Love Over Envy: BWWM Pregnancy Romance Novel (8 page)

That chapter was now over.

After a couple days, the entire situation at work had blown over. Genevieve couldn’t seem to get a hold of Sam even after the problem had been solved. Was he really that angry with her about their date ending so abruptly? Genevieve wanted to explain things to him and she wanted another chance to make it up to him. But Sam had gone off the radar and Genevieve had no choice but to deal with it until he returned.

She was at work, moping over the apparent loss of this new man in her life when she began to think this was all some great conspiracy against her. Too many things were going wrong at once and Genevieve was starting to become distrustful. She knew she should really call her sister Nathalie to discuss this, but Genevieve also wanted to become a more open person. She couldn’t just throw all her problems onto her sister; she needed to let new people in. There was no better way than opening up to her new friend Greta. Genevieve was starting to come down hard on herself for not letting anyone in. Nathalie had made a good point about
all
human interaction, not just interactions involving men. Genevieve was too content to sit and wait. It was important that she build relationships more proactively.

In that vein of thinking, Genevieve called Greta over to her desk after Sam ignored another one of her texts. Greta seemed to have a new man on her arm weekly. Perhaps she would have some insight into men’s behavior that Genevieve had missed. Plus, Genevieve was desperate to share her conspiracy theory with someone and Greta was the only person she even remotely trusted.

“Greta… I think something’s wrong. I think someone is out to get me,” Genevieve whispered. She looked around hoping her boss wouldn’t notice her indulging in some gossipy drivel on the clock. Even if they worked for a decidedly non-serious clickbait site, her boss treated their job like they were BBC journalists and not trashy tabloid writers.

Greta sat next to Genevieve with a concerned look on her face. You had to hand it to her, she was a talented actress.

“What do you mean?” She asked. Her tone betrayed none of her involvement in the “shocking” string of terrible things that were happening to Genevieve. Greta was totally calm. She wasn’t worried at all about Genevieve discovering what she’d been up to.

“Well… This might sound a bit crazy. It’s just that ever since the incident with our boss, I haven’t been able to get in touch with Sam. I just feel like someone is sabotaging me. I know it’s bat shit insane but I’m just worried…” Genevieve began.

Greta nodded. She was playing the part of a concerned friend incredibly well. Now all she needed to do was throw Genevieve off course. She was confident that Genevieve would never suspect her anyways, but she needed to take things to the next level to protect their relationship. Through all of this, Greta didn’t want to lose a friend just yet.

Once Genevieve was done elaborating on the reasons she believed someone was out to get her, Greta planted a suspect in her mind. The suspect was an easy target: unfriendly, competitive and quiet. You never knew what that type of person might be up to.

“You know Gen…” Greta began. She leaned in closer to Genevieve so no one in the office could hear a word she said.

Greta continued, “I’ve seen Jackie Lee being super shady around your computer when you’re on lunch break. Not to mention… I think she has it out for you. She just
looks
racist. I mean… Look at her beady little eyes. There’s just something suspicious about them.”

Genevieve ignored the embedded racism in Greta’s point. She was too busy wondering if Greta could possibly be correct. Could her Korean coworker Jackie possibly be out to get her? She had received quite a few accolades at work recently and Jackie was very goal oriented. Could her jealousy have gone that far? Genevieve couldn’t imagine someone going through such lengths to destroy someone’s life just because of a little jealousy. But Genevieve had to admit that Greta had a point. If Jackie would go this far to take her down at work, Genevieve would have to double down on her efforts to produce better content. Hard, honest work would solve this problem.

Before Genevieve could respond to Greta, her phone rang. Sam had called back the mysterious number on his phone. He suspected it was Genevieve and he figured after ten missed calls, he would give her one last shot…

“Hey, is this Genevieve?” Sam asked.

Genevieve’s heart was beating out of her chest. She left Greta sitting at her desk to converse with Sam in the lobby. She was ecstatic that he’d actually taken the time to call her back.

“Yes… It’s me… I was wondering if we could go out for drinks tonight. I know things ended terribly and that’s my fault. But I think we should talk,” Genevieve said. Unlike the first time, she didn’t hesitate to ask Sam out. Sam was taken aback but was more than happy to go along with what Genevieve asked. He had been determined to give her another chance from the moment he called her back. He was shocked at how forward she was… But happy. She was definitely a woman who he wanted to get to know better.

Sam agreed to go out for drinks with Genevieve. After she had hung up the phone and returned to the office, a smile was plastered over her face with the rest of the day. Greta was definitely curious about what had caused that.  Genevieve didn’t breathe a word to anyone. She wanted to get work done without any distractions. Tonight she would be seeing Sam. Although she was happy about it, Genevieve had a tinge of sadness about her too.

She had plans for the night beyond simply drinks. Genevieve wanted to tell Sam that she needed things to cool down a little bit. Genevieve actually want to date the man casually just to get to know him. She wasn’t looking for a serious relationship now. She had come to that realization recently. Genevieve realized that her position at work was tenuous and things could all fall apart before her eyes if she didn’t keep her head in the game. She wanted to focus all her efforts on that. But she couldn’t just let Sam go… She actually liked him. She thought someday they might have potential. For now, Genevieve had planned to tell Sam that she only wanted to keep things casual. No strings attached.

Sure, Genevieve had mixed feelings about that entire concept of “no strings attached’. She wasn’t really a no strings attached kind of woman. She had morals and standards for herself. But Genevieve’s biggest standard of all was that she wanted to be successful at work. Her job would always come first. It was the reason she had moved to the city in the first place and she wasn’t willing to let that dream go, not even for a man. Not even if that man was Sam. If he really mattered, he would wait until things settled down. At least that’s what Genevieve told herself.

