I examined the now pained look on Ari’s face as her fingers tightly gripped her coffee cup. She drew in her lips tightly and sighed. “Porter, I think I’ll work in my office for the rest of the day. If you need me, just ping me online.”
“Ari…”
She didn’t turn around. I headed back to my office, respecting her not-so-subtle request for space.
We pushed through the week, sticking to our schedule of meetings while also respecting each other’s space. As promised, we didn’t talk about our kiss. By Friday, Ari and I had managed to put together a decent presentation. Decent being the operative word. I internally groaned as I glanced over this recent design. It felt cobbled together and, dare I say, a little lackluster. Was our kiss going to not only make things weird between us but also tank our project? I would be lying if I didn’t admit I was worried more about the latter. I didn’t want the partners, or Ari, to lose faith in us as a team. Most of all, I didn’t want to give Greer any opportunity to swoop in like some savior. I had to salvage this project and repair things with Ari at all costs.
In the boardroom, Ari sat directly across from Greer instead of her usual seat across from me. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Greer looking back and forth between us. He leaned over and nudged me.
“Say, did you piss off Big Mama?” He attempted to stifle a laugh through his poor attempt at whispering. Ari looked up from her notes and stared, then looked back down with an annoyed smirk.
I turned to face Greer, lowering my voice. “You never waste an opportunity to be a repugnant fuckwad. Seems like Harvard taught you everything but class.”
“You’re always so sensitive, Harrison,” Greer remarked, turning to talk to Jacobi. I looked over at Ari, whose eyes quickly darted to the paper in front of her.
Our presentation wasn’t a disaster, but it wasn’t good either. If there was a level just below decent but above shit show, that was where we would land. We stumbled through questions from our colleagues and partners. In the end, our new concept received a lukewarm response from the room.
“What was that?” asked Riddle, confused. “This seems…disjointed. You all seemed to be much more in tune a couple of weeks ago. I mean, it wasn’t perfect, but it was better than this.”
There was a low rumbling in the boardroom. Ari shifted uncomfortably, avoiding eye contact with me. Greer smirked and nodded toward Jacobi as if he knew this fuckup would be the nail in the coffin. I rolled my eyes.
Robinson looked over his glasses. “I concur. This is… I don’t know. It’s acceptable, but there is no harmony. What happened to the green space, Ms. James? Granted, I didn’t like what you did last time but the idea of functional green space is very desirable to the client.”
Ari looked over at me and I looked at her blankly, then looked away. We had forgotten all about it. Neither one of us had an answer for the omission, at least, not one we could disclose to the room.
“We will work this out. Omitting the green space was an oversight, right, Mr. Harrison?” said Ari.
So, we’re back to being formal.
“Right,” I said. “Ms. James and I need to better communicate our collective vision right now. I think we just missed some cues.”
Robinson looked over at Riddle, who leaned in to whisper something. Robinson made a face which read annoyed, nodded, and sighed. This wasn’t a good sign.
“Listen, you two,” started Riddle. “You two are some of the most talented architects I’ve seen in the past twenty years. Ms. James, you worked for a top firm in Chicago so you’re no stranger to big projects. You studied in Florence, for God’s sake. Bring some of that experience, that European flair, to this project. Work this out. You have a week. Let’s take a thirty-minute break. Greer and Jacobi, you’re up next.” Both partners got up from the table.
As the rest of the associates filed out, Greer stopped between Ari and me. He buttoned his jacket and shook his head. “You two aren’t ready for the big time. When you fuck this up, which I know you will, I’ll come in and save the day. Ari, you’re in the big leagues now. I don’t think you’re ready. Not even Porter, the golden child of this firm, can help you.”
Greer adjusted his tie and smoothed out his jacket, bumping slightly into me as he exited. I stood frozen. I didn’t have the energy to fight with Greer, especially when he was right.
Once Greer exited, Ari and I were alone in the boardroom with only the whir of the central air as noise. She leaned against the table and looked down at her feet, slightly tapping her nervous fingers against the table. I smiled. I had missed her quirks, wanting to intertwine my fingers within hers. I resisted the urge; instead, I leaned against the table next to her, making sure there was ample room between us.