Daphne didn't waste any time getting back to work on Monday morning. After all, she had clients to appease and an office that was probably a disaster. As far as she was concerned there was no use sitting around the flat when she was now in perfectly good health. Two weeks was a long enough time to stay in bed. So she woke up before Terry and raced out before he had a chance to stop her.
Her office was just as chaotic as she expected it to be, messages gone unanswered and mail piled high on her desk, burying seating charts and guess lists she had left behind the last time she was in.
When the front door opened she had just plopped herself down in her chair, a little overwhelmed by all the work ahead of her. Still, she pulled herself from her chair and entered the lobby.
"Hello," she said, offering the warmest smile she could under the circumstances. Though, faking it had always been a Greengrass specialty. "Can I help you?"
He had been staring up at a few black and white photographs hanging on the wall, no doubt photos of the company's own work. He nodded admiringly, thinking that he'd made the right choice, after all. When he heard the soft voice come from behind him, he turned on his heel, his eyes taking in the sight of her.
He knew that face. Or at least, recognized it. The Prophet had her splashed over the papers in the last two weeks, documenting her recovery.
He stepped forward, holding out his hand.
"Miss Greengrass-" he greeted, wondering how on Earth he didn't realize the connection. "Pleasure to meet you- I'm Cormac- Cormac McLaggen-"
She never got tired of seeing people study her work, that impressed look on their face when they stepped through the door and realized exactly what she was capable of.
A bit of the tension dropped from her shoulders, though her posture stayed perfectly intact, as she took his hand.
It was definitely the way he was studying her photos, but that smile certainly helped.
"Nice to meet you Cormac," she told him, meeting his eyes, "Why don't you come take a seat my office and we can talk about what you're looking for."
Her skin was soft as their hands gripped, the shake lasting a moment too long before he dropped it. There wasn't much to be said for Cormac when he was in the presence of a woman he found himself attracted to and Daphne was certainly a woman who fell into that category.
Of course, that wasn't what he was here for.
But it didn't hurt.
He followed her back to her office, wringing his hands.
"I was hoping to plan something for my parents wedding anniversary, actually."
"That's a sweet gesture," she said, throwing him a much more genuine smile over her shoulder as she rounded her desk.
Daphne grabbed a stack of papers and pushed them off to the side, a bit embarrassed by how unorganized everything was. She was used to keeping everything in its place.
"I'm so sorry about the mess- I've been, well, otherwise engaged the last few weeks."
He certainly didn't mean to imply otherwise, but then, it wasn't often Cormac found himself in the same room as well, someone who'd just gone through a terrible ordeal. His bedside manner needed more than a little bit of help.
"Right- well, it's my parents' thirtieth-" he said, then, nodding his head. "And I was hoping to do something big for them- you know, really celebrate how long they've managed to stick together-"
Daphne pulled out her notepad and a quill, ready to jot down any start up information that he could offer her. Anniversary parties were usually very straight forward, at least.
But his comment tugged her lips up into an amused smile.
"Not much for anniversaries?" she asked him curiously, trying to be as polite as possible.
He laughed, crossing his ankle over his knee as he leaned forward a little bit, his hands already moving as he spoke.
"I mean, you know- thirty years is an exceptionally long time- and for someone who's really never been in a relationship for longer than a year- well, I suppose it's a bit to process-"
"That's very unfortunately," she told him, more amused than anything else. Though, Daphne really didn't know why. There were plenty of people that came into this office that had very little interest in the event they were celebrating (bridesmaids who hated the groom, company parties for people who disliked their bosses-)
Daphne looked down at her hand, realizing then that she had forgotten her engagement ring. The morning had been hectic, rushing out before Terry could wake up so that he didn't lecture her about taking it slow.
Funny how she didn't feel much about the realization.
Cormac didn't quite have the spark in him for a long-term relationship that his parents had been trying so desperately to instill in him. He'd been with women, of course, dating here and there but no one really sparked his interest in a way that made him want to stick around.
He looked back up at Daphne, catching that little sparkle of amusement in her eyes and he couldn't help but grin.
"No- you know, I'm very proud of them-" he said, putting both his feet firmly back down on the floor. "They're incredible-"
For somebody who didn't fancy commitment, Cormac seemed proud of his parents' accomplishment and dedication to their relationship.
While a decade was starting to feel like a long time to Daphne, she couldn't even imagine three. She thought about her relationship with Terry for a moment and the years stretched and dragged in front of her.
