"Here comes the groom," Vivian said cheerfully as Simon walked into the office. "Simon, why are you here and not on your honeymoon?"
Simon grinned sheepishly. "Reese and I decided to get away for the weekend and take a bigger trip later."
"So, tell me all about the wedding!"
"It was perfect." Simon paused. hesitant to go into more detail when Blaine appeared from around the corner.
Vivian noticed Simon's attention was drawn to the newest employee, so she made the introductions, "Simon, this is Blaine. He's going to be setting up our new employee database. Blaine, come meet Simon."
"We've met," Blaine said with a forced smile as he paused in front of the pair.
"Welcome to the company," Simon replied.
Blaine nodded his acknowledgment and continued on his way back to his desk.
Vivian looked back and forth between the two men wondering if the tension she sensed between them was real or imagined. "How do you two know each other?"
"Blaine and Reese are old acquaintances and now we're neighbors," Simon answered diplomatically, trying to keep his answer as simple as possible.
Blaine frowned at the word "acquaintances," but kept out of the conversation. His memories of the past were still fuzzy and confused, but he knew without a doubt that he and Reese had meant more to each other than acquaintances; Natalie was proof of that. He couldn't get over the idea that Reese was truly his soulmate, then and now, despite the fact that she and Simon were newly wed and he was technically still married to Cassie.
He sighed thinking about how he had put it all on the line to confess his feelings to Reese. He remembered standing out in the cold on the sidewalk outside of the restaurant after she had turned him down to go marry Simon. From the street, he could hear the piano music playing on the rooftop patio. He kept waiting for the music to stop and Reese to come running down to him, but that never happened. Once it was clear that the ceremony had taken place, he walked dejectedly to his car and made the lonely drive back to James and Chloe's empty house.
"Kitteridge."
Blaine jumped at the sound of his name. Pulled out of his thoughts, he looked up to see Andrew standing in front of him, smiling.
"It's good to see you at the office," Andrew said warmly. "It takes me back to when you worked as our regular IT guy. How many years ago was that now?"
"I don't remember," Blaine shrugged.
"Oh, right. I forgot about your memory loss. I'm sorry," Andrew said. "Anyway, it doesn't matter. It's nice to have you back."
When Andrew looked away, he noticed Simon showing Vivian pictures on his phone as he shared details about his wedding reception and his family's visit. Overhearing them talk about the wedding and marriage in such joyous and optimistic terms annoyed Andrew. All he could think about was his failed marriage to Amanda and the recent implosion of his relationship with Shayna. When he noticed that Blaine was frowning too, he realized that rocky relationships were something they had in common.
"If you don't already have plans, do you want to get lunch with me?" he asked. "Consider it a welcome back to the company. My treat."
"Yeah, okay," Blaine agreed. "Thanks."
When the elevator doors opened and Lawrence stepped out, he was momentarily startled to find himself face-to-face with Andrew. He took a moment to compose himself, tamp down the guilt that was coming over him, and return his coworker's friendly greeting. It was probably for the best that they ran into each other first thing, so he wouldn't put off saying what he needed to say.
"Do you have a minute to talk?" he asked. When Andrew agreed, Lawrence led the way to his office where they could speak privately.
"So, what's up?" Andrew asked as he closed the door behind them.
"I wanted to talk to you about Shayna."
Andrew sighed. "I can appreciate your concern and that it must be awkward for you working with both of us as you do, but our personal relationship isn't up for discussion."
"It's not that," Lawrence promised. "This is business related."
He took a deep breath as he decided how to proceed. "I want your opinion on offering Shayna a position here, with the Townsend Corporation."
Stunned, Andrew grabbed a chair and sat down. "Why would we do that?"
Lawrence moved around the desk to take a seat as well. "Lucy wants her out of the position of neighborhood manager and without that role, I don't have enough work for her as my personal assistant to keep her occupied and challenged. She has been a great employee, capable and competent. I would hate to let her go." Lawrence hoped that last point didn't sound as if he were speaking on a personal note, but Andrew did not seem to be bothered by his phrasing. "But if you aren't onboard, I won't make the suggestion."
"This really isn't a good time for this . . ." Andrew said with a frown. He and Shayna had decided to take time apart to make some decisions about their relationship. How much of a separation could it be if they were working in the same office every day?
"We can forget about it."
"No," Andrew insisted, straightening up in his seat as he came to a decision. "Shayna quit working here when we first started dating because she didn't want to mix personal and business relationships. I won't stand in her way if she wants to come back. Make her the offer." As he rose from his seat, he added under his breath, "She'll probably say no."
As Andrew looked over at Lawrence before leaving, he noticed Lawrence's brows were furrowed in an expression he couldn't quite read. "Was that all?"
"Yes," Lawrence said, snapping himself out of the private thoughts that had momentarily distracted him. "I'll give Shayna a call and ask her to stop by the office."
"Could you have her come in during lunchtime? Kitteridge and I are going out."
* * * * *
Shayna had fallen into a regular routine over the last week. She would leave her hotel room in the morning, head to the gym and her new favorite coffee shop before spending the day exploring the city and planning out the next moves for her life. Surprisingly, it had been a refreshing break to get away from the neighborhood and spend time on her own, but she was glad it was coming to an end. She was looking forward to picking up Julian from her mother's house the next day and returning to her own house again. She only wished she knew how long it would be her home.
