“Great! I’ll start making arrangements. Any food requests?”
“I’ll eat whatever you serve me.”
“Come on. What’s your favorite meal?”
“My favorite meal?”
“You have one don’t you?”
“I do,” he agreed. “My favorite food is plov.”
“Plov?” she repeated. “I’ve never heard of that.”
“I didn’t think you had. It’s a Russian dish. Well … other countries have it too but it’s very common in Russia.”
“I’ll look up a recipe and give it a try.”
“Okay,” he said with a grin. “I look forward to trying it.”
“Hopefully I'll do it justice.”
He chuckled. “Just the fact that you want to try, pleases me.”
“I’m really excited that you’re coming,” she said.
“Me too.”
“So if you are free to come next weekend, does that mean you’ll stay for 2 weekends?” she asked.
“Yes. That is what that means. But unfortunately, I think it’s unlikely.”
“I can still hold out hope,” she playfully insisted.
A broad smile crossed his lips. “Of course. As will I.”
“So if you close this deal, do you get like a commission?”
“Something like that,” he answered, hoping she didn’t ask more questions that might put him on the spot. “It will be worth the effort if the deal goes through.”
“I get the feeling your job pays more than mine,” she teased.
“Perhaps. In which case, at the very least you should let me pay for more of our outings.”
“Mmmm. No.”
“No?”
“I’m not interested in you for your money and I never want you to think I am.”
“I already know this. You don’t need to keep proving it.”
Amanda huffed, not wanting to fight about money again. Viktor took that as his cue to change the subject.
“How is your mother doing?” he asked.
“She’s doing great! Her energy is coming back. She’s feeling more like herself. I’m very happy for her … and me.”
“I’m glad to hear. I can’t wait to meet her.”
“She can’t wait either. She’s very excited that you’re coming.”
“Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
She giggled. “No, I guess it doesn’t.”
Chapter 15
It was 3:00 P.M. on a Thursday and Viktor’s flight would be arriving in less than an hour, making it extremely difficult for Amanda to focus on her work. She had been distracted all day but it got worse as the hours dragged on and his arrival time neared. She felt like she was going to burst waiting for her work day to end.
She received a text about an hour later from Viktor letting her know he had landed safely and was on his way to pick up his rental and check into his hotel. They agreed to meet up at her apartment after work before heading out together to have dinner at a Thai restaurant that Amanda liked.
The end of her shift came but she was in the middle of trying to remedy a server issue for a client and couldn’t leave. She texted Viktor to let him know she was running late and that she didn’t know how long she would be.
“Of all days to have to stay late,” she groaned to herself as she tried to work as quickly as possible to fix the issue.
She finished 15 minutes later and texted Viktor to let him know she was on her way. Rapidly gathering her belongings, she rushed towards the exit. She left the office and hurried down the hall. As she rounded the corner to the elevators she saw Viktor standing with a large bouquet of red roses. She stopped dead in her tracks, completely taken off guard. A huge smile crossed his face and Amanda followed suit seconds later as she hurried towards him. She was beyond ecstatic to see him.
She bypassed the flowers, opting for a hug instead. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he put his arms around her and squeezed her tight.
“I missed you so much,” she said, still holding on to him.
“I missed you too.”
She pulled back so she could look at his face. “I can’t believe you’re here.”
He gently caressed her face and kissed her lips. “It’s so good to see you.”
She wanted to reach her hands up to his neck and kiss him again but feared coworkers might pass by so she restrained herself. Instead she stepped back so she could admire the flowers he was holding.
“They’re beautiful,” she said as she breathed in the fragrant aroma.
“Yes, they reminded me of you.”
“Oh boy. You’re laying it on a little thick,” she teased with a massive grin.
“Am I?’ he innocently replied.
“Yes. Let’s go eat. Where’d you park?”
“In the garage. We can take my car.”
“Okay,” she agreed. “But I’m buying dinner.”
Viktor made a face that revealed how he felt about that a little more than he intended to.
“You wanted to pay for dinner,” Amanda guessed.
He released a sigh of mild frustration and then looked at her and smiled. “I’ll get the next one.”
She slipped her arm around his. “Thank you for humoring me.”
“I’m glad you appreciate it,” he joked back and then kissed her again before pressing the call button for the elevator.
“You’re silly,” she replied, feeling simply elated to be with him again.
Just as the elevator arrived they were joined by Randy who barely said hello, preferring instead to just stand there and stare at them. Amanda was grateful that Viktor was with her and squeezed his arm tighter to signify her discomfort. They were joined by 2 other people as they entered the elevator. Randy stood facing them and Viktor could feel Randy’s eyes boring holes in him as the elevator descended to the first floor, compelling him to look directly at Randy who offered an awkward smirk but oddly didn’t look away.
“Are you alright?” Viktor asked Randy.
“Me?” He laughed nervously. “Yeah. Why?”
“Well you keep looking at me,” Viktor confronted him, causing Amanda to tense up. “I’m sorry but as you can see, I like women.”
The other passengers glanced over at Randy as his face turned beet red and he began fumbling over his
