Finally Found

Hours later, she had finished prepping and baking. The actual cooking of the meal would be done on sight. She felt ready. She felt calm. She felt flushed. She had been ever since The Kiss. Since then, she only had to look at him to turn many shades of pink again.

The cooking and prepping had gone so quickly while she considered The Kiss. Through the years she’d had her fair share of kisses. Though she had pretty much vetoed them and spent a lot of time talking about the intimacy versus the physical as she cited why it bothered her less to have sex than it did to kiss, she alone knew the real reason why. It was Adam. It had always been Adam. She had seen him kiss a girl once, under the kissing ball at a holiday birthday party. It had taken that girl a long time to recover. She stumbled some, struggled to find her footing and catch her breath. Truth was, he wasn’t dating her, he didn’t love her, and he might not have even known her. She had just been fortunate enough to get caught under the mistletoe.

Oh how Cammie had envied her. After that, even though she hadn’t experienced his lips on hers, she compared in her mind. Every male who kissed her just came up lacking. No one made her breathless or stumble. Most made her want to wipe her mouth. A few made her want to brush her teeth…with bleach.

It was no wonder that she wouldn’t let Adam kiss her when they had sex. After all, what if she had built it up so much in her mind that even Adam couldn’t compare to…Adam? Only, today, she had been in a bad place. She had felt a hurt and disappointment even though in the end he hadn’t hurt or disappointed her. She struggled. She hesitated. She knew what he was about to do. Finally, she let him.

Now in every way, she finally found out what it was like to be with him. That kiss…the one that would forever be emblazoned in her mind as The Kiss, the kiss by which all others would be measured. It was the most amazing, incredible…mistake she had ever made.

Ever since then, she had been quiet, lost in thought. When Adam had questioned it, concerned that he had angered her or over stepped, she would joke that she was teaching him how to be alone…together. Honestly, she rather liked the very idea of it. As she packed up the last or her containers and ran through her checklist one last time before departure, Adam hovered nearby.

“I’ll help you load the car,” he announced. “I know that you’ll still have to do it alone when you arrive at your destination…unless you let me come with you…”

“Adam, there’s no way it would look professional for me to show up with you. I’m trying to build a business here.” She explained.

“True, but how will I know you are safe? You are going to a guy’s house. Maybe this is just some really elaborate ruse to get you alone at his house.” He stared at her seriously.

“I highly doubt that. Isn’t he one of your friends?” She reasoned.

Shaking his head, he admitted, “None of these people are my friends. Not one visited me in the hospital. Not one called, sent a card, or even sent a text message. We hang out and party together, but that is as deep as our relationship ever went. Now, not even that. I just want you to be safe.”

She tilted her head as she studied him, wondering what she saw in his face. He really was concerned. It wasn’t that he didn’t want her to go. He wasn’t trying to ruin her business. “Why Adam Davenport, you really are worried.” She chuckled. It felt good to have him care. Maybe The Kiss had changed something in him, too. “Here,” she said, passing him a business card.

“Really? A business card? How…professional.” He looked a little hurt.

“I’m just being practical. Now you have my cell number. See?” She smiled warmly.

He hauled her closer to him. She basked in the new warmth between them. Then he pulled away.

“Well, I have something for you, too. It’s a little more personal than a business card.” He reached into his pocket.

“What could be more personal than a business card?” She joked.

His hand was closed in a tight fist when he drew it out of his pocket. “Oh, just this.” He flipped his fist over and opened it to expose a key.

“Oh, is this to your heart?” She chuckled.

Shaking his head, he smirked. “Nope. This is the key to something far more valuable.” She quirked an eyebrow as she tried to imagine what that might be. “It’s a key to the loft. You can come here whenever you need to, even if I’m not home. That way you can grow your business just like you want and not be tied to anyone else’s schedule, reliant on anyone else.”

She could tell he was watching her to make sure she knew that he had listened. What was wrong with her tonight? She could feel tears welling up in her eyes. She sniffled loudly and cleared her throat before speaking. “What if I get here and you need your kitchen? I’ll be sure to call first.” She smiled.

