Distorted. Part 7

"Aly, what am I going to do with you?" he asked in a low tone.

Surprised, I said the first thing that came to my mind. "I don't know, Paul. I'm wondering what I'm going to do with you."

That made him throw his head back and laugh. I felt even more annoyed and scowled at him. He tried to hold back his laughter, but didn't do a very good job of it.

"I fail to see how this is funny," I said.

He stood and went to sit behind his desk. I sighed at the s.p.a.ce between us. I couldn't think clearly when he was so close. I needed to work on that.

"You amuse me, that's all," he replied.

Not liking that, I crossed my arms against my chest and glared at him. He was really getting on my nerves. Before I could tell him that, his cell phone started ringing.

Cursing under his breath, he picked it up and glanced at the screen to see who was calling. Pressing a b.u.t.ton, it immediately stopped. I guessed at who was calling, which made me even more upset. It was good he didn't answer, but she never failed at letting me know she existed.

"Sorry about that. You know, you're really cute when you're mad."

"Okay, Paul. I've had it. You can't tell me one thing this morning and then say things like that to me this afternoon. You made it quite clear we only work together and that it should stay that way. So I'm putting my foot down and asking you to please do that."

Whoa, where did that come from? Am I crazy? No, he doesn't get to play by two sets of rules.

Taken aback, he stared at me. "You're right."

Disappointed he didn't fight me on it, I sighed. I have worked for this man for three years and never once had things been awkward between us, until now. Still confused as to why, I decided to finally to ask him.

"What's going on, Paul? Things have never been awkward between us the whole time we've worked together. Why now?"

I could tell he didn't like the question. He looked at me with confusion. He opened his mouth to speak, and then closed it. A minute later he finally answered.

"Aly, you're important to me. You're a huge part of why Pierce Homes is so successful. We work closely together, day in and day out. I'm sorry things have been awkward between us lately and kissing you didn't help."

Feeling the humiliation creep back in, I lowered my gaze to my lap. I didn't need to hear over and over how he felt kissing me was a mistake. Once was enough.

"Okay, we've been over that. You regret kissing me, I get it," I said, refusing to look at him.

"You think I regret kissing you?" he asked with a surprised tone in his voice.

My head shot up. "Well, yeah. After what you said this morning, what else was I supposed to think?"

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Paul let out a sharp, "Come in." I turned around to see who it was, not sure whether to throttle them or thank them for the interruption.

Ethan opened the door and stepped inside. Seeing me there, he smiled. "Hey, Aly," he said before addressing Paul. I looked over at Paul and saw his face harden. I was so confused.

"Sorry to interrupt, Paul, but I need to talk to you about an issue that just came up for the Glendale project. Do you have a minute?"

Nodding, Paul looked over to me. "We'll continue this as soon as Ethan and I are finished." Taking that as my cue to leave, I stood and walked over to the door. As I was about to exit, Ethan took a hold of my hand and gave it a squeeze. Smiling at him, I shut the door behind me.

Grateful for the break from the tension with Paul, I headed out to the break room to get a drink of water. I was also worried about the issue Ethan referred to with the Glendale project. We were getting everything finalized to break ground soon and I hoped it was nothing serious.

I got to the break room and leaned back against the sink as I gulped down my water., I started to wonder just what was going on in my life. One minute, I'm crushing on Paul with no drama. The next, he's acting weird and kissing me, then apologizing for it. The man was driving me crazy and I didn't know how much longer I could deal with it.

When I got back to my office, Ethan was at the door of Paul's office. Hearing me come in, he turned and waved at me.

"I'll go call him back right now, Paul. I appreciate the help. I'll let you know what he says," Ethan said as turned to leave.

He stopped at my chair and ruffled my hair. "You doing okay, Aly?" he asked.

Giving him a shadow of a smile, I nodded. "I'm fine. Everything okay with the Glendale project?"

"Yep. Had a little glitch, but Paul and I figured it out. I'm on my way to fix it now. I'll talk to you later." I waved to him and watched him disappear from my office. I suddenly really needed him and was about to call him back when I heard Paul's voice.

"In my office. Now."

I rolled my eyes and took a deep breath. He shut the door behind me, then crossed over to sit behind his desk. He nodded for me to take a seat as well. I decided I'd better not be difficult, so I let out a sigh and sat back down.

I didn't say anything as I waited for him to begin. It was obvious he was extremely annoyed and I was sure he'd enlighten me as to why. Like I didn't already know.

Finally, he leaned over his desk, giving me an intense look. "I have to know something," he said.

Not sure what he meant, I raised a brow. "What?"

