Mythe: A Fairy Tale (5 page)

“I think you’re in his spot,” an amused voice informed her. Startled, she jumped, spilling tea on her leg.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, blotting her leg with a napkin. She turned to find Richard looking down at her.

“I’m sorry, Manda. I didn’t mean to startle you. Are you scalded?”

“No, it wasn’t that hot,” she assured him, much too pleased to see him to be concerned about her leg anyway. He looked even more disconcertingly handsome than she remembered. His thick, dark brown hair was still damp
from his morning shower. It curled up slightly at his collar, with one unruly lock falling across his eye and brushing his cheekbone “You’re certainly here early.”

“We’re staying in the hotel there,” Richard informed her, gesturing to the building that contained the Aronson offices. The bottom floors housed a luxury hotel, while the upper floors were devoted to office space. “This is the only time of day I can enjoy some fresh air and peace downtown. What’s your excuse?” He sat down on the wall beside Manda, sipping from the paper cup he carried. Manda detected the aroma of fresh coffee.

“I couldn’t sleep, so I just came on in. It’s nice to beat the rush hour crowds. It’ll be convenient for you guys, staying just downstairs from the office. You won’t even have to come outside and brave the crazed fans,” Manda teased.

“Exactly,” he agreed, grinning. “It’s always such a shame to have to break out the tear gas just to get to a meeting.”

“Yeah, the squirrels really hate that,” she confided. “So, are you guys in town for a while this time?”

“Yes, actually. We’re going to make Denver our home-base for the foreseeable future. We’ll have to be in and out a little, but we’re pretty much going to be calling this home for the time being.”

Manda was inordinately pleased by this news but she suppressed the thrilled smile that threatened to make her look like a giddy girl with a crush. “That’ll be nice. Better than flying in and out all the time.”

“Definitely,” Richard agreed. “Commuting can get old. You said you liked missing the rush hour crowds. Do you commute far or do you live nearby?”

“Well, that’s a matter of opinion. David lives nearby and according to him, I live in the southern annex of Wyoming. But it’s not that bad. I live in the northern suburbs. It takes me about half an hour by train. I like it though. It’s nice and quiet. Not so many people.”

“Not a big fan of the crowds then?” Richard asked, amused.

Manda’s lips quirked into a lopsided grin. “I prefer the humans in small doses.”

Richard’s answering grin quickly turned into a frown. “Well, I suggest we go inside then, because here comes a whole pack of humans, and I for one don’t want to deal with them this early in the morning.” Richard sighed. As he spoke, the first wave of early commuters descended on the plaza from the train station across the street. Manda wrinkled her nose in disappointment. She’d been enjoying their impromptu conversation.

“Shall we head up to your office, or will I be in the way? I know it’s not time for our meeting yet, but I’m at loose ends right now. Maybe you could show me around?” Richard’s request was tentative, allowing her latitude to refuse him if she wished. As if she wasn’t thrilled to have his company.
It’s business,
she reminded herself sternly.

“Is Josh around? Won’t he wonder where you’ve gone?” Manda asked as they walked quickly toward the building entrance. Richard kept his face carefully turned away from the approaching crowd.

“No. He’s not really a morning person. He’s probably still trying to wake up. I told him to meet me upstairs for the meeting. I can go entertain myself if you have things to do though.” Richard held the door open for Manda. She glanced back over her shoulder and then hurried through.

“Come on, quick. They’re gaining!” she whispered, and led the way to the elevators. “You won’t be in the way at all. I don’t have anything scheduled until our meeting. You can hide out in the office.”

The two of them ducked into an elevator just before the doors closed. A young man in a business suit was its only other occupant. He glanced at Richard and Manda and then did a quick double take before staring straight ahead without a word. They rode in silence until the man got off on the thirtieth floor.

Manda was the first to break the silence. “I don’t think he could decide if it was really you or not.”

“A couple of more floors and he would have worked up the nerve to ask,” Richard told her. “Trust me.”

