The Rain Began to Fall (16 page)

Kyle noticed her
less than positive reaction to him, and although he still felt panic inside he
wasn’t about to show it.

“Leigh, this is
Rob, my friend I told you about,” Kyle said, introducing him. “Leigh is the
Human Resources manager at
Falstead
,” he informed
him. “Better make a good impression!” He elbowed Rob, who had been furtively
glancing at Mindy.
What a beauty
!
he
thought.
He turned his attention to Leigh.

“The pleasure is
mine, dear lady.” He bowed low and Kyle laughed.

“Rob, don’t blow
your chances right here!”

“Good to meet you,
Rob,” Leigh responded, giving Kyle a mock look of reproach, and then turned
back to Rob. “Your chivalry is appreciated. The male race is short of it.”

“Amen!” Mindy agreed,
and then Kyle and Rob turned their attention to her.

“I remember you
from the day I hired on,” Kyle said, smiling, “but I never caught your name.”

“I remember you,
too,” she replied. “My
na
. . .

“This is Mindy,”
Leigh introduced, “the accounting manager at
Falstead
.”

“Well, it’s nice
to meet you,” she responded, smiling.

“Same
here.”

Kyle turned his
attention back to Leigh. She was obviously nervous, her eyes flitting side to
side as she rubbed her hands together.

“So,” Kyle asked
“are you still enjoying my book?” She looked at him hesitantly.

“I finished what
you gave me,” she responded evenly. “Are you still working on it?”

“I’m done,” he
responded.
“Just finished it last night.
Mailed it off this morning.”
Kyle was as handsome as Mindy
remembered him to be. No wonder Leigh was attracted to him. As Kyle and Leigh
engaged further in conversation, she turned her attention fully to Rob, who had
not taken his eyes off of her.

It happens. Not
only in fairytales, and not every day, but it does happen. When Mindy looked
dead on into Rob’s eyes, they were immediately enraptured with one another, and
for all intents and purposes, it was game, set and match from that moment.
Wow
,
Rob thought.
Wow, wow, wow.

Mindy couldn’t
breathe
.

“My name’s Rob, as
I guess you heard,” he said.

“I’m Mindy,” she
responded, her face flushed. “So you’re new in town?”

“Yeah, just got in
last night,” he responded. “And I’m sure glad I came, now that I’ve met
you
.”

Her breath caught
in her throat. “So where are you guys from?”

“Tennessee,” he
responded.

“And you’re trying
to get on at
Falstead
?”

“Yeah,” he
replied. “It’s a start here anyway.”

How handsome he
is
!
she
thought. She glanced over at Kyle.
These
guys are the dynamic duo, for goodness sake
!

“Have you ever
been to Charlotte?”

“Nope.
First time.”

“Well… how do you
like it so far?”

“A
lot.
Especially right now,” he said sincerely. Rob felt an immediate
connection to Mindy, as crazy as it sounded, as though he had known her all his
life. Mindy felt like she was floating on air. Kyle began walking, and Leigh
fell in beside him. Rob and Mindy followed.

“You’ve been
really scarce, Leigh,” Kyle said. She glanced at him briefly.

“I’ve been busy,
you know?
Work, planning... things.”
They rounded a
corner and arrived at the food court. Rob asked Mindy if she wanted to get
something to drink. His mouth was dry as a bone.

“We’ll be back in
a sec, guys,” she informed Kyle and Leigh. “We’re going to get a soda. You two
want anything?”

“Sure,” Kyle
answered. “I’ll take a Coke. What about you, Leigh?”

“Nothing, I’m
okay,” she responded. Kyle shrugged and pulled out his wallet, but Rob held up
his hand.

“On me this time,”
he said.

During this
exchange, Leigh observed Mindy and saw the tell tale gleam in her eyes.
 Someone’s
finally sparked her interest
, she thought.
That’s good… maybe
.

Kyle sat down at a
table, and Leigh hesitated to follow suit.
I should just leave
, she
thought,
right now
. He folded his hands and looked up at her, smiling.

