Nickels (20 page)

The next morning, the simulator run through for Todd felt
like a disaster.  He picked apart every little thing, accusing Niki of
overstating their progress.  By the end of test, she felt like she’d been run
over.  As she walked back to her cube, Doug and Kyle followed her.

“What is with that guy?” Doug asked.  “Doesn’t he pay
attention to anything we tell him?”

She shrugged her shoulders.  Couldn’t it be Saturday
already?

“He was way off base in his expectations,” Kyle said.  “I’m
going to talk to my boss about it.  This has got to stop.”

She was tempted to argue with Kyle about it.  But, in
reality, she needed someone from Helitronics on her side.  She was pretty sure
Todd was feeding the higher ups a bunch of hooey about deliverables and
timelines, despite how diligent she had been in her communication.

“Just goes to show,” Doug said, “That some men are still
threatened by an intelligent woman.”

“Could be.”  Niki smiled.

Leave it to Doug to try to cheer her up.  Todd never liked
her from day one.  When he looked down his nose at her, she assumed it was
because of her age, not her gender—especially when he seemed intent on drilling
her about her experience.  Regardless, if he had a problem with her age or her
gender, she could do nothing about either of those things.  She could only do
her best work and hope that in the end it would speak for itself.

Despite Todd being a jerk, the next day and half went rather
smoothly.  Early Friday afternoon, they loaded several updates to the
simulator.  She thought they were in good shape and hoped Kyle wouldn’t find
any huge issues with the features they promised for Monday’s big meeting.

Niki paced back and forth in the observation room, trying to
work out her nervousness.

“You’re driving me crazy,” Doug said.  “Sit down.”

She couldn’t sit.  This was too big.  But, she did stop
pacing.

Kyle’s voice came over the sound system, announcing his take
off.  This time when he banked left he said everything looked good.  The bank
right also looked good.  He ran through several simulated rescues, reporting
all was well.  Then he ran through the same tests as copilot.

After the final test, he said, “Well, Niki, guys, it looks
like we’re in business.  Great job.”

The guys congratulated her and filed out of the observation
room.  She stayed for a few minutes, watching Kyle as he started double
checking the settings from the recording.  She just needed that last bit of
confirmation to ease her mind.

“I can hear you, Niki,” Kyle’s voice came across the
speaker.  “Unless that’s someone else’s heels clicking on the tile.”

She tried to fake a deep voice, “It’s Doug.”

“Nice try.  Why don’t you come on down here if you’re going
to look over my shoulder.”

She flipped off the speaker switch and the rest of the
observation room equipment.  Then she took the stairs down to the simulator
room.  As she opened the door, Kyle did not look up from his work.  Instead, he
pointed to the copilot seat.

She sat.  Then she fidgeted with her fingernails.  Then she
tapped her foot.  Then she shifted in the seat.  How long was this going to
take?

“Almost done.”  Glancing up, from the clipboard in his hand,
he said, “Stop fidgeting.  You’re making me nervous.”

“Sorry.”

Ten minutes later, he set the clipboard aside.  “Do you want
the good news or the bad news?”

Her stomach plummeted to the floor.  What did he mean bad
news?  She was really hoping she could go home tonight.

Chapter 18

Niki swallowed hard, wringing her hands.  “What’s the bad
news?”

Kyle smiled, a very odd reaction to bad news.  “You can’t go
home yet.”

“Why not?  What’s wrong?” she asked as her heart started to
race.  What had they missed?

“The good news,” he said, ignoring her question, “is that
everything checks out.”

“Oh.  Tell me again, why I can’t go home then.”

“Because, you haven’t had your third lesson yet.”  He
grinned this time, his blue eyes lighting up.

“What are you talking about?  What third lesson?”

“You’re third lesson in fun.”  He pointed at the flight
controls.  “See how I’m holding the controls?  Your turn.”

She placed her hand on the control stick and looked over. 
Something was off.  He stood and moved behind her.  Her heart skipped a beat or
two when he placed his hand over hers to show her how to hold it.  When she
took a deep breath she caught the delicious smell of his cologne.

Breathe, Niki.  It’s just Kyle.
  If that was so, then
why was she acting like she just met the hunky cover model for some magazine?

Heat rushed to her cheeks.

“It’s all yours, pilot,” he smiled, standing next to her.

She widened her eyes and looked up at him.  “I don’t have
any idea what I’m doing.”

He leaned behind her and put his hand over hers again.  A
charge of electricity bolted up her arm as he gently pulled back on the
controls.  What was happening to her?

Kyle whispered in her ear, “That’s it.  You’re a natural.”

She laughed nervously.  “Only cause you’re showing me.”

“See this,” he pointed to the instrument panel.  “That’s
what you’ve been working on.”

He helped her make several of the maneuvers he used in
testing, explaining how important their work was.  Then, he let her try it on
her own.  She squealed when she nearly crashed the thing and he talked her
through how to get back on track.  By the time she was done, she felt out of
breath.

“Okay,
that
was fun!”

Kyle turned off the simulator then he followed her as she
stood and headed back to her cube to pick up her things.  She thought he’d
continue on to his own cube, but he stopped when she did.

“Let’s go to dinner,” he suggested, “before you head for home.”

“Kyle, I don’t date—”

“It’s not a date.  It’s two friends celebrating a major
milestone at work.”

She hesitated.  She looked at the clock on her phone. 
Seven.  She was tired from the insane two weeks and was eager to get home. 
But, she could also use some food and a chance to unwind.

Letting out a long breath, she asked, “Where do you want to
meet?”

“I can drive.”

“I’m heading home straight from there.”

