Resilient (2)
Authors: Nikki Mathis Thompson
Tags: #Divorce & Separation, #Humor, #Romance
Rebound Mafia…This one’s for you
“Like a butterfly in glass, I want to fly away to you
but the invisible walls contain me.
It’s not time.
Hard to accept when I feel your words calling me.
Your soul beckoning me with its pull.
Come to me, you say in one breath;
stay, you say in another.
I taste your lips on mine and pray I make my way to you.
As a butterfly chases it’s freedom.
So will I.”
Broken Pieces
by Rachel Thompson
Cast of Characters:
The Ladies
✥✥✥✥✥✥✥✥
Katrine MacNamara
- heroine of our story
Maddie
- sister and snarky aficionado
Charlie
- inner circle, stay at home mom, funny and filterless
Paige
- inner circle, stay at home mom, voice of reason
Jane
-inner circle, married with no kids, own’s her own business
Izzie
- inner circle, single, ball busting career girl
Dr. Felicity Harris, a.k.a Ariel
- fiancé of Katrine’s ex-husband
Ellenor
- Xander’s assistant
New to the cast:
Mila
- shy classmate
Anita
- works with Katrine
Nancy Varona
- Dir. Of Marketing
Jaimie
- receptionist at Katrine’s office
Amber
-Ian’s new girlfriend
Millie
-long time cook of the Abbot family
The Fellas
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
Xander
- Katrine’s former boss and Rebound sex recipient
Ian
- Architect and close friend of Katrine
Tristan
- inner circle, “gusband” and owner of Léon salon
David
- Katrine’s ex-husband and baby daddy
New to the cast:
Hayden
- classmate and hottie
Trent
- older and experienced classmate
Logan
-classmate
Professor Darwin
- graduate marketing professor
Grant
-manager over Katrine’s group at work
Darren
-works with Katrine
Marcus
-Jane’s husband
Bryan
-Paige’s husband
Michael
-Charlie’s husband
Shawn Brooks
-Charlie’s neighbor, hottie lawyer
Alexander Abbot
-Xander’s father
Abner Abbot
-Xander’s grandfather
Gabe, Scott, and William
- Xander’s childhood buddies
PART ONE
Chapter 1
Katrine stepped out onto the side walk only to be greeted by a frigid wind that curled around her body. She shivered and pulled her striped woolen hat over her ears. January in Texas was bone-chilling cold and it almost made her nostalgic for the searing heat of summer… almost. Her ear buds were snug and her Monday morning pep song was “Dog Days Are Over” by Florence + the Machine. She smiled and quickened her pace, hoping it would generate some much needed heat to her limbs. The trees were bare and the sky was smog colored gray, but she found it comforting. She thought about the past year and all that she’d been through. Katrine’s skin had thickened but not hardened. She was wary but managed not to become cynical of life or love. She was more than grateful to start with a clean slate and a fresh outlook.
Her stomach was churning with anticipation and she hoped her brisk pace would keep her mind clear and focused on the day ahead. A tower clock gonged in the distance and she knew she was getting close. She willed her legs to increase their speed and felt small beads of moisture forming despite the cold. The sidewalk was crowded and she was forced to the grass. Katrine took in the dark red bricks of the large building in front of her. It was formidable with the wintry backdrop and might be more inviting in the spring, when there would be greenery running up the walls instead of gnarled, dry branches. She took the steps two at a time and firmly pulled the large gold handle. A warm rush of air engulfed her as she slowed to a stop. There was no way she was going to be late to her first class. Katrine tightly gripped the strap of her army-green messenger bag and plowed towards the entrance. She paused to scope out the best spot to sit.
Not the front like a brown-nosing dork and not the back with the slacker-nappers.
There we are, right in the middle.
She wore skinny jeans, ankle boots and a fitted black sweater. She wanted to be casual and comfortable. Not to mention she wanted to blend in with the younger students the best she could. And that was all she saw, younger students.
What the hell? All the older people must take the night courses.
Just great. Can you hold my Geritol, sonny, while I grab a pen?
Making her way up one of the middle aisles, she eyed
her fellow students. She wanted to make a smart choice as far as scholastic neighbors were concerned. She decided on a seat between a handsome wheat headed guy and a raven haired girl with glasses. They both looked up.
“Is this seat taken?”
“Just let me move my bag,” the girl said as she scrambled to make room.
“Hi. I’m Katrine.”
“I’m Mila.” She shyly shook Katrine’s hand.
She turned toward the guy to her left
expectantly. “I’m Hayden.”
“Well, Hayden and Mila, nice to meet you both. You two just graduate?” She could tell they weren’t expecting conversation the very first day of class, but they could sit there like lumps or have a polite conversation. Katrine always went for the latter, that’s just how she was.
“Um, no, I finished my undergrad three years ago,” Mila said as she tucked a short piece of hair behind her ear.
“I’ve worked for a financial firm for the past five years and they suggested I get my MBA. And when I say suggested, I mean they made me.” He smiled. “What about you?”
You’re cute and not as young as I thought.
Internal eye brow wiggle.
Good choice, Katrine. Nothing wrong with a little visual stimulation.