“Join me?”

She stared at him
for a moment, at the most unexpected, inexplicable person she had ever met; and
though she felt nothing good could come of it, she sighed and took a seat,
pushing her hair back off her shoulder as she removed her purse. He slumped
back in his chair and watched her perform this unspeakably sexy move. She
looked into his eyes, briefly, and she was reminded of the day she had first
met him, during orientation.  Although it had been only a month ago, the
emotional journey made it seem like an eternity. He gazed at her steadily, feasting
on the sight of the beautiful woman that sat before him; a woman that could
make strong men weak, and old men dream. The woman he knew he loved and longed
for so much.

“So when is your
novel going to hit the book stores?
she
asked. “I
can’t wait to finish it.” This run in was the last thing she had expected, but
she had to deal with it. At least it was in a public place. If she could
keep the conversation
on his writing…

He laughed. “Now
that would be nice! But you know you don’t have to wait for that.”

She smiled and
dropped her eyes. She looked at her engagement ring, sparkling.
Just a reminder.

“But of course I
can’t get it to you if I never see you,” he said. “And that’s never enough, at
least not for me.”

She looked back up
into his eyes, as intense as ever. It was so easy for a girl to get swept up
with a guy like him: handsome, smart and charming; it had happened to her. But
she had taken the measures necessary to get her life back on track, to stay on
course with Gene and their wedding, and she would not be derailed again. Her
future was sealed, she had made her decision, and there was no more playing
around. Rob and Mindy, returning, walked up to the table and sat Kyle’s drink
before him. Leigh welcomed the interruption.

“Ready to go?” she
asked, slapping her hands on the table and raising her eyebrows at Mindy
suggestively; the message:
Get me out of here
!

“What?” Mindy
responded, blissfully unaware. “Not yet silly! He’s going to show me his car!
What is it?” she asked, looking at Rob.

“‘65
Chevelle
.”

“Yeah!
We’ll be back in a bit. You guys going to be okay here?”

Since when does
she care about hot rod cars
? Leigh thought, then immediately answered her
own question:
When she’s falling for the guy who drives one
. Kyle looked
at Rob, nodding his head and smiling, and Rob responded with a grin.

Leigh suddenly
wished they had not run into each other today; wished Mindy wasn’t attracted to
Rob, and wished she wouldn’t go off and leave her alone with Kyle. But there
was no turning back now.

“Okay,” she said
resignedly. “Enjoy yourselves.” Mindy winked at her and they took off.
Oh,
where will this lead
? Leigh thought with mounting anxiety. She looked back
at Kyle.

“I think they like
each other,” he said, smiling. “What do you think?”

“Maybe,” she responded
indifferently, playing with her hands and staring down. He sat across from her,
his mind flipping through all of the opportunities that had presented
themselves up to now; when he had refused to kiss her or contact her, to allow
the chance that he would be more than just a minor player, a side note in the
symphony of her life. He had foolishly thought he had time. He had been
confident he’d made an indelible impression on her, seeds planted and watered
that would blossom and bear fruit; confident and trusting that her heart would
lead her to him. But he realized now that had been a mistake, and there was no
more time. He would have to take matters into hand, and make the depth of his
feelings clear.

She looked back up
at him and saw the urgency in his eyes, could feel it emanating from him. She
had to say something, cut him off at the pass.

“I picked out a
wedding dress today,” she announced. “It’s beautiful.”

This diversionary
statement, intended to stop his advance, did sting; but he plowed ahead,
leaning across the table and resting closer to her on his elbows.

“With all due
respect,” he replied, “I’m not interested in your wedding dress.”

“Okay,” she said
quietly, blinking and looking away, drumming her fingers on the table.

“You’re kidding
yourself, Leigh,” he stated. “We have something together. You know it, and I
know it.” She didn’t respond, but stared at him, still as a stone.

She sighed
heavily, not wanting this conversation. If they had just left the mall two
minutes sooner, she would have coasted to her wedding day without this drama.
But now she
had
to talk; had to say what she hadn’t the strength to in
the beginning. She laid both hands, softly, in front of her.

