Virtually Mine: a love story Read online

What Charlie wouldn’t give for Kate, he thought. She was like that pearl of great price his dad always used to teach about from the pulpit. Charlie wasn’t sure that his father would have completely approved of the way he was going about things with Kate. But long ago, when they’d laid his mother to rest, Charlie’s dad had said something Charlie knew he’d never forget.

  “People talk about there being a lot of fish in the sea,” his dad had said, “but there was only ever one for me. That was your precious Mama. From the moment I laid eyes on her, I was completely undone. That was it,” he’d said. “You’ll know when you find the one who’s meant for you, too, Charlie. You’ll know.”

  Charlie wanted to believe his father was right, but he realized he had his doubts, not so much about the knowing part—that part had already come true. It was the practically impossible feat of getting Kate to notice him, too.

  Charlie had no illusions of grandeur. He knew he could never begin to compete with the likes of Eric, or even Dustin in the looks department. He did know his father was right about one thing, though. Whether Kate ever cast a glance his way or not, there would never, ever be another girl for him.

  Charlie backed through the swinging doors of Virtually Mine’s stock room, balancing his precarious pile of presents. He secured the white velvet box on top, under his chin. As hard as it had been to motivate himself, he resolved that he would do Samantha’s bidding. He would give Archie’s clients a more reasonable amount of service. It would all be worth it, he thought, if it meant one more moment with Kate.

  When Charlie rotated toward the office pool, his eyes widened in shock. There was the company’s receptionist, Levon Mink, leading Kate into Samantha’s office. Charlie teetered back and forth, unsure what to do. A box of candy hearts slid off of his stack and, as he tried to catch it, the whole load went flying.

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  As hard as Kate tried to keep herself calm, there was something about Samantha Raznick that rattled her right from the start. From the moment Levon introduced her, the woman’s steely gaze never left her. Kate waited for Samantha to blink, but it seemed that she never did. Kate could feel Samantha studying her, head to toe, as she waltzed around her desk.

  “You look vaguely familiar to me,” Samantha murmured.

  Kate shifted self-consciously. “I can’t imagine why.”

  Sam strode across the office toward Kate. “Let’s get right to it then, shall we, Ms. Mae? You are not, nor have you ever been in any way, shape, or form associated with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.”

  Kate fought for composure. “I can explain about that.”

  “No need. I admire your pluck.”

  Astonished, Kate lowered her defenses a tad. “You do?”

  Samantha tipped her head toward the busy office pool outside the glass walls of her office, amused. “And though I take a certain pleasure in surrounding myself with men, perhaps I’ve been missing out on a substantial portion of the market.”

  Kate could hardly believe her ears. “I was thinking exactly the same thing.”

  “No, you weren’t,” Sam presumed. “You’re a starving actress looking for a paycheck in a saturated field. But I suppose your face could do rather well for us in a homespun sort of way.”

  Kate mulled it over. “Actually, I don’t want to be a face.”

  “You don’t.”

  Kate braved a step toward Samantha. “I want the hands on, nitty gritty. I was thinking I could maybe be an Operator.”

  Sam arched her brows. “You. A worker bee.”

  Kate nodded, her confidence growing. “I can stir up the honey.”

  Once again, Kate could feel Samantha studying her. Exactly what was going on in the woman’s head, Kate didn’t know, but she could tell from Samantha’s tightening gaze that the wheels of consideration were turning.

  Finally, Samantha gave Kate an affirming nod. “Yes, Ms. Mae. I’m sure you can.”

  Were it not for Eric’s sudden appearance at the door, Kate might have relaxed. As it was, she quickly turned from him, hoping against hope that he wouldn’t notice her.

  Samantha motioned Eric toward her. “Eric, come in. I take it you’ve signed out with business affairs.”

  Kate reeled as Eric stepped into the room.

  Samantha smoothly gestured Eric toward Kate. “Eric, this is Katherine Mae. We’re talking about branching into Imaginary Girlfriends.”