After work, Genevieve sped to her apartment for quick outfit change. She got into something sleek and sexy. The black dress hugged her curves and the black heels slimmed down her legs.  Genevieve didn’t have time to change her simple makeup, but she was naturally beautiful anyways and it showed. She met Sam at an upscale bar where people in their late 20s and early 30s tended to hang out. It wasn’t quite a hot spot yet, but it was up-and-coming. It was the perfect place to meet someone for a dry martini or a decadent piña colada. Sam ordered them both chocolate martinis and they walked off together to a quiet corner of the bar.

Sam couldn’t take his eyes off of Genevieve. He had deleted her number from his phone just because of a bruised ego. Now that she was standing there in front of him, Sam was appalled at what he had done.
What the hell was I thinking.
Sam thought to himself as he stared at Genevieve’s plump body. She was beyond thick and he loved that.  When they sat down together, Sam hoped to finally get to the bottom of whatever had caused Genevieve to abandon their date prematurely.

They sipped their martinis and Genevieve began to spill everything to Sam.  She told Sam about how someone was out to sabotage her at work. She told Sam that things had gotten out of hand that night and she just didn’t want to do. She apologized profusely. Sam still had one question…

“But Genevieve… Why did you call me up and ask for my address and say you were coming over?” He asked.

“I never did that…” Genevieve replied.  She was genuinely confused. Had someone impersonated her? Was that the reason Sam had been so reluctant to pick up her calls? Her heart started pounding in her chest. If Greta was correct, Jackie had really gone too far. She was starting to mess with Genevieve’s personal life on a level that Genevieve wasn’t prepared to deal with. This was starting to get scary. Was Jackie dangerous? What was her endgame?

Sam wasn’t sure if he believed Genevieve but she seemed honest. She looked genuinely concerned as if that statement had shaken her. Was someone really messing with this woman so badly? She seemed terrified.

Sam replied, “Well I don’t know then… I guess you have an enemy somewhere Genevieve. I have to admit that I was absolutely furious. I thought for certain that you were messing with me.”

“I’m sorry that happened. I don’t really know what to say… Sam… I do have something serious to add that’s only a little bit related to this. I just don’t want to lead you on. I really like you and I like spending time with you but I admit I feel distracted. My personal life and my work life seem to be falling apart. Are you okay with us just keeping things casual for a while?” Genevieve asked.

The words had been beyond difficult to get out. She hadn’t been sure how she would ask Sam until that moment. But Sam’s reaction was not one of anger. He seemed to think it was a perfectly reasonable request and this was reflected in his response.

“Of course. I’m totally fine with casual Genevieve. I like you, and I’m all right with there being no strings attached,” Sam answered. He rested his hand on Genevieve’s arm.

The contact between their skin sent goosebumps crawling up her arms. Her heart started beating quickly again. Even Sam’s lightest touch was electrifying. Even something so innocent and gentle could drive her mad.  Genevieve was immediately filled with desire which she tried desperately to disguise. After all, they were in a public bar and she couldn’t act on her feelings no matter how strong they were.

There was no conflict between Sam and Genevieve to come to this decision. They both felt beyond content at this resolution of their relationship. How rare is it that two people are on the same page like that? Usually, it seems like there’s always one person who falls harder than the other.  One person is desperate for a relationship while the other isn’t. One person is always wanting wanting and then there’s always one person who is unable to give. Modern relationships are typically fraught with that kind of conflict, but with Sam and Genevieve there was none of that. They were the odd pair that was perfectly in sync moving down the same river, dancing to the beat of the same drum.

The entire time they had their drinks, Sam and Genevieve would have done better to pay more attention to their surroundings. There was someone watching their entire interaction plotting their next move. After work, Greta had sprung into action herself. She knew Genevieve was suspiciously smiley and she wondered why.  After all, there  was no reason for Genevieve to be quite so happy. Everything was falling apart for her at work and she had lost her man. Greta knew what the work situation was like so she figured out that Genevieve’s renewed happiness was because of contact with Sam. Greta planned to watch this moment of contact unfold. She knew her red hair would make her stand out so she pulled out one of her old Halloween costumes. Well, at least she pulled out the black wig.  The Morticia Addams getup as a regular outfit didn’t quite seem to fit the situation.  With the black wig in place, Greta set about following Genevieve and watching exactly what was going on.

Greta sat from afar with a stiff glass of vodka on the rocks and she watched everything that was happening. She even heard bits and pieces of their conversation that told her all that she needed to know. Things were going well between Sam and Genevieve. Her chance with him was slipping away quickly. Of course, her chances were already gone, but Greta didn’t like to take no for an answer. She was still determined to have him. Her mind had latched on to the idea of Sam. She fantasized often about his perfect body becoming intertwined with hers. In Greta’s mind, they were meant to be. She needed to taste sweet flesh at least once. It was just destiny and Genevieve was standing in the way of it.

Greta was silently stewing. This renewed romance between Sam and Genevieve only spelled bad news for her plan. She needed to attack this problem from a different angle but she couldn’t figure out what to do next. How could she take down this silly bitch? Genevieve was so unsuspecting and Greta was desperate to take advantage of that. 

She’d already planted lies about Jackie Lee in Genevieve’s mind. It would be easy to supplant even more ideas in Genevieve’s head. Taking this bitch down could be accomplished with ease.  Greta didn’t want to be blatant about her attempts to put Genevieve down. That would cause her to lose a friend. No, Greta still wanted Genevieve at her beck and call. She just wanted that uppity woman to be taken down a notch.