my office. Good luck!”

Slowly, I begin to turn and walk away. Almost instantly, my phone lights up with a text from Luke asking just how long I think it will take to get to the Executive Hotel. After responding he might as well sleep in his car, I tell him he’ll be home in 15 minutes before starting home myself.