  Eric smiled warmly at Kate. It was hard for Kate to read exactly what he was thinking, but clearly he recognized her. He almost seemed to be enjoying this happenstance.

  As Kate reached out to shake Eric’s hand, her eyes pled with him not to say anything. It helped that Samantha turned aside and sauntered back toward her desk.

  Kate shook Eric’s hand a little more briskly than she normally would have, lightly emphasizing her words. “Eric, how nice to meet you for the very first time.”

  Eric winked at Kate cooperatively. “Yes, my pleasure.”

  Greatly relieved, Kate turned back to Samantha. “Ms. Raznick, why don’t you go ahead and tend to your business with Eric. I can just wander around, you know, get the feel of the place.”

  Samantha slid open her desk drawer. “You do that, Katherine. See if you can get one of the drones to acquaint you with the software.”

  Mouthing her thanks covertly to Eric, Kate backed out of the office and closed the door.

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  As Kate ventured into the office pool, Eric watched her go, intrigued. There was something about Kate that set her apart from most all of the girls he’d met in L.A. Even in this ruse of a context, there was a certain genuineness in her eyes, something he hadn’t seen in anyone else in a very long time.

  The fact was, Eric was so distracted by tracking with Kate as she passed through the Operator’s cubicles that he didn’t notice Sam’s return until she cleared her throat just behind him. This time, he would not let Samantha Raznick get the better of him. He turned back, and seeing his final check in her possession, he instinctively reached for it.

  With a retaliatory air, Samantha withdrew the check smoothly and tapped it against her arm. “Interesting, the way it went with you Eric. A blaze of glory, then nothing. You do understand that though, sadly, our Operators are favoring other Imaginaries of late, your face will still inspire your pre-existing hits throughout the term of the original license.”

  Eric rolled his eyes. “Whatever.” He reached for the check, half-knowing that she would still make him wait for it. Samantha was becoming predictable to him, and try as she might, he resolved that he would not let himself be drawn in by her again. As arresting a woman as she had seemed to him at first glance, she had lost her power over him. He stood his ground, silently waiting.

  A moment or two passed before Samantha put the check into Eric’s hand. Her expression hardened. What beauty she had left her face. “Do let me know if you should ever...reconsider.”

  In a way, Eric felt sorry for Samantha. He stood toe to toe with her, holding her soulless gaze. “No, thanks. I think we’re done.”

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  As M.J. trudged up the stairs to her apartment, she hoped she could get inside without seeing any of her neighbors. What with all the mud on her clothes, there would be questions, questions M.J. wasn’t exactly in the mood to answer. She was almost home free. At least she thought she was, till she spotted Dustin, sitting outside her door, flossing his well-groomed teeth.

  Dustin looked up. “Yikes! You look horrible.”

  M.J. fumbled for her key. “Thank you, Dustin. Your opinion is oh, so crucial to me. What are you doing here?”

  “Waiting for Kate.”

  Heaving an exasperated sigh, M.J. unlocked the door. “Well, she’s not back and I’m not staying. Turns out I suddenly have laundry.”

  Dustin stood to his feet. “Hey, do you own a dictionary?”

  M.J. marveled at just how random Dustin could be. “Kate does. Why?”

  Not waiting for an invitat
ion, Dustin waltzed into the apartment. “Reesa says I need to woo Kate. But would she tell me what a woo is? Noooooo. She’s all “look it up.” Is that even a real word? I mean, woo?”

  M.J. followed Dustin in and extended a palm to direct Dustin back to Kate’s room. “Who am I to stand in the way of higher education? Middle shelf. Before her journals.”

  As she watched Dustin go, M.J. found herself pondering what Kate had ever seen in the guy. Sure, he was good looking. He’d been okay for a laugh here and there. But one thing was for sure: he was no Rob Galloway.

  Suddenly, M.J.’s eyes brimmed. She did her best to shake it off, but didn’t find it easy. It wasn’t just that she was alone again, or that Dustin didn’t make good company. It wasn’t that she’d lost her job writing parking tickets. What it was was that, for once in a very long while, she had allowed her spirit to soar, her heart to hope. Now, she was free-falling, and reality was a long way down.

