Dane(26)

"But you've talked to her, right?"

"Like had a conversation with her? Yes," she said with a laugh that  brightened her eyes. "It's not like I follow her around like a stalker  and stare at her while she works. I've spoken to her, but it's weird.  It's like I don't know what to say and she doesn't know why I'm so  interested. I think I should just give up."

"I think that's a horrible idea." I smirked at her and leaned back in my  chair. "Maybe ask her out for lunch. See, if I knew who it was, I could  totally give you a reason to talk to her. You could need to speak with  her on my behalf. So maybe you should tell me."

"Good try, Kauffmann." She winked, and I couldn't help the way my heart skipped a beat at the sight.

"Whatever, Clare. I'm only trying to help. But I do think you should  find a reason to meet with her, and then lead into a conversation from  there. You don't have to tell her who you are right now, but at least  find the answers to the questions you have. You've been here less than a  month. Give it time."

"Not everyone is as patient as you are, Dane," she teased. "Speaking of  patience … how did it go after I left yesterday? I apologize, but I had no  clue she didn't know I'd gone on the trip with you. I thought you  would've told her."         

     



 

I huffed and ran my hand over the hair on my jaw, scratching an  imaginary itch. "It's not your fault. I should've told her, but I  didn't."

"Why not?"

I quirked an eyebrow at her, knowing where she was going with this.  "It's not because I was keeping you a secret, Eden. It's because she's  not interested in hearing anything about me. I know you probably think  I'm embellishing and making this sound worse than it is so you'll feel  sorry for me, but I'm not. I swear. When I come home, she doesn't even  acknowledge my presence. We can literally be laying in bed together and  it's like I'm there alone. So I didn't feel the need to offer her  information if she can't even find the time to ask about my day."

"Did you find out where she was yesterday?"

I nodded and played with my tie. "Yeah. She went to see her therapist. I  guess she had a hard time with me being gone and made an emergency  visit."

"Well, see? Clearly she recognizes the importance of your  presence-otherwise, she wouldn't be so devastated with you away for a  day."

I couldn't help but laugh at her. "We actually talked a lot yesterday,  got a lot of stuff out in the open. It wasn't easy and it took a lot of  yelling and tears, but she finally opened up to me about things she'd  never shared before."

"That's really good, Dane. I'm glad to hear that," she said with a  smile, and she meant it. I could tell by the light in her eyes. She  truly did want me to be happy. And I couldn't help but fall a little bit  more for her in that moment.

"You know … " I couldn't look at her, so instead, I picked at the edge of  the calendar on my desk. "I was going to leave her. On the way home  yesterday, I thought a lot about it. I thought about what we talked  about the night before, about how I feel, the things I want. And as I  unlocked my front door, I had my mind made up."

Eden was silent, which made me glance up and look at her. I couldn't  read her expression-her blinking eyes, her slightly parted lips, her  exaggerated breaths. She appeared to be stunned, possibly confused. But  above all, I could tell she didn't know what to say. Finally, she  whispered, "Did you leave her?"

"No. After you left, we got into an argument. That's when she exploded and poured out how she'd been feeling."

"So what changed your mind?"

I thought about all the reasons I had to stay, all the excuses I had to  leave. Last night, it made so much sense to me, but now, in the light of  a new day, I couldn't help but see past the haze of guilt. The fog of  sympathy, and the illusion of hope.

"I know this will pass. Just like it has before. We'll be good again."

She stared at me with doubt in her eyes. "Do you really believe that?"

"Of course I do."

She sighed and scooted to the edge of her chair, leaning toward the  desk-and me. "That's not what I mean. Your decision to stay with her or  leave doesn't affect me at all. This has nothing to do with me, so  please, don't take this the wrong way. But is this what you truly want?"

"I truly want her to get better."

"And then what?"

I cocked my head to the side, not understanding what she meant.

"You said you want her to get better. And I believe you. But have you  given any thought to what will happen once she gets past this? Will you  marry her? Have babies with her? Or will you finally feel like she's  stable enough to leave? Because I'll tell you this, Dane … if you don't  see yourself doing all those things and more with her, you aren't  staying because you want to. You'll be in the same situation you are  now, wondering what it would be like to have everything you deserve. And  if you're planning on waiting until she's better before you walk away,  that could possibly send her right back to where she is now."

"I deserve to be loved. And Gabi loves me. She deserves to have  normalcy. To have some sense of peace. I can give that to her. People  may not talk about our love a hundred years from now, but that doesn't  matter. We don't need the fairytale story or the kind of relationship  people write songs about. We need each other."

"So you need her?"

"I need her to get better."

Eden nodded but didn't say anything else. She stood from her seat and  offered a small grin before stepping away. "I honestly wish you both the  best of luck."

"You don't think I made the right choice, do you?"

She stopped by the door, held onto the frame, and glanced over her  shoulder. "It's not about what I think, Dane. It's about what you  believe is right. Only you can answer that. All I care about is both of  you finding joy and stability and a happily ever after."         

     



 

And then she was gone.



Janette came to my office at four to discuss the press release for the  buyout of Kyle's company. I'd never understand why she needed to have  these meetings. I gave very little input on the matter, and in the end,  she'd do what she deemed best for Kauffmann. This is exactly why I'd  hired her in the first place-I trusted her to do her job and she always  did an exemplary one.

Once she finished going over everything, I headed across the office to  see if Eden had come back. She'd left her desk right before Janette  arrived, and I hadn't seen her return. Sure enough, her office was still  empty, and it appeared she'd left for the day. Her computer was off,  her desk neat, and her purse wasn't where she always kept it.

"That's odd."

"What is?" Janette asked as she gathered her notes from our meeting.

I scratched my head, lost in thought. "Eden left early. She didn't even tell me she was done for the day."

"Maybe she had a doctor's appointment or something and you forgot." She  glanced at me with maternal eyes and a gentle smile. "You've had a lot  on your plate lately, dear. It's not that far fetched of an idea that  she told you and it slipped your mind."

"No. I know. She's a good employee, so I don't think she skipped out or  anything. But I really wanted to introduce the two of you." I resumed my  seat at my desk and grabbed the phone from the cradle. "I'll give her a  call to make sure everything's okay."

Janette covered my hand with hers, preventing me from lifting the phone.  "Dane, you can't check in on everyone in this building. I know you mean  well, but she's a young woman-and your assistant. I'm only telling you  this because I'm your publicist and it's my job, but you should probably  leave her alone. Sometimes, you can come off as hovering."

I scoffed at her and rolled my eyes. "You think I hover? Do you know me at all?"

"I know how you are when you care about someone."

"I care about all my employees, Janette."

"You're right. You absolutely do. But think about how it'll look to  others. How often do you call me to see how I'm doing? I left work an  hour early last week. Did I get a phone call from you? No. I'm sure you  can ask every department here and you'll find at least one person who's  missed work in the past month, and I can bet money you didn't call a  single one of them."

I leaned back in my chair and ran my hand over my chin. "What are you saying, Janette?"

She grabbed the strap of her office bag and slung it over her shoulder.  With her hand on her hip, she said, "I'm not saying anything other than  you need to treat Eden like everyone else. I understand she's your  assistant and you work more closely with her than others in this  building, but you need to be careful."

"You don't know her. She's not like that. You're making it sound like  she'll accuse me of something, and I know her better than that. She  wouldn't." I became defensive, and I knew it showed in my tone. But I  couldn't hide it. I didn't like the silent accusations of what Janette  insinuated.