“Doll, does it look like I ever use this kitchen? You now officially know better than I do where everything goes. Hell, you change where it goes and I still wouldn’t notice. The movers unpacked me. The buyer at Macy’s picked out what she considered to be the necessities. I make coffee, the occasional bowl of cereal, and toast. I also am on a first name basis with every delivery guy in a four block radius. What does that tell you?” He looked at her while he waited for her response.

“Sounds like the kitchen is mine.” She smiled. “I’ll make it worth your while. No more delivery when I’m around.”

He looked mildly disappointed. Though he had tried to hide it, she noticed.

“Oh, were you hoping for some other…demonstration of my appreciation?” She swore the tips of his ears turned slightly pink. It made her smile.

“Well, you are all loaded,” he announced as they stood beside her car. “Be safe. Take care of you. Call me when you’re through.”

“I will Kit,” she joked. “And just so you know…” She looked at him with a smirk, “You really made me feel like a prostitute just now.” With that, she gave him a peck on the cheek, climbed into her car, and headed on her way.



From the moment she left, he suddenly found himself contemplating all these horrific possibilities. It was all too much for him. He fell asleep sitting up at midnight on the couch. The phone was in his hand. His neck had dropped onto the back of the sofa. Even though he hated it, he turned the volume up as high as it could go, and saved the most obnoxious ringtone, the one that sounded like the warning alarm before a building was being blown up.

She never called. In the morning, he discovered why. He found her asleep in his lap.

It startled him. Though he had longed to wake up with her, he doubt this really counted. It wasn’t simply that it was unplanned; it was that he was completely unaware and they hadn’t even made it into the bedroom, let alone managed to get undressed and get under the covers.

The time on the phone was 8am. His neck was absolutely killing him. As much as he wanted to shift, to find a more comfortable position, to stretch and take a steaming hot shower to work out the kink in his neck, he would never move as long as Cammie slept. He looked down at her lying there. Her hair was draped over his leg. He remembered so vividly the last time his hand was knotted in it. Softy, ever so carefully, he moved his hand so that he could pet her hair. Her eyes were shut and the occasional ripple under her eyelid suggested that she might be dreaming. The way her mouth turned up at the corners convinced him it was a happy dream. Because he was so lost in thought, lost in enjoying the moment, he didn’t even register that her eyes had opened. She was staring up at him, smiling and relaxed.

“God, I hope it’s me,” he admitted aloud.

“Hope what’s you?” She asked as she stretched out the entire length of the couch. She flew up to a sitting position.

“That put the smile on your face,” he said happily. “So, what brings you here? Last I checked you were off being an independent entrepreneur. I wake up and you’re lying on me.” He tilted his head and looked out into the distance. “In all honesty, that was not such a bad way to wake up…except for the pain in the neck…literally.” He laughed as he looked over at her. “We should really try the bed next time. Oh, and undressing. Naked is good.”

“Well, this, believe it or not, was a real breakthrough for me.” She smiled proudly. Then she leaned in conspiratorially and whispered, “I’ve never spent the night with a guy before.” She put a finger over her lips and finished with, “Shhhh!”

Adam had to laugh. She was so damn cute. He wanted to spend the day with her, just getting to know her. “Let’s get ready and go to brunch. Where would you like to go?”

“That’s silly. I’m sure I can whip up something here,” she argued.

“I’m sure you can, too. I have the utmost faith in your abilities. It is my personal philosophy however that you should never bring work home. Then you’ll grow to hate it.” He gave her a stern face. “So, I’m taking you out for brunch.”

She smirked. “Are you sure that your philosophy is that you avoid taking work home by not working?” She had a playful look on her face.

“Actually,” he said, kissing the end of her nose, “my philosophy is that by not working I avoid getting tired of anything. Smart thinking, right?” He stood and helped her off the couch, wrapping his arms around her for a moment in a much needed hug. She may have been fine, but he truly needed it. “Now go shower.”

