Fated to Fall for You (Completed)

Chapter Four: Mr. Fix-It

I sat frozen at my desk as Callum walked over to me.

"Elodie...are you ok?" Val asked cautiously.

I couldn't speak, so I forced myself to nod.

Callum strode over to my side and gently put his hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry, not my first time dealing with a laptop getting a surprise bath."

I breathed in his woodsy cologne, feeling even more useless. This must have been the new IT guy Val had a huge crush on. And I could see why.

"I'm just going to scooch you out of the way a bit so I have some room to work." He glanced down at me apologetically.

"That's fine." I managed to squeak out a response and wheeled back from my desk.

"Should we leave you to it?" Val eyed me, silently begging me to come over to her.

"Nah, I'm used to an audience." He slipped my laptop out of it's dock. "I might actually take this downstairs quick, so you can stay here. Can you wait 15 minutes?"

"Sure we can." I was so thankful Val spoke for me.

"Perfect. I'll recover what I can and if needed, sign you out a loaner. Be right back." He jogged out of my office and I could finally exhale.

Val leaned against my desk, sopping up some leftover green tea with a few tissues. "So good news, we figured out his name!"

"I guess that's something..."

Val sighed and tossed the damp tissues in the trash. "I am so sorry. You have no idea."

"It's not your fault. I wasn't being careful."

"Are you kidding me? You've always been the cautious one. This isn't your fault, some things just happen."

I stared down into my lap, seeing a few tea stains on my dress. I'd have to do laundry when I got home.

"So are you going to ask him out, now?" I tried to suppress the jealousy I felt in the pit of my stomach. Val had such an eye for guys.

"I won't be so bold to ask him one-on-one right away. He has this sexy-smart nerdy vibe... I might invite him to happy hour this week with the crew first." She peeked down at her watch to check the time. "Will you be ok if I grab my stuff quick? Then when he gets back, you and I can head out together?"

"Yeah, that's fine." I waved her out and tried to smile, hiding the turbulence I felt. I wasn't mad at her, but part of me was so confused. We had never been into the same guys before.

Wait - how could I be into a guy that I barely knew, aside from his name and his cologne? That crazy dream must have been making me feel desperate and impulsive.

I groaned and started to pack up my things into my bag. I heard a quick knock on my door and looked up to find Callum back in my office.

"So everything appears to have been backed up to the cloud. Here's your loaner." He nodded to the laptop tucked under his arm. "Need help cleaning up?"

"Oh, uh, thanks."

"No problem."

He handed me the laptop and stepped out briefly, returning with a roll of paper towels. I watched him stretch over my desk to clean up, his plaid shirt stretching to reveal his taut muscles underneath.

"I'm sorry to bother you so close to the end of the day..."

"It's not a problem. Something tells me you aren't wild enough to trash your technology on a daily occurrence." He raised his eyebrow to look up at me. "Unfortunately, I don't have anything to help with those stains. It's a shame, you look so lovely..."

I held my breath and looked away. Was he flirting with me?!

"So you seem to be new to the department here?" I changed the subject, worried that Val would walk in at any moment.

"Yeah, just last month. Had to move home right away for a family emergency. But I like it here so far."

Val skipped back into my office with her bag all set to go. "So what's the verdict?"

Callum glanced at me quickly before turning his attention to Val. "I've got your girl all set up with a loaner and she should be able to access all her files online. Even threw in some office cleaning free of charge." He winked over at me seductively, his expression hidden from her gaze.

I crossed my legs, knowing that I was getting fodder for my next steamy dream.

"How can we repay you?" Val joked suggestively, leaning against the doorway like a lovestruck schoolgirl.

"Well, I already get paid working here." He chuckled and picked up the roll of paper towels.

"Would you like to join us for happy hour this Friday? We have a whole crew that goes to Rowdy's for the specials and live acoustic show in the evening."

Callum glanced between the two of us. "You have a crew?"

"It's a bunch of our work friends here. Might be nice for you to meet more people outside your department?" I offered further explanation, hoping that Callum was wondering if I'd be there.

"I guess I can't turn that down. As long as this one doesn't spill on me too." He pointed to me with a laugh.

"I'll try to keep her in line." Val pursed her lips. I could tell she was reading his interest in me.

Damn it.

"Well I guess I better let you go. Elodie, I'll call you when your laptop is good to go."

As he turned to leave, I grabbed one of my business cards and cleared my throat. "Do you have my number?"

He paused and looked over his shoulder. "Guess I need that, huh?"

I gingerly stepped over and handed him my card, fully aware of Val's stare on us. "Thanks for your help."

"Anytime. See you girls on Friday." He smiled and left.

"Val, I'm so-"

She held up her hand to stop me. "Not another word. I've got myself a new mission in life."

I stared at her nervously. "What's that?" I asked timidly, unsure what to expect.

"It's time to get your mind off of that fortune... And for me to get you with that hot thing undressing you with his eyes."