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Lydia bit her lip, feeling even worse. She hated to think that she was ruining Luke’s Sunday, or that she was forcing him to cancel on other clients. The fact that he would do that for her in the first place wasn’t even something she wanted to think about right now.
She put her phone away in her bag. She knew Luke wouldn’t hold it against her in the end, but she also hated the thought of bailing on her commitments, especially when she’d been prepared.
But this was her shot to impress Marco and the leadership team. They worked for the next couple of hours, and when Lydia realized that there wasn’t going to be time to do both her long run and finish the proposal, she sent Luke one more text before her phone could die. In her haste, she’d left her apartment without grabbing her charger, but maybe that was for the best. She wasn’t sure she wanted to see Luke’s answering text after canceling on him for the third time today.
“This really looks amazing,” Jack said, scrolling through their file. “Your work is incredible.”
His tone was so sincere and reassuring that some of her sharp edges started to soften. She could choose to be mad that she’d been dragged into work on a Sunday and missed her training time with Luke. Or she could chalk it up to getting to spend some extra time with Jack—something she’d only ever thought about in her wildest dreams—and finally getting recognized for the work she was capable of. “You think the rest of the leadership team will agree?” she asked.
“Oh, it’s going to make it to Marco, don’t you worry.”
Lydia smiled, and Jack’s words were enough to soothe the ache of annoyance in her chest and carry her through the rest of the day with the two of them tucked away in their own little world. Jack ordered them a late lunch, and they cleared out Kirsten’s desk of the best snacks. Kirsten would be furious with her for letting Jack in on the secret snack stash, but that was a Monday problem. Right now, she just wanted to finish the proposal with the knowledge that it was their best work, and shortly past five, she closed her laptop. Today might have started off rocky, but they’d done it. They’d built something together that was good enough to land on Marco’s desk. Maybe good enough to represent Poletti’s in the competition.
“Hey, you wanna grab a drink? Celebrate finishing?” Jack asked. “My treat as a thank-you for all your help. You definitely rescued us here.”
Lydia blinked at him in surprise. Aside from Kirsten, and the occasional lunch with Erik, she’d never been out with any of her colleagues after work hours before. Butdamnhad she been imagining this moment for years. Her stomach twisted, doing a flip. Had Jack just asked her out?
Even if it was only to celebrate a job well done, she still couldn’t believe it. After all this time, her little fantasy was coming true. But the truth was, now that the adrenaline of the project and all the caffeine had worn off, she was tired and still a little frustrated with herself for bailing on Luke. The last thing she felt like doing was celebrating.
“C’mon,” Jack said. “Don’t make me drink alone.” He tilted his head, his hair falling across his eyes. He looked so eager and hopeful, and he obviously hadn’t meant for the proposal to get away from him. Lydia had worked her own fair share of tight deadlines before. She didn’t want Jack to think she wasn’t grateful for the opportunity he gave her to resubmit. Plus, she’d already missed her training. She was supposed to be celebrating completing twenty miles right about now. And if she couldn’t do that, she deserved to celebrate something.
“Sure,” she said, finally relenting. “A drink would be nice.”
Luke
“You staying to lock up?” Jules asked, leaning against the door to Luke’s office, backpack strung over her shoulder.
“Yeah, I’ll do it,” Luke said, hanging his certificate on the wall. He’d spent the better part of his day in the gym, waiting on Lydia. He’d made use of his time, of course, most notably putting his office back together. But even after she’d officially canceled on him, he’d hung around on the off chance she finished up with work early. Now though, he probably had to accept the fact that she’d bailed. It was too late to be starting a long run anyhow. At this rate they’d be running well past midnight.
“She didn’t make it?” Jules said, her eyes meeting his briefly before he turned away.
Luke shook his head. Would Jules think him ridiculous for waiting on Lydia this long? For rearranging his whole day? “A work thing came up. And then she had to cancel and I haven’t heard from her for hours.”
“Is that normal?”
“Not really,” Luke admitted. During the day, they usually replied to each other almost instantly.
She’d said work was a mess, and he’d spent the better part of the afternoon running through increasingly ridiculous scenarios. She’d been so enthusiastic about this run, and she hadn’t said anything to him during the training sessions leading up to it about a developing work situation. Even her last text, where she’d canceled, had been sort of vague and unlike her, and the follow-up texts he’d sent over the course of the afternoon had gone unanswered. The sudden radio silence had struck him as odd, and now that Jules had brought it up too, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.
“I’m sure you guys will reschedule,” Jules said, hiking her bag up her shoulder. “See you tomorrow.”
Luke waved and the moment Jules left, he tried calling Lydia, but it went straight to voicemail. “Hey, it’s me,” he said. “Do me a favor and call me when you get this. I just want to make sure you’re okay. Thanks, ‘bye.”
Luke hung up and pocketed his phone. He cleared up his office and gathered his things slowly, giving Lydia time to return his call. Five hours between texts might be normal for some people, but it wasn’t for them, and when Luke locked up, he didn’t bother heading for the train, instead walking in the direction of Lydia’s apartment. He didn’t even know if Lydia would be home when he got there, but she lived close enough that it wasn’t really an inconvenience to swing by. All he wanted to know was that she was okay.
Was that weird of him? It’s not like he was her boyfriend. Maybe she’d fallen asleep. Or her phone had died. He stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. This was ridiculous. He should just go home and go to bed. He’d probably wake up to a text from her.
Luke turned around, toward the subway. But what if he didn’t hear from her, and he found out something had happened? That she’d needed help or support and he’d opted to just go to sleep.Wouldn’t she ask for help if she needed it?he argued with himself. Unless she didn’t think he’d want to help her after she’d bailed on him today. Maybe she thought she’d burned that bridge. Luke turned around again, heading toward Gramercy Park.
If he was weird, so be it. Despite whatever feelings he was harboring, he was also her friend, and he was concerned. Even if he made an utter fool of himself by turning up on the doorstep of her building, at least he’d be able to stop the uncomfortable gnawing feeling in his stomach.
Luke hurried down the sidewalk, his hands in his pockets. The entire city was bathed in sunset colors, and he couldn’t help but think that Lydia would enjoy the way the light clung to the buildings as he made his way down her street.
As her building came into view, he picked up his pace, eager to put all his fears to bed. He skidded to a hard stop on the sidewalk, his stomach plummeting to his feet. Lydia stood at the top of the stairs with Jack, and Luke had the uneasy sensation that he was intruding. A flare of jealousy shot through him, but it was quickly replaced by something else, something sharper, more brittle.
“I really do appreciate you spending the day with me,” he could hear Jack saying. “You really came through for us.”
“Well, it’s not like I was going to leave you high and dry.”
