Valentine's Day, the day that the world celebrates love, and one of the holidays supposedly created by Hallmark, full of presents and red. This year Jayden was not looking forward to Valentine's Day. For her, it was going to be just another Thursday. She would wake up, shower, do the work thing, and come home to her off-white, one bedroom apartment to watch TIVOed episodes of What Not To Wear and Lifetime Original Movies. Why people did not realize the wonder of the Lifetime Movie Network, Jayden did not understand.
She got to work at 8. It was an hour before the rest of her team. The goal was to get in and out of the office as quickly as possible. She debated taking a sick day but figured sitting at home alone thinking about her loneliness would be more depressing than listening to the wedding plans of her manager and co-worker. Once they walked in with their chocolates and discussions of breakfast in bed, she regretted the sick day decision and debated faking a stomachache. She was having flashbacks to getting out of class in middle school.
The previous six months had not been easy. She had moved to Richmond to begin a new career. A new career and a new life she thought she was going to begin with her boyfriend, ex-boyfriend. Ex made it sound so final, Jayden did not want it to be final, she wanted him to follow through on the promises he had made, she wanted him to replenish her faith in men. She wanted to be planning her wedding, not listening to others plan theirs.
Working straight through lunch she was ready to get home to her pink and red fleece pajama pants, a bottle of red wine, and her beloved Lifetime Movie Network full of love stories she would never experience. At 4 she popped her laptop off the dock without even shutting it down. Throwing it into her bag, she hollered goodbyes half way to the elevator, practically ran out the front door, and drove the 3.7 miles home in complete silence. Jayden avoided the radio, who wanted to hear love songs in such moments of self pity.
Once home and comfortable Jayden began to make her dinner. She threw the unsightly lettuce down the garbage disposal and flipped the switch. There was a gurgle, a sputter, and nothing.
"Shit, fuck, wank, buggard, arse head and hole."
This was just what she needed. Already wound up from the day's events she pressed #5 on her phone to call and bitch out the front office. Shouldn't they have already fixed this, she had called them about it twice in the last two weeks.
"Hello, Belmont Apartment Complex, Chris speaking."
Jayden was taken aback. The voice on the other line was not the typical snotty girl who was too incompetent to get a job elsewhere. It was deep, and smooth, and despite her current distaste for men, it was hot.
"Listen, I don't know who you are but I need to tell you just how disappointed I am in the fact that my garbage disposal has not been fixed despite the fact that I have called multiple times. I do not pay rent for appliances that don't work. I need it fixed as soon as possible." Jayden was fired up. She got this way occasionally and liked to sound authoritative.
"Ma'am, I am sorry that you are so upset. Due to the holiday there is no one in the service department working at this moment ..."
"Shit, how and I supposed to make dinner without a fucking garbage disposal." Jayden signed, it probably wasn't this guy's fault that no one was working. She didn't even know who this guy was. "Sorry," she muttered, "I am just wound up, do you work here? Who are you?"
The sexy voice chuckled, "actually I own the place. I am just in the office doing some administrative paperwork and was expecting a different phone call. However, I do have some skills with appliances, how about I run over and take a look. What apartment are you in?"
