Falling for a Stranger Ch. 06

Well, you may have noticed that this chapter has been a long while in the making! I got a bit of writer's block. I guess that's what happens when you start a story and don't have a clue how it's going to end. Anyway, I finally got round to finishing it. It might not be the best ending, but it is, at least, an ending. No doubt, original followers of this story will have long since got bored and stopped looking out for new chapters. So, if you are reading this, I suspect you may be new to the series. If so, I recommend that you start from the beginning as it will all make a lot more sense. Hope you enjoy.

*****

Nikki had been awake for a while. Being in an unfamiliar bed had made her sleep more lightly than usual and the sun coming in though the curtains had roused her. But she didn't mind. She enjoyed watching Tom while he slept.

Tom's mobile started to buzz on the bedside table and she moved to try to grab it before it woke him up. But he was already stirring.

He groaned and mumbled something unintelligible that Nikki was able to translate roughly as: "Who the bloody hell's phoning me at this time in the morning?"

He tried to grab the device with his right hand, cursed as he was reacquainted with his injuries, and grabbed it with his left.

He glanced at the screen before putting it to his ear.

"This had bloody better be good Paul." He mumbled.

Nikki listened to one side of the conversation which went something along the lines of:

"What today? Can't it wait until tomorrow?"

"Why can't Sam fix it?"

"Bloody useless. Can't I just log in from here?"

"Oh, I should have guessed."

"What time's my flight?"

"What! You're not giving me much time here Paul."

"Fine, I'll call you when I get there. I'd better be getting a bonus this year."

"Yeah, right."

With that, Tom hung up and slumped back onto the bed.

"Bollocks!"

"That didn't sound good." Nikki offered.

"No, it wasn't. That was my boss. One of our biggest clients has been having major IT problems. Their tech guys have been in all weekend trying to fix the problem. They've traced it back to a bug in our software. As you can imagine, they're not happy. They guy who wrote that code was rubbish. I'm always having to go back and fix his bugs."

"Where is it?" Nikki asked.

"Geneva."

"GENEVA. Like, Geneva in Switzerland?"

"Yup, the same. And because they're a bank, their servers are all locked down so I can't even log in from here to fix it."

"Shit, when do you leave?"

"He's arranged a car to pick me up in an hour."

"Wow, that's cutting it a bit fine. How long will you be gone?"

"I don't know. Paul's told me to upgrade them to a newer version of the software because we've fixed loads of bugs. They never want to take their servers down to upgrade so they're a bit behind with the releases. This seems like a good time to get it done."

"That doesn't sound too bad." Nikki was trying to be optimistic but she suspected that there was more to it than that or Tom wouldn't be so pissed off.

"Unfortunately, the last time they did an upgrade, it took over a week before everything was running smoothly again. I should be able to get most stuff working for them pretty quickly but the subtle details can take a bit of sorting out. Then I've got train them up to make sure they know how all the new bits work."

"Oh." Nikki couldn't think of anything helpful to say.

"My thoughts exactly." Tom replied. "At least my arm and leg are feeling a bit better today."

He experimentally flexed his injured limbs. Nikki could see that the bruising was turning yellow which made it look worse but usually means things are on the mend.

"I'd better get packing then." Tom sighed and lumbered towards the bathroom.

Nikki tried to help as much as she could. Tom was more capable today but he still needed a hand with getting a bag down from the attic and a few other small things.

She decided that she'd outlived her usefulness and decided to head home.

"I'm really sorry about this." Tom said.

"Nothing to be sorry about." Nikki reassured him. "It's not like I'd cancelled anything in my diary to look after you."

"I guess I'm not great company at the moment anyway. I promise that, when I get back, we'll go on a proper date or something."

Nikki laughed. "I guess we kinda missed out that stage! That sounds like a great idea, I'll hold you to that promise. I hope it all goes OK in Geneva." She leaned forwards to kiss him goodbye. She'd intended just a quick kiss, not wanting to seem too clingy but he drew her into a long embrace with his good arm and she didn't resist.

"Is it wrong that I'm going to miss you?" Tom asked.

"Probably, but I think I'm going to miss you too." Nikki agreed. "Better sort them out quickly so you can get back sooner!"

