Thanks to papaya_lynne and OVERLAND for help with this story. Feedback, positive and negative, is always appreciated.
7. Payback
When Kelly pulled up to the office on Tuesday and saw Bob coming out to meet her, she knew something was wrong.
"Hi." Bob flashed a winning smile that didn't fool her for an instant.
"Hi yourself."
"You look nice today."
"What do you want?"
Bob's face fell as he realized his ruse was in vain. "I need a favor."
"Uh-hu."
"I need you to be my girlfriend."
"What's the catch?"
"Well, there is this girl in my office who's got the hots for me, but I only like her as a friend. She stops by my office and talks my ear off when I'm trying to get work done. She follows me from one end of the building to the other. It's gotten so bad that I'm taking the long way around the office to keep from passing by her desk. So, I figured that if I got a new girlfriend and introduced her...you...to Barbara, it would convince her that I'm off the market and she'll leave me alone." Bob looked desperate.
"So you want me to poach on this other girl's perceived property just because you're too much of a coward to tell this floozy to fuck off?"
"'Coward' is such an ugly word. I much prefer 'chicken-shit'".
"It won't work." Kelly continued on her way in the building with Bob in her wake.
"Why not?"
"She's not taken the obvious hints so far. What makes you think a little thing like 'reality' is going to make her change her ways?" Bob sped by her to get the door.
"Please? I don't know what else to do."
Kelly heard the echo of her own voice as she stood in the moving truck rental place with Jane only two days earlier. She rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Alright. What's your plan?"
"She covers for the receptionist from 12:30 to 1:30. You come over about 12:40 or so and ask for me. When I come in the lobby, I give you a kiss and we walk out the door arm in arm."
"Fine. I'll be there."
"Thanks." Bob opened the office door Kelly was headed to and held it for her.
Kelly soon found herself absorbed in her daily tasks. Unfortunately, people whom she had to deal with today insisted on being stupid; something Kelly had a very hard time dealing with. She was soon very out-of-sorts and before she knew it, it was past noon. She pulled her lunch out of the refrigerator, popped the lasagna she had made two days ago in the microwave, and headed back toward her desk. She remembered her lunch date just as she put the second bite in her mouth. Cursing under her breath, she sealed the plastic box back up and put it back in the fridge, downing her water when she got back to her desk.
At 12:35, she got her purse and headed out the door for the office across the way. An attractive platinum blonde with shoulder length hair sat behind the desk. She was pretty in a very classic way, but as Kelly crossed the lobby, she could tell that Barbara, if that's who this person was, was very liberal with make-up.
"Good afternoon. May I help you?" The blonde was very professional and gushed 'receptionist' all over the place.
"Bob Ingram, please." Kelly started to analyze this person more closely. Her request for Bob didn't seem to ruffle her.
"May I say who's calling?" The question was not necessary, but it wasn't out of the ordinary either.
"My name is Kelly Green." She had learned that saying 'I'm Kelly Green' usually lead to laughing or confusion.
"Thank you." The blonde picked up the phone and dialed. Kelly took the opportunity to gaze around the room, but her attention never left the receptionist. "There's a Kelly Green to see you." The blonde hung up the phone. "He'll be right up."
Kelly turned back to the receptionist, "Thanks," and resumed looking around, keeping the other woman in her peripheral vision.
Bob came around the corner with a big smile on his face. "Hi, Gorgeous." Kelly submitted to his quick kiss. "Barbara, this is my girlfriend Kelly. Kelly, this is my friend Barbara."
"It's nice to meet you, Kelly." The two women shook hands.
"It's nice to meet you, Barbara."
Bob grabbed Kelly by the hand. "Come on. I want to show you something." He turned the corner into his office and did his best gameshow hostess imitation at his office window.
"Oh, my god." Kelly had never considered the building from this vantage point.
"It's like you get out of your Explorer and walk across a stage just for me." Bob was grinning from ear to ear.
Kelly could see the left headlight of her car through one side of the window and the edge of the boxwoods that framed the entrance to the building through the other side. It seemed as though the window was designed specifically to view her trip into the building. She was suddenly very self-conscious. "Have I ever done anything stupid out there?"
Bob had saddled up very close behind her and whispered, "Not that I've seen...Oh, about two months ago, you made it almost all the way into the building when you realized you had forgotten something, and went all the way back to the car to get it. Then you walked back into the building again. THAT was a very good day." Kelly blushed. No one had ever scrutinized her to this extent before. It was clear that Bob spent a lot of time watching her through this window. He pushed her hair to the side and kissed her at the base of her neck, sending a chill down her spine. "Let's go get something to eat. I'm starving." They went back through the receptionist area holding hands. Bob made a big production out of holding the door open for her. Kelly found herself hoping that Barbara was stewing in her own juices.