“Elizabeth!” he answered after two rings. Chuckling, he asked, “Do you want to talk about the job now, or apologize?”
I curled up in the corner of the couch and held my cold coffee on the armrest. I would drink it anyway. “Let’s start with an apology.”
He laughed. “It’s not really necessary. But I did find it curious.”
I sighed heavily. “Brett was…”
What was he? Charming? Kind? Funny? What was I supposed to tell Ryan that would explain my behavior.
“Elizabeth, listen, I’ve known you for a long time. And I know what Clay did was pretty awful. It was hard not to hear the talk in the locker room.”
“Did you tell him?” I took a sip of my coffee.
“Who, Clay? God, no. Not my place.”
“No, Brett. Did you tell Brett that it was Clay?”
“I didn’t tell Brett anything about Clay. After you hung up, I called and asked him what happened in Alaska. I told him I’d offered you a partnership and that you blamed him for setting my offer up as an attempt to get you to Seattle for him.”
He paused for a moment, waiting for me to talk. When I didn’t immediately respond, he went on. “Liz, I know you’re hiding up there. My offer was genuine. Don’t let whatever happened with Brett cloud a good opportunity.”
I sighed again. “The offer is real?”
He clucked his tongue. “A hundred percent.”
“Can I think about it?”
“Of course, you can. But don’t think too long. Please.”
“Okay.”
“And for what it’s worth, Brett’s a good guy. He’s not Clay.”
I nodded, then remembered he couldn’t see me. “I’m getting that.”
“And now that we’ve got that all figured out,” he chuckled, “how did that happen anyway?”
I uncurled my legs and stood. “None of your business.”
He laughed, “I like him for you.”
“He’s very pushy.” I took my mug to the sink.
“He’s a really good hockey player.”
“He’s arrogant.” I rinsed the mug and put it in the drying rack.
He laughed again. “No. Confident. Seriously, Liz, you two are a lot alike. He’s just as committed to his job as you are. I’ve never met someone, other than you, who is so defined by their work. And not their looks.”
“Whose side are you on?” I teased as I stared out the window into the forest behind my cabin.
“Mine. But I’ll root for the two of you, anyway.”
Now it was my turn to laugh. “Okay, Ryan. I gotta go. I’ll think about the partnership and let you know in a few weeks, okay?”
“Few weeks, no more.”
I agreed and we hung up. I knew I owed Brett a call or a text but I didn’t have the courage to do it. Instead, I took a walk, read a book, took a nap, and got ready for my date with Thomas.