Tom laughed. "Why didn't I think of that?"

-

Nikki watched from her window as Tom struggled his bag into the car and was driven off. She'd promised herself that she wouldn't but she couldn't help getting one last glimpse of him before he left.

She'd not been altogether truthful with Tom about cancelling her plans. She had planned to meet up with a friend for drinks the night before but had called her to cancel once it became clear that Tom was going to need looking after.

That wasn't strictly true either: he didn't really need looking after. She knew that he would have told her to go and enjoy herself if he'd known and he would have managed for the evening by himself but Nikki had wanted to spend time with him.

Nikki's mind was still trying to catch up with the speed at which the physical and emotional sides of their relationship had developed. In many ways, when they were together, it felt so relaxed and easy that they could have been a couple for years. Except, that is, for the fact that she was struggling to keep her hands off him at every available moment.

But, when she was back on her own like now, the familiar symptoms of early-relationship nerves started to creep in. She kept thinking that he would come to his senses soon and realise that it had all been a big mistake or she would do something stupid and blow it. The thing she was most afraid of was frightening him away by seeming too intense too soon. But, if anything, he was the one that seemed to be getting soppy. A fact that she found endearing and frightening at the same time.

She decided to give Rachel a call and invite her over to make up for last night and have a good girly chat.

-

The doorbell rang and Nikki could tell it was Rachel even before she opened the door. Her striking blond hair was clearly visible through the frosted glass panel.

Nikki had a bit of a girl-crush on Rachel. Nothing sexual, more like envy really. Her long blonde hair, perfect body and natural out-going charm meant that she was always the one getting the attention from men whenever they went out anywhere. But she had been a great friend to Nikki and was the perfect person to spend an afternoon with (if she couldn't have Tom that is).

Nikki opened the door and, as usual, Rachel was full of energy. You always got the impression that she was having to restrain herself from jumping up and down.

They hugged and Nikki lead the way through to the lounge.

"You wanna drink?" She asked merrily.

"Sure, are we going for alcohol or keeping things sober?" Rachel replied.

"I was thinking about cracking open a bottle of white. You in?"

"Sounds good to me. A bit of wine in you might get your jaw loosened up and you might finally spill the beans on this bloke you've been seeing."

"What makes you think I've been seeing anyone?" Nikki was on the defensive.

"Oh, come on. It's obvious. You thought you were being all mysterious on the phone when you cancelled on me last night but I know you too well. It must be serious if you're keeping it quiet." Rachel was teasing her now.

"Well, now you mention it, I have kinda met someone."

"I knew it." Rachel clapped her hands together excitedly. "What's he like? How did you meet?"

Nikki talked her though the main details of how Tom had looked after her when she had her seizure and subsequently offered her the use of his shed to work in. She left out the intimate details but hinted that the physical side of their relationship was well advanced.

"Wow, sounds like quite the fairy-tale." Rachel pouted. "Why can't that happen to me?"

Nikki had to laugh. "Because men are too busy falling over themselves to get to you that they wouldn't be able to rescue you from a twisted-ankle let alone anything serious."

Rachel's bottom lip extended even further in mock outrage. "Huh, they only speak to me because they're too scared to come and speak to you."

"Well, perhaps you should try keeling over in the street and see if you hook yourself a Prince Charming."

Rachel pretended to give this serious consideration. Nikki rolled her eyes and grabbed the bottle to give them both a re-fill.

-

Nikki insisted that Rachel stay for some food and they ordered a Chinese. Nikki was trying to decide if she could manage the last Sweet and Sour chicken ball when her mobile rang.

The screen informed her that it was Tom and she hastily retreated to her bedroom so she could talk. She ignored Rachel's knowing smirk.

"Hi! I didn't expect to hear from you so soon. How's it going?"

"Hi." Tom sounded less depressed than Nikki was expecting. "Everything's going remarkably well. After an hour of poking around, I discovered that it was not our fault after all. Turns out that the problem was with some of their software. As you can imagine, they were a bit embarrassed about it, especially given the fact that they called me out here."

"I can imagine. Does that mean you're coming back then?"

"Well, it seemed that I may as well upgrade our software anyway while I was there. It went better than I expected and it's all working now. I've just got to spend tomorrow training them up to use it and then I should be coming back." Tom said.

