"Dream Guy"
A Warner Forever Release
February 2005
ISBN: 0-446-61455-6
© 2005 Candy Halliday All Rights reserved
Finally, she inched her way to the Bank of America Plaza -- not as tall as buildings in Chicago or New York City, but a skyscraper nonetheless with fifty-five stories of prime office space. She parked her vintage 1975 Volkswagen convertible in the underground parking garage, unconcerned that her bright purple bug looked like a giant Easter egg sitting between a shiny Lexus and a sport BMW. Trendy had never been at the top of her to-be list.
Still thinking about the special night she’d carefully planned for Dave, Annie reached the parking garage elevator with a cheerful smile. “Have you ever seen such a glorious June morning?”
She’d made the comment to no one in particular as she and fifteen other people crammed themselves into the elevator. But a heavyset man standing beside her mopped his moist brow with a handkerchief, looked over at her, and said, “It’s the Prozac, right? That’s the only explanation for anyone calling seventy-two degrees at eight a.m. a glorious June morning.”
Annie ignored him.
Everyone else laughed.
She hopped off the elevator on the thirty-second floor and entered the offices of Paragon Technology, one of the nation’s major interactive software developers and second to none in the video game industry. Today Annie didn’t even give in to that crestfallen I’ll-never-be-anything-but-the-token-female-of-the-creative-department feeling.
Not today.
After a monthlong business trip to San Francisco, Dave was finally coming home.
Nothing was going to rain on Annie’s parade today.
“Wow, Annie. You look wonderful.”
Annie smiled appreciatively.
Kathy Welborn, her only true gal-pal at Paragon, was pretty and blond. A dead ringer for Helen Hunt most people said, but Annie thought Kathy was prettier. Like most receptionists, Kathy always had the inside scoop on everyone in the company. In other words, a good friend to have.
Annie made an exaggerated curtsey in front of Kathy’s desk. “I thank you. The academy thanks you. My mother thanks you.”
And yes, she had gone a bit overboard today.
The Anna Sui floral sundress fit her like a second skin. And the sexy Manolo sandals had a price tag that still made her shudder. She’d bought the shoes partly because they matched the periwinkle blue flowers in the dress perfectly. But mainly she’d bought them because she wanted to see what all the Manolo Blahnik hype was about. Sadly, three hundred and fifty dollars poorer, she still hadn’t figured it out.
She’d even managed to retain her stringy mop rather neatly in a poofy strawberry blond swoop on top of her head. And she’d applied a little makeup, which she rarely ever wore. Because today, dammit, called for one of those sundress, Manolos, and makeup kind of moods.
“You really do look great, Annie,” Kathy said. “What time did you say you were picking Dave up from the airport this afternoon?”
“Four o’clock sharp,” Annie said, beaming.
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