The American Lover (18 page)

In which case, it occurred to me that maybe I ought to seriously consider actually taking this job on the other side of the world…

***

“My stomach is so full, I’ll barely be able to waddle back to the hotel,” I groaned once we’d finished eating.  “Now I really do need to go and sleep it off.”

“Actually, I’d suggest a brisk walk by the ocean is more what you need,” Caleb insisted, as he took me by the hand and led me out of the café, having refused to let me pay anything towards the bill. “Blow the cobwebs away, keep you awake a bit longer.”

“Okay, I suppose it’ll help keep me going, get me slotting into your time zone as you suggested,” I reluctantly conceded, even though the big comfy bed in my hotel room was calling to me very loudly as I stifled a yawn. Lord alone knew what time my body clock thought it was by now. 

“Living on a major fault line as you do here, doesn’t the possibility of a major earthquake hitting worry you at all? Haven’t the experts predicted that one is overdue? ” I asked curiously, as we left the café and walked along together, Caleb tucking my arm companionably through his. 

“The way I see it, if it’s gonna happen, it’ll happen, so there’s no point in worrying about it,” Caleb shrugged.

“Ah, so you’re a fatalist?”

“More a realist. Who knows, it might never happen, so once you’ve put all possible sensible precautions in place, I figure you might as well just get on with living life here in this beautiful part of the world,” he explained, as we turned the corner and found ourselves on a path next to the ocean, with the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance.

“Wow! That is some view,” I exclaimed. It was hard to believe I was really here, looking at this iconic view that I'd seen in pictures hundreds of times.

“Yeah, sure is, and no fog to spoil things, for now anyhow. No matter how many times you walk this route, you still never know what you’ll see when you turn that corner, because the fog just rolls in off the ocean without warning, any time of the year.  But personally, I think that all adds to the charm of this city.  Are you planning to do all the usual tourist things while you're here?” Caleb enquired.

“Seeing as I’m here for work, I’m not sure I’ll have time,” I replied.

“Of course you will, Faith. You're scheduled at the office for the first three days, which should give you more than enough time to meet everyone you need to, and get a picture of what’s required in the job.  Then I figured you’d also need to see the bigger picture about what relocating here would mean, what it would be like to live here.  That’s why for the last couple of days of your visit, I thought you might like to spend some time getting to know the area,” he explained.

“Oh! I just assumed I’d be spending all my time at the office, with maybe a little free time in the evenings to look around.” I’d not wanted to push my luck with this freebie trip, so I’d not made many plans.

“That’d be a shame don't you think, after coming all this way? So, I was thinking I could show you around, convince you how much you’d love living in California, so you’d see that taking the job would be a real smart move,” Caleb winked.

“You?”

“Yeah, why not? I have some time owed that I really need to use up, so I thought I could take a short vacation with you.”

“But wouldn’t that be a bit awkward… at work I mean?” One of the senior executives spending time with a pleb like me?  Surely that would lead to gossip?

“Look, Faith, as far as I’m concerned, I don't see a problem. We don't have to broadcast our plans, and anyway, what goes on outside of the office is nobody else’s business. I keep my private life just that - private, exactly as I gather you prefer, from our time in London. But of course I’ll understand if you’d rather not …” Caleb frowned.

“No, that’d be great,” I hastily reassured him. “I just never expected you to spend any time with me, that’s all.”

“As I keep telling you, we’re friends, and friends spend time together, don't they?”

***

After three days at the impressive ultra modern offices of American Western Bank, I realised Caleb had been very astute in assessing I'd be the right person to oversee the integration, as it quickly became apparent that no one else had the slightest clue about any of the Royal London systems.  I’d already made several suggestions to facilitate the transition, which were blatantly obvious to me, yet hadn't occurred to anyone else. These went down very well with Bob Tyler, Caleb’s budget conscious boss, as they involved saving both time and money, so met with his full approval.

I was surprised to find myself hob nobbing with senior executives, and I got a buzz from being considered the expert, with real credence given to my views and opinions.  I realised it meant that if I took the role, I’d be the one calling the shots, which would make a refreshing change after working under someone like John Beal, who’d always been so disinterested and unsupportive, leaving me to struggle alone with a lot of the major changes we’d had to undertake.

So, if I was brave enough to seriously consider upping sticks and relocating, there was no doubt the role would provide me with an exciting and refreshing new challenge. It was clear I’d have whatever resources I needed at my fingertips, as thanks to Caleb, the powers that be obviously believed I held the key to the smooth transition of their high value British customers. It felt really good that someone of his calibre believed in me, and helped build my confidence that I really could do this.

Caleb personally introduced me to the team I'd be working with, making it clear that I had the full support of senior management, which helped ease my nerves at what all these Yanks were going to make of me. The team included the dreaded dragon, Roz D’Souza, who despite her reputation, turned out not to be so bad after all. I think she’d probably been nervous when she’d been over to the London office, which had made her seem rather unapproachable, especially as she dressed in very stern, masculine looking trouser suits.

“It’d sure be good to have another female on the team here,” she winked at me conspiratorially in one of the meetings on my first day, much to my surprise. “American Western has been male dominated for far too long. You’d help redress the balance a little.”

Her welcoming attitude helped relax me a little, because despite making a bit more effort with my appearance for this trip, a small mousey girl like me was never going to create the impression of a high flying go-getter. Luckily, most people in the Californian office were far more laid back than I'd anticipated, and my nerves soon calmed once we started to get down to the nitty-gritty of things, and I could prove that I really did know what I was talking about.

