Chapter Seven – New Girl

They spent the weekend recovering from hideous tequila hangovers and organizing the apartment. Tina was still asleep as Amber left the apartment bright and early for her first day. Apparently, being a freelance data analyst means you get to sleep past eight in the morning. There was no animosity, Tina could sleep until noon just as long it kept her butt in Seattle.

The little run-in she had with Devyn had only momentarily distracted her from her fretting thoughts. He was six feet of lean muscle and honey skin. His light brown hair, thick and purposefully disheveled, enhanced his ice-blue eyes and smiling lips. His dimples were just so damn adorable. He positively striking in a well-fitted, forest green T-shirt, dark blue jeans, and Converse sneakers.

“Duncan,” she muttered and cringed. But in her defense, she was sloshed and exhausted when he introduced himself a couple of nights ago. Still, she will admit that it brought forward the suggestion for the impromptu coffee date. She felt guilty forgetting the name of the very kind man who made sure they got home safe. She couldn’t deny that she was attracted to him, he had a sweet nature and was incredibly handsome but she didn’t feel that spark, even when eyes sparkled with delight at her request.

Throughout college, she would spend hours listening to her friends talk about that feeling, that tingling sensation in your tummy when you encounter that certain someone. They would experience that stir every couple of months, and Amber could only lie. She would meet men who interest her, but she never felt that instantaneous pull towards them. As a result, and because she hated conflict, she has a lot of friends. Some ex-boyfriends and some never stepped across the edge of a friend to boyfriend. As much as she wanted it, maybe even needed it, she didn’t feel that instant pull for Devyn. Perhaps what they say about searching for something is true after all. Once you stop looking, it usually comes strolling along on its own. Amber didn’t put too much hope on that.

She didn’t mind making new friends, especially being new to Seattle. Meeting new people would make the process a little less daunting. Tina is a boon, and Amber still gets a little emotional every time she recalled the conversation about Seattle. Her friend had to force her head between her legs when she received the confirmation that she passed her interview with Joe Clark and that she has secured the position of his assistant. Amber was ecstatic and terrified all at once, and the overwhelming emotions had her head spinning in every which way. When she came clean to her best friend and confessed that it terrified her to move away from Portland, Oregon to Washington all by herself, Tina just looked at her as if she had grown another nose and said. “I am coming with you.” Amber might not have that romantic spark in her life, but what she had was a friend who would pack up her belongings in Portland and move across the state because there was no way in hell they lived in separate states. Since Tina could work from anywhere as a freelancer, it didn’t bother her where she worked as long as there was a decent coffee shop within walking distance. She was content. When the building was just ahead, she leaned a hand on the wall of a clothing store and exchanged her flats for the heels, took a deep breath, and walked towards her new journey.

Her insides knotted into a tight ball as she entered the reception area of Environ. Technically, she has been employed by Environ since she finished her degree in Environmental Science, but her jittery nerves were more the result of who she would work for.

Joe Clark was a formidable name in the industry. With his guidance, she could be capable of great things. She was busy with research into the development of a compact home unit to recycle plastic waste. The research was still in its early stages and as soon as she establishes viability and had built up some confidence, she would present the idea to Mr. Clark.

They took her through the HR rigmarole of contracts, company policies, badges, and clearances. When they showed Amber to her little cubicle just outside of Mr. Clark’s office, it was near lunchtime and her new boss wasn’t even in Seattle. He had left instructions for her to get set up with the HR and IT departments and get settled in. He would be in the office the next day.

The dour blonde from human resources showed her the way to the break room. “You might as well have your lunch now. IT will bring down your laptop around two pm, set it up for you with email and clearance. I left a list of important numbers on your desk, mine included. Let me know if you have questions.” She didn’t wait to find out if Amber had questions at the moment and just strolled off without a backward glance, leaving Amber standing in the break room with not a clue what she is going to eat. She was so nervous heading into work this morning, she forgot to pack lunch. She had about two gallons of bitter, black coffee coursing through her veins and an empty stomach, as she forgot to have breakfast as well.

She eyed the coffee pot, knowing it was probably not a good idea to drink more coffee. She walked over, poured a cup, and took it back to her bare cubicle. Her handbag still sat on the empty desk, spying a large drawer, she placed her handbag inside. Curious to see if the other drawers were empty, she opened and closed until she got to the top drawer and found her treasure. Excited by the simple aspect of new pens and sticky notes, she pulled out the drawer and dumped the lot on her desk. By the time IT found her, she had a systematic place for every piece of stationery, leaving some space open for her work laptop and telephone. After they set her electronics up, she wandered the offices, getting familiar with faces and places. Amber had to compress a squeal when she saw the vending machine on the second floor. It wasn’t just any old vending machine with the normal choice of sugar and fat. She had only heard rumors about them from her fellow Portland colleagues when they visited the Seattle office. She hasn’t seen the like of them before. They stocked the Health Vend with nutritious sandwiches, fresh fruits, and a selection of moist muffins ranging from All-Bran to double chocolate. It gave you a choice of water, iced tea, or fruit juice. Hurrying back downstairs, she got her purse, salivating all the way up just thinking of the plump blueberry muffin.

Amber selected a table under a massive umbrella. She sat down groaned in pure liberation as she freed her abused feet from their constraints. She didn’t think to remove them when she clocked out at exactly five pm and headed the few blocks down to the coffee shop. The server said nothing of her lack of shoes when she brought a pitcher of water and two glasses filled with ice already melting. August in Seattle was sweltering at ninety-five degrees.

She didn’t particularly care that it was not entirely proper to expose naked feet while seated at an eatery. They hurt like a bitch. With her eyes were closed, rubbing the aches from her soles, she didn’t notice Devyn had arrived and jumped a little when he spoke.

“Hi, Amber.”

“Oh, hi!”

He chuckled at her surprise. “New shoes?” He motioned to the discarded heels lying on the ground as he sat down on the chair next to her.

“Yeah, sorry.” She bent down and picked them up. Just as she was about to put them on again, he gently pulled them from her hand and placed them next to her handbag.

“Leave them off.” He gave her a wink and leaned back.

“I don’t know why we do that.” She confessed, glaring at the offending objects.

“They make you feel confident.” He smirked. “How was your first day?”

“Boring.”

“Well, as first days go, that doesn’t sound too bad.”

Amber laughed a little, “My boss wasn’t there today. Got the HR and IT stuff out of the way so tomorrow will be full steam ahead.”

The server took their orders; she wanted the biggest glass of lemonade they had on offer, and Devyn decided on a chocolate milkshake that looked ridiculously delicious when it arrived; she regretted her bland-looking lemonade instantly. Looking up to comment on his superior choice, she caught him staring at her, and as if realizing only it, he blurted, “Will you come to Creed with me Friday Night?”

“Creed?” She frowned.

“The club, my brother and I own. I would like to show it to you.”

She thought to listen to Horace and carpe diem and all that. “I think I’d like that.” Her response had him beaming and her smile slipped internally. Why couldn’t she feel that glint of passion for Devyn? He was the exact type she wanted to fall in love with. But maybe her subconscious wasn’t that far off, maybe she didn’t deserve it.