Just A Woman (The Porter Trilogy Book 2) (11 page)

In typical fashion, Jerry got to me faster than anyone else would be able to. I saw him exit the elevator and head to Brigitte. He may not like me very much, but his commitment to his job, and therefore, my company, was astounding. No matter how much I could threaten if need be, I knew I would never fire him. In fact, I needed to make him a permanent part of my staff, not just someone who floated as a temp. He needed a concrete position. While I waited for him to come into my office, I plotted a good position for him.

When my intercom buzzed, announcing that Brigitte was checking with me about his arrival, I clicked the answer and grunted in traditional Alex fashion. A moment later, the tension in my office skyrocketed to new heights as Jerry walked in, defiance clear on his face, his arms folded over his chest.

“Mr. Porter, how can I assist you today?”

I wasn’t looking forward to what I needed to say. My pride was going to suffer majorly, but if I ever wanted Charlotte back, I needed to do this.

“Jerry, thank you for coming, please have a seat.” I extended my arm to the chair, offering him a comfy place to listen to me beg. Maybe I should get him some popcorn and candy for the show.  After he reluctantly took a seat, I decided to take the plunge, I may as well just rip off the Band-Aid.

“Jerry, I know I’m not your favorite person right now, and honestly, I can’t blame you. I’m guessing Danny filled you in on the circumstances surrounding my break-up with Charlotte.  But I need you to know, that despite what it seems, I didn’t intentionally lie to Charlotte and I would NEVER purposely hurt her.”

I looked up to see Jerry staring at me, his eyes softening just a little. I had to continue and try to break through to him.

“I love Charlotte, Jerry. I really fucking do, and I want to do everything I can to get her back, but what I want to do, well, I need your help. I need you
and
Danny.” Holding up my hand to cut off his rebuttal, I finished. “I don’t expect you to want to help me, but I’m begging you Jerry. I need Charlotte. I need her more than I need my next breath. I need all of her. She makes my heart smile and she makes my sun rise. She is my everything, and I want to give her all of me. Please, Jerry.”

At some point in the middle of that speech, my head had fallen. I should have been mortified with my desperation but, at the moment, I couldn’t bring myself to care. When I looked up at Jerry, I knew I had won him over. I watched as he wiped a wayward tear from his cheek and sniffed to himself.

Gathering myself, I stood up and sat in the chair next to Jerry and waited for him to speak. I didn’t want to rush his thought process, and I could see the cogs turning in his head. As much as I wanted him to agree, I wouldn’t force him to. If he wouldn’t, or if Danny wouldn’t help, I would figure something else out.

After a few, very tense, very long minutes. Jerry heaved out a sigh and looked up at me.

“Mr. Porter, I’ll help you, but we need to talk to Danny first. He won’t be as easy to convince, especially since he isn’t right here to see your sincerity. I heard what you did for Charlotte last week, and it was just so moving. I’m a hopeless romantic, while Danny, well, he isn’t. I will try and run damage control, but I can’t guarantee anything,” he said, taking my hand.

“Thank you, Jerry. I mean it. Really, thank you.” I didn’t think it would be appropriate to bring up a promotion, since I didn’t want him to think he earned it trying to help me get my girl back. Eventually, I would bring it up to him, after the Charlotte dust had settled. He had earned it and I’d make sure my employee was satisfied.

“So how should we do this, Jerry? Do you want to call him? Or should I call? Maybe we can both call from here on speakerphone?” I asked, my nerves kicking back in again, spiking my blood pressure. Jerry squeezed my hand and dropped it, pointing at my desk phone.

“Let’s call him from the speakerphone at your desk. He’ll recognize the main number and think it is me. Let me do the talking at first and try to loosen him up.”

I nodded my head at him and headed for my side of the desk, pushing the phone to the middle for easy access for both of us. Jerry moved his seat closer to the edge and looked at me, silently asking me if I was ready for this. Pushing out a breath, I nodded at him again and pressed the speakerphone button, letting Jerry enter in the phone number. I was eternally grateful that Jerry offered to speak first, since I didn’t know if Danny would even listen to me long enough to hear my plan.

“Hey, baby,” Danny answered.