“I suppose that gets pretty old, doesn’t it?” she asked sympathetically.

“It’s usually not bad one-on-one. It’s the crowds that get out of hand. People lose their inhibitions when they’re in a group, and they start doing things they wouldn’t do if they were alone. And,” he looked at Manda apologetically, “the women and girls are the worst.”

“You know, a disfiguring accident might help with that,” Manda offered with a grin, then frowned as if reconsidering. “But, on second thought, probably not.”

Richard rolled his eyes and chuckled. “You’re just a font of helpful advice, aren’t you?”

“I try.” The elevator opened onto the fortieth floor and Manda stepped out, smiling. “We’ll go drop my stuff off in my office and then I’ll give you the grand tour.” She led him through the glass doors and past the empty reception desk, taking him in the opposite direction from the conference room they’d used during their previous meeting. At the far end of the corridor she stopped at the door to the workspace she and David shared and punched the pass code into a keypad by the door.

“Welcome to the inner sanctum,” she declared as she opened the door and gestured Richard in with a flourish. The space inside was a dramatic departure from the spare, sleek décor that characterized the rest of the office. The locked door was like the gateway into another world. Manda and David each had their own offices at one end of the large rectangular room, sectioned off by frosted glass panels and pale wood doors. The common area was furnished with an oval table and six leather office chairs, a large leather sofa, and a glass-topped coffee table. A large flat-panel television dominated the wall opposite the sofa. Posters and random images plastered the remaining wall space and a number of beanbag chairs were piled in one corner. Strands of white twinkle lights were strung back and forth below the ceiling tiles and a stuffed parrot hung on a perch in one corner. The back walls of David and Manda’s offices featured expansive windows that faced south. Pikes Peak was just visible in the distance. The adjacent wall, which stretched from Manda’s office into the common area, was another wall of windows that faced east, and the morning sun streamed in cheerily. The windows were cluttered at one end with scribblings and drawings done in dry erase marker—some pertaining to work, others random and amusing. A small refrigerator was tucked into one corner next to a line of shelves packed with books and magazines. The overall effect was casual and fun.

Richard stood with his arms crossed, absorbing the riot of color and clutter around him.

“This is definitely more in keeping with the barefooted girl who was assaulting her coworker with soft drinks last week,” he concluded in amusement.

“That’s why Curt keeps us locked away in the corner. I think he’s afraid we might infect the whole office! Don’t tell him I let you in here. He’d be afraid it would scare you off.”

Richard laughed and Manda couldn’t help but smile. His laughter was so warm and rich it did funny things to her breathing.

“My office is over here. Let me drop my things and I’ll show you around the rest of the office.” Manda walked to her office in the corner and Richard trailed behind, examining the eclectic contents of the room. She sat down on the edge of her chair and opened a bottom drawer to put her purse away. Richard leaned against the doorframe and inspected her office as well. Potted plants cluttered the space, thriving in the southern light. A small teapot and matching cup sat on the corner of her desk, which was cluttered but neat. On the wall above hung her college diplomas and a few awards, placed there at Jen’s insistence.

Richard focused on the framed certificates. “You graduated with honors and you have your masters. Very impressive.” He sounded slightly surprised. She was used to that.

She blushed uncomfortably and looked away. “Um, yes.”

Richard went on, changing the subject slightly—for which Manda was grateful. “I tried to convince Josh to go to college, but he’s not ready yet. He says he’ll have plenty of time later. I suppose he’s right. He may as well enjoy his singing career for now. It can’t last forever, after all. I promised our mother that I’d push him though. An education is important.”

“You lost your parents, didn’t you?” Manda asked quietly.

“Yes,” Richard replied evenly. “They died in a car wreck when Josh was sixteen. He was just becoming well known then. That’s sort of how I got dragged into the whole thing. He needed me, and since I was writing all of his songs anyway, it just sort of evolved into the two of us.”

