Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 76452 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76452 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
“Charlie?” His arms that are enclosed around me tighten just a little.
“Okay.”
“Okay,” he repeats.
“I’m not saying never. I just… a little more time.”
“I can give you as much time as you need, baby. I just need you in my arms at night, your place or mine. I don’t care. We’ll work it out when you’re ready.”
I wrap my arms around his neck and hug him back. “Thank you for putting up with me.”
“Was that our first fight?” he asks.
“What? No, we used to fight all the time.”
“Not since you’ve been mine.”
I think back to the last couple of months, and he’s right. “It was more of a discussion than a fight.”
“So, no makeup sex?” he teases.
“Is that what it’s going to take? If that’s the case, I can start a fight.” I tap my index finger against my chin as if I’m trying to decide what fight I could start.
“No.” He laughs. “I just wanted to be certain that you knew that us being together had nothing to do with me needing to be inside you.”
Heat pools between my thighs at his words. “I’m glad we got that cleared up,” I tell him. I move off his lap and cross my legs, hoping the ache he’s caused subsides. I still have to go back to the office and work the rest of the day.
“My place or yours tonight?” he asks, picking up his sandwich.
“Doesn’t matter to me. I don’t have anything that has to be done at home.”
“My place then?”
“Sure. I just need to stop by and grab what I’ll need for work tomorrow.”
“You do that, and I’ll start dinner. Will you be home by six?” he asks.
“I can be at your place by six.”
“Yeah, home by six.” He winks, and I can’t help it. I smile. Smug bastard.
We finish our lunch and clean up our trash before Spencer drops me off at the office. He leans over and kisses me goodbye, and I’m thankful for his tinted windows. “See you tonight, Charlie girl,” he says softly.
“Thanks for lunch.” I blow him a kiss as I climb out of his car.
I’ve just pulled out of the parking lot, heading home to get what I need to stay at Spencer’s, when my phone rings. I glance at the screen and see that it’s the call I’ve been waiting on all day. This is it. I slowly inhale as I hit Accept on my steering wheel. “Hello,” I greet Tabby.
“Charlotte, hi. It’s Susan.”
My heart jumps in my chest. It has to be a good sign that Susan is calling me herself, right? “Hi, Susan.”
“I know you were expecting a call today, and I’m sorry it’s so late. Is now a good time?” she asks.
“Yes, now is good.” I signal and pull over to the parking lot of the grocery store and place my car in Park. I know my concentration won’t be what it needs to be while I’m on this call.
“I wanted to be the one to call you, and my day got away from me. Anyway, I’m calling to offer you the position of Chief Operating Officer for Calloway Cancer Center.” She goes on to tell me the pay, which is a significant increase to my current salary as well as the rest of the benefits package. “If you need the weekend to think about it.”
“No,” I rush to say, and force myself to take a calming breath. “No. I would like to accept the position. There is nothing to think about. This is an incredible opportunity, and I’m so incredibly grateful that you’re taking a chance on me.”
“Excellent. Trust me, Charlotte, we are the lucky ones. We are very fortunate that you applied. The board, as well as I, agree that you are a perfect fit for our organization.”
“Thank you so much.”
“Now, I’ll have Tabby call you tomorrow to work out a start date, background check, drug test, and all of that.”
“Thank you so much, Susan.”
“We’ll talk soon,” she says, and the call ends.
I sit in my car with a smile on my face, fighting back the tears. I busted my ass in college. I didn’t party or stay out too late. I worked two part-time jobs and studied my ass off to make the grades to keep my scholarship.
Closing my eyes, I swallow back the lump in my throat as I think about my parents. I know they would be proud of me, proud of me and Audrey for the lives we’re building for ourselves. I wish they were here. I wish I could tell them about this. How I just landed my dream job, and that the guy who I thought was my rival turned out to be my heart.
“I love you,” I whisper. I don’t know if they’re watching over us, but I’d like to think that they are, and they can hear me.