“Hey to you. How are you?” Jerry asked.

“I’m ok, just got home from that sunglasses shoot. It was great. OH! I got you a pair of those ones you loved!” Danny gushed. I silently thanked the heavens above that Danny seemed to be in a good mood. Maybe this wouldn’t be as hard as I thought.

“Aww, you’re so thoughtful, thank you. But, hey, listen, I need you to hear me out before you say anything, ok?”

Even through the phone, I could feel Danny stiffen and turn defensive. My hopes sank for an easy resolution. This would be anything but easy. I hated that I needed to beg, but I could appreciate and even respect the fact that he was so over protective.

“What is it, Jerry?” Danny said, skepticism lacing his tone.

“I wish you were here so you could see what I see,” Jerry whispered into the phone.

“No, Jerry, No! This is about Alex Fucking Porter, isn’t it? Don’t fall for his shit, Jerry. God, I can’t even believe I’m having this god damn conversation with you, Jerry.”

Knowing I needed to step in to save Jerry any backlash, I cleared my throat and spoke up. “Danny, I realize I’m the bad guy, please don’t punish Jerry for talking to me. I asked him to come up here. I need your help.”

“You need
my
help?” he asked, sarcasm dripping from every word. “Why in the hell would I ever help you, you asshole?”

“Please, Danny, please listen to me. Give me five minutes. If I can’t convince you, I will never ask again.” I pleaded with him, praying to God he would hear me out. If I couldn’t get him to listen, not only would my plans fail, but the likelihood of getting Charlotte back would be drastically reduced. This was her best friend, and I knew how highly she regarded him and his opinion.

“How about if you don’t convince me. How about if you never speak to Charlotte again,” Danny sneered back at me.

I couldn’t help the growl that escaped my throat. No one was ever going to make me stop trying to make things right with Charlotte. I looked up, noticing the smile splayed across Jerry’s face. He was getting a kick out of this argument.

“That’s never going to fucking happen, Danny. Never. Charlotte is my soul mate, and if you won’t help me, I’ll do it my own damn self and I swear to everything, that if you let her know my plans, I will find you, I swear to God I will find you.” I was panting by the end of my rant. My anger had risen exponentially in such a short time.

Jerry patted my hand, urging me to calm down. “Danny, sweetheart, I wish you could see Mr. Porter right now. He’s frazzled and frankly, kind of a mess.” Jerry said, smiling at my sour face. “Hear what he has to say, ok?”

It took a few moments, but finally, we heard Danny take a deep breath and agree to listen to what I had to say. It took me a few moments to calm myself down. My anger the last few weeks had risen to out of control measures. I needed to see Charlotte soon. She was the one who could reign in my rage and make me feel almost human.

“Danny,” I started, “I know I hurt her. I know. But, I thought I was protecting her by not telling her that I knew. I didn’t want her to have to relive that night ever again, and honestly, I was a little selfish. I hoped that, if she never knew I was there, then she wouldn’t be able to connect me to her horrible past.” I ran my fingers through my hair and continued. This would be so much easier with his help. “Danny, I love her.” I whispered.

I heard the sharp inhale of his breath. Clearly, Charlotte had not told him of my confessions from that evening. I figured maybe he had read it on Charlotte’s blog, but he seemed shocked. Hoping to gain the upper hand, I continued, the words falling from my mouth like verbal diarrhea.

“I know you have every right to hate me and not believe a word that comes out of my mouth, but please believe this. I love that girl with everything that I am and everything that I will be. I’d give up all of this to be with her.” My hands flourishing around the room even though Danny couldn’t see it. “She makes me a better person. So, please, if you love her, give me a shot to make it up to her. Give me a shot to make it right.”

Jerry and I sat and waited for what felt like hours, but, in reality, was a brief pause, for Danny to respond and deliver my sentence. Was he condemning me or saving me? I could feel the sweat on my brow, even though my office was always kept at a cool 68 degrees, and I watched as Jerry looked back and forth between my phone and my face. Right when I thought he wasn’t going to go for it and I opened my mouth to make another plea, Danny spoke up.

“What did you have in mind?” he sighed, resignation lacing his words.

