Tears burned her eyes. His wonderful, supportive attitude was incredible, but in truth, it only made things more complicated—made her wish she was closer. Made her wish she could melt into his arms.
* * *
A few minutes before midnight, Kat pushed ‘submit’ on the job application. It was still on her mind, the next morning, but as she exited the subway, she forced it to the back burner. There was nothing more she could do and worrying wouldn’t help. Construction had started on the exhibit, and she had to be mentally present.
Already it was coming together. Workers finished the floor yesterday, and now the exhibit crew was putting up walls. Live bamboo would be delivered tomorrow. In her office, Kat opened her computer files to track the progress of the frames. Delivery right on schedule. The details were falling into place.
On Wednesday, she took a notepad and her phone down to the exhibit space to document the progress. She’d been designated the official scribe for the project.
She stepped inside the heavy plastic sheeting, and one of the exhibit crew members she’d worked with several times winked at her. “Don’t worry, Kit-Kat, we’re being careful.” He kept moving as he held up one side of the long, narrow box that would house the live plants.
Kat grinned. It looked great. When the plastic rustled again, she turned to see Amy escorting a man in a sharp charcoal suit. He didn’t look familiar.
“Hello, Kat,” Amy said as they approached her. “It’s really taking shape, isn’t it?”
“Yes. Can’t wait to see the bamboo in place.”
Amy smiled and gestured toward the man at her side. “Kat, I’d like you to meet Blake Carroway. He’s in from Boston.”
The man extended a hand. “Pleased to meet you. I’m enjoying this behind-the-scenes tour.”
Kat’s smile froze. Blake from Boston? The hot-shot guy Cassie had mentioned? That would explain his appearance—he looked dressed to impress. They were already interviewing? Bringing in candidates? Kat’s heart skipped a beat. She hadn’t gotten a call.
She murmured what she hoped was an appropriate response while her thoughts ricocheted all over the place. This was not cool. She remembered Nick’s words of optimism about her future. Unfortunately, she could be years away from supporting herself with her art. She needed the museum job. And she needed to move up.
“Enjoy the tour,” she told Blake. She met his eyes and gave a cordial smile—and wondered if he realized she was his competition. At least she hoped she was. She held up her phone. “I’d better get back to work. These guys are moving fast, and I’d hate to miss something.” She stepped away but couldn’t help a few cursory glances back toward Blake from Boston. If he was the successful candidate, he’d be her boss.
She hadn’t had a male boss since her internship at the Denver Art Museum. Jim had been good to work with, but Kat liked the dynamics of her current reporting structure. Change was inevitable, but it’d be harder to work with Amy if she handed the position to an outsider as a favor.
With a heavy sigh, she moved around the display and snapped photos of the progress.Whatever. She could adapt. And she had the motivation to move on before she got stuck in a dead end.
But by the end of the day, Kat found herself not only watching the clock, but seriously considering taking a mental health day. She toyed with the idea. If she took off Friday, she could leave New York Thursday night and fly into Colorado Springs. It’d be a late night, but with the two-hour time difference, they’d manage. Heat rushed to her face. Not as if she’d be going to Colorado for a good night’s sleep, anyway. She could stay until Sunday afternoon.Hmm. It’d be cheaper to fly into Denver, and she knew Nick would pick her up. But that would waste time and– Oh, damn. She was supposed to go see her framed work before everything got shipped over to Loft on Friday.
Maybe she could take a long lunch tomorrow and skip over there. Or–Oh, who was she kidding?She slammed a file folder onto her workspace. A last-minute plane ticket would be absurdly expensive. Her heart said, “so what?” but her head gave her a soft slap and told her to get real.
Ugh.Enough. Time to go home and get lost in her paints. She unlocked the file drawer under her desk and pulled out her purse. As she leaned over to flip off the desk lighting, a message popped up on her computer. She flopped back into her chair to take a look—and froze. HR had added a meeting to her calendar. This, she had to open.
Holding her breath, she clicked to open the notification.All right. She fist-pumped the air. An interview set for ten o’clock Friday morning. So, fate intervened again. No way could she take off Friday after all. And she’d need to channel all her energy into prepping for the interview.
* * *
Friday came fast. Kat dressed with an eye to every detail to look professional but artistic at the same time. She chose a black sweater dress paired with a denim jacket and a bright floral scarf. Just before ten, she entered the Human Resources area and was directed to a small meeting room. Amy and one other person already sat at the table. The exhibits director joined a moment later.
They asked all the expected questions but seemed hung up on Kat’s lack of managerial experience. How the heck was she supposed to gain that if she didn’t get a chance at it? She calmly gave examples of her teamwork and people skills, her ability to include others without micro-managing. Her answers were met with smiles and nods.
The entire interview lasted only thirty minutes.
Kat returned to her cubicle to find a stunning floral arrangement in shades of yellow, pinks and coral combined with interesting twists of greenery on her work surface. With a soft gasp, she sank into her chair. She reached for the card and let out a shaky breath, her thoughts ping-ponging from the interview to Nick.Whew. It’d been a long time since she’d had Valentine’s flowers.
“How’d it go?”
Kat had barely sat down when she looked up to find Cassie hovering in the hallway. Kat gestured her inside and gave a half-hearted laugh. “I have no idea. It was short and sweet. I can’t help wondering why it all seems so rushed. I mean, sometimes filling a job opening takes months. This seems to be on the fast track.”
“Yeah, I get the feeling there’s going to be more movement and reorganization coming. They probably want to get things settled before the tourist season hits.”
“I guess that makes sense. Did you see that Amy had Blake from Boston in earlier this week?”
“I did. She brought him by and introduced him.” She blew out a long sigh. “He seemed like a decent guy, but I hope you get the spot.”
