The Seat They Never Saved And The Offer I Finally Took Chapter 01

The Seat They Never Saved And The Offer I Finally Took Chapter 01

Our flight was canceled in a downpour, stranding all five of us at the airport overnight.

My boyfriend, Nathan Reed, spent forty minutes in line at the service desk and came back with four blankets.

He casually shook out two and draped them over my best friend, Chloe Hayes. The others went to my childhood friend, Mason Carter, and his sister.

He met my eyes with a careless smile.

“They ran out before I could get you one. You’re usually pretty healthy. You can handle one night.”

At three in the morning, Chloe said she was hungry.

Mason went to the vending machine and came back with four packaged sandwiches.

Nathan took the sandwich Mason handed him, bit into it, then turned to him.

“Get Chloe another one, will you? She has low blood sugar.”

Mason said, “Sure,” and dropped another coin into the machine.

I sat on the cold bench and watched that sandwich end up in Chloe’s hands.

The hunger twisting my stomach suddenly faded.

I remembered the last time we’d rushed to catch a flight. They’d bought tickets for everyone except me, leaving me to scramble for a standby ticket on the next departure.

I remembered how they all managed to forget me whenever we ordered food together.

There were always five of us. There was only ever enough love for four.

Near dawn, an announcement finally told us flights had resumed.

The four of them walked toward the gate, laughing and chatting. Not one glanced back at me in the corner.

I said nothing. I calmly took out my phone and accepted the overseas offer.

If their world only had room for four, I would leave with my dignity intact.

…

“Claire, keep an eye on the bags. Chloe’s having really bad stomach pain all of a sudden. I’m taking her to first aid.”

Without even looking at me, Nathan shoved the luggage cart’s handle into my hands.

Five huge, twenty-eight-inch suitcases were piled on it.

Chloe clutched her stomach and leaned weakly against Nathan’s shoulder.

“Claire, hurry up,” Ellie Carter said impatiently, frowning beside us.

She had her arm hooked through Mason’s. Together, they flanked Chloe protectively.

“It’s pouring out. Don’t take forever. Get the bags and meet us in the garage,” Mason said.

All four of them swept toward the airport exit.

They hurried away. Nobody looked back.

I stood by the baggage carousel, staring at the heavy cart handle in my hands.

My stomach ached, too.

I’d spent the entire night in the terminal without even a sip of water.

But nobody had asked if I was hungry.

I drew a deep breath and shoved the overloaded cart forward.

The wheels scraped loudly. Steering around each turn was a struggle.

As I stepped outside the terminal, an icy gust drove rain into my face.

The rain came down in sheets, stinging my face with cold.

The parking garage was two levels underground. The elevator was broken, so I had to use the ramp.

I tried to keep the cart on course, but five suitcases weighed more than I could handle.

Partway down the ramp, the cart got away from me and slammed into a concrete barrier.

The top two suitcases crashed into a puddle, splashing muddy water everywhere.

Chloe’s custom pink suitcase and Nathan’s black business case.

I stood in the rain, my hair soaked through, water streaming down my face.

A passing security guard couldn’t bear to watch me struggle. He hurried over to help me lift the suitcases.

“All these bags on your own? Where’s your boyfriend? Can’t he give you a hand?”

I looked down at the scuffed leather on the pink suitcase.

I spoke softly.

“I don’t have a boyfriend.”

The guard paused, then shook his head and helped me push the cart to the rideshare pickup area.

I didn’t go to the garage where they’d told me to meet them.

Their car couldn’t fit five people and five suitcases anyway.

I booked a premium SUV and rode back into the city alone.

Rain-blurred streets sped past the window. I’d lived in Boston for seven years.

For those seven years, the four of them had been almost my whole world.

Nathan was my boyfriend of five years. Mason and I had grown up together. His little sister, Ellie, used to follow me everywhere and treat me like a big sister.

Chloe had been my best friend in college.

Somewhere along the way, everything had changed.

Whenever Chloe was there, I became invisible. They could overlook me without a second thought.

Back at the apartment Nathan and I shared, I dragged the suitcases into the entryway one by one.

The apartment was deathly quiet. A trace of Chloe’s usual perfume still hung in the air.

A cup with a cartoon cat on it sat on the coffee table.

Nathan had bought it just for Chloe. He said she should have her own cup for her visits.

It was my home, but I drank from an ordinary supermarket glass.

I went into the bathroom and showered away the rain and the chill.

When I came out in clean clothes, my phone lit up.

Nathan had sent me a message on Messenger.

“Why haven’t you brought the bags over? Chloe’s meds are in her suitcase. Can’t you be a little more considerate?”

Three minutes later, he sent another.

“Mason says you got a ride and left? Since when do you act like this? Leave the bags at home. We’re taking Chloe to get something easy on her stomach, then we’ll be back.”

I read the two messages.

I didn’t explain that I couldn’t manage the suitcases. I didn’t tell him I’d spent half an hour in the rain.

Once, I would’ve typed out everything that hurt. He would’ve answered with the same old impatience.

He always said I was making a big deal out of nothing. That I had no empathy.

Now, I didn’t even want to type.

I went into the study and opened my laptop.

The confirmation for my overseas assignment at our London headquarters was waiting in my inbox.

Three years, no trips home built into the assignment. High pay. High pressure.

I’d spent a month hesitating, unable to let go of Nathan or the wedding we were about to plan.

Now, the timing couldn’t have been better.

I clicked Reply.

The sound of typing carried through the quiet room.

“Thank you for your confidence in me. I’m ready for the new challenge and can start handing over my responsibilities next Tuesday.”

I hit Enter and said softly, “Okay. I accept.”