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  Wandering through the office pool of Virtually Mine, Kate passed station after station, checking their Operator numbers, and smiling at the average Joes who manned them. She paused to watch as Operator 37 drew a heart on each of a stack of homemade cards. “Are those for your clients?”

  Operator 37 grinned at her. “I like to give it the personal touch.”

  Kate nodded. “That’s really nice. Hey, would you happen to know where Operator 52 is stationed? He’s supposed to train me.”

  Operator 37 knitted his brow quizzically. “She taking girls, now?”

  “Looks like.”

  Referencing a list, Operator 37 stood to look over the surrounding cubicles. “Operator 52, that’s Butters. He was just here.” He turned to the next Operator. “Torkinson, where did Charlie go?”

  Kate emitted an audible gasp. “Charlie Butters is Operator 52?” As she fought to absorb the shock of it, she noticed Eric, striding toward her from Samantha’s office.

  Eric pocketed his paycheck. “So it’s Katherine Mae? See, I thought it was Kate Valentine.”

  “Shhh! It’s—yes, it’s Kate, but—oh, this is so completely loaded. How’d you know my last name?”

  Eric shuffled adorably. “Okay, please don’t think I’m a stalker because I swear I’m not, but...I met you and you seemed really nice and so my type, and I sort of checked out your info card at the casting studio. Don’t hate me.”

  Reeling at the turn of events, Kate floundered. “No, it’s... I don’t know what this is.”

  Eric cupped Kate’s elbow, charmingly leading her aside. “Look, maybe it wasn’t an accident that we ran into each other, that they put us together, you know? Maybe there could be something here.”

  Still struggling at bit to regain her bearings, Kate pondered the notion. “Maybe. I’m... Eric, I’m kind of on cerebral overload at the moment. It’s like a multi-car pile-up on the neural highway. So...please, I really hope you don’t take this personally, but I’ve gotta go.”

  As quickly as her feet would carry her, Kate bolted from the office. She had no idea what she’d say or do when she got where she was going. All she knew was that, no matter what, she desperately had to find Charlie.

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  Newly educated concerning the meaning of the word woo, Dustin slid Kate’s unabridged Webster’s back into its place on her bookshelf, flanking a full row of her journals. Wooing was all about winning her heart, he realized. But why it was that Kate didn’t think he knew her mystified him. What difference did being able to tell her things about herself that she already knew make? Besides that, how was he supposed to find out all that stuff when she was hardly even talking to him anymore?

  All of a sudden, Dustin realized that those bits of extraneous information about Kate he needed to know might be right in front of his nose, nestled beside Kate’s way-too-thick dictionary, waiting to be discovered in her collection of journals.

  “Oh, this is awesome!” Dustin crowed as he pulled the first in a line of Kate’s journals out. With a self-satisfied grin, he made himself comfortable, cracked it open, and began to read.

  eleven

  ♥

  Wistfully, M.J. loaded her dirty clothes into a washer at the Fluff and Fold. Soon, all the evidence of her disaster of a day would be rinsed down the drain and into laundry history. She supposed she could have waited till her usual washday, but the idea of those grimy togs taunting her from the basket at the bottom of her closet was just too much to take.

  When it came to humiliations of this magnitude, M.J. preferred to keep short accounts. The sooner her ill-fated deeds could be put behind her, the sooner she could pick herself up and move on with her life.

  So it was, with as much determination as M.J. could muster, she reached for her detergent. It was then that she made a discovery. There, in her otherwise empty laundry basket, was a hand-lettered flyer.

  In and of itself, finding a flyer wasn’t all that unusual for M.J. People hawking their goods and services left flyers all over the place in Santa Monica. In her day as a Meter Maid, she’d switched out many a flyer for a parking ticket on an all too littered windshield.

  Reflexively, M.J. reached into her wash basket to toss the flyer, but its simple headline arrested her attention:

  No time to do your laundry?

  Call Rob Galloway: Laundry-Doer Extraordinaire!

