Secret Admirer (4 page)

“You should drop something with your name on it. Do you have business cards yet?” She tapped her gelled nails on the distressed wood table. “Oh, I know! Pretend you’re on a phone call, making an appointment when he gets close. That way he’ll hear you give your name
and
number.”

I now knew for sure not to ask her anymore about her friend, Garrett, because she was definitely a meddler. Still, I appreciated having someone to confide in and share the lunch break.

“I’ll try. We kind-of already have a thing going, we talk a bit, and then he always says goodbye with a cup salute.” I thought she’d be pleased with my progress.

Instead, she pointed her plastic spork. “You have until the end of the week to learn his name.”

I pointed right back, but playfully. “Is that a dare?”

“It’s an order.”

I’ve never had a problem getting up and going on a Monday morning, but somehow Tuesdays were always challenging, and this dark and cloudy one was no exception. I was so late I had to skip coffee entirely and regretted the damn snooze button all day. I wondered about disabling the feature. On the way home, as tired as I was, a stop at the grocery store was necessary. I avoided a Cupid assault, but I lost the sugar battle in the candy aisle. I reasoned a little sugar would be okay since I hadn’t had any caffeine all day and bought a bag of the large candy hearts. In the parking lot, I broke open the package and allowed myself a small handful for the short ride home.

Cutie Pie, Luv Ya
, and
Dream Girl
melted in my mouth as I cruised along. At the stop light, I devoured a yellow
BFF
, a green
Awe-Some
, and a purple
Be Mine
. Using all my willpower, I reached around and dropped the bag behind me in the backseat to prevent polishing off the whole thing.

While unpacking my groceries, I heated a meal for one and emptied the rest of the candy hearts into a container with a lid and placed it on the counter. I knew better than to leave them out in a dish or in the open bag. Temptation and I were very familiar with each other, so I planned to take the treats to the office to share. I caught up on my DVR shows and set the alarm to buzz earlier than a typical Wednesday.

I dried my hair extra early and picked out a fun mint green scarf. I wound it around my neck three times and then adjusted and fluffed it about eleven more times. At the Fresh Start, I stepped in line right behind Cute Guy and rehearsed my introductions. I was ready. When the girl behind the counter announced, “next,” for my turn, I actually started introducing myself to her. I quickly started over and bee-lined it for a lid. “Hi.” I couldn’t just blurt out my name.

“Hey there. Cute scarf.”

Instead of thanking him and saying my name which would have been totally natural and not at all weird at that moment, I said, “Thanks, you too.” He wasn’t even wearing a scarf. I’m not sure if that made my response better or worse.

His eyes squinted, crinkling his forehead, and he chuckled.

I pointed to my cup. “Guess I need this even more than I thought.”

He responded with a bigger, genuine laugh and wished me a good day, raising his cup again as he left.

Bree cracked up later when I relayed the story. “I know you’re trying, but you have only forty-eight hours to introduce yourself. How long can it take to say your name? Well, your nickname at least.” She laughed at her own joke.

I promised her I would seal the deal the next day and changed the subject.

“So, Alec seems super nice.”

“Yes, he is, isn’t he? Good looking and successful too. He’s the real deal. Did I tell you I think this might be the weekend? We’re going skiing and staying at a bed and breakfast in Vermont. We both have Monday off for Martin Luther King Day.”

“I totally forgot about the holiday since I don’t technically have the day off. We have some team-leader building thing at the Marriott.” I rolled my eyes like I was dreading the event, but I was secretly looking forward to participating. I didn’t want my nerdy side to show too soon and added sarcastically, “I’m sure it will be as fun as skiing.”

“That’s the perks of being in your position,” she teased. “So, I don’t know about the rest of the group, but I assume no one will be getting together.”

“No worries, I was thinking of getting up early Saturday morning and furniture shopping anyway. I’ve seen tons of advertisements for Valentine Day sales already. If I’m lucky maybe you’ll have somewhere to sit next time you come by.” Back at my office, I was about to reach into the bottom drawer of my desk where I’d stashed the container of candy hearts when my phone’s ping saved me from a possible sugar binge.

