This chapter might seem somewhat corny and dull, but I'm mainly trying to establish a better relationship between the characters before we get to the fun stuff ;) So if you're interested in the actual story, please, please keep reading. If you're after something else, I should have more interesting chapters out in the near future. Also, I noticed some grammatical and structural errors in my first chapter, so I'll try to work on my editing skills
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Nicole woke up on time, feeling surprisingly well-rested. She did the first thing she did every morning and went to check her phone. Apparently she had received a text from a number that was not in her contacts. "Hey, baby. Last night was fun. I'll pick you up tonight at 6, wear something comfortable.-Phillip."
Oh, right,
she thought. Although she'd never admit it in a million years, she was actually a little excited to see him again. As she dragged herself out of bed and got ready for work, she couldn't help but wonder what she and Phillip would be doing that day.
I'll worry about that after work, right now my main priority is Mr. Harrison.
With that thought in mind, Nicole left her apartment and began her daily journey to the office, hoping she wouldn't bump into any more beautiful strangers.
Work proved to be uneventful, much to Nicole's dismay. She was so excited to get started on her article, but every lead, every source of information she had, came to a dead end.
There has to be something out there.
All the emails, phone calls, documents, and anything else she hoped to squeeze information from gave her nothing. Nada. Zilch. If she didn't get anywhere this week, the editors were sure to shut her idea down, and then she'd be back to meaningless articles no one bothered to read.
Maybe I could do some undercover work, contact the company under false pretenses, maybe say I want to do a write up promoting the company. Would that be believable? I guess I'm running out of options at this point...
At five o'clock sharp, she walked out the office, highly frustrated at not having accomplished anything. Then she remembered her second date with Phillip was that night. She wasn't sure if she was in the mood to deal with someone as perky and optimistic as he was.
Although it's not like I was in much of a position to say turn him down,
she thought, remembering his eyes holding hers as he kissed her hand in the cab the previous night. Just thinking about how intensely he looked at her sent shivers down her spine. As she walked back to her apartment, she froze in front of a store window and immediately fell in love. This was the sort of store where she absolutely loved to look in the windows, but would never in a million years be able to buy anything. The store specialized in evening gowns, and every time Nicole saw one she liked, she imagined what she would look like wearing it. The one that caught her attention was a wine colored halter Gucci gown. Nicole glanced at the price, and nearly passed out. The dress was $4000.
Well, people can dream,
she thought, continuing her walk home.
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"So where were you last night?" asked Leah upon Nicole's arrival.
"Oh, I was on a date," she responded quietly.
"What!? You? Did hell freeze over? If I look outside, will I see pigs flying?"
"Shut up. He was very adamant, I couldn't say no. Anyway we're going out again tonight."
"So who exactly is 'he'?"
"His name's Phillip. We met when he bumped into me on my way to work."
"How adorable! I wanna meet him!" exclaimed Leah with a little too much enthusiasm.
"It's nothing serious, really. I don't even intend to see him again after tonight. I'm way too busy. Anyway, I'm going to shower and change before he gets here." Nicole said, walking away from her smirking friend.
Nicole had just enough time to get cleaned up and change into denim capris, a white camisole with a red cardigan, and a pair of nude flats. She decided to skip on the make up today. As she finished working on her hair, she heard two people talking out in the living room.
Crap, Leah!
She thought, running out of her room, prepared to thoroughly chastise her friend.
"Oh, hey Nicole. Phillip's here." She said, giving Nicole an all-knowing smile
Phillip turned his attention to Nicole, and gave her a once over. "Hey, you look great," he said. "How does a picnic in the park sound?"
"Fine." Nicole responded, wondering what her roommate and her date had talked about.
"Alright then, let's go. It was great meeting you, Leah."
"Likewise, Phillip," said Leah, before closing the door behind them.
"She's really nice." Said Phillip, as they walked towards the elevator.
"She didn't say anything bad or embarrassing about me, did she?"
"Haha no, she just told me how you guys met and became friends."
"Oh, okay."
"You alright? You seem kind of distant."
"Oh, ya, I'm fine. Just had a rough day at work."
"Well...maybe I can take your mind off whatever happened." Said Phillip, moving closer to Nicole.
