The elevator ride down was totally awkward. Jackie knew she didn’t have to be afraid of the man, but she couldn’t help but feel a little bit of anxiety. He had that kind of power.

She waited in pain for the elevator doors to open and when they did, Dean Gamboa stepped aside to let her pass first.

“Hmm, thanks,” she uttered before she could stop herself. Her words were greatly laced with sarcasm she was sure her boss was able to hint it. But if he did, he didn’t mention it for he walked with her out of the building and to the parking long in complete silence.

  *****

When I saw Jackie coming, I was about ready to turn on my engine. But someone was with her, a handsome fellow. Who is that?

And my girl Jackie was looking tense. Was that because of the man? Was he another stalker?

She almost reached me when the guy called out, “Miss, Ramos, where are you going?”

She turned around in her heels and said, “I’m taking Toto with me.”

The man frowned. He was holding a set of keys in his hand. “Toto?”

Jackie pointed over her shoulder at me. “My car.”

The man looked at me for about ten seconds before he said, “You’re riding with me,” he motioned his head at Beatle, the black Honda Civic.

Oh, so he’s Beatle’s owner. I hadn’t seen that guy ever because Beatle had always been the first car in the parking lot.

“But, sir…” Jackie said.

Sir? Okay, now I understand. He’s the boss. The one with the fake FB account.

“Get in, Miss Ramos,” he ordered, opening Beatle’s front door.

And I knew why Jackie hated him. He was the bossy boss she never wanted and she couldn’t do anything about it.

Before she walked to where Beatle was parked, Jackie turned to me and said, “Sorry, Toto, maybe next time.”

  *****

Jackie didn’t know what to do as she walked to the black Honda Civic.

She was obviously confused which door to open. She got hold of the back door, let it go, stared at it and then walked to the passenger side. She took the handle, paused and stepped back.

“What are you doing, Miss Ramos?” Dean Gamboa’s baritone voice asked as he stared at her over the hood of the car.

“I…sir, where do you want me to seat?” she asked with a grimace.

The sun was bright today and Jackie was not sure if her boss was crunching his face because of the heat or because of her stupidity.

“Get in the front seat,” he said stonily before he disappeared under the hood.

“Oh, okay,” she said, stepping right back to the passenger door. When she finally settled inside, she was immediately bombarded by…how do we put this? Cleanliness? Neatness? Anyway, the interior of her boss’ car was far from Toto’s.

“Seatbelt,” said her boss as he placed the car in gear.

She did as he asked. And the moment they drove out of the parking lot, complete and utter silence followed.

“Can we play some music?” she asked before she could even process the question in her head. Dean Gamboa just turned his head and looked at her for a moment. He returned his attention back on the road without giving her an answer. “Fine,” she whispered, taking out her phone. She groaned when it started ringing. Brian. She lowered the volume and tapped the red button on the screen. Creep.

Ignoring the ten messages the guy sent her, she scanned her phone for other texts.

Then she saw Troy sent a reply. She opened it and smiled. On my way!

Jackie looked her boss’ serious face. Such an innocent guy, she thought.

  *****

Closer!

She threw Troy a look as she shifted in her seat. Her friend was sitting at the far corner of the restaurant, pretending to be one of the guests. Dean Gamboa was sitting beside her around one of the square tables of Bar 21. The two men they were having a meeting with were seated across them. Their meal had just been served.

I can’t sit any closer, stupid! We’re on a meeting! Just get the right angle! Get close-ups of him! She replied in haste.

“Miss Ramos,” a voice so near her ear spoke. She could feel his breath warm her auricles and she could definitely feel a flush coming up her face. “If you don’t keep your phone, I suggest you leave this meeting.”

She turned her head and it was a wrong move. For a few seconds, she was just about an inch apart from her Dean Gamboa’s face. Oh, his face does have pores. But why are they so tiny? It lasted for just about two to three seconds because she managed to lean away. He was wearing a small smile for their guests, but she recognized the warning in his eyes. She gulped and blinked. “I’m sorry. I was just texting Karen about--”

“You give a lot of reasons when it is not really needed. Keep your phone away from the table,” her boss said, his head now a good measure away as he turned his attention back to his food.