He pointed to his office door, "You and Baker. You say you're only friends, but I suspect he feels differently."

What the h.e.l.l?

"Number one, I fail to see how any of that is your business and number two, you are crazy. Ethan doesn't like me more than a friend because that's just what we are, friends."

He slammed a fist on his desk. "Dammit, Aly! You are not taking me seriously. And it is my business!"

Startled, I jumped a little in my chair. He never spoke this way to me. How was I supposed to react?

"I'm not the one playing games here. What I do in my private life is none of your concern. Frankly, your little tantrums over Baker are getting old."

That didn't go over well. His green eyes darkened and he ran a hand through his hair. "My little tantrums? Oh you haven't seen any of my tantrums, as you call them."

I scowled at him. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"It's supposed to mean exactly that. I don't appreciate your backtalk, Aly. I think I had a legitimate question there. I sense that Baker feels more than friendship for you. I merely asked you what your feelings were."

I couldn't believe my ears. "My feelings? I don't remember you asking me what my feelings were. I just remember you stating you suspect Ethan feels more than friendship for me. And for your information, I don't feel anything more than friendship for him. If, if, he feels more for me, that isn't something I can control. To be honest, I am at a loss as to why we are even having this conversation." I sat back on my chair and folded my arms across my chest, twirling my hair around my finger. I was seething, and also a little turned on, much to my chagrin.

When he looked at me, his green eyes were blazing. "Aly," he whispered my name, then put his head in his hands. I could tell something was troubling him, but at the moment I wasn't in the mood to comfort him. His telling me this morning that he regretted our kiss killed that.

I sat there, waiting for him to finish what he'd started. He raised his head and looked at me. I saw more emotion in his eyes then than I ever had before. I wasn't sure what was going on in that head of his.

Suddenly, his expression changed and he looked clearer. "You know what? Just forget about this. I'm sorry I brought it up. Obviously you two are just friends and even if you were more, it's none of my business. I just worry too much sometimes about things I shouldn't."

His complete change in att.i.tude threw me for a loop. Even though I was perplexed at what had just transpired, I wasn't up to pushing it with him. All I wanted was for things to go back to the way they were, when we were comfortable around each other.

I stood. "Fine. Whatever, Paul. If you're done, then I should get back to work. I'm working out how soon we can do a fundraiser for Hidden Creek and trying to line things up for the Glendale ribbon cutting ceremony. We need to get the Glendale residents to their temporary housing as soon as possible too."

He nodded. "I know. I'll put a call into Kurt right now and see how soon that can happen. Thanks for all you do, Aly."

He turned to his computer then and I knew that was my signal to go. When I reached the door, I turned to look back at him. He was typing something on the keyboard, not giving me a second glance.

When I got to my desk, I opened a drawer and grabbed an elastic. Gathering my hair up into a makeshift bun, I wrapped the elastic around it and got back to work. A few minutes later, I heard the ping of a new email coming in. I clicked over to see what it was and was surprised to see it was from Mr. Halliday, the man who opposes our help at Hidden Creek.

I started to read it and immediately felt my heart sink.

Ms. Chase- I understand you were in our neighborhood on Sat.u.r.day and met my daughter. She gave me your card and filled me in on your conversation. I am very upset about this and demand you have no further contact with my family or me. I do not desire any help from Pierce Homes as I am quite capable of taking care of my own, and that includes repairing my home. Again, please do not pursue any further contact.

Sean Halliday Tears ran down my face as I re-read it over and over. We had never come across someone so vehemently opposed to our help. No one had ever been so blatantly hostile and it was killing me that he was.

As I was wiping my eyes, I heard Paul come out of his office.

"Aly, I need you to sign this letter before I can send it off," he said as he walked over to my desk. Seeing my tear stained face, he froze. "What's wrong? What happened?" he asked in alarm.

I pointed to my computer screen. He walked closer and read Mr. Halliday's email. I heard him let out a sigh as he turned back to me. He got down to his knees and looked up at me.

"I'm sorry. I know how much you were hoping to help his daughter. I don't understand Mr. Halliday's att.i.tude but we can't make him accept our help. Please don't take this so personally. Everyone has the right to say no, it doesn't mean we aren't good at what we do. Maybe we shouldn't have talked to his daughter without him being there but what's done is done." He reached up and brushed my cheek with the back of his hand.

I straightened in my chair. I was acting ridiculous, feeling like an idiot. I had to deal with what Mr. Halliday wanted, no matter how hard it would be for me.

"Thank you, Paul. I really wasn't expecting such a harsh email. I was hoping he'd see the good in what we're trying to do and let us help him and his kids. I don't know why he is so stubborn and why it's killing me."