It quickly became apparent that virtually every female Caleb came into contact with at the office literally drooled over him. 
No surprises there.
But although he was always very charming with everyone, he kept himself detached and always acted totally professionally towards them, just focussing on the job at hand. 

He knew every detail about this project that he wanted me to head up, impressing me with how much in-depth knowledge he’d amassed during the short time we’d worked together in London.  I looked at him with renewed respect - it was obvious that Caleb was very hard working, meticulous in his attention to detail, and always did his research, so I could see how he’d attained his high ranking position at such a relatively young age.

None of this stopped me from smiling to myself one morning while some of the team were gathering for a meeting.  Even though I was doing my best to bury myself in a report and not to get sucked in to the inevitable office gossip, I still found myself listening in.

“I
so
totally would,” sighed Kelsey-Jane, a pretty blonde beach-babe type.  She was craning her neck to get a better view of Caleb as he left the office to see where some of the stragglers we were waiting for had got to. “That man has the most perfect butt I think I’ve ever seen. What I wouldn’t give to see it in all its natural glory…”

“Sorry to disappoint, Kelsey-Jane, but I have it on good authority that Caleb Mackenzie never goes for blondes. One of my girlfriends happens to be a server at one of the nightclubs he frequents, and she says he
always
goes for brunettes,” smirked another girl called Shaniece, as she tossed her long dark brown hair over her shoulder. Both girls were tall, tanned, and immaculately groomed, making me feel even more of a pale wallflower than ever.

“So I’m guessing you think you’ve got a chance, Shaniece? Well, you’d better get in line behind all the other girls here who’ve tried and failed with that one. Except for Roz of course, but that’s only because Caleb’s the wrong gender as far as she’s concerned, if you get my meaning,” Kelsey-Jane raised her eyebrows knowingly.

Ah right, so that explained a few things.
I was so naïve, it hadn't occurred to me that Roz might be gay.

“Caleb might be single, and charming as he always is, it’s a well known fact that he
never
dates anyone from work, never dates at all, actually,” Kesley-Jane stated.

“Yeah, that’s what I’d heard. Such a shame,” Shaniece sighed, shaking her head.

They paused in their gossiping as they turned to look at me.

“So, Faith, do you have any gossip you could share with us about Caleb, seeing as he worked alongside you in London? You know, like maybe he felt more relaxed and able to get up close and personal with someone over there?”

I hid a smile, trying not to be insulted that it didn't seem to have even entered their heads that anything might have occurred between Caleb and me.

“Sorry, no gossip at all,” I said firmly. “Mr. Mackenzie was kept very busy while he was working with our team, so I really don't think he’d have had the time,” I lied, not feeling in the least bit guilty, as Caleb’s private life was absolutely none of their business.

“Well, a man like that, he’s gotta be getting it somewhere, if you know what I'm saying,” Kelsey-Jane winked suggestively.

“No doubt he is, but since his divorce, I heard he’s only interested in having a quick, no-strings fuck before moving on to someone new,” Shaniece informed her friend. I was still getting used to how easily people used the F word over here, with no one turning a hair. 

“Well, Caleb Mackenzie could certainly fuck me and leave me any time he chose,” Kelsey-Jane giggled. “Memories of seeing his perfect butt in the flesh would sure help block out some of my real life trash.”

That was true, I had to agree. Seeing Caleb in the flesh again meant images of his great body kept replaying in my mind, and I'd had to work hard at shutting them down while we were working together. Just as well no-one suspected anything had gone on between Caleb and me, because at least it meant there was no unwelcome attention to deflect.

“So, Faith, I’m guessing you’re single, if you’re potentially gonna be relocating over here?” Shaniece asked as she glanced at my bare ring finger.

God, it felt so wrong seeing it like that, but before I’d come over, I'd told Caleb that I didn't want anyone to be aware of my private circumstances, about the fact that I’d been widowed.

“Sure, no one needs to know if you don't want them to, Faith. But …” he’d hesitated.

“But what?” I’d prompted.

“When we first met, I naturally made the assumption that you were married because of your wedding ring, which led to what turned out to be my insensitive remarks about your husband,” he’d explained.

“We’ve already agreed that wasn’t your fault,” I’d assured him.

“Yes, but what I'm trying to say here is that inevitably other people are also going to make the same assumption when they see you’re wearing a wedding ring. Look, I know this must be really difficult for you, but maybe you should consider other options, if you want to avoid it happening again,” he’d suggested.

“Other options?”

“Yeah, like maybe you could wear your ring on a necklace instead.  Or you could try wearing it on your other hand.  Either way, you wouldn’t be discarding your ring, but it might prevent some of those awkward questions you’re anxious to avoid.”

I’d thought about it for a minute.

“When Drew put this ring on my finger, I never imagined for a single second that I’d ever be considering taking it off again,” I’d whispered, close to tears, as I twisted the simple gold wedding band round on my finger.

Drew and I had known pretty much from the outset that we were always going to end up married some day, so there’d never been any kind of grand proposal. We were both practical, down to earth kind of people, and as I wasn’t into wearing any kind of expensive jewellery, I told Drew there was no need for him to waste what little money we had on buying me an engagement ring.

But we both agreed that a wedding ring was different, it was a necessity, and I remembered how happy we’d been when we’d chosen it together, not having a very wide choice on our very limited budget, but not caring one jot about that. My ring had been chosen with love, and that was all that had mattered.

“I know honey, and it’s totally up to you whether you feel ready to take it off or not. But like it or not, things have changed, and your vows were ‘til death do us part’. Sadly that’s where you’ve ended up now, parted by death.”