Maybe You're Mine (a Niall Horan fanfic)

Chapter 3

*Niall's POV

Ricardo quickly paces the room muttering and going through all the papers from the interviews in his hands "Andrea has good lighting, but her composition is all off.. Why is Debbie even in this pile, the girl's a sweetheart, but you have to be able to capture something better then a toddler could and don-"

"Ric, you're doing it again", I smirk as he stops pacing to notice me standing in the doorway.

"Doing what?? And if you're going to just stand there, help me go through these."

I sit down as he goes over to his desk and throws a pile in my lap. "You can never sit still," I laugh as he starts pacing once again.

"Oh honey please, I just had one too many coffees. You'd be proud, I came in early to do these."

I try to hold in another laugh as I begin looking through the portfolios and forms he had thrown in my lap. Ricardo was always so fussy, he had to have everything perfect, but I guess that's why they put him in charge of the new employees. No one ever got past without his approval and he always made sure things were done right.

"They're all pretty good, can't you just choose one and be done?" He glares at me and I hurry to finish looking through the portfolios before he starts one of his infamous lectures.

I'm about to reach for another pile when a paper catches my eye, "Hey Ricardo, what about Bridget?" I ask, remembering the girl I met at the interviews.

There was something special about her. Just thinking about her made me smile and when I remembered how she fell in the middle of the lobby, I couldn't help but let out a low chuckle. I had seen some of her photos when they fell too. Her portfolio wasn't half bad, she really had a talent for it.

"The girl with the butterfingers? She's got a decent portfolio, and you seemed to fancy her enough," he looks over and smirks before snatching the paper out of my hands, "but she just recently got fired from her last job and I'm not sure I want to take in someone who won't benefit us to the best of their potential."

As he walks around to the other side of the desk, I jump up, "What if I be her mentor, help her get used to things around here, make sure she understands her job?"

Ricardo stops, astonished, and I don't blame him. Im slightly surprised I came up with the idea myself. Before he can answer I surprise myself even more, "I'll be forever in your debt, I'll even finish going through the paperwork for the other girls, just take a chance on her."

Ricardo looks at the paper again, "I hate arguing with you, you always win. I'll hire the girl, but everything she does will fall back on you," he straightens his collar and clears his throat trying to seem athoritive, but I just grin.

He waves his arms at me, "Now shoo, I have an acceptance letter to write."

...

When I finish with my last client before lunch I walk out to see Ricardo walking down the hall. "When is she getting called in?"

He sighs, "Like I said yesterday, she probably just got the letter. We're supposed to wait a day or two after its delivered to call and arrange schedules, but if it makes you feel better i'll make the call now."

"What if I set it up personally? I am her mentor after all and I need to assure that she has proper scheduli-"

Ricardo cuts me off with his laughter. "You really are smitten with her aren't you?? It makes no difference to me, one less thing to do, but under one condition. You have to tell me every detail, you know I'm a sucker for this kind of stuff."

I shake my head, "Don't get your hopes up, this is purely business," but I hear his laughing all the way down the hall.

I stop by Ricardo's office to pick up Bridget's address and head out to my car. It's not too far of a drive, but the neighborhood is like a maze and I'm distracted by what Ric had implied about us possibly turning into a couple. That's not why I wanted her hired, I could just tell she had some sort of spark in her work, I felt like it was my job to get Ric to see that. It takes longer then it should, but eventually I find the address and climb the stairs that lead to the flat.

When I knock on the door I hear a familiar voice, "Kristi did you forget your key again, cuz I start work in a few days and there's not going to be anyone to let you in" I pause for a moment, wondering if it would have been a better idea to let Ricardo just make the call, but I finally answer.

"Who's Kristi?" I hear a bump and some muttering and laugh under my breath.

The door opens and there stands Bridget in sweats and a plain v-neck holding her head, but still somehow looking just as stunning as when she was at the interview.

"What happened?" , her brown waves are pulled away from her face in a bun and I frown at the red spot above her temple where she had been holding her head.

"Oh, i-it's nothing, I just hit my head trying to get something under the couch."

When I lean forward to try and get a better look she backs away into the flat. "Why are you here? I mean, you can come in if you want. It's kind of messy, but I wasn't expecting anyone. I'll just grab an ice pack and be right out." I sit on the couch and wait as she goes into the kitchen. I see a note sitting on the table next to it and am about to pick it up when I hear another bump come from the kitchen.

"Damn it!!" I go into the kitchen to find Bridget on the floor nursing a new spot on her leg. I go over to help, but she bats me away.

"No, don't worry about it, I'm fine."

I offer my hand and help her up off the floor. As she goes over to the sink to get some glasses of water, I look around and smile. There were pictures hanging up everywhere. Some were of Bridget and others were group shots along with a few of just one other girl, who I assumed was the girl, Kristi, she had thought was at the door. When she turns around she catches me still looking at them.

"It's been my passion since I was little, I figured it was the best way to share my favorite memories with other people." She hands me a glass of water and walks over to a picture of her and what looks to be her family.

"My mom taught me everything I know, she made it big in the industry in New York, but other then that, why are you here?"I just stare back at her for a few moments before realizing she had been asking me a question. "Niall... right? I-I don't mean to be rude or anything, but I was just wondering. I thought the letter said I would get a call."

I nod, "It did, but there was a change of plans," I pause for a moment then grin, "Ricardo thought it would be more effective to send someone over then to just call."

She gives a hesitant smile back and blushes shyly as if just noticing I was there "Well it's nice to see you again, and I really am sorry about the place being such a wreck," she blushes again then looks up and makes a cheeky grin, "We were celebrating my new job."

END CHAP 3