  M.J. looked up from the page, hardly able to believe her eyes. There was Dr. Rob Galloway, standing tall with two boxes of washing powder.

  Rob’s dimples accented his grin. “So, were you thinking color-safe bleach or active oxygen?”

  Her mind whirling, M.J. studied the situation. It couldn’t be, but it was. “Wait a minute. Okay. You don’t do your clothes here. Do you?”

  “Nope. I totally followed you.”

  A light dawned for M.J. “Then you’re here for...” Her eyes widening in disbelief, M.J. tentatively pointed to herself.

  Rob shrugged playfully. “I just saw you around, strictly in a laundry-spotting context, and thought this might be a good way to meet you.”

  M.J. nodded, taking it in. A landslide grin spread across her lips. “I grew on you, didn’t I?”

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  Charlie sat quietly in his apartment, waiting for the other shoe to fall crashing down in front of him. As much as he wished he could persuade himself otherwise, he knew his cover had been completely blown. He’d slipped out of work as soon as he heard Kate chatting up his fellow Operator, the one who had quickly volunteered his name.

  Kate would want to talk to him now. She was so sensitive in that way. She would tell him how much she valued his friendship, what a great guy he’d be for someone else, and that would be that.

  The time for pouring his secret passion into poems and gifts had passed. Mostly though, what he realized he’d miss were the phone calls, time spent conversing with the girl who had utterly stolen his heart.

  The more Charlie thought about it, the more he realized that there wasn’t a soul on earth that he could talk to about any of what he was going through, certainly not Mrs. Teasdale, and least of all Kate. He considered phoning his father, and then a wave of shame washed over him for masterminding the charade in the first place.

  How could he admit to his dad that he’d done what he’d done when he couldn’t even tell him what V.M. Enterprises really was? Charlie thought about how proud his father had been when he landed a computer tech job in the big city. (That much he’d been able to share honestly.) Though it had only been part time, it had been a foot in the door, his dad had encouraged, a building block for better things to come.

  There was nothing wrong in an honest day’s work, Charlie knew, but as much as he’d rationalized that Virtually Mine was just brokering harmless fantasy, he admitted that the spirit of it wasn’t entirely harmless, let alone honest. As he sat there, he came to grips with the truth, that behind every Imaginary Boyfriend was a real-live person, who was connecting with another real-live person, stirring up real-live emotion in real-live h
earts.

  Charlie looked up to the only One he could bear to face when he knew he’d totally blown it. Even that took everything in him. “I knew better, and I still...” A tear slipped down Charlie’s cheek. “I let you down, I know. But that isn’t the worst of it,” he whispered. “I pulled Kate into this, too. And I’m really, really sorry.”

  “Charlie!” Kate called as she knocked on his door.

  There she was. She’d come to clear the air with him, just as he’d known she would. He wiped his face, wondering if she’d heard him.

  Again, Kate knocked, this time more insistently. “Charlie, would you please just talk to me?”

  Charlie sat, paralyzed, unable to respond.

  “Charlie, I know you’re in there.”

  So, she had heard him. Still, nothing in Charlie was ready to face Kate yet. As soon as he faced her, he knew it would be over, something that could wait just a little while longer.

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  Dustin closed the last of Kate’s journals as he overheard Kate’s calls to Charlie, coming from just outside.

  “Charlie, please!” Kate implored.

  As quickly as he could, Dustin fumbled to set each of Kate’s journals back in place on her shelf.

  “Charlie,” he heard Kate continue. “I’m going into my apartment now, but please come and see me, okay?”

  Realizing his time was nearly up, Dustin dashed out into Kate’s living room. “Prepare to be wooed,” he exuded as he sat on her sofa, intent upon looking casual.

  As Kate entered, a look of surprise darted across her face. “How did you get in?”

  Dustin rose. “M.J. was here.” Bursting with excitement, he pointed to Kate’s blinking answering machine. “Okay, get ready. That message light, that’s Wissy. And your mom called.”

  Kate knitted her brow. “You listened to my messages?”