Chapter 6
If the ground could open up and swallow him, now would've been the time. The room was silent; he could feel all eyes on him.
"Now, if there are no more questions, let's continue." Jordan went on. She chuckled inwardly, the embarrassment was all over his face and a small part of her actually felt sorry for the guy, a very small part. She looked him over; he didn't have an aura of conceit or arrogance though. He looked truly unhappy and truly sorry. Taking a breath, she went on with the rest of the meeting.
"As you can see, I have it outlined on what we'll be doing for the rest of the week. Mostly I'll be showing you the history of the Olympics as a whole and we'll also be looking at the different torchbering runs of past Olympics and what it consists of. I will also be taking you around the course the torch will make when it comes here so that you can get a feel of what you'll be doing in Florida." A young woman raised her hand. "Yes?"
"Will it be the same here as it will be in Florida?" The woman asked.
"Similar but not the same no. Of course Utah and Florida are two different states so there is no way for it to be the same, but as far as the general information about the checkpoints and so on, that will be the same yes. Now, if you'll open to the second page of your information booklet, we'll read through and clarify anything that you have questions on."
Howie watched in utter horror, he still couldn't get over his stupidity. Everyone had gone on, but he couldn't help feeling like a major ass. How could he be so stupid? He rubbed at his temples and focused on the booklet in front of him.
****
"...So you don't have to yourself. Well, we've gone through everything in the booklet as well as the other papers here. Oh, and one other thing that isn't listed in the notes, there will be a party of sorts on Friday in the ballroom, you're all invited but are not required to attend. I hope to see you there. Are their any other questions?"
Everyone looked at each other, their gazes stopping on Howie. He blushed and looked down.
"Well then that's it for today. Tomorrow we start with the actual tour and such. I expect you all to arrive each morning at approximately seven forty-five sharp so that we can leave at eight. I will not hesitate to leave anyone behind, if such an incidence occurs, you must find another way to get to the location for that day. We should run until about five in the evening. After that you're free to do as you like. Take care everyone and I'll see you all tomorrow morning." She finished.
Everyone gathered their things and headed out the door. Howie waited until everyone cleared out before walking over to talk to Jordan, taking a deep breath.
"Excuse me, Ms. Fairview?"
She looked up at him. "Ah yes, Mr. Dorough. What can I do for you?"
"I wanted to apologize personally for this morning. It was totally inappropriate of me to ask if you were...well, you know. I made a quick assumption and I'm very sorry."
It certainly wasn't the first or the last time it's happened, it's not a problem."
"I don't want you getting the wrong first impression of me. I'm not a chauvinist, or conceited or arrogant. I just..." He didn't know why he'd done it, he hadn't figured that part out yet.
She looked up at him again, her dark eyes boring through him. "Yes?"
Whatever he was going to say, died on his lips as he looked into her eyes. There was something there, hidden in the depths the cool stare she was giving him, a deep, intense heat smoldering just below the surface. He swallowed hard, not expecting the ball of heat now forming in his stomach.
She blinked once, twice. "Mr. Dorough?"
He shook his head. "Sorry. I just want to apologize for any disrespect I may have shown you." He was still thrown by his revelation.
"It's ok Mr. Dorough."
"Howie, call me Howie please."
She looked at him again, her eyes narrowing before picking up the last of her things. "You'd better hurry before the bus leaves without you. Have a nice evening Mr. Dorough."
And with that, she strode out the conference room, leaving Howie alone.
****
She chuckled as she made her way to her car. She hadn't been expecting that to happen, most of the time people never apologized for the mistake, and if they did, it wasn't sincere. The way he looked at her though, totally sincere, as though he could see right through to her soul, there was something strangely scary and yet, comforting about it all at the same time.
The fact that he knew about her previous thoughts of him being arrogant and conceited did shock her. There was something about him though. He was smooth, she could tell. His eyes, he was used to seducing women with those eyes. She'd been told she did the same thing with her lovers, her eyes she imagined were the same shade of brown as Howie's.
Sadly, her lovers later discovered the cold and unyielding wall that had formed around her heart. There was so much more to her though, so much more that was there. She never really let anyone close enough to see that, the desire and the heat that lie just beneath the surface.
There was no great tragedy to her life, no lost love; no woman scorned story, just basic survival techniques in order to make it in the world. So far it'd worked well, maybe too well seeing that every relationship she'd had, had failed because her significant other couldn't see how important her work was to her.
Her independence was equally important as well. She was not the type to sit around and wait for her boyfriend by the phone, she did things. She had her life to lead and would not be held back for anyone, not even a boyfriend. She was happier single, no one to tie her down, and no one to answer to.
Jordan slid into the seat of her car and started it up. That's how it was and that was how it was going to stay.