"Great, well that wasn't so bad then. You'd better start planning where you are going to take me out when you get back!" Nikki was only joking but it seemed that Tom was already a step ahead of her.

"Well, actually, that's partly why I'm calling. My contact here is pretty high up in the bank and he was feeling so mortified about how they'd treated us that he's been bending over backwards to make my stay as pleasant as possible. He's booked me into a really nice hotel, instead of the cheapy one that my company was paying for."

"Nice, always good to get upgraded." Nikki was still not sure where this was going.

"Yep, but that's not all. I laid it on a bit thick with him about how I'd been snatched away from the arms of a beautiful woman and all that - not my exact words but you get the idea - and he offered to fly you out here. Can you believe that? I thought he was joking but he's deadly serious. So, if you fancy a night in a really posh hotel then I've just got to let him know and he'll make it happen."

"Wow" Nikki didn't know what to say for a minute.

"I know. It's a bit mental. No problems if you aren't up for it."

"No, I'm up for it. Why not? It's not everyday you get a free holiday. Even if it is just for one day."

"That's what I thought. I'll let him know. If you text me your email address then I can send you the details when it's arranged." Tom sounded relieved.

"OK, sounds like a plan."

"Great, I'll see you tomorrow then! I've got to go now, I'm supposed to be meeting up with some of their tech guys for some food."

"OK, have fun."

"Thanks, sleep well." With that, Tom rang off.

Nikki took a couple of breaths to compose herself before returning to the lounge where Rachel was waiting with a "so?" expression.

"You're not going to believe this..."

-

Nikki stepped through customs and scanned the crowd. As promised, she spotted her name being held aloft by an immaculately dressed young lady. Nikki approached and offered her hand.

"Hi, I'm Nikki." She said by way of introduction.

"Welcome to Geneva. I am Michelle." Her voice carried only a hint of an accent. "I have a car waiting to take you to the office. Do you need help with your bags?"

Nikki only had a small rucksack with her, given that she was only here for one night, even that seemed a little over-the-top. "I think I can manage." She suppressed a smile.

Michelle lead her to the a very expensive-looking Mercedes and opened the door for her. Nikki got in and Michelle joined her on the back seat. The driver nodded politely to Nikki and Michelle rattled off some machine-gun-fast French. The driver nodded again and pulled away.

Michelle exchanged a few standard pleasantries during the short ride but her demeanour was a little cold and Nikki got the feeling, despite the almost clinical politeness, that she was getting in the way of something more important.

The "office" was an imposing building; lots of glass and steel. She was escorted through a plush reception in an impressive atrium before being invited to sit while Michelle made a phone-call.

"Mr Weiss will be with you in a moment." She announced before disappearing - no doubt returning to whatever task Nikki's arrival had interrupted.

Before long, a middle-aged man in a sharp business suit was striding confidently towards her with his hand outstretched. As she took it, the man introduced himself.

"Hello, my name is Klaus Weiss I am the regional manager here please accept my apologies for taking Tom away from you." Despite the seriousness of his words, he said them with a smile and a wink that let her know that he was more fun than his job title might suggest.

Nikki returned his smile. "That's OK. It's very kind of you to fly me out here."

"No, no, it's the least I can do. Tom has been working very hard for us. We have been very impressed with him. Unfortunately though, he is teaching some of my people at the moment and he will not be finished for a few hours. I have taken the liberty of booking a table for you both at a restaurant for later. Perhaps you would like Michelle to take you shopping until then?"

Nikki wasn't really the shopping type and the prospect of spending time with the frosty Michelle didn't exactly fill her with enthusiasm but she didn't want to stick around waiting for hours so she nodded. "That would be very kind." She added.

Klaus smiled again. "Well, it was very nice to meet you, I hope you enjoy your stay."

"Bye, and thanks again." Nikki replied.

Klaus was replaced with the now grinning Michelle. It was soon apparent what had brought on the change from coldly-professional to near-school-girl grinning.

"Mr Weiss has given me the corporate credit card and told me to buy you anything you like - within reason of course." She practically gushed. "Do you have an outfit for dinner tonight?"

It seemed that the shopping version of Michelle was going to be much more enjoyable company than the frosty version...