“Kyle, you know my
situation,” she said softly, but firmly. “I’m going to be married soon.” She
looked into his impossible eyes, and just a second of that was enough to make
her falter, to check her forward momentum. He knew what she was attempting to
do, so he reached across the table, taking her hands in his. His touch immediately
and involuntarily invoked exciting thoughts of those hands touching her so
intimately.
Still Leigh
?
she
thought with despair. She fought her renegade thoughts, but she didn’t pull her
hands away from his.

“I miss you,” he
said sincerely, “and I think about you all the time.” As she looked at him her
hands trembled, and he felt it.

“You shouldn’t,
Kyle,” she said, her voice wavering.

“Can’t tell me
that,” he rejected. “You don’t really want me to stop, do you?” He searched her
face and eyes, but Leigh, unable to respond for a moment, looked down. She
couldn’t believe the sway he still held over her. Would it matter if years
passed? Would he always create such wanting in her? In the midst of the current
storm, she summoned every memorable thought of Gene she could, and found a
remnant of strength in their long and durable relationship. She held onto it
the way one drowning, sinking in turbulent waters, might a rope that would save
them from the clutches of death.
Kyle is nothing but a fantasy, an
infatuation
, she reminded herself insistently.

Looking at his
handsome face, she knew he would make some girl very happy. In another life, it
might have been her. But this was the only world they were in, the only life,
and she had to set things straight, now, and leave no room for doubt. And she
couldn’t wear kid gloves with him. She knew that nothing short of slamming and
bolting the door would work to end his delusional ideas of them. She pulled her
hands away from his.

“I’m engaged,
Kyle, and I’m going to be married to Gene Sykes,” she stated clearly, with
conviction. She stared directly at him, hard, unblinking, steeling herself.

“Is that so?” he
responded, leaning back and folding his arms.

“Yes,
it is
,”
she continued with the best icy stare she could put on. “There’s
nothing
between us, understand? It was all just for fun.
We
aren’t
anything
,
never have been, and there is
no
chance for us.
None
.”
 
She turned her face away and raised her chin slightly, folding her arms. Kyle
was stunned. Although he had feared she had buried her feelings for him, he
hadn’t expected such a forceful repudiation of their relationship.
What
relationship
? A voice sounded in his mind,
the one you never started
?
He swallowed, trying to clear the tightness in his throat.
This can’t be
real
, he thought.
She’s not for real
.

“Leigh, you don’t
mean that,” he replied in a measured voice, leaning forward on the table. “I
know what you’re doing. I know you’re confused and…”

“Oh please, Kyle.
You don’t know me
at all
,” she replied coldly. “I mean everything I am
saying. Please don’t contact me again; anytime, anywhere for
any
reason.”

Leigh felt an
exquisite pain in her heart as she spoke the words. Was she making a mistake?
Just
hold on
, she thought, battling off her panicky feelings.
It’ll be over soon
.
She sighed heavily, and Kyle, pulling back to an upright position, stared at
her unbelievingly. He could never have imagined she was capable of such
meanness.
I guess she is for real
, he thought resignedly. Where he had
thought he had flirted with time too much, losing her to his patience and
plans, he realized now that time had nothing to do with it. He could have
another thousand years, and it wouldn’t increase his chances or bring him any
closer to her world. He so mightily wanted to believe she wasn’t sincere, but
she could not have possibly said those hurtful things if she had any real
feelings for him. It was a devastating realization that she had not buried her
feelings for him; that in reality, there had been nothing to bury at all. Out
of the corner of his eye, he saw Rob and Mindy returning. They were laughing
and talking to each other as they approached.
Glad it’s working out for
somebody
, he thought bitterly.

“Well, I never saw
that coming,” he said through his teeth, rubbing his hands on his thighs. She
didn’t respond, continuing to stare away. “But if that’s how you want it,
Leigh, I’m gone.” He stood, shoving his cold hands into his front pockets.