I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face and neither could Jerry. Danny was on board with helping me and I couldn’t be happier. With Danny on my side, even a little bit, my hopes of getting her back increased exponentially.

“Thank you, Danny,” I whispered, “Thank you. Here’s my plan.”

I spent the next half an hour going through what I wanted to do over the next week to woo Charlotte and get her back into my arms and into my life. Initially, Danny was highly skeptical, but eventually, with Jerry’s help, I could feel him coming around.

With everyone in place for my plan, I hung up with Danny, thanking him profusely, and letting him know that I owed him a favor, which he could cash in whenever he wanted, day or night. I shook Jerry’s hand and silently thanked him with my eyes. Understanding my thanks, Jerry winked back at me as he exited my office.

I sat back in my chair and thought about the last hour. I had a lot to do to get ready for the gala next week and not a whole heck of a lot of time to do it, but with Danny and Jerry’s help, I knew things were finally going to start going my way.

Picking up my phone, I called Bracks. I needed to put the first part of my plan into motion, and because I needed to know if it was going to work, I was going to need access to the video feed of Charlotte’s office. I knew from an outside perspective, it would look as if I was invading her privacy, but part of my plan relied on her responses to the things I had planned, and honestly, I was so desperate to see her, I couldn’t put forth the extra energy to care. It wasn’t like I was putting cameras in the bathroom or anything.

After disconnecting with Bracks, I had one more call to make before I went home to think about the upcoming week and the upcoming fundraiser.

“Thank you for calling Versace on Rodeo, this is Susan, how can I help you today?”

“Susan, it’s Porter, listen, I need a dress by next Friday. Can you help me?”

“Of course, Mr. Porter. What did you have in mind?” 

Daydreamer Musings
August 14, 2015
Followers- 686

I’m feeling a little in shock over the large amount of new people reading this blog. I mean, I don’t think I even know 686 people! I guess my life is compelling or something? Well, as always, hello to all of my new followers. You’re in for a treat today! And, for those of you who read my last blog, I apologize for not posting sooner. It’s been a crazy two weeks. A crazy, amazing, beautiful two weeks. 

So, last I posted, Alex had sent me the coffee every day with some sort of memorabilia from our time together. I was scared to let him back in. I’m still scared to let him back in. In fact, I’m petrified. I’ve gotten some lovely comments from a lot of you, telling me to open my heart and see what happens (consequently I’ve also received the opposite from people, telling me to file a restraining order). That might be a little harsh, I mean I do love him, I don’t want him to get in trouble with the law or anything, and as well, I kind of WANT to see him, I mean, I love him. I keep saying that. I love him. I really do.

Anywho! I need to tell you all about the last few weeks, and maybe some of you non-believers will come around, and maybe retelling my story will cement my decision; whichever way I decide to go.

The day after I last updated, I went into a normal day at work. I was tired, very tired, and honestly, I wasn’t in any mood to be at work or do anything. I had almost considered calling in sick, but I hate lying when I’m not really sick. So, I stuck it out and worked my shift.

By the end of the day, I almost considered calling an Uber, because I was so exhausted, and I didn’t want to crash my car on the way home, but I figured I could make it and went to my car. When I opened the door, there was a single rose on my driver’s seat. There was no note, but I knew who it was from. I remember smiling the entire drive home, my tiredness completely forgotten. How had he gotten it into my locked car. I mean, sure, Alex is crafty, but breaking and entering? Maybe his driver did it.

The next two weeks went in similar fashion. On Tuesday, at my typical Starbucks, the lady behind the counter handed me a rose, a smile plastered to her face. On Wednesday, there was one sitting on the doorstep of my apartment when I got home from work. On Thursday, the deli lady handed me one and, on Friday, there was one ON MY PILLOW when I woke up. How was he doing it? How did he know where I would be? It was like he knew my next move before I did.

Over the last two weeks, I have received 10 beautiful roses that are all sitting in a vase on my dresser in front of me. I’ve stared at them for more hours that I should be allowed to, thinking about what I’m going to do. I don’t know how he did all of the things that he did. I don’t know how one ended up on my pillow or in the front seat of my car. (I also realize that those of you pushing for a restraining order are probably screaming at your computer screens now more than ever).