It was a little dizzying.
"Do they have any idea you're here today?" she asked, pulling herself from her own thoughts. "Or is this going to be a surprise?"
He brushed his fingers back through his curly blond hair, flattening it down as he looked up at her, catching the daze she snapped herself out of. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he shook his head.
"A surprise, definitely," he said. "They're a bit modest when it comes to events like this- they don't even go out to dinner all that often, so I thought this would be nice."
"We'll make it more than nice," she promised him, falling back into her own rhythm. No matter what was going in her own life she had to leave it behind when she was with clients. It was unprofessional.
"It's the year of the pearl. We could do a lot with that."
Her office was just as chaotic as she expected it to be, messages gone unanswered and mail piled high on her desk, burying seating charts and guess lists she had left behind the last time she was in.
When the front door opened she had just plopped herself down in her chair, a little overwhelmed by all the work ahead of her. Still, she pulled herself from her chair and entered the lobby.
"Hello," she said, offering the warmest smile she could under the circumstances. Though, faking it had always been a Greengrass specialty. "Can I help you?"
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He knew that face. Or at least, recognized it. The Prophet had her splashed over the papers in the last two weeks, documenting her recovery.
He stepped forward, holding out his hand.
"Miss Greengrass-" he greeted, wondering how on Earth he didn't realize the connection. "Pleasure to meet you- I'm Cormac- Cormac McLaggen-"
He offered her a bright smile.
"I'm here to hopefully request your services-"
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A bit of the tension dropped from her shoulders, though her posture stayed perfectly intact, as she took his hand.
It was definitely the way he was studying her photos, but that smile certainly helped.
"Nice to meet you Cormac," she told him, meeting his eyes, "Why don't you come take a seat my office and we can talk about what you're looking for."
Reply
Of course, that wasn't what he was here for.
But it didn't hurt.
He followed her back to her office, wringing his hands.
"I was hoping to plan something for my parents wedding anniversary, actually."
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Daphne grabbed a stack of papers and pushed them off to the side, a bit embarrassed by how unorganized everything was. She was used to keeping everything in its place.
"I'm so sorry about the mess- I've been, well, otherwise engaged the last few weeks."
That was one way to spin it.
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"I- erm- well my apologies-" he said, offering her a sort of crooked but sympathetic smile. "About all that- I read about it in the papers-"
He settled back against the cushion, wondering if that all sounded as terribly awkward to her as it did to him.
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There was no use dwelling on it so she waved it off.
"I am perfectly fine though, I assure you. And very ready to plan this party with you."
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He certainly didn't mean to imply otherwise, but then, it wasn't often Cormac found himself in the same room as well, someone who'd just gone through a terrible ordeal. His bedside manner needed more than a little bit of help.
"Right- well, it's my parents' thirtieth-" he said, then, nodding his head. "And I was hoping to do something big for them- you know, really celebrate how long they've managed to stick together-"
Really, he had to work on the wording of that.
Reply
But his comment tugged her lips up into an amused smile.
"Not much for anniversaries?" she asked him curiously, trying to be as polite as possible.
Reply
He laughed, crossing his ankle over his knee as he leaned forward a little bit, his hands already moving as he spoke.
"I mean, you know- thirty years is an exceptionally long time- and for someone who's really never been in a relationship for longer than a year- well, I suppose it's a bit to process-"
Reply
Daphne looked down at her hand, realizing then that she had forgotten her engagement ring. The morning had been hectic, rushing out before Terry could wake up so that he didn't lecture her about taking it slow.
Funny how she didn't feel much about the realization.
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He looked back up at Daphne, catching that little sparkle of amusement in her eyes and he couldn't help but grin.
"No- you know, I'm very proud of them-" he said, putting both his feet firmly back down on the floor. "They're incredible-"
Reply
While a decade was starting to feel like a long time to Daphne, she couldn't even imagine three. She thought about her relationship with Terry for a moment and the years stretched and dragged in front of her.
It was a little dizzying.
"Do they have any idea you're here today?" she asked, pulling herself from her own thoughts. "Or is this going to be a surprise?"
Reply
"A surprise, definitely," he said. "They're a bit modest when it comes to events like this- they don't even go out to dinner all that often, so I thought this would be nice."
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"It's the year of the pearl. We could do a lot with that."
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"Year of the pearl?" he asked, a slight smirk tugging at his lips. "You're going to have to explain to me what that means, Miss Greengrass-"
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