Her eyes flickered to the corner of the room where Troy was. He gave her a thumb-up and she smiled inwardly. He captured that moment! Well, Dean Gamboa was making this easier than she expected.

  *****

Their meeting finished without more than three suggestions from her. This was Joseph’s job and she was too busy to even listen anyway. Troy was silently taking pictures and she was trying to provide him with good angles by leaning closer to her boss as much as she could.

By the time they stood up from the table, she was carrying folders provided by the two people (she couldn’t even remember their names) who had been sitting across them for almost three hours. Of course, Dean Gamboa, having done with the meeting, was busily attacking his phone to even consider the folders. She threw Troy a look of thanks and motioned to text him later before she exited the restaurant. Struggling with her bag and the folders, she walked to Dean Gamboa’s car and made a move for the door with the hand carrying the folders.

“Let me,” her boss said beside her, gently brushing her hand aside. The electrifying feeling was unexpected. Jackie had never felt it since her first crush in high school held her hand. After a series of heartbreaks, she never expected this kind of feeling and she sure never expected she’d experience it with this man. She didn’t know she was looking at him blankly and only when he raised his eyebrows did she realize the door was already open.

“Thanks,” she muttered and hurriedly climbed inside.

  *****

Send me the pictures ASAP!

No, you’ll have to get it from me. She heaved a frustrated sigh after reading Troy’s reply. Back in the office and behind her desk, she looked at her clock. One more hour before four.

Why?! She texted a reply.

Because you have to treat me to dinner! That’s why.

I’ll do that AFTER you are done taking more photos. You still need to follow him around later.

Then come with me.

No, I’ll be going home. I still need to file for a freaking Barangay Protection Order!

Fine, then you’re not getting the pictures.

Okay, okay! Troy had always been bugging Jackie and her friends to treat him for lunch, snacks, dinner or drinks ever since they became friends. He was just like that. And it was not helping now.

When the clock struck four, Jackie almost panicked because she saw Dean Gamboa stand up from his desk. When he took his bag, she knew he was going home. Why so early?!

She texted Troy in haste. Get here as fast as you can. He’s leaving!

She took her bag and said to Karen, “I have to go home now. See you tomorrow!”

“’Bye!” her friend said without looking up from her computer.

Dean Gamboa was entering the elevator and she cried out, “Hold it! Hold it!”

He looked at her and immediately stopped the door from closing.

“Thanks!” she uttered, panting, when she managed to step inside.

Her phone did not even beep a reply from Troy and she was getting frustrated. But her frustration went further up when the doors opened at the fourth floor and Brian came in.

“Jackie!” he started to say. “You weren’t answering my texts and you’ve been canceling my calls--” but he stopped when he saw Dean Gamboa who was silently standing beside Jackie.

Brian uttered a, “Sorry,” as he walked inside and stood at her other side. “Jackie, why weren’t you answering my calls?” he whispered beside her.

She looked at Dean Gamboa. The man was very still, his eyes facing the closed doors of the elevator.

“I was with my boss,” she answered in a very low voice.

“Why were you with your boss?”

Before she could answer, the most shocking thing happened. Dean Gamboa spoke up. “We were on a meeting and I don’t allow my employees to spend their office hours texting.”

Jackie didn’t realize she was holding her breath.

“Sorry,” Brian murmured once again, his face flushed. Jackie was right. The man was scared shit of her boss! “I won’t bother her during working hours, sir.”

Dean Gamboa just threw Brian a look and said nothing. The doors opened and her boss walked out first.

“Jackie,” Brian called behind her.

“Leave me alone, Brian!” she cried over her shoulder as she rushed outside the building and to the parking lot where Dean Gamboa was also heading. To her surprise, Brian didn’t follow.

Jackie breathed a big sigh of relief when she saw Troy’s vehicle beside Toto.

  *****

Troy and Tata’s presence told me that I would be staying in the parking lot longer than anticipated. If cars could only develop varicose veins for prolonged parking, my veins (if I had any) would already be bursting!

Troy had been leaning against my hood and I had been trying to figure out how to kick his legs with my tire when Jackie finally reached us. “Right about time!” Jackie told Troy. “Come on! Let’s go!” she said, pulling Troy away from me. “He’s leaving!”

And sure, Beatle was leaving the parking lot.

Take me! Take me!