One of the first items on her agenda for getting her life back in order was seeking out therapy for herself and couples' counseling with Andrew if he was willing. She wasn't sure where they would end up, but having a plan to move forward left her feeling optimistic.
Invigorated by her morning workout and feeling good about the days ahead, Shayna strode confidently into the coffee shop, ready to order her usual, but she stopped short when she saw Chloe and Lucy already seated at a table chatting happily with each other. When their eyes met, Chloe and Lucy fell silent, and Shayna felt all of the air get sucked out of the room. She straightened her back, turned decidedly away from them and proceeded to the counter to place her order.
As she waited for her coffee, Shayna could feel Lucy and Chloe's eyes on her from behind and she knew they must be whispering about her. By the time her order was ready, she made up her mind that she would not shy away. If she wanted to regain her position in the neighborhood, she needed to go over and confront them.
"Well, if it isn't my long-lost sister," Lucy said as she approached their table. "Oh. No, it isn't."
Shayna rolled her eyes and reminded herself to keep the high ground. "About that. I just wanted to come over to tell you I was . . .misinformed."
Lucy crossed her arms, unimpressed. "The DNA test proved that."
"I spoke with my mother, and she admitted that she had lied to me about your father and why. Since then, I have started to realize how much that lie has affected my perception and my attitude toward you."
Shayna paused a moment, hoping Lucy would say something in response, but the other woman just stared at her and waited. Shayna was about to swallow her pride and continue when her phone rang. When she saw Lawrence's name on the screen, she cut their conversation short. "I have to take this. I just wanted to let you know."
"That was odd," Chloe muttered as Shayna walked away to take the call. Lucy just nodded in agreement.
* * * * *
"Ready to go?" Andrew asked as he leaned over Blaine's cubicle. "You look like you could use a break."
"Oh, yeah," Blaine replied, as he blinked and looked away from the computer screen.
"Is it a good time for you to go to lunch? I don't want to disrupt your work."
"No, it's fine. My mind just keeps going back to this one personnel file."
"Which one?" Andrew asked as he moved around to get a view of the computer screen.
"There's this one woman," Blaine said as clicked back through the pages of data he had been formatting and brought up the former employee that kept sticking in his mind. "She looks so familiar to me, but I can't place her."
Andrew peered over Blaine's shoulder as a woman's headshot came up on the screen. "Woah, that's a blast from the past. I forgot all about Crazy Lauren."
"Who?"
"Where do I start?" Andrew took a deep breath. "I'm sure you saw in her file that she was a receptionist that worked here briefly, many years ago."
Blaine nodded.
"But what the file won't tell you is how disturbed she was. She was obsessed with Lawrence to the point that she kidnapped the woman he was dating. She got arrested for that and locked up in a mental institution." He leaned in to get a closer look at the screen. "I haven't thought of her in ages."
"Did she and I work here at the same time?" Blaine asked as he started rifling through the files to see if there was one on his employment history.
"I think so. That's probably why she looks familiar to you."
"That makes sense," Blaine said, but he wasn't totally convinced that was the reason.
"You have plenty of time to figure it out. Let's get lunch."
While Blaine locked down his workstation, Andrew pressed the button for the elevator. When the doors opened, Andrew was surprised to see Shayna on the other side.
They exchanged a stilted greeting and, for a moment, it looked as if Shayna was about to say something else but decided against it as Blaine approached. After saying hello to Blaine, she turned away and headed towards Lawrence's office.
"I was surprised to hear from you," Shayna said as she took a seat across from Lawrence. "I was beginning to think you were avoiding me."
Lawrence cleared his throat, knowing he had been called out, but muttered an excuse. "I've been busy with the children. They're still on winter break."
"Starting to regret giving the nanny an extended vacation? I'm surprised you haven't let her go already."
"I'm not sure that I shouldn't have," Lawrence admitted. "Anyway, about why I called you here," he said getting to the point. "I wanted to ask you to come back to work for the Townsend Corporation."
"Oh," Shayna said, taken aback by the offer. Her eyes narrowed skeptically. "So, you think I should give up fighting for my position as neighborhood manager?"
"That is entirely up to you. I just wanted to give you the option. Even if you do stay in your current role, we need to discuss how that is going to look moving forward."
"This isn't just about Lucy trying to have me removed," she said shrewdly. "This is about our kiss."
"Partially," Lawrence admitted. "Having you work out of my home office wasn't a good idea. It allowed our working relationship to become too . . .intimate. I apologize for that."
Shayna studied him silently, keeping her expression devoid of emotion.
"I wouldn't ask you to leave your position," Lawrence said. "But if you are to continue in your current role, I think you should work elsewhere from now on. We can find an office space for you here or in the community center, or you could work from home. If Lucy does force you out as neighborhood manager, I don't want you to be left in the cold."
"You don't have to worry about me," Shayna said as she rose from her seat. "I have plenty of options. I won't have any trouble finding something else."
"I know. You could go anywhere you want, but I would hate to lose you."
Shayna thought a moment. "Does Andrew know about this?"
"About you potentially working here? I ran it by him this morning and he did not object."
"Email me a formal offer and I will think it over."
As the meeting between Shayna and Lawrence was breaking up, Vivian darted away from Lawrence's office door where she had been listening in. When Shayna left the office, Vivian busied herself at the receptionist's desk, flipping through the files she had been on the way to deliver to Lawrence, as if she had been studying them the entire time. She glanced up at Shayna just long enough to nod an acknowledgment before the other woman disappeared into the elevator.
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