Fangirls: The Collection

Chapter Three

CHAPTER THREE

NIKKI LUGGED HER briefcase into Barnes & Noble, hoping there was an empty table at the small coffee shop located in the middle of the bookstore. She really needed to invest in one of those briefcases with wheels and cease the increasing damage to her shoulders and back. It was ridiculous how much stuff she crammed into her briefcase on a regular basis. Add her overloaded purse and it was a wonder she could walk at all under the strenuous weight. She was going to have severe back problems when she was older, if not sooner.

Wednesday night was quiet in the brick-and-mortar bookstore, which was lucky for her since she had only managed to complete half of her reports while she was at work. Between Stephanie drilling her with questions and her own mind flooding her with doubts and what-ifs, she was surprised she accomplished that much. She finally had to leave just to cut the distractions in half. If she didn’t get this report finished, Peter would skin her alive, and to do that, she needed solitude. She grabbed a chicken sandwich at the golden arches and then beelined it to the bookstore, believing it to be less crowded than the coffee house on a weeknight and quieter than her apartment. Her neighbors took Hump Day very seriously.

Passing a display of Jack Sutherland’s latest romance of a couple tossed overboard and lost at sea. She forced herself to keep walking and not browse the new release. She’d pick it up on her way out if she finished her work. Nikki breathed in the quietness of the bookstore. In the small café in the middle, she found a table for two, gave her briefcase the empty seat and stacked her manila folders in front of her. She loved how the bookstores had taken to adding small coffee shops to their businesses, making it cozier to hang out there than the local library. College kids loved it as they had access to research material, as well as caffeine, all at their fingertips.

Before settling in, she ordered a coffee—two sugars and a drop of cream—and a sesame seed bagel. Now she could focus.

And she needed to focus. If she didn’t get the reports done by tomorrow morning, Peter was going to do more than give her a reaming. He was going to offer her head to the corporate guillotine, so he could spare his, and she would deserve it. She had never been the slacker at work, always the industrious one, which was probably why everything was dumped on her. Give it to Nikki. She’ll get it done. It never mattered that she was already spinning enough plates as it was. Stephanie, on the other hand, had the right amount of nonchalance that kept her employed, but never overwhelmed. Nikki needed to take a few lessons from her, and then Nikki would be able to enjoy the gossip Stephanie was always spewing.

Popping the lid off her coffee, allowing it to cool enough to sip, she reached for the first folder. However, with the folder open and the numbers staring at her, she found the last thing she wanted to do was work on the damn reports. Her attention kept being drawn to the section of books labeled Sci-Fi/Fantasy. He did say he wrote fantasy books, right? She stared at the section, her pen held useless in her hand. Did he even tell me the names of his books? If he did, she didn’t remember. I could find him by his last name, though. Except, she didn’t remember that, either. Crap! He only said it once. Think, Nikki, think.

She glanced back down at the spreadsheets in front of her. No, don’t think. Work. I have to get these done.

She blew a breath of frustration out as she picked up her coffee and took a sip, staring at the column of numbers. Edwards! Theo D. Edwards. I think. She jerked her gaze back to the Sci-Fi/Fantasy section, as if she could see the books with the authors’ names printed on the spines.

But what if he had lied? Maybe that’s the reason he didn’t ask for her number. He made the whole thing up because he was busted fantasizing about mermaids and spit out the first story that popped into his head that wouldn’t make him look like a pervert. Men had been concocting those flimsy fabrications for centuries in order to cover that fact up. Being a writer would be a great alibi for what he was doing. Definitely creative. He didn’t give her his number or ask for hers because then, if she ever discovered he lied to her, she would never be able to confront him about it. That sneaky son-of-a-b***h.

Before she considered what she was doing, or rather, what she was supposed to be doing instead, Nikki bolted out of her seat, abandoning her work to search out the lie she just knew she had been told. She left the small café area and marched straight for the fantasy section, her temper percolating at the assumed insult. The books were stocked alphabetically by author, so it should not be too hard to…

