I sat at my desk, staring at the spot where she had stood not ten minutes ago. She hadn't shown it but I could sense it. I had hurt her. For the first time in years, I felt...off. The last time I had felt that way was back in board school. In all honesty, I expected a different reaction, I expected her to admit defeat and just stop calling me that. It sounded awfully familiar to the way Benny used to call me. The way she says it...
Maybe getting her fired wasn't the right approach but she would have had to quit the job sooner or later. It's just the woman pressed all my wrong buttons at the same time.
I had to apologise but I really didn't know how to. What would I say? I paced my office thinking of what I could do. What if she changed her mind about the marriage? I need to do damage control as soon as possible.
An hour later, I found myself still thinking about what I could do. Nita wasn't the type I could appease with a fancy bag or a trip to Paris. She wasn't shallow like most women I knew and the strangest thing; she wasn't attracted to me like most women I knew. Strange, isn't it? I wonder if she was dropped on the head when she was a baby.
My desk phone rang and I picked up, short on patience "Mr. Numero?" my assistant's voice wafted through.
"There's a report you need to..."
"Tell Sam to deal with it. Postpone all appointments."
I slammed the phone down and grabbed my car keys. How hard could apologies be?
As I stepped out of the car, adjusting my suit, I rehearsed my lines. Nita, I'm sorry for being ...Nita, I shouldn't have. The door opened as I tried to knock and I stepped through.
There was loud music coming from the living room 'Kelly Rowland's I Like My Kisses Down Low' blaring through the speakers. Interesting song choice. I walked through knowing she was home. Her Dad was at work, her mum had gone with mine to see wedding planners. I stepped into the kitchen and found a very interesting sight. What greeted me was Nita, in hot shorts and a tank top, holding a spatula like a microphone and shaking her thang.
She didn't notice me right away so I cleared my throat, I didn't want to startle her. She turned to me, and her eyes landed on me, instantly going wide. She dropped the spatula in the sink like a hot potato. "What the hell are you doing here?"
She scoffed and walked out of the kitchen, keeping her distance when passing by me. "What do you want, Junior?"
There it was again. The girl really didn't know how to listen. "Would you please not call me that?" I snapped automatically.
"What am I supposed to call you? Isn't that your name? Why do you suddenly want to chop my head off when I call you that?" she spun back to look at me holding my gaze. Damn, the girl has got spunk.
"It just... I can't explain it. It's something I was called when I was younger, I just feel like it doesn't suit me anymore. My name is Richard. You can call me Richard," I couldn't explain to my fiancée that the way she called me Junior sounded exactly like the way a girl I had a crush on used to call me. "Look, I came here to apologize,"
Her eyebrows shot up. "Somebody pinch me! Apologize? You?"
"You're not making it easy though. I am capable of remorse,"
She chuckled slightly and sat on the couch in the living room, "Go on, then. Apologize."
"I... I shouldn't have gotten you fired but in my defense, you would need to quit sooner or later,"
"That isn't an apology, that's justification."
"Nita, come on... I'm trying here. Okay, how about we make a deal,"
"you do seem to pull those out of your ass,"
"That's what makes me an awesome businessman," I countered
I sighed in exasperation. How many of my buttons had she pressed in less than ten minutes? "You need a job. After the wedding, you can head the Numero accounting department. You're overqualified for anything less anyway. I spoke to your boss."
"You want me to work for you?"
I had to choose my response carefully or I would have to start this conversation all over again. "Well, not directly under me. But technically, yes." I sighed again. "Nita, come on. Take the job. It's yours."
She mulled it over for a moment, I could almost see the wheels turning in her head. "Fine. But on one condition."
I frowned. "That's it?"
"Yes, but I pick the place."
An hour later, I was standing outside a shack a few kilometers from her house. A neon sign blinked "Mama L's Burgers" in bold letters.
"This is where you want to eat?" I asked incredulously as Nita strolled and placed orders, looking far too pleased with herself.
"Let's put it this way, every time you offend me, I will think of ways to make you suffer,"
The place was packed and I stood out like a sore thumb. The plastic chairs on the street were filled up and we had to stand. The noise from the street was deafening.
We were handed our burgers and I stared at it in disbelief. There is no way it was healthy. The amount of oil dripping from the meat was alarming. Nita, on the other hand, bit into hers like she hadn't eaten in days. It made me remember something my mother said about Nita loving food.
"Well?" she prompted, her mouth full.
I took a cautious bite and chewed carefully.
"See?" she said, " nice, isn't it?"
She laughed, and for the first time, I noticed just how beautiful she could be if she were genuinely happy. I felt the urge to keep her that way.
I had a busy morning as usual, I didn't even have time for my coffee. Consequences of skipping the rest of the day yesterday. I had an amazing time last night, Nita seems to be warming up to me but she still had this wall built around her. I had woken up feeling great this morning, I even said hi to the receptionist on my way in.
Sam, my COO barged into my office with a stack of documents. The coffee on my desk was already lukewarm, I buzzed my assistant and requested another before I could enter into Sam's tirade of what was next on the day's agenda.
"Richard?" Sam called while I distractedly opened one of the files he had just brought in.
"Yeah, Sam?" I asked without looking up.
"I don't suppose you have checked your phone, email, or social media today, have you?"
"Haven't had the time. I remember dropping instructions yesterday for you to handle some of my tasks. I wonder why I still have so much to get done today,"
"Richard, you're trending!"