Unwanted Heat

Nicholas and I sit at a small table for a few minutes while he eats one of the muffins. When I suggested he share the remaining with his staff, he balks at the idea and says he would probably eat them all before he left for the day. He told me about his morning (meetings, meetings and more meetings) and I told him about mine (food shopping and baking). “Mr. Parker,” the receptionist interrupts us again.

“I’ll be there in a minute, Melody,” Nicholas informs her.

“I should let you get to your meeting. I wasn’t sure what your schedule was and didn’t mean to make you late your for anything.”

“It’s fine; it’s a boring meeting anyway. Thank you again for the basket, Kenzie, it was very thoughtful.”

Nicholas walks me out to the reception area where Carter and Hunter are waiting for me. He kisses me gently on the cheek before heading down a hallway which I assume leads to the board room where his meeting is waiting for him. Hunter brings me back to the condo so I can finish unpacking before going to buy an outfit my dinner date with Nicholas tomorrow night. After spending too much time trying on different dresses, I finally decide on a red and black cocktail dress that I think will be both casual and dressy. I want to be prepared if we are spotted by the press but at the same time I don’t want to be overdressed either.

************

My morning has flown by much faster than I expected. I was able to sleep a little later this morning since I didn’t have to figure the subway into my commute time. The bakery is busier than normal for a Saturday morning; usually weekdays are busier than weekends but today for some reason was different. We are so busy that I end up getting no more than a five minute break before Ginny asks me to come back and make another batch of breads so we wouldn’t run out. I have no idea why the morning is so busy, but it makes the hours fly by.

I thought it would be weird having Hunter there with me or that my coworkers would ask questions but no one did. I spoke with Ginny when I first arrived and let her know about Hunter; of course her only reaction is asking me over and over again if I’m safe. I assure her I am fine and that Hunter is with me to make sure I stay safe. For the most part he sits in the corner of the bakery not bothering anyone; I nearly forget he’s there when I start to leave for the day and he rushes to my side to escort me to the car.

Back at the condo I finish unpacking the few items I have and watch a little television. Before I know it, there is a knock at my door and a quick glance through the peephole confirms that it was Nicholas. I quickly set the alarm code before meeting him in the hallway.

“You look… very nice,” Nicholas says as I turn around from closing the door.

“Thank you, you look nice as well.” He is dressed impeccably as always.

Tonight he is wearing a pair of black dress pants and a light blue button down shirt that complements his eyes. Nice isn’t the right word at all… he looks cute and sexy but I can’t bring myself to actually use those words. I find myself wondering what he would look like in a pair of jeans… in the few times we have been out thus far I have never seen him casually dressed.

“I made reservations for us at the Lake View Restaurant,” Nicholas informs me.

“I’ve never been there but I’ve heard good things about it.”

“It’s mostly known for the view; the restaurant is built right on the edge of a lake so when you sit in the dining room, you have a perfect view from all angles. As expected, they serve a lot of seafood but they have a variety other items if you don’t care for that cuisine.”

“Seafood is fine.”

“Did you work this morning?”

“I did. We were busier than normal.”

“Oh?”

“Usually the work week is the busiest time; most of Ginny’s business comes from catering and people coming in for breakfast on their way to work. Weekends tend to be slower but today it was much busier than normal.”

“I think I heard there was something going on at the convention center this weekend-if that’s the case it might explain why you were busier than normal.”

“That’s probably it. I’ve tried to tell Ginny she needs to look at these things online when she is making the schedule, but she’s not very big on using the internet so I don’t think it’s a priority.”

“Sir, ma’am,” Carter pulls us from our conversation, alerting us that we are approaching the restaurant.

Nicholas escorts me inside and as soon as we arrive we are seated at a table beside the windows overlooking the water. The view really is incredible; it actually feels like you’re sitting on top of the water while you eat dinner. The lights from houses across the lake can barely be seen from the restaurant but even those that can be seen just add the ambiance of the place. Every table in the room is occupied yet the tables are set apart enough that you don’t feel like it’s crowded.

“This view is incredible,” I say in awe after we order our dinner.

“It is,” he looks out the window as if he is taking in the view for the first time. “So tell me about yourself, Kenzie.”

“Um… what do you want to know?” I can’t help but feel nervous at his question.

“I don’t know… tell me something about you that I don’t know. During our first meeting you said you wanted to go back to school. Does that mean you started college at some point or…?”

“Yes, I was actually less than a year away from graduation when I had to withdraw.”

“Why? I mean you were so close to graduation, why stop then?”

“I… I didn’t have a lot of money for college but I was lucky enough to receive several grants and scholarships that covered my tuition, room and board plus most of the supplies I needed. Unfortunately right before my senior year, I was notified that one of the scholarships I had been awarded had lost funding and would not be renewed. Naturally, it was the largest of the scholarships that I had received; I didn’t have enough money saved to cover what that scholarship did so I had to withdrawal from the university my final year.”

“Why didn’t you take out a student loan to cover the difference?”

“If I could, I would have. Unfortunately by the time I learned my scholarship would not be renewed, I had missed the application deadline for student loans. I had hoped to take only a year off so that I could work and save every penny to go back to school… ”

“What happened?”Property © NôvelDrama.Org.

“Life… it just got in the way.”

“What were you studying?”

“Elementary education: I had hoped to become a teacher one day.”

“Is that what you’re hoping to do now? Finish that degree and go into teacher?”

“I don’t think so. I’ve been looking at some online classes through a community college but haven’t decided what I want to take. I could finish my degree in only a couple of classes, but I don’t know that I want to go into teaching any longer.”

“What do you think you might want to do?”

“It sounds silly… but I think I’d love to take a few culinary classes. Maybe one day open a bakery like Ginny did-”

“Ginny?”

“She’s the owner of Sweet Dreams.”

“Oh.”

“What about you? Did you know that you always wanted to run a large successful company like you do?”