She was a locked chest and I didn’t have the key. An ex-boyfriend obviously hurt her, shattered her into unfixable pieces.
I wanted to break his neck.
Whatever he did, he really damaged her. She didn’t believe in love and wouldn’t even make the effort to give it another chance. Such a loss of faith could only be caused by something unspeakable.
Katarina deserved more than that. She deserved another chance at love. I didn’t want to agree to this arrangement because of that reason, but I also wanted to agree so I could show her how different her life could be.
When we hung out, she opened up and let her smile shine through. She laughed and had a good time. Once her guard was down, her happiness and joy was infectious. She was just like the girl I met in Times Square two years ago. The playfulness was her most recognized trait, and she didn’t hide it when she was around me. But it took a long time for me to pull it out of her.
Whenever she wasn’t thinking about whatever it was that was causing her so much pain, she was a happy person. She let her hair down and ran around like she didn’t have a care in the world. When I pushed her into the wind tunnel, she screamed at first but then she embraced the fall. She extended her arms and laughed as she fell to earth. The moment I saw the picture of her I had to buy it. Perhaps it would encourage her to remain this way.
I headed to the winery at lunchtime to see her. Perhaps she and I could get a bite to eat. Whenever I wasn’t with her, I was looking for reasons to see her. I’d never gone out of my way to spend time with a girl, but Katarina completely changed the type of guy I was. Sometimes I wondered if I really liked her, or if I just liked her because she was the first woman to reject me. But it didn’t really matter.
I arrived at the vineyard then walked inside. The building was classy and elegant, and there were bottles of wine on display. People in black slacks and black collared shirts walked around. There were offices as well as a restaurant inside.
“Can I help you, sir?” a man asked me as I examined my surroundings.
“I’m looking for Katarina.”
He nodded. “I see. This way.” He led me past the restaurant and down the hallway. The building expanded into different sectors, and we reached a large office and a secretary sat at her desk just outside it.
“Thank you,” I said to the man as he walked away.
The young brunette behind the desk looked me up and down, trying to be discreet in her gaze but failing miserably. “Can I help you, sir?”
“I’m here to see Katarina.” I loved her name. It was so sexy and it rolled right off the tongue.
“Do you have an appointment?” She opened a binder with a calendar and looked up today’s date.
“No. I just wanted to see if she wanted to get lunch.”
“She’s very busy,” she said dismissively.
Her secretary was aggressive but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. “Could you tell her that her boyfriend wants to take her to lunch?”
“Oh.” She nodded her head slowly. “My apologies…I didn’t know.”
“It’s quite alright,” I said politely.
“She’s with someone right now but I’ll let her know you’re here.”
‘Thank you.” I put my hands in my pockets and waited.
The secretary made the call. “Your boyfriend is here, Kat.” She listened to the other line and nodded. “Right away.” She hung up. “Go on in.”
Fancy treatment. “Thank you.” I opened the door and stepped inside.
Joey was sitting in a large leather chair facing her desk. A yellow notepad sat on his lap and he had one arm propped on the armrest. His fingers rested on his lips. He looked at me when I entered and quietly acknowledged me.
“How are you?” I said politely.
“Well, you?”
“Good. Thank you.”
Katarina came around the desk and gave me a confused look. She had no idea why I was here or why I wanted to take her to lunch but she couldn’t outright ask me that.
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