Heart Shaped Spotlight

Trisha was dressed in the traditional clothes of a tech – black jeans, black long sleeved t-shirt, with her long, dark hair held back in a tidy ponytail. Her bright hazel eyes met mine, and I simply stared for a second. She was so damn beautiful. Short, curvy, and delicate. Her figure had shifted in the past few years, and now her plain clothing couldn’t hide how incredibly sexy she was. Her curves had filled out gloriously.

“Hi,” I said, holding out my hand to her as if we were meeting for the first time. Her skin touching mine was such an innocent gesture, but I already felt that tiny spark. It was really happening.

Trisha held my hand in hers for a moment, accepting the folded up piece of paper that I slipped into her palm. “This show was totally last minute, and I don’t know whose idea it was t

o live-stream it. I hope that it wasn’t too much of a headache for you.”

She quickly jammed her hand in her pocket. “Um, no. It was okay, I think.” Her nervous fake laugh was exactly how I remembered it. “We always pull through.”

Her eyes finally met mine straight on, and I held her gaze. “Clever people like you always find a way,” I said softly. “Even when crazy artists mess everything up. We need people like you to hold us together sometimes.” I nodded, stepping back. “Thanks.”

She gave me a soft smile. It was a tiny bit different than I remembered. More self assured. I liked it. Glancing behind me, nobody was paying us any attention. Leaning close, I whispered, “Princess of all tech at a radio station? I’m so proud of you.” She was close enough that I could have reached out to touch her, hug her, anything. My arms needed to reach for her, so I hooked my thumbs in my pockets.

Trisha’s eyes glowed as she looked up at me, but then her gaze darted nervously around the room. Backing away, I nodded, still smiling. She understood that I wasn’t going to call her out.

I went over to Dave, clapping him on the back. “You won’t believe how many people just watched that stream,” he said quickly, holding up his phone to show me the numbers.

“Holy shit,” I muttered. He started out the door, and I followed, glancing back to the love of my life one more time. Her eyes flicked between me and the screen several times, then she quickly sat down, hiding again.

If she didn’t call the number that was now safely stashed in her pocket, I honestly didn’t know what I’d do.

Chapter Nine ~ Trisha

* Questions *

It was incredibly classy of Nate to keep quiet about finding me. Which pointed out yet again that he was the only person who has ever understood me. Every single woman I'd ever met would be jumping around in front of any camera, screaming that she had been his muse.

Nate understood that I didn't want to be observed. I wanted to be in a smaller world, with a much smaller circle of people. I needed privacy, and to control at least some of my environment.

I took my time shutting everything down and making notes for the next time we live streamed. Everything had gone perfectly, but that didn't mean it would work the same next time. It should, but things occasionally had a way of breaking down at the last second.

As I was leaving the studio room, I ran into Gary in the hall and was shocked as he clapped me on the back like one of the guys. He had always acted like he didn't quite trust me, and I wasn't sure whether it was that I was female, or that I was a stranger. He tended to employ people that he was related to, or friends of friends.

"Well done, Trisha," he said. "Sorry to drop that on you last minute."

My best professional smile was beaming at full strength. "That's why I needed the extra gear and the extra time to run tests."

He chuckled as we walked toward reception. "You always seem to be ahead of everything," he said. "I appreciate that."

"Technical things always go more smoothly when it can be done in advance," I said, repeating what I'd been telling him for two years. "When things happen at the last minute, you don't have time to fix the inevitable glitches."

Gary chuckled again, turning toward Kim's desk as I turned toward the door. Then he grinned at me. "I think we’ll really show up the Vancouver branch this time."

I rolled my eyes dramatically while giggling. "Your little war with Vancouver is none of my business," I laughed. His brother ran the twin station on the west coast, and we all openly mocked their silly rivalry.

"Great work," he said. "Have a good night, Trisha." I saw Kim’s head jolt up at the mention of my name. She must have been so engrossed in her social media obsessions that she hadn’t seen me standing there.

"Good night,” I said to them both.

I nodded to Gary and Kim, noticing that she didn't even bother to close the endless browser windows that were open on her second monitor. Movie stars, celebrities, and musicians were everywhere. The one in the center featured a huge photo of Nate. I snapped my eyes away from it before I could focus completely.

Kim’s nails tapped on the desk as she gave me a nod. She may have simply been irritated at having to do a few actual work-related tasks today, since guests came in. But she was staring at me very strangely.

“Goodnight, Trisha,” she said. It was odd hearing her trying to sound sweet.

Waiting until I was halfway to the streetcar stop, I finally pulled Nate’s folded piece of paper from my pocket. It was the neatly printed name and address of a downtown hotel, and a phone number. Underneath, it read, "Tiny mellow chat?"

Laughter bubbled out of me like a hiccup. Nate and I had always varied wildly between big chats and mellow chats. He figured out that sometimes I was drained from difficult classes and my father's constant yelling. There were some days when I couldn't handle anything more than mellow. It was our code for saying up front that we wouldn't get too deep or serious.