The Lost One (Lost Series Book 1) (11 page)

I look at my phone again;
it’s six thirty a.m. There’s still plenty of time to shower and get ready. I think I might tackle these messages. My heart is racing; I’m not sure why. It’s not like he is here in person. I open the messages and read them out loud to Flick, who is checking her own phone and sending a quick message to someone. I’m thinking Liam by the smile that comes across her face.

Corban
: Melodi, I am so sorry for causing you this pain. Please forgive me. x

Just by reading a simple message, my heart constricts at the hurt
he is feeling.

“See, I told you he cares.” Flick looks at me, her face saying ‘I told you so.’ I continue with the next one, my heart rate never slowing
.

Corban
: I’m sure you are out of it, but I want to let you know I am here for you. You can trust me. x

Flick has the exact same look on her face, her eyebrows raised and a wicked grin on her face. She doesn’t need to repeat herself, as much as she probably wants to. I love her honesty and the good advice she gives me.

The big question on my mind right now is how do I trust and let someone in? I wish I could be given a sign or something that says, ‘He is safe and wonderful, and you will live a long and happy life with him.’ That would be so much easier, but
life is never easy.

Flick is up and out of bed now, gathering her things tog
ether.

“I think you should see where it goes. We never know what the world has planned for us. Look at Liam and me, I never thought we would hook up, but now I wouldn’t be without him. When I told him I was here with you, he was ready to go give
Corban a piece of his mind,” she laughs. I smile at the thought. “But I told him I have dealt with it, so don’t worry,” she quickly assures me.

Liam and Flick are beautiful together and I hope they last.  I only hope that one day I can have that as well; maybe
Corban is my exception. Maybe he is my future. I won’t know unless I give it a try, but trying is the hard part.

It’s something I need to do though, to move forward with my life and not dwell on the ‘what if he is the bad guy?’ or ‘what if he breaks my heart?’ Everyone gets at least one broken heart in their lifetime. I need to give it a shot, may
be build that friendship first.

Flick comes and sits by me on my bed. She smiles at me, her eyes sparkling with a new brightness I haven’t noticed before
.

“I say, let him earn your trust. Make him come to you. Yeah, okay, he sends messages and sounds all concerned, but make him work for this. Make it hard for him.” I give a sly grin; now that is not a bad idea. “Me, personally, I already know his feelings for you. I saw them all last night, but you need to find them, as well, for yourself.
”

I nod in agreement and I go back to read the last message before she leaves.

Corban: If you need today off, that’s not a problem. Please let me know. I have not stopped thinking about you. I hope you are okay. x

Wow. My heart is racing. He is making it quite clear that he cares and wants to be here for me. I might try it Flick’s way and let him come to me. If he really wants me,
he can work for it.

“I think you’re right, Flick. I’m going to let him come to me,” I say, giving her a sly smile and she b
eams at me like a proud mother.

“Excell
ent! This should be interesting.” Rubbing her hands together, she lets out an evil cackle. I can’t help but burst out laughing. This is the first time she has witnessed me in my panic attack state, and it’s not something I want to subject her to again in a hurry, but she knows exactly how to bring me back to the land of the living.

“Well, love, I had better go. Will you be all right
?” she queries.

“Yes, I think I’m fine, and if I’m not, you will be the first to know,” I say, dragging my
self out of bed to let her out.

“Good, I will mess
age you later. Wanna do lunch?”

“Yeah, sure, sounds great. Meet me at the normal place at one.
”

“Okay, catch
ya later.” She hugs me tightly before walking out the door. Shutting it behind her, I’m left to the silence of my apartment and my thoughts. My thoughts want to drag me down again, but I’m not going to let that happen.

Forcing a smile on my face, I head to the lounge room to blast some nineties music, which is my favourite; it was Abby’s too. After a bit of No Doubt, Tag Team, Will Smith, and heaps more, I find myself smiling at the memories of me and Abby dancing around our parents’ living room before school to Will Smith’s, “Miami.” Those
were the absolute best times.

I find my mixed nineties CD I had put together about a year ago and put it on “Miami.” Turning it up, I dance around for a little while, letting loose and getting all those bad vibes from my body to allow it to welcome the good happy vibes. I dance my way to the shower and wash away last night’s miseries, well, all except for the making out part with
Corban. That part I want on repeat in my mind. It’s a memory I want to keep along with the rest of our moments together. A huge grin comes across my face and stays there.

After my shower, I am searching through my wardrobe for something to wear. I come up with a nice fitted, cream pencil skirt and purple button up top, along with some nice flat, strappy sandals. Adding a few light touch-ups with my makeup, I realise I haven’t messaged
Corban back. I race to my phone quickly and send him a message, feeling like a giddy girl when she meets a superstar or something.

Me: Hey, sorry, was busy getting ready. I will be there today, and before you ask,
yes, I’m okay x

I hope he gets it in time. I know he has a meeting at eight thirty today. Looking at the time, I see
it’s seven fifty-five. Crap, I had better get a move on. I grab a breakfast bar from the cupboard, along with my purse and keys, and I’m out the door.

****

The drive to work is uneventful and I receive no message from Corban. I feel anxious about seeing him again, but I will listen to Flick and be happy and see where things go with him.

Stepping off the elevator, I see Rachel. She greets me with her brilliant, bright white teeth smile. Smiles like hers are infectious; anyone who walks in the door couldn’t help but smile back at her
.

“Good Morning, sunshine,” she sings to me. She is in a chipper mood today, which is good. I
t’s what I need.

“Good morning. You’re in a good mood today.” I stop at her desk, and she hands
me some paperwork and messages.

