Chapter 5 - Mayson

It’s time to put my game face on. I have on my favorite power suit. I have had quite a few successful meetings in this outfit. Black pencil skirt, white blouse, blazer and three inch heels. This was so far from what I wore back in the day. I was so much a tomboy with a little side of princess. I enjoyed my jeans and tennis shoes and never mind getting dirty. But what girl doesn’t like to get dressed up every once in a while. In high school, the only times I really dressed up was when Holden and I would attend a dance. I always wanted to look good for him. He had become my world and I loved him more than I had ever thought was possible. The love that we had was what I had read about in my cheesy romance novels that always had the happy ending. My love story didn’t have that happy ending.

I decided to leave a little early for the meeting so I could get a good look at downtown Chance. Not much has changed, but I can’t wait to see what downtown will look like once the project goes through. Thinking about this project has me really nervous. I have no doubt in my skills. What worries me is that after eight years, I am going to walk into a room with Holden. There hasn’t been a day that has passed that I haven’t thought about him over the years. I just never thought I would ever lay eyes on him. Every time I had come to town to see my parents, I made sure to keep it on the down low and did not stay long. I couldn’t risk running into Holden or anyone from my past. I know deep down if that had happened I would have ended up staying. But now look at me, I have come back and most likely I will be staying. From the proposal I have seen, even if it is from Holden, it looks very promising.

After riding around town for a little bit, which doesn’t take long, it’s time to go to this meeting. As I walk up to the building, the sign on the door is very simple - H & S Design Firm. It is very hard to not be proud of Holden. He has made a name for himself and had started his own business. I knew he always had such big dreams. I had always thought we would take on those dreams together and here I am just about to do that.

I walk in behind the last board member and I almost drop my briefcase. I hadn’t expected to see Amelia sitting behind the desk. I could have gone the rest of my life and never seen that backstabbing bitch again. I couldn’t let her get to me, especially not today. The fake smile she had on her face was all too familiar. I still would love to slap that smile off of her face. In my book, she deserved the slap and so much more for everything she pulled on me when we were in high school. I know that it is not the adult thing to do and hold a grudge, but with Amelia, I will hold that grudge until the day I die.

As soon as Amelia saw me standing in front of her desk, her face went from pale to a bright red. I guess seeing me after all these years scared her and pissed her off at the same time. “Mayson, what are you doing here? Holden doesn’t have time for your dramatics today, he has a big meeting so the best thing for you to do is to leave.” The hatred for me dripped from every word out of her mouth. There was something about getting under her skin that gave me a feeling of satisfaction. Being able to tell her I was meant to be here was going to be so sweet.

“Sorry to disappoint you, Amelia, but I am supposed to be here. I am part of the meeting with Holden and Seth. You need to worry about your job as secretary and let your bosses know that I am here for the board meeting.” If looks could kill, I would be six feet under. Before she could say another word, Councilman James Jordan walked around the corner. “Miss Cole I am so glad that you accepted our invitation to join us today for this presentation. I am anxious to hear your thoughts. Just follow me, everything is set up in the conference room.” As I followed Councilman Jordan down the hall I could feel the death stare of Amelia on my back. She would just have to deal with it, because it things worked out, I was going to be around whether she liked it or not.

For a minute, I had forgotten all about the person I was about to see in this conference room. When I walked in the door, it was if time was standing still. At the front of the room, there was Holden. He is looking so handsome in the gray suit and blue tie. Blue has always been my favorite color. Suddenly I had a case of dry mouth. How in the world was I going to get through this meeting when all I wanted to do was look at the face that has been in my dreams forever. As soon as I shook those thoughts out of my head, Holden turned around and we make eye contact. The look on his face was hard to read, was he surprised or angry that I was here. This meeting hasn’t even started yet and there was already tension in the room.