I tapped in my passcode and discovered the names of my new friends interacting. I felt excited and told myself to jump right into the conversation, but I was intimidated by their quick, witty comebacks. Panicking, I hovered my thumbs over the screen, ready to reply.

Bree—sorry guys, me and BF skiing this weekend

Ethan—We have wedding coordinator meeting

Maggie—And flowers and cake tasting

Josh—I’ll go if u don’t want to

Alec—that’s so cliché gay Josh

Josh—it’s my new tagline

Clare—getting Abbie a new phone from this century then looking at apartments. Lease up soon

Garrett—you win for most boring plans

Me—u have better plans, Garrett?

Garrett—of course! 80
th
birthday bash for grandpa back home

Bree—that’s cute

Garrett—I win cute award?

Clare—LOL, you wish!

Me—have a great weekend everyone

When the text bubbles disappeared, I breathed a sigh of relief for successfully chiming in. As a reward, I picked out five candy hearts. The first was blank, and I almost threw the heart in my trash can, but I figured maybe it was intentional like a free space in a board game. There were two yellow
Love Ya’s
, a
Miss You
, and a
TTYL
. When had the company updated the messages to text speak? I spilled out a few more onto my desk and got a green,
Only You
and a blue which was turned on its backside. The flip side revealed
Secret Admirer
. Huh. I’m kind-of being a secret admirer to Cute Coffee Shop Guy. To determine if the saying was a fluke or a reoccurrence, I’d have to stock up on bags of these large candy hearts.

The sun was shining as I woke up on time Thursday morning. This would be the day to find out his name. Arriving at the Fresh Start early, I was prepared to have a showdown at the service station. The homey smell of fresh-baked cinnamon rolls helped relax me in time to spy Cute Coffee Shop Guy’s entrance. I strode toward him when an ear-piercing horn pealed. His eyes widened as he patted his pockets for what I guessed were his keys.

“Not again, sorry that’s me. The alarm must have a short, this happened all day yesterday too.” He dashed out to his car as he apologized to those he passed along the way.

Later I told Bree how not sharing my name wasn’t my fault this time.

She glared, her eyes barely visible through a thick layer of mascara. “Tomorrow.”

Friday finally arrived with a blanket of snow. Decked out in my heaviest down coat, boots, and a hat, I started off slowly down the road. My phone pinged from inside my purse that sat on the passenger’s seat, but I would never look at it while driving. Navigating the slippery roads was difficult enough. I was used to driving through slushy snow in Providence, but I was unprepared for the icy side roads of Hartford. I now understood why people shelled out the big money for four-wheel drive. At least the weather would give me something to talk about with Coffee Shop Guy.

He was already adding his sugar, so I skipped the ordering line and walked right over. I planned to introduce myself, explain that I’d recently moved to town, and ask if he knew a good place to get an ice scraper. I opened my mouth to speak when a tall guy I’d never seen before walked in front of me.

He headed toward Cute Guy and loudly called out, “Connor?”

In response, Cute Guy turned.

The tall guy clapped him on the back. “Hey, man, been a long time. Good to see you.”

Cute Guy’s mouth dropped open, and then softened to a smile. He shook Tall Guy’s hand. “Where’ve you been hiding yourself, Jason?”

“Living in Boston now. I came into town over the weekend to see the parents, actually help them pack the house to move. Downsizing, you know? Looks like you never left.”

He shook his head. “Tried, but it’s all good. You sticking around?”

“No, just picking up coffee for the movers. Tough day for them with the storm.” Jason picked up a cardboard container holding four large cups and smiled as he walked past me.

I was beaming like an idiot. I almost wanted to thank him.

“Better get going, it was good to see you, man.”

“Same. Good luck with packing, Jason.”