“Yep, it’s a good day today. It’s my boyfriend’s birthday, so we had a special breakfast in bed, if you know what I mean.” She winks at me. Yep, I totally know what she means as all these crazy ideas start forming in my head. Get your head out of the gutter. I can’t help but burst out laughing and she joins in. What a great start to the day.

“Okay, I didn’t need to know that,” I say, squinting up my face in disgust, but still smiling so she knows I’m only having a go at her.

“Yes, you did, and I have something very special planned for dinner and dessert tonight as well. Think—” she places her finger on her chin as though she is thinking, “—kitchen table, some toys, strawberries and chocolate. Oh, and whipped cream too. Maybe some handcuffs.
”

I am in fits of
laughter, so much my stomach is hurting. Rachel is one of a kind and very open about her relationship. Maybe a little too open.

“I better go before you get too excited and need to go take a cold shower,” I say through my enjoyment. “Anything I need to know?” I query before walking away.

“Umm…no, I don’t think so. Mr Andrews is in a meeting at the moment, as I’m sure you know. The paperwork I gave you is a few letters that need his approval and signature. Those few messages are appointments that need to be scheduled, so better get cracking, girl.” She pretends to crack a whip at me. I just shake my head and walk away.

As I approach my desk, I see a beautiful bouquet of flowers sitting on my desk. Surely they aren’t from Mum and Dad again. I get closer and see there are a range of different colour carnations, some white and purple daisies, and about five bright, beautiful sunflowers. I feel the huge grin on my face. I wonder who they are from as I take the card from the middle of the bouquet and read it. My hands begin to shake, and my heart and stomach swell with a passion I have never experienced as I read the note.

Beautiful
Melodi,
I hope these bring a smile to your face like you bring a smile to mine whenever I see you. Have a beautiful bright day. x
Corban

My desk phone rings, pulling me from my shock. I
t’s an internal call, Rachel.

“So who are they from?” she inquires, sounding as though she is bouncing in her seat wanting all details. She co
uld have already read the note.

“Just a friend trying to bring a smile to my face and brighten my day.
”

“Sure, sure, you have an admirer. I thought my boyfriend was sending me a thank you for this morning, but then the delivery guy asked for you. I was a little disappointed,” she giggles
.

“No, no admirer.” I don’t give anything else away, even as she says she will come and beg at my feet if I promise to tell her. That isn’t happening. I hang up still smiling. I place the card in my bag and get
ready to get the day started.

Flick’s words ring in my mind. “Make him work for it.” That’s what I intend to do. I don’t plan on telling him about Abby and my male issues just yet. One day I’m sure I will,
but not right now.

The day moves along, and before I know it, it’s eleven a.m.
Corban is still in his meeting and I’ve caught up on all paperwork to be filed that had built up over the time they didn’t have a Personal Assistant. I can’t help it, but my eyes always find their way to the beautiful flowers, and happiness fills me. I just want to see him.

I make a start on returning calls for appointments, and mid-sentence, I see the conference door open. My stomach flips multiple times. I direct my eyes at my computer screen, not wanting to make eye contact with him. I’ve lost my train of thought and have to ask the client to repeat themselves.
Corban and the clients all walk past my desk. I don’t look up, but I can sense his eyes on me. My body reacts to his presence and his cologne surrounding me as he walks past my desk.

He says goodbye to his clients, and I finish up my phone call. I’m not paying too much attention to him. I end my call, casually looking around for him, and don’t see him anywhere. I sigh in relief as I don’t think I’m ready to confront him. I know he will want to talk about things I’m not ready for. I do want to thank him for the flowers though. I get up to go get a soda from the machine. Grabbing some money from my drawer, I turn, slamming right into that all too familiar
chest.

I stumble backwards into my desk. A little off balance here, I’m about to fall flat on my butt once again. A pair of strong hands quickly grab my arms, pulling me up to steady me. I don’t even have to guess who it is. Oh, the things he does to me. Every nerve calls for his touch and cries when connection is lost.

“Seriously, you have a springboard chest, because whenever I run into it, I fall flat on my butt,” I mutter quietly so only he can hear me. I’m a little angry that he would surprise me like that, especially after
the episode last night.

He looks at me, studying me; I guess to make sure I’m not going to have a meltdown and slap him again
.

“Can I see you in my office, please?” he requests in his professional tone, acting as th
ough we don’t know each other.

What is his problem? Why can’t he just acknowledge we know each other? He turns, walking toward his office, and
I reluctantly follow.

I glance over at Rachel who seems too busy on the phone to care what’s happening. Once I’m in his office, he shuts the door behind me. My body and senses ignite, insta
ntly awakening to his presence.

Before I can blink, he is right in front of me, his hands caressing my face. His burning gaze is locked on me. I am caught in a trance. His look puts me under a spell, a spell he cast upon me the moment he helped me up the stairs at the nightclub
.

His hands release me and he takes a small step back, but not before he places a light kiss on my cheek, leaving my cheek tingling from the contact, and
my body aching for more.

“I didn’t think you would be in today. How are you?” His soft voice causes
goose bumps to cover my body.

“Yep, I’m fine. I’m sorry I acted like that. I feel really bad about…ah…hitting you.” My stomach constricts as a lump forms in my throat.
I will not get worked up.
I keep reminding myself.

“It’s okay. It’s not the first time I’ve been slapped.” He smiles, which brings a smile to my lips, instantly relaxing me. He has a calming effect on me as if he’s my own personal Z
en. It doesn’t surprise me that he has been slapped before, probably for not calling a girl back or not giving her what she wants.