They agreed on a place just up the street.  Kyle grabbed his
things before walking her to her car.  When she pulled into the restaurant
parking lot, he pulled next to her and jumped out before she had the engine
shut off.  He opened the door for her and flashed that brilliant smile, sending
her heart upside down.  Sure seemed like a date, the way he was acting.

As they walked towards the front of the restaurant, a couple
stood by one of the parked cars kissing a bit too much for public display.

“They should get a room,” Kyle remarked.

She stopped and looked at them again.  “Trevor?”  The name
dropped from her lips before it fully registered in her brain.

Suddenly the couple broke apart.  A slightly terrified
looking Trevor stood next to some young thing in a skirt that left little to
the imagination.

“Niki?” he choked out.

That rat.  Trevor was obviously seeing someone else, despite
his call earlier this week asking her to call him when her schedule freed up.

“What are you doing here?” Trevor asked.

“I could ask you the same thing.”

“I thought I made it clear, all I wanted was a good time. 
No strings attached.”

That was not exactly how he made it sound at the BBQ.  Her
blood boiled.  She felt used.  And to think, she came pretty close to sleeping
with the creep.

“Besides,” Trevor said, looking Kyle up and down, “it looks
like you moved on.  I don’t see why you’re so upset.”

“Kyle is a friend.  This is not a date.”

“Sure looks like a date.  If you get bored, give me a call.”

“I wouldn’t call you if you were the last man on earth,” she
said through gritted teeth.

“Come on, Niki,” Kyle said, urging her forward.

Trevor’s laughter echoed across the parking lot, fueling her
fire. 
What a jerk!

As they entered the dimly lit restaurant, she fumed.  She
had never felt so humiliated.  Well, maybe a few times in high school.  But, it
stung to see the guy who ranked as one of her best dates in the last four
years, making out with someone else in the parking lot.  True, she only went
out with him once, but it still hurt.

When the hostess asked how many, Kyle said, “Two.  It should
be under Kyle.”

Niki shot him a look.  This was not supposed to be a date,
but he had reservations?

“Call ahead,” he said placing his hand in the small of her
back as they followed the hostess to their seats.

As soon as the hostess left, he started, “Niki, I—”

“Save it.  I don’t need a ‘told you so’ right now.  I’ve
been humiliated enough for one day.”

“I was just going to say, I’m sorry,” he said softly.

“Oh.”  Now she felt twice as bad.

Embarrassed, she studied the menu, even though she already
knew what she was going to order.  Some would find that strange, given the
Cheesecake Factory’s enormous menu, but she was a creature of habit.  When she
found something she liked, she stuck with it.

Her phone beeped, indicating there was a text message.  It
was Marcy.

When r u coming back? M.

Niki typed back: 
tonight, after dinner.

K.  U seen Kyle? Not answering phone.

“Call your sister,” she said, looking up from her phone as
their server came to take their drink orders.

“You always on that thing?”

“Not always.  It was Marcy.  She’s getting worried that I’ve
been MIA for so long.”

He nodded, returning his attention to the menu.

This meal was rapidly starting to look like any number of
her failed dates.  But it wasn’t a date.  It was just Kyle.  Why all of the
sudden after working side by side for the last two months, did she feel like
she had nothing to say?  Why was her pulse racing?  She even thought it was
sweet that he apologized for Trevor’s behavior.

Who was this sensitive, kind, and thoughtful man?  He had
changed.  And it was confusing her.  So was her reaction to him.

She glanced over the top of the menu.  He looked up at the
same time and smiled at her.  She quickly held the menu up to hide the red
creeping into her cheeks.

Their server arrived with their drinks.  Niki gave her order
then sipped on her diet soda.  She watched Kyle as he asked a few questions
about the menu before settling on one of the chicken dishes.  When the server
took the menus away, she kept the soda straw to her lips so she would feel less
awkward about her sudden lack of conversational skills.

“Thirsty?” Kyle teased.

She slammed down the cup.

“See, this is why I suck at dating.”  The lack of sleep must
be getting to her.  She felt like confessing all her failures—a rare occurrence
indeed.  “If I’m not judging the guy across from me, I’m planning my escape if
things go bad.  I don’t know how to just sit across from someone and talk.”

Face it, Niki, the reason you suck at dating is that you’re
afraid of getting hurt.

“Are you judging me now?” he asked with a glint in his eyes. 
He was enjoying her discomfort.

“No.”

“Tell me what you’re thinking.”

That you look incredibly stunning and that blue shirt
makes your eyes glow.
  She felt heat rise to her cheeks at the thought. 
She quickly looked away.  Where was that salad?

“That bad, huh?”

He let her squirm for a few more minutes.  When their food
arrived, he reached for her hand.  She started to pull it away but stopped when
he bowed his head.  What was he doing?

“Lord, I thank you for this dinner and the chance to
celebrate with Niki.  Thank you for helping us pull this thing together at work
and for blessing Niki with a good mind.  Bless this food to our bodies, in
Jesus’ name, Amen.”

She was speechless.  She never prayed for a meal.  She also
never thought God would be even remotely interested in her project at work. 
And she never had anyone thank God for her.  It was incredibly humbling and
confusing.  She still blamed God for Jack’s death.  Why would he care about her
project when he took her family away?

Kyle seemed to be oblivious to the feelings churning inside
her.  “You did an amazing job.  I’m so impressed by how you coded something so
complex about something you knew little about before starting the project.”

She half-smiled, still fighting the emotions stirred by his
prayer.

“You are an amazing woman,” he said as his eyes locked with
hers.

For some reason the sincere admiration made her completely
uncomfortable.

Tears pooled in her eyes.   “Excuse me.”  She ran for the
sanctuary of the restroom.