“Well,
I’ve obviously been out of school for ages. I worked right after college as a financial analyst and took a break. But I’ve been working in the marketing department for Smith Oil for about six months.” If there was one good thing that came out of her ill-fated fling with Xander, it was meeting Hal Smith. After the acquisition was final, Hal said he would love to add her to his team. He proved true to his word.
“Whatever, you’re not even in your thirties,” Hayden said with a grin.
“You’re quite astute, Hayden.” She smiled back. She would tell him later. She wasn’t really that uptight about the age thing, but she wanted to bask in the flattery for a moment longer. Even if he was just humoring her.
“You guys know anything about our professor?” Mila quietly asked. Her long lashes fluttered over large brown eyes. They both shook their heads. The small talk continued for a few minutes until their professor made his way to the front of the room.
“Good morning, I’m Professor Darwin… and don’t worry, you aren’t in the wrong class.” That garnered a light chuckle.
“I bet he’s used that lame joke every semester for the past twenty years,” Hayden whispered.
“This is Marketing Management. Welcome. My assistant, Graham, will be handing out the syllabus and project details. Yes, I said project. 90% of your grade will be contingent upon a group project and the other 10% on your mid-term and final. I believe that practical application is the best way to learn. And since you all have been out in the real world, you want knowledge you can use in your current careers. Or this would all be a waste of time, right?” Hayden rolled his eyes, like he did think this was a waste of his time. Katrine got a little worried.
Maybe eye candy boy wasn’t such a good choice.
“So first things first, break up into groups of five, please. I’m not assigning groups, you aren’t children. Yes, you in the back all alone. You’ll need to congregate with your classmates. Come on, move up.”
Katrine’s group was made up of Mila, Hayden, and two guys that were sitting directly in front of them. Trent looked to be in his mid-thirties with dark skin and a nice smile. Logan was tall and slender with a long nose and bright blue eyes. He was sporting a very unfortunate looking sweater vest. Tristan would’ve ripped that textile monstrosity off his back and started a bonfire right here in the classroom. They did quick introductions and turned back to get further instructions from Professor Darwin. They were to develop a complete marketing strategy for a company created by each group. This included both short-term and long-term objectives and plans for implementation. They were to assign roles and delegate accordingly. Katrine was getting a little anxious. This was going to be a lot of hard work. She hoped her team was up to the task.
“Okay, take the first half of class to assign tasks and then we’ll dive head-long into today’s lecture. If you have any questions, I’ll be up here pretending to be busy.”
Katrine glanced over at Graham for the first time. She hadn’t been paying attention.
Well, hello, Graham. Would you put some chocolate on my marshmallow?
Really Katrine, sexual s’mores? This dry spell has got to end. I am too horny to function.
He was really cute, but he didn’t act like he knew it. Sometimes the more cerebrally inclined were like that.
Ummm, private tutoring needed on aisle six!
Katrine threw him a smile, but he was looking the other way.
Damn. Flirting attempts denied. Will re-group and try again later…
“
So I’ll take point as leader. Let’s figure out the other roles. Mila, write this down.” Mr. Ugly Ass Sweater commanded, shaking Katrine from her drool session. When Mila started digging around in her backpack for something to write on, Katrine put her hand lightly on her shoulder to stop her.
“Excuse me—Logan, is it? Why did you elect yourself leader without discussion? And why are you asking Mila to be the group’s secretary? I’m sure you can hold a pen,” Katrine pointed out. No one else said anything but she sure as hell wasn’t going to let this maxi steamroll the group.
“What?… Oh great, just my luck, a feminist,” Logan said, rolling his eyes.
After the initial shock of his statement wore off, the sides of her mouth lifted in an evil grin. She would need to channel her inner Charlie for this one.
“I’m something much, much worse…I’m a card carrying member of the Tit Totin’ Mafia. You know what that means, Logan? We don’t carry signs…we carry hand guns.” She had never held a gun in her life and she didn’t usually speak that way in front of people she’d just met, but sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do. And she had to put Logan in his place. Mila’s eyes were about to bug out of her head. Logan’s mouth was hanging open and the other two guys were trying their damnedest not to laugh. Katrine handed Logan a pen and some paper.
You be the scribe, jack-ass.
“Okay, so Katrine, why don’t you take point as leader.,” Logan acquiesced softly. Something about female hormones and fire-arms made a man compliant.
“How about we do things the diplomatic way and vote?” Katrine proposed.
“My vote is for you, Katrine,” Mila said quietly with a grin.
“You’ve got my vote,” Trent seconded.
“You definitely have mine,” Hayden said, winking at her.
So with the help of fictitious firearms, Katrine was the designated leader. They exchanged contact information and Katrine suggested they all come up with three ideas for a company name and the service or product their company would provide.
“Are you guys okay with having some ideas together by tomorrow morning?” Katrine asked. They all agreed. “Great, when that’s decided, we can get to work on our strategies. Trent, you have the most marketing experience. Can you take the lead on the outline?” And so it continued until Professor Darwin interrupted.
“Okay, hopefully you’ve had enough time to get to know your team. As you see on the project sheet, each section of the project will coincide with the corresponding lecture topics. Today I will discuss the marketing mix model.”
At the end of the two hour lecture, Katrine’s neck was stiff and her brain was mush. They all lumbered up the stairs, eager to get out of the stale confines of the classroom.