Day 81: Tales Of Coda Dates And Returned Snubs
Day 81 Of How To Move On From A Man — 1LD
If you’re new here to 1 Lovelock Drive, welcome! Let me fill you in on what you’ve missed.
I’m Andie and my ex, Douglas, dumped me. This is my break-up, so to speak. Douglas is a power player in Melbourne, worth more than I could ever comprehend.
I have no idea why we broke up.
I work and live at 1 Lovelock Drive. There, my best friend James and I are building Highway, our unisex clothing line. Our two other best friends, GG and Sophia, are investors.
GG is dating Douglas’ brother. Awkward.
My friends have been acting strange since the breakup. Since things have changed, I’ve found papers in James’ briefcase outlining plans for an expensive office space for our business.
I picked up my handbag, fixed my hair and waltzed to the front door.
“Where are you going?” James asked.
He had some audacity wondering why I was exiting the workday so early. Those who don’t show up at all shouldn’t judge others.
“I have a meeting in the city.” It was half true. “Whatever you don’t get done today, leave it for me. I will get to it tomorrow.”
“What about our supplier meeting?”
I had forgotten we had our monthly check-in with the team producing our samples. Though considering everything I knew about the business, I’m sure this supplier was a ruse.
“Re-schedule it. This is far more important.”
I walked out and headed for the train station, the surge of adrenaline undeniable. Demanding anything of James right now felt like I was taking back some control. An insignificant amount compared to what he had taken. It was something though.
Alex had booked a table at Coda. Before I arrived, he had ordered a tasting menu for us, as well as a bottle of sparkling wine to match.
“I didn’t think you’re allowed to drink during the day,” I observed before kissing him on the cheek.
“I’m a stockbroker, not a doctor. I don’t have to stay sober for any reason.”
I wondered about making trades; surely you needed your wits about you. So you don’t put an extra zero on it by mistake. But this was the man who only handed in enough of an assignment to get the grades to pass.
He knew the lines, the ones to cross and the ones to push.
We ate and laughed and talked about the good old days.
And like all good catch-ups, we gave each other a paraphrased version of our lives since we last saw each other. He told me all about his last girlfriend. They dated for five years. They broke up after she got a job in Sydney and he didn’t want to move.
I told him about my ex, omitting the name until I described his profession, penthouse and inarguable arrogance.
“Wait a minute, are you telling me your ex is Douglas Gallo?”
“Yes, that’s him. I take it that you know him. Everyone in a suit knows him.” Alex cleared his throat.
“Well, no I don’t know him personally. But he’s a client of one of the other brokers in my office. And he’s always in 120 Collins, sniffing around the building.”
“Sniffing around?”
“Yeah. Like looking for real estate. The majority of his offices are across the road at 101 Collins. Taking over 120 would be a natural progression for him.”
It all made sense to me. It didn’t explain why James would be sniffing around those offices, though. “Can anyone inspect these offices?”
“They sure can. Did you want to take a look?”
You’re reading The Andie Chronicles, the 2023 romance-fiction series from the 1 Lovelock Drive (1LD) universe.
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