The Arrangement

4 | Another Time

The weekend had come and gone. Tracy stapled a cluster of papers at the front desk of Morten's Marketing Firm before answering the phone to forward a call to one of the consultant's offices. The other receptionist at the front desk, Christina, answered additional calls while Tracy entered data into the Excel spreadsheet on her desktop and then updated her boss's schedule for the week. A typical Wednesday.

Tracy delivered some printed contracts to Mr. Morten's office. "Thank you, Tracy," he said. "By the way, I have someone coming for a lunch meeting anytime now, off the books. Just buzz me when he gets here."

As she approached the lobby, she halted upon seeing a familiar face at the front desk speaking to Christina. "I'm here to meet with Mister Morten for lunch," he said, his British accent as warm and entrancing as it was when Tracy first heard it. "He should be expecting me, Matthew Cavanaugh." Was such a coincidence possible?

"It's not on his schedule, but...um," Christina said entranced by Mr. Cavanaugh.

"Christina," Tracy interrupted. She and Mr. Cavanaugh turned to her, but she ignored him. "Mister Morten is expecting him. Just buzz him." Mr. Cavanaugh thanked her as she returned to the desk, pretending she was a stranger. Tracy reluctantly played along.

As Christina buzzed Mr. Morten's desk to inform him of Mr. Cavanaugh's arrival, Tracy ignored him. The minute it took for Mr. Morten to make it to the front desk, Matthew spent playfully flirting with a blushing Christina. Tracy wasn't surprised she was smitten by the debonair realtor. If only she knew she's not exactly his type, she thought.

Mr. Morten soon appeared and enthusiastically greeted Matthew. They shook hands and exchanged pleasantries. "I'll be back by three, girls, so just send my calls to voicemail," Mr. Morten instructed. Tracy and Christina nodded, familiar with Mr. Morten's long afternoon lunches.

"Have a great lunch!" Christina said to both men, although it was obvious to Tracy it was directed at only one.

Tracy caught a glimpse of the men conversing in the elevator before it closed, seeing Mr. Cavanaugh laugh, something she found astonishing from his usually dignified demeanor. Even his teeth were perfect. After the elevator doors shut, she found herself wound up and unable to focus on the spreadsheet in front of her.

"O-M-G! He's so hot," Christina failed to whisper. "I've never seen him in person. He's unreal! I hope he's a new client so we get to see him more." Tracy rolled her eyes. "Do you know who that was?" Christina asked, offended by Tracy's apathy.

"Yep," Tracy said nonchalantly as she typed. The phone rang. "Good afternoon. This is Morten's Marketing Firm. How may I help you?"

***

Tracy and Christina had finished organizing the front desk and grabbed their belongings to leave a few minutes early. In the elevator, their work gossip somehow segued to a one-sided conversation about Christina's lust for Mr. Cavanaugh. Tracy had spent the past three hours thinking about Mr. Cavanaugh to her dismay thanks to Christina.

Before the elevator doors completely shut, a hand stopped them. One of the consultants, Brent, walked in smiling.

"I hope you don't mind if I squeeze in," he said as he moved closer to them. Tracy looked away upon making eye contact with him. The doors shut.

"The more the merrier," Christina said. Christina and Brent engaged in small talk on the way down while Tracy stared at everything in the elevator but Brent. The elevator soon opened on the ground floor. Brent let the ladies exit first.

"Another Wednesday behind us, ladies, and another day closer to Friday," he said. The ladies concurred as they walked out the main entrance onto the curb. "By the way, I'm on the way to Soirée to meet the guys for drinks. You both should come if you're free."

Tracy sulked at yet another invitation to socialize with her colleagues. For over a year, she'd made a conscious effort to keep her relationships with her co-workers strictly professional to protect herself and her privacy. Even if the idea of hanging out with Brent appealed to her.

"Do you even have to ask?" Christina joked.

"How about you, Tracy?" Brent asked.

"Sorry, but I have plans," Tracy said. Planning to do nothing at home was still a plan as far as she was concerned, especially on a cold January evening.

"Oh, c'mon," Christina complained. "Get drunk with us," she teased.

"Maybe another time, but y'all have fun!"

"Yeah, next time," Brent said, his chipper demeanor now deflated. They waved goodbye before going their separate ways.

Tracy was home eating sushi when Jasmine strolled in and the two discussed their days. Tracy almost let slip her ran into Mr. Cavanaugh but decided against it.

The coincidence still baffled her as she lay in bed replaying their exchange. She couldn't help wondering if his visit was merely coincidental. Did he know where she worked? How'd he know her boss, and why he was having a last-minute lunch with him?

What if Christina right? What if Mr. Morten was taking him on as a client? If so, she'd have to suffer through the charade of pretending she didn't know him again for weeks on end. She tried to shake the thoughts of Mr. Cavanaugh out of her head to no avail...

~^~

Tracy was awakened by a series of knocks at her door. She assumed it was Tom, so she remained in bed until the knocks repeated. As she made her way into the living room, she saw Jasmine's empty bedroom. Was it her? Did she forget her key?

As she approached the front door, Tracy looked through the peephole but couldn't make out the person at the door. The knocks repeated. She asked who it was to no response. The knocks continued. Exasperated, she opened the door. It was Mr. Cavanaugh.

"What are you doing here?"

"What took you so long to answer the door?" he asked. Tracy's heart fluttered as he smirked.

"How do you know where I live?"

"Are you going to keep asking questions or are you going to let me in?"

Tracy's next question was interrupted by Mr. Cavanugh's lips pressed against hers as he entered the condo, closing the door behind him. Tracy pressed against his firm chest in protest but he wrapped his strong arms around her and pulled her in closer to him. She eventually surrendered to his soft, sweet lips and warm, sturdy hands holding her. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he picked her up and carried her to her bedroom.

She helped him remove her top before helping him remove his. On her bed, they kissed passionately. She found his breath intoxicating as his hands roamed her body. She sighed as his lips moved down her neck then her chest. Everything felt right as their lips reconnected and his hand slid into her shorts...

~^~

Tracy violently awoke panting as she sat up in her bed. She caught her breath as she removed the covers to cool her sweaty body and drank from the water glass on her nightstand. Staring into the darkness, she was relieved it was only a dream but struggled to fall back asleep. Unfortunately, it was only the first of many dreams she'd have of Mr. Cavanaugh.