The bathroom door had barely closed before his cell phone was ringing. He sighed when he realized that it was Sam calling. “I swear, we build a relationship and now you can’t stay away from me. I usually only have this problem with women.”

“Listen, smart ass, Haley and I are going to brunch. I thought maybe you’d like to join us. Can you be ready in an hour? We’ll pick you up.”

“One, you don’t need to pick me up because I have my car keys back. And two, Cammie is here.” He might as well have screamed, “so there!” It would have had the same effect.

“Great. We have wedding details to discuss. We’ll see you in an hour.” With that Sam hung up the phone.

Adam sighed a few times. So much for some alone time with Cammie. He trudged into his bedroom and pulled out clothes for the day before starting his shower.





Brunch wasn’t nearly as bad as Adam anticipated. It also wasn’t as intimate as he had hoped. Of course, what was most important was that they were all working together to make sure that Sam and Haley had an amazing engagement party, followed by the perfect destination wedding. Though they would only be a party of six, there was still plenty of planning and preparation that would go into the day to ensure that it was relaxing, meaningful, and memorable.

As he leaned back in his chair listening to Cammie talk about the plans to date, he marveled at how organized she was, how, alive and beautiful she looked, and how amazing she was. “Did you know that Cammie is graduating with her MBA from Columbia at the end of the semester?” He asked them.

“No, I wasn’t aware of that. Did you know that Cammie turned down the opportunity to study broad?” Sam asked.

“She’s a self-made woman. I really admire that about her.” He smiled warmly at her. A moment later, he was rewarded when she reached under the table and rubbed his leg. Now he was feeling warm all over.

“So, about the wedding and engagement party,” Cammie said, in an obvious effort to try to redirect the conversation. Clearly she was uncomfortable talking about herself. “I know we’ve already agreed to hold the party at the loft and the wedding in The Keys, let me tell you what I have already planned. That way we can make any changes from there.”

“Sounds great,” Haley said with a twinkle in her eye.

Sam sat back in his seat and sipped from his coffee mug. Adam watched him, saw how different he was with Haley, how she softened his gruff exterior. He saw how much Haley had changed, the confidence that she had once lacked, now completely restored. Finally, he turned to watch Cammie. She was so vibrant. He loved her ideas, and how they were perfectly attuned to the needs and desires of her clients. She was a natural…or maybe this came with experience, having done this to some degree her entire life. One of the many questions he would be unraveling as soon as he could.



Soon was never soon enough. They managed to close down the restaurant. True, it was only three in the afternoon, but it was still far more time than he had cared to spend with his brother and far less alone time than he had hoped to have with Cammie, unless he could convince her to stay. He cocked his head to the side while he was driving. Since she never missed anything, she commented immediately.

“What are you thinking?” She asked with a playful tone. “I know that look. I’ve seen it for years. It usually precedes you getting into trouble, as I recall.” She chuckled.

He looked at her with a contemplative gaze. “You paid a lot of attention. I’m so sorry I didn’t notice you before. I could kick myself for all that wasted time.” He frowned. “If I could do it over, I’d spend all of it with you…” He let his voice trail off in what he hoped would be a sentimental manner. He had little experience in this department to fall back on.

“Really? Rascal Flatts?” She teased.

“What’s a rascal flat?” He asked curiously.

“You don’t know who Racal Flatts are…the country band. You were all but quoting God Bless the Broken Road a moment ago.” She laughed. “Never regret the past. Be happy in the present. Whether it makes sense to you or not, life really is unfolding as it should. It is your past that has made you who you are. Had you not had some of those experiences, you might not be enjoying your life so much right now.”

He frowned. Did she deliberately not understand what he was saying? Was she really that thick? Or was she simply trying to protect herself given his past history? Just as he was about to ask, he pulled into the parking garage and Cammie hopped out of the vehicle. She started walking to her vehicle parked a good twenty feet away.

“Hey!” He called after her. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

She stood there, seriously, thinking for a moment. “Oh, crap! You are right. I left my storage containers upstairs. I’ll go grab those and then I’ve got to go.”

“Why?” He asked sadly as they walked to the elevator.