But they were not listening.

“Calm down, Jackie,” Troy said with a laugh as he boarded Tata. Jackie was already running to the passenger side of the four-wheel drive.

I groaned. Tata whispered a reassuring word to me but it was no use. Just make sure you tell me everything later! I shouted before they drove away.

As I mourned my unfortunate lonely afternoon, under the shade of the Acacia tree, I saw Brian. He was carrying a big box and I saw a rolled cardboard sticking up. I groaned. Here we go again…

The moment he reached me, he smiled and said, “Hello, Toto!”

Creep!

He then went to work, placing the box on my hood. He took out the orange cardboard and spread it wide over my windshield. He stuck four tapes to the four corners. And I was partly blinded again. Bastard! I’ll get you for this!

“Now that Jackie’s no longer with that gay boyfriend of hers, it’s my turn to show her what a real man is,” he said with that creepy voice of his.

You’re sick, man! Sick!

And to make matters worse, he sprinkled rose petals all over me. Literally all over me. I was nearly crying as I heard the other cars howl in laughter.

Jackie girl, come back!

  *****

They were closely following her boss’ car to Mandalagan Street and when he turned to the road right across the small supermarket, Lopue’s Mandalagan, Jackie groaned.

“He lives in Mountain View,” she uttered.

“How do you know?” asked Troy.

“I just have this hunch. We’ll soon find out.” She was munching salted peanuts as they tailed her boss.

When Dean Gamboa’s black Honda Civic finally turned left to the entrance of the subdivision, Jackie howled a triumphant cry. “I told you!”

The disappointed look on her face was immediately noted by her friend. “What’s wrong now?”

“He’s going home. It means we can’t really take good shots.”

“Let’s just hope he has a social life.”

She looked at her friend dryly. “The man has no social life, Troy. Not like you.”

Troy shrugged. “I don’t know, I think I saw him somewhere, but I can’t remember where. And I do have a good memory of faces, remember? I’m sure I saw him somewhere.”

She frowned. She wouldn’t question Troy’s facial recognition ability. Faces were his living and if he said he saw Dean Gamboa somewhere, she believed him. But where?

“Okay, okay, get a picture!” she finally uttered when her boss stopped outside a modest, well-maintained, white bungalow.

“Relax,” Troy uttered as he stopped his vehicle across the street and took out his camera. “I can’t believe I’m doing this for you. You should really treat me to dinner.”

“Just do your assignment and I’ll tell Dannie to treat you to fine-dining with wine and candles,” she stated, finishing the pack of peanuts.

Troy snorted saying, “Unless I want to be poisoned to death by a preschool teacher, no thanks.” He positioned his eye against the camera. He had lowered his window a few inches so only the lens would peek out. Dean Gamboa was opening his gate and it told Jackie he lived alone. Not a big shocker, really.

“You guys should really give each other a chance,” she uttered, veering back to their conversation.

“I like the way we are,” his friend said, clicking away. Jackie shrugged.  She let him do his work for a few seconds and when their subject finally disappeared inside his home, Troy sighed in disappointment. “Nothing good. All I managed to take were shots of his back,” he uttered as he reviewed his shots.

Jackie slumped down the passenger seat.

“But he is going out for sure,” Troy said, his tone brighter.

“How can you tell?”

“He has a driveway, dimwit. He would have parked his car inside if he is planning to stay for a long time.”

The smile on her face slowly crept back in. Troy was right. “Then I guess we’ll have to wait!”

  *****

And so they waited patiently. “What’s taking him so long?” she was asking when the door to Dean Gamboa’s home opened. A man in dark jeans, gray shirt, and a baseball cap was stepping out. His face was barely visible because of the cap, but Jackie recognized that walk as the man made his way to the gate.

Her eyes widened.

“Well, well, well…” Troy uttered with amusement, starting up Tata’s engine. “Looks like your boss is not who you think he is after all, Jackie.”

“What the--” She couldn’t finish her sentence. It was like watching a magic show. Dean Gamboa entered the house as a man he knew he was and now he walked out like…what? Someone normal? She had never seen him in jeans or shirts in her three years of working for him. Never!

She couldn’t help but wonder, as her now rugged-looking, handsome boss walked back to his car. Who really is Dean Gamboa?