Connor! Cute Coffee Shop Guy’s name was Connor, and I was just standing there in the middle of the Fresh Start with my mouth hanging open while he walked out the door for the weekend. After finally buying my coffee, I sat in the car while the windshield defrosted and the interior warmed, and I checked the text from earlier.

Bree—Fresh snow! Calling in “sick.” I need name report, no excuses!

I was thrilled to type my response.

Me—Connor!!!!

She immediately replied.

Bree—No way. Ok, next week—actual conversation and get his number

Me—U don’t let up!

Bree—U can thank me when you ask me to be a bridesmaid

Me—Ha. Have fun skiing, er—being sick

Snow continued to fall all day, and I was glad I remembered to bring a sandwich for lunch and happily ate at my desk while reading my favorite author’s latest on my tablet. I allowed myself six candy hearts as dessert. When the
Secret Admirer
heart showed up in pink, I saved it in a side pouch of my bag, thinking I’d see how many I could collect before I was no longer Connor’s secret admirer.

Driving home took three times longer than usual, and I was relieved to finally flop on my couch and order in Thai. Halfway through my pad siew and a true crime documentary, I heard my phone ping. Assuming Bree was reporting news about the possible proposal, I grappled for the remote and paused my show. Shock replaced anxiety when I saw Garrett’s name on my screen. Only Garrett’s, not in a group message. My heart raced, and my fingers shook as I tried to tap the correct keys in response.

Garrett—U never said what your weekend plans are

Me—Guess not. Too boring, furniture shopping

Garrett—Yup.

Me—R U at your parents?

Garrett—Yes. Drive took forever with snow

Me—K to ask where u r?

Garrett—Western MA. Where are you from?

Me—RI

Garrett—so what brought u to Hartford?

Me—job, u?

Garrett—went to UConn, internship led to job yada yada

Me—got it

Garrett—is Andi short for something?

Me—Andressa, but everyone calls me Andi

Garrett—It’s a beautiful name, u should embrace it. I’m opposite—won’t answer to Gary, only full name

Me—okay Garrett-not-Gary

Garrett—well, nice chatting, Andressa. Have to stop hiding from the family and let Mom nag me

Me—good luck!

Garrett—thx. Talk again?

Me—sure, yes

What. Just. Happened? I stared at the blank screen on my phone as if the glass could somehow explain the Friday night text-conversation with a guy I’d never met. Was I losing my mind? I scrolled back through the conversation again to be sure the flirty exchange really happened. I was practically stalking a guy I’d barely said ten words to in person, and now my heart was racing from a string of texts with a virtual stranger. Yes, I was losing my mind. Sure, I wanted a change and was ready to meet new friends and hopefully find a nice guy, but this was not what I imagined. This, this was nuts.

And what was all that about letting him call me Andressa? I did let him, didn’t I? I didn’t tell him not to, or even try to correct him. Why didn’t I? I never let anyone call me that. Should I?

I hit the play button on my remote, but was too distracted and I lost track of the show’s plot. My dinner went cold as my mind wandered. After the credits rolled, I prepared for bed still thinking about Garrett. I hoped he received a good report on me from one of the friends I met at Jake’s Bar and didn’t normally text strangers. I told myself it still beat on-line dating and powered off everything in my apartment, but it took some time for my mind to follow suit.

Chapter Five

Connor was already securing a lid when I entered the Fresh Start on Tuesday. Thanks to the telltale bell announcing my arrival, he looked toward the door and saw me.

And he smiled.

I gave him a low wave and took my place in line. I sucked in my cheeks to suppress a goofy grin. We’d made progress, and I considered the exchange of acknowledgement normal for this stage. I hoped Bree would approve when I related the events at lunch.

I decided to keep the interaction with Garrett to myself for a while. I feared telling her and also liked having this secret to myself, or between him and me. I had no reason to worry about her finding out that day, because all she wanted was to talk about the fact that Alec did not “put a ring on it” over the weekend.