Mary’s weekend had flown by.

She had wanted Karen to have the day off on Saturday and so she’d taken her shift. It was only fair since Karen had to put in extra time while Mary would be in Washington this week.

Yesterday, on Sunday, Mary had slept until 9 a.m. She rarely slept that long and had woken up feeling groggy. Around 10, her grandma had knocked on the door and asked if she was up for a stroll in the park.

It was still frisky outside, but the first signs of spring had lifted Mary’s spirit within minutes. Elza had chatted on about the French class she was considering taking. Mary had only been too happy to talk about her grandmother’s latest projects.

She had purposefully avoided discussing her own life. Especially her work life and Lex Emsworth. Now that Monday morning had arrived, Mary had no choice but to face reality.

She was supposed to meet Lex at the train station in less than 90 minutes.
Looking in the mirror, she wrinkled her nose at the thought. “No! You’re going to do the best you can,” she reprimanded herself. “No whining!”

She repeated that last phrase a few times while checking her hair in the mirror. “No more whining,” she whispered and nodded, satisfied with her resolve, and her hair.

She looked pretty okay today, Mary decided. The navy blue of her sweater suited her well. The boyfriend-style jeans she had picked for the train ride were casual and well-worn. Her sneakers were a brand-new pair of red Chucks.

“I bet Lex shows up in a suit,” Mary thought, snorting. “A dark one.”

She raised an eyebrow at her reflection before turning away from the mirror. She had promised herself she would stop making assumptions about Lex. And the best way to do that was to not think about her at all.

Unfortunately, that had proven to be a difficult task. Lex Emsworth had a way of popping up in her mind at the most ridiculous moments. At first, Mary’s musings about Lex had been mostly work-related.

But when she had seen a couple stroll by in Central Park yesterday, Mary had suddenly wondered who Lex was dating. Was it one of those square-jawed men with aviation glasses like the specimen in the park?

“Or maybe she’s single,” Mary had considered. That actually made a lot more sense. Lex seemed like the workaholic type, right? The only reason she had stopped thinking about Lex’s love life was her grandmother.

“What are you thinking about? You’re frowning a lot,” Elza had asked as they strolled out of the park.

Mary hadn’t told her grandmother the truth, of course. She had also sworn that she would stop this madness right there and then. She didn’t care about Lex after all. All she cared about was the future of the store. Period.

Oh, but who had she been kidding? Mary had thought about Lex all evening. How annoying she was. How arrogant. How spoiled. And here she was doing it again. Thinking about what Lex would be wearing was definitely a new low.

“Get over it,” Mary hissed at herself while hurrying into the bedroom. Her carry-on suitcase was waiting on the bed. She tucked her toiletries bag inside and closed the lid. She was ready to go.