Paul sighed as he stood up. He glanced at his watch and looked over to me. "Hey, it's almost five. How about we cut out of here early and grab a bite?"

I looked at him. "What? Are you serious?" I asked.

He laughed. "Very," he said, trying to be.

I threw the tissue away and took my hair out of its bun. "Don't you have plans with Casey?"

His face took on an annoyed look. "No, not tonight. Do you think I would have asked you to join me for a bite if I did?"

"I guess not," I replied. Getting a bite to eat sounded really good. And even though I shouldn't, the thought of spending time with Paul excited me. "Sure, I could go for a bite to eat."

He smiled. "Good, I'm glad. Let me finish up on something quick then we can go."

He walked back to his office and I signed the paper he'd brought out. Reading the blasted email one more time, I logged out of my account and shut down the computer. Part of me wasn't willing to give up on Mr. Halliday without a fight, but another part wasn't sure I should.

Just as I was about to go see what was taking Paul, I heard him coming. I realized he was on the phone, so I stayed seated until he was ready to go. When I heard him talking, it was obvious it was with Casey. Great, I thought.

"Case, not tonight. I have work to do and I can't make an impromptu dinner party. I need notice...Well, I'm sure you'll come up with something to explain my absence. I've got to go."

He came out of his office and I pretended to be distracted with a piece of lint on my shirt.

"Ready?" he asked.

Looking up, I gave a half-hearted smile. "Yep. All set."

He waited for me to stand up, then followed me out the door. "Where would you like to go eat?" he asked as we walked to the elevator.

"I don't really care, Paul. You choose."

He thought for a minute. "How about that new Mexican joint down the street? Sound okay?"

"Sure, sounds great."

The elevator doors opened and we walked inside. Paul pushed the b.u.t.ton for the parking garage and the doors closed. We stood there in silence for the ride down. I had a hard time staying still. I felt so awkward with him.

I felt him staring at me and I shifted my position to where I was looking opposite him. The fact that he had a girlfriend was always the main reason I never told him how I felt, but I'm also not very good at being direct with men. I'm old fashioned and want to be chased. I want to know he's interested, too. While Paul had been showing signs lately that he might be, the fact that Casey was still in his life held me back.

The elevator arrived to the parking garage and Paul stepped aside to let me out first. I followed him to his car and he opened the pa.s.senger door for me. I slid in and set my purse on the floor. I took a deep breath as he walked to his side and smiled when he got in.

He looked over at me and returned my smile as he started the ignition. The radio immediately started blaring and I covered my ears, laughing.

He hurried and turned the volume down and looked at me. "Sorry," he said. "I tend to like my rock music loud."

"I can tell," I teased.

He backed out and headed toward the exit. Turning right, he drove down the street toward the restaurant. I looked out my window, thinking about Mr. Halliday's email and the man sitting next to me.

We made it to the restaurant and were seated quickly. Everything on the menu looked so good, I couldn't decide. When the server brought us our chips and salsa, I dove in.

Paul chuckled. "I love that you have such a hearty appet.i.te, Aly."

I shrugged my shoulders and took another bite of my chip. At this point, I didn't have the energy to worry about his comment. I did have a hearty appet.i.te and was never the type to pretend I didn't.

The server got our order and took away our menus. Paul sat back in his chair, looking at one of the many TV's in the restaurant. After a minute, he looked over at me.

"Are you still upset over Mr. Halliday's email?"

Looking down at my lap, I nodded. "I can't help it. His house needs our help more than anyone there in my opinion and it frustrates me he won't let us help him and his children. He's a widower, for heavens sake. He has enough to worry about. What is up with you men and your pride?"

He laughed at that. "Us men and our pride, huh? Well, we like to be able to take care of our families and ourselves. I don't fault Mr. Halliday for feeling the way he does, but like you, I wish he'd let us help him and ease his burden a bit. But you know, I've never been one to try and force our help on anyone. I refuse to start now."

I let out a sigh. "I know, and I agree with you, but I can't get the image of his daughter out of my head. It makes me sad, knowing they won't get to live in a better home like most of their neighbors."

The busboy came at this point and refilled our water gla.s.ses. I took a sip and brushed some hair out of my eyes. I had to let it go and concentrate on those who did want our help.

Our food finally arrived and it smelled delicious. I tore into my pork burrito. Paul took his time eating his fish tacos, which always amused me. It was usually the man who had the heartier appet.i.te, but not in our case.

I put my fork down for a minute and took a sip of my water. I was curious about something and decided to just ask him.

"Paul?"

He looked at me. "Yes?"