There it was. The books were actually there. The Sword of Zymarilis trilogy. She stared, dumbfounded, unable to believe what she was seeing. He hadn’t lied, after all. She lifted the first paperback from its slot. Enter the Raven. The cover had a dark man wearing a hood that came to a point over the man’s nose, both resembling a bird’s beak. Flipping the book over, she read the summary by the publisher. While fantasy wasn’t necessarily her genre of choice—she much preferred steamy romances to heat up her evenings—she had to admit, the story sounded intriguing. She opened the book to the back flap and there was Theo staring back at her, just as shaggy in appearance as he was last night at the Perk & Grind. She found herself smiling, and without remembering walking back over to her table, found herself standing there in front of her chair. She just laughed at herself as she sat down, opening the book to the prologue. It wouldn’t hurt to just peruse a paragraph or two. As she began to read, she couldn’t refrain from smiling. He hadn’t lied. So, why didn’t he ask for my number? While that particular puzzle annoyed her, she didn’t allow the question to distract her from the distraction that was already keeping her from her work. This discovery was just too exciting not to explore. It was like a new adventure in the palms of her hands and Theo—an author she had actually spent time with—was her guide. Pushing the folders and reports aside, she continued to read.

Time was soon forgotten as she lost herself in Theo’s tale. Her coffee had disappeared over an hour ago and she hadn’t realized the store was closing until she heard someone announce over the PA system that customers needed to please proceed to the cashier with their final purchases within the next fifteen minutes. She had been there for five hours and had read every single minute of it, completely ignoring the reports she was supposedly there to work on that night. Peter was going to kill her. Again. She wasn’t sure she had that many lives left.

She repacked her briefcase, tossed her cardboard coffee cup into the trash bin, and headed back to the fantasy section, not to return Enter the Raven, but to snatch up the other two books in his trilogy. She would finish the series, but not tonight. Tonight, she had to finish the reports and keep her ass from receiving another chewing.

Dropping her briefcase, purse, and the newly purchased books beside her on the passenger seat, she strapped herself in behind the wheel and started her car. It was going to be a long night, she knew, but she did it to herself. Once she arrived home, she’d make some coffee and settle in at the dining room table to finish the reports. Hopefully, her neighbors were quiet tonight, their Hump Day celebration humped out.

Traffic was light, most of the retail stores having closed an hour ago, and Nikki was able to allow her thoughts to wander back to her mysterious writer and the question that kept circulating in her mind. Why hadn’t he asked for her phone number? Why was she even obsessing over it? He had just shared his table with her in a crowded coffee shop. It wasn’t like he had asked her out or even to join him. He had just been gracious enough to give her his empty chair.

Yet, he stopped the research he was doing and spent the night talking with her. He hadn’t been annoyed at the interruption or acted put out. He willingly surrendered his time and research to get to know her. He didn’t have to do that. They both could have gone about their work, ignoring the other, and then she wouldn’t be driving home with three books of a genre she didn’t read, having a debate with herself as to why this stranger didn’t ask her out. Nor would she be in trouble at work and about to stay up another three hours to complete the reports. She wasn’t a vain person, expecting everyone to want to ask her out, so why was the fact that Theo didn’t pursue her bothering her so much?

She didn’t know, but she didn’t have time to dwell on it, either. She had to force herself to focus on work and put Theo D. Edwards out of her mind. At least for a little while. At least for the rest of the night.

However, once she arrived home, instead of a pot of coffee, she poured a glass of wine. Instead of buckling down to work at the dining room table, she snuggled in on her loveseat, blanket draped over her legs, and pulled out Enter the Raven, opening it to where she had left off. While not something she would normally read, she felt that by reading it, she was getting to know Theo a little better. Surely, part of who he was as a man was coming through in the story. Hopefully, he was the good guy and not the evil wizard.

She had to admit, his writing drew her in and she found herself once again lost in the pages of his book, unwilling to put it down. It wasn’t until her alarm screamed at her from the bedroom that she realized she had fallen asleep while reading. Jerking awake, her muscles moaned their annoyance at being cramped in one position all night. She cursed herself as she struggled to the bathroom. The alarm must have been screeching for a while, because she was already thirty minutes behind. She needed coffee, even though she didn’t really have time to make it.

Walking into the kitchen, she stopped when she saw the briefcase on the dining room table. s**t! The unfinished work glared at her in silent accusation. This day was not going to go well. She was tempted to just call in sick, but that wasn’t like her either. She was not one to run and hide. Might as well face the music and, hopefully, I can keep my job. Besides, she knew if she didn’t go in, Peter would just keep calling her all day until she surrendered and answered her phone.

Skipping the shower, she grabbed the quickest outfit she could throw together and slipped it on, praying it wasn’t wrinkled. She filled the biggest travel mug she had with coffee and headed for the door, dropping Theo’s book into her briefcase on her way out.