-

Tom was hungry. Tired and hungry. But, mostly hungry. He'd been working pretty hard for the last couple of days and working made him hungry. Especially when he'd only snacked for lunch. They'd offered him a proper lunch break but he wanted to get on with finishing the upgrade and then briefing the staff on the new version of the software so he could get finished at a reasonable time.

It turned out that he made the right call because, no sooner had he finished (at about six-thirty) than he was told by Klaus that Nikki would be waiting for him at at restaurant at seven. He just had enough time to tidy up a few loose ends and grab his stuff before rushing out to the waiting car.

He didn't even have time to go back to the hotel to change his clothes. He pulled off his tie and unbuttoned his collar to try to look a little less formal. But he opted to keep his jacket on when he saw how fancy the restaurant was.

At least his injuries were healing up nicely now. Small areas of yellow and purple could still be seen on his leg and arm but it was mostly cosmetic now and he had full use of his limbs again.

The driver dropped him off outside with instructions to inform the maître d' when he wanted to be taken back to the hotel.

So, with his stomach rumbling appreciatively at the fine food smells wafting towards him from the diners, Tom introduced himself to the maître d' and was led to his table.

It took him a moment to recognise Nikki. As they approached the table, she was sitting with her back to them, gently sipping on a cocktail. Even facing away from him, Tom felt he should have been able to pick her out in a crowd. It was just that he hadn't been expecting someone so glamorous.

He'd briefly noticed an elegant, backless, black dress and carried on looking ahead trying to find their table. But the waiter stopped and pulled out the chair for him. That was when he realised it was her and had to pause for a moment to pick his jaw off the floor.

Nikki turned and flashed him a dazzling smile as she put down her cocktail and half-rose to greet him. It was almost as if she was about to give him a hug before realising that it probably wasn't quite the right thing to do in their current surroundings.

The front view was just as impressive. She looked like something from a red-carpet somewhere. The neckline wasn't quite as daring in the front as it was at the back but it showed a hint of cleavage and the way her breasts moved confirmed the lack of any bra.

Her hair was immaculately cascaded around her shoulders and the look was completed by what Tom guessed was one of her own necklaces. Although it was made of silver, the delicate butterfly perched on her upper chest was so life-like that it seemed about to fly off any moment.

Tom took her hand has he stumbled into his seat.

"Wow." He managed. "You're certainly a sight for sore eyes."

She beamed in response, almost in relief. Although, looking like that, Tom couldn't imagine that she could have had any doubts about how good she looked.

"It's really good to see you." He added.

"It's good to see you too Tom." She smiled to underline the response. "I gather you've been working hard."

Then, she turned her nose upwards in mock snootiness and added: "I, on the other hand, have been shopping. You like?" She gestured towards her dress.

"Uh, does the Pope shit in the woods?" Then he grimaced. "I'd better not say that here, we're a bit too close to the Vatican." Tom leaned forwards and whispered. "He might hear us!"

Nikki giggled.

"Don't worry, I think we'll be alright."

The waiter arrived as if by magic to take their order and Tom was soon relaxing with a cold beer whilst they waited for their food to arrive.

"So, are you all finished up then?" Nikki inquired.

"Yep, I think they can manage without me now. It's been pretty intense but not as bad as I thought it was going to be." Tom mused. "And then there are the perks, like getting you flown out here."

"Oh right, so I'm a perk now am I?" Nikki pretended to be insulted.

"You're looking pretty perky from where I'm sitting!" Tom exaggerated a glance towards her cleavage.

Nikki blushed slightly but Tom could also see a hint of a smile at the corner of her mouth.

The waiter brought their starters and the conversation paused briefly in favour of eating.

-

Tom, his food finished, leaned back in his chair and watched Nikki finishing up her sorbet. She really looked stunning in that dress and the fact that she was there with him was enough to bring a smile to his face.

"What?" Nikki had noticed his grin.

"I was just thinking how lucky I am." Tom said honestly. "The dress is amazing. Or rather, I should say: you look amazing and that dress is very lucky that you chose to wear it."

Nikki raised an eyebrow. "I'm glad you like it. I've never worn anything this glamorous before. And certainly nothing as expensive!"