“So, you weren’t looking for the fame and fortune?”

“No. That’s really not my thing. I enjoy the music, the writing. Josh is the one who really lives to perform. And what about you, Amanda Jensen? What do you live for?”

“Right now, my greatest ambition is to show you where the coffee machine is,” she answered lightly, sidestepping his question self-consciously. “Since you’re apparently a coffee drinker, that’ll be our first stop.” Manda proceeded to lead Richard through the Aronson office, pointing out the lunchroom, bathrooms, conference rooms, and other amenities. Their conversation was friendly and light, but no more personal questions were asked. When they returned to the “Special Creative Services” area, as the plaque by the door named Manda and David’s work space, David was there, perched on the edge of the sofa playing a video game on the flat screen.

“Nice to see you hard at work,” Manda teased as they entered.

“Hey, I’ve got to beat your high score,” David retorted, not taking his eyes from the game.

“You wish!”

By the time Lena called to tell them that Josh had arrived, Richard, David, and Manda were all three battling it out on the large television screen and laughing exuberantly. Manda abandoned the game to go retrieve Josh, and returned with him just in time to see Richard defeat David soundly.

“If I’d known I was missing all the fun, I’d have gotten here sooner,” Josh lamented.

“You snooze, you lose,” Richard taunted, leaning back on the sofa and folding his hands behind his head.

“Well, since we’re all here now, I suppose we should get to work. We don’t want to take up too much of your time,” David suggested, stowing the video game equipment in the cabinet under the television.

“I reserved the north conference room, but since we’re all comfortable, shall we just do it here?” Manda suggested.

“I vote for here,” Josh asserted, dropping down onto the sofa beside Richard.

“You won’t get him up now,” Richard said wryly, not looking inclined to move himself, “so we’ll just have to do it here.”

“Then it’s unanimous,” David agreed.

“Good!” Manda said, kicking off her shoes and retrieving the logo designs from the table. She pulled one of the leather chairs over as well, and then spread the printed pages out on the coffee table. “Here’s what we’ve come up with so far.”

She and David proceeded to point out the strengths of each design, and Richard and Joshua listened carefully, asking questions and offering opinions. Very quickly they narrowed it down to two choices—Manda’s favorite was one of the two. For some reason it seemed to make Josh a little uncomfortable at first, but Richard chuckled with delight and immediately singled it out as his favorite as well, after which Josh visibly relaxed.

“We’ll fine tune these further, using your ideas, and we should have the new designs ready by Tuesday afternoon,” Manda advised when they’d finished discussing the two logos.

“Shall we plan on meeting again on Wednesday then?” Richard asked. He seemed very pleased with what Manda and David had come up with.

“We won’t be in the office on Wednesday,” David informed him before Manda could speak. “Manda has a standing social engagement on Wednesdays. Tuesday afternoon or Thursday would work though.”

“Let’s go for Tuesday afternoon then,” Josh suggested. “The sooner the better, right?”

“Good. I’ll let Jen know so she can join us. Does one-thirty work for everyone?” Manda asked, looking to the three men for confirmation. When they all nodded their approval she wrote a reminder in her notebook.

“I guess we’re done here then,” David said, leaning back on the sofa beside Josh.

“That was quick. Now what are we supposed to do for the rest of the morning?” Josh sighed. “I thought this would take longer.” He sounded disappointed.

“Now we let these two get back to work without bothering them,” Richard replied. Manda sighed to herself. She wished they didn’t have to leave so soon, but she didn’t have any excuses for them to stay. They were busy men and no doubt had things to do. She knew they had a concert the following night but didn’t know what preparation that might involve.

“Do you have a lot to do to get ready for your concert?” she asked, mostly as an excuse to keep them there a little longer.

“Not really, but that reminds me,” Richard answered. “I wanted to invite the two of you. It’s at eight tomorrow night.” Manda smiled enthusiastically but David grimaced and shook his head.