“I have class in the morning. I haven’t studied the entire break. Instead, I ended up working…for a change.” She chuckled. “Thank you for that. Thank you for introducing me to your friends and family and building my catering career. Speaking of which…call me when the graphics are ready for the campaign and I’ll meet you at the office to go over them.” She stepped off the elevator, headed to Adam’s door and pulled out the key.

Adam might have stopped her, but he was admiring how natural it seemed to have her unlocking his door. “Are you sure you don’t want to stay?” He asked hopefully.

“Positive,” she said with a chuckle. “I have way too much to do. I mean it.” She went to the dishwasher. She went to the counter and started packing up her containers. “Now, there are some leftovers in the fridge for you. Eat them before they go bad.” With that, she skimmed the room with her eyes as though to ensure that she had collected everything. She nodded and headed to the door.

“Are you really leaving without saying anything to me?” Adam was completely baffled by her behavior. They had engaged in some pretty passionate sex on more than one occasion over the past week and now she was acting like none of that had meant anything.

“Oh, right,” she said. “I’ll be here on Friday when I’m cooking for the holiday party being thrown by the Whittiers. And I have a cocktail party on Saturday, so I’ll be back the next morning. See ya!” She turned and headed to the door.

“See ya?” He frowned.

“Yeah. Tonight is Sunday dinner with the family. I wasn’t there for Thanksgiving. There is really no avoiding this. And then…back to my cupboard to study.” She shrugged. “I’ll call before I come over in case you are entertaining.”

Then she was gone. She didn’t give him a kiss goodbye. She didn’t try to make plans to come over later. It was…everything he had always wanted in a woman, only this time he wanted more. He wanted her to want to come back. He wanted her to want to spend the night. He wanted her…apparently in a way that she didn’t want him. That was fast becoming obvious.

Adam sank down in the couch to think. The winter sky was turning dark, just like his loft. He should turn on the lights, but as he sat there in the dark, the less he could see the more clear everything became. She had wanted to be with him before. If she had liked him enough to have sex with him, then he should be able to turn that into something. That was his job…advertising. He took nothing and turned it into something special all the time. Okay…all the time he worked and when he freaking felt like it. His every success in that business was based upon his ability to sell a product, to inspire an emotion for a product. That’s all he had to do…inspire her to want to be with him. That could be a full time job.

The chime sounded on his phone. It was a text. He felt his heart start to pound in anticipation. Maybe she had changed her mind. Only it was Sam.

Don’t forget. You have to be at the office from 9am to 5pm Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Thank you.

His first reaction…crap…now he was an advertising executive. His second thought was this full time job was really going to cut into his free time. Although in the end, he decided that this, too, might work in his favor with Cammie. She would see him differently than ever before. She would realize that he was a changed man and that while those experiences had shaped his past, even he had redeeming qualities, and even he could change his future. That’s what it would take if he was going to build a future with her. He shuddered some as he wondered where that thought had come from. Then as he ruminated on it more, he decided that maybe his heart did know best.



After going back to her place to change and drop off everything from Adam’s house, she pulled out her sensible navy dress with matching ballerina flats, pulled her hair into its standard pony tail, spread some lip gloss over her lips, and after a cursory glance at her appearance in the reflection of the teeny tiny bathroom mirror, she headed back out the door. Although they rarely ate before 7pm, it was widely accepted that everyone would get there at 5pm. The women would work together in the kitchen; the men would sit in the living room and discuss politics, the day’s events, and the world news. No week was any different from the next.

Maybe this week would be. Certainly between giving notice to her parents so she could start her own business, and that she hadn’t been there for her first holiday…ever…it would be more memorable than most. They were a Greek family who like those before them believed in big families and frequent gatherings. Sunday dinner was treated with the same importance as any major holiday. The food was plentiful and came in many courses. There was always cheese and olives, always pitas and hummus. There was always love and laughter.

This was what Cammie was used to and she tried to imagine how a man like Adam would ever fit in. While he would definitely be able to hold his own in the conversation department, and the women would fall for his devastatingly handsome good looks, there was more to it than all that. Could he ever be happy in that kind of life, having every Sunday for the rest of his life all laid out for him? Sometimes she really despised it. Other times, the routine offered her comfort and forced her to be around her family when she might have otherwise lost her roots like so many of her friends had. What did it matter if Adam fit in anyway? He was a business associate. He was not marriage material. Only marriage material would ever get through the door of her parents’ house.

“Will you look who finally decided to remember who her family is?” Her father shouted to her mother as she walked into the house. He hadn’t even climbed out of his recliner. Now that he was working predominantly in the office, he had put on the pounds and cut down on the activity. It was hard to tell which caused the other.

“Hello, Daddy,” she groaned. “Nice to see you, too.” Like the dutiful daughter she was, she walked over and kissed him on the cheek before continuing through the groups of male relatives into the kitchen.

“Well, I hope this means that you have changed your mind about leaving the family business,” her mother said with a frustrated sigh.

“Is my invitation contingent upon my being in the family business?” She asked. “Because the last time I checked, Uncle Joe isn’t in the family business and he gets to come to dinner. Oh, and Aunt Millie, when was the last time Momma dressed you up in a bustier to work the bar at a birthday party?” Cammie crossed her arms over her chest and gave her mother a challenging look.

“Just so you know…you are making a horrible mistake. Now come slice the tomatoes.” Her mother passed her the knife and pushed the cutting board toward her. “Do you know how many new catering businesses fail every year?” She asked, as an obvious last-ditch effort to convince Cammie to give up her dream.

Slamming the knife down on the cutting board, she looked at her mother and asked, “No, Ma. Do you?”

Her mother bristled. “Not exactly,” she said quietly, “but I know it’s a lot.” She sighed. “I just don’t want to see you fail. I don’t want you to be hurt. You live in an apartment no bigger than your old bedroom. You were better off living with us!” Her eyes were watering.

“Ma,” Cammie said more calmly. “I wish you had more faith in me.” She frowned and considered her words very carefully. “Do you know why most businesses fail?” She asked her calmly. Her mother shook her head. “Under funding. High overhead.” Her mother was staring at her sadly. “Do you know how much debt I have?”

“You are about to get your MBA. I don’t even want to think about it.” Her mother said, grabbing at her head.

“Zero.” Cammie said proudly.

“Wha…” Her mother sat down. “How is that possible? No student loans? No credit card debt?”

Shaking her head,” Cammie explained, “I never took out a single loan. I lived on my own to qualify for financial aid, grants that I wouldn’t have to pay back. I saved every cent I earned, did no shopping, no spending that wasn’t absolutely necessary. I know my car is on its last leg, but when it finally kicks the bucket, I will buy another used car and drive it until it too passes on to that great scrap yard in the sky.” She walked over to the table her mother was sitting at and pulled out the seat next to her.

“Momma,” she said gently. “Now, ask me how much money I have saved. Go ahead. Ask.” She smiled at her mother while she took her hand.

Her mother smiled at her. “How much?”

“I have just under $43,000.” She smiled widely as she watched her mother fanning herself and squealing. “And that is plenty. I have no overhead. Adam and I did a trade out. He is handling my advertising campaign. He already had business cards and catering menus made. The deposits I get at booking pay for all the food and drink. The rest is pure profit after I pay for my help.”

“It sounds like you know what you’re doing,” her mother admitted.

Nodding, she said, “That’s because I do.”

“One question,” her mother asked. “Who’s Adam?”

From the doorway, Cin responded. “You don’t mean…Adam Davenport?”

Everyone in the room turned to look at her, but only Cammie knew the truth. She had gone to bed and bargained with the one guy who had ever broken her sister’s heart. At the moment, she found it impossible to even swallow.



While everyone else in the family was busy talking and enjoying the meal, Cammie and Cin sat across the table from each other; and Cin was carefully avoiding eye contact. Cammie wanted more than anything for the meal to be over, for the relatives to leave, anything for her to steal a moment alone with her sister to explain. Of course, the longer she tried to figure out how to explain it, the harder it became.

It wasn’t like she had planned any of this. She had been working a birthday party she didn’t want to be at in a hot pink bustier she didn’t want to wear. It wasn’t like she had chased after him. He had sought her out. He had started the conversation. He had even followed her out, designed this entire scheme to get away from Sam. She didn’t ask for any of this to happen.

She knew what Cin would say. When they finally spoke, she was neither surprised nor disappointed. “We just helped each other out. It didn’t mean anything.”

“Did you sleep with him?” Cin asked angrily. “You stayed with him for a week. I know how he is.” She paced angrily and pulled at her hair in frustration. “You look pretty miserable now,” she said smugly. “So, did he love you and leave you? Do you understand how I felt now?”

At that moment, it was only Cin making her feel miserable. She had never meant to betray her sister. She couldn’t even really understand why it had happened. She was curious…yes, but there was more to it than all that. She had wanted him. There were so many parts of her that still did. It was really just her head standing in the way. Common sense and her analytical mind had always controlled her every action. Sleeping with him when she was all hot and bothered made sense. The more she did it, however, the less it did. She didn’t need to go back over there after the private dinner the other night. She knew that he was worried. She had hoped to pop in and surprise him, bring him some leftovers. Watch his face turn from concern to complete bliss because, in all honesty, she was so excited after the dinner that she didn’t know how to burn off all that energy so she could sleep.

When she arrived at Adam’s and found him passed out with the phone in his hand, she simply stuck all the food in the fridge and curled up in his lap. Maybe some small part of her hoped he’d wake up like he had that night in the Hamptons, but mostly…she was happy to be close to him. She would just lay there for a little while and leave before he woke only he was so comfortable, so right that she never left. Worse, it scared her how much she wanted to do that again.

So what could she tell her sister? There had to be some truth in there that would appease her. “Yes,” she said quietly. “I’m hurting.”

Because she knew Cin would press the issue, would dig for details, she left the room, said her goodbyes, and went back to her cupboard.



Adam walked in to the office a good fifteen minutes early. It was so quiet that he could have heard a pin drop. No one seemed to be working yet. That’s how it was with these jobs, especially coming back from a holiday. He would have to be seriously creative to inspire everyone to work hard for him the next few weeks in Sam’s absence. Sam ran the company by fear and respect, but he would manage through loyalty.

Soon, he found himself itching for a break. He was having trouble concentrating. He was in foreign territory. All he wanted to do was call Cammie. This was the longest they had gone without talking since they had…started talking. That he missed her and not just the sex surprised no one more than it did him. He found himself walking down the hall. He thought he was going to buy a coffee from the shop on the ground floor, maybe a pastry, but instead, he ended up at Jake Ryan’s office.

After knocking, Adam peeked his head in. “How are you this morning? Thought I’d make my rounds this morning…”

“Well, Adam Davenport! What brings you here?” Jake asked as he shook his hand and clapped him on the shoulder. “I haven’t seen you in ages.”

“I’ve been busy,” he explained.

“Busy doing nothing, from what I hear,” Jake said with a laugh.

Shaking his head, “You know, I save Haley and I still can’t catch a break from Sam.”

Jake looked at him for a moment. “You aren’t just stopping by for a visit. I know you. What’s going on, Adam?”

Sighing, Adam frowned at him. “This is rather…delicate. You do still specialize in delicate, right?”

With a chuckle, Jake said, “I thought you would have learned about using a detective to handle your delicate issues from Sam.”

“It doesn’t seem like it turned out too badly for Sam,” he commented. “He is, after all, now engaged to the woman of his dreams.” He smiled.

“Sam and Haley? Good for them.” Jake leaned over the desk and folded his hands. “Now back to you. What do you want?”

“I suppose being suspicious is part of your job, but…oh hell. I think I’ve made a real mess of things. I’m hoping you can help me fix it. See, there’s a girl.” He was going to continue but Jake sat back in his leather chair so hard that momentarily lifted the front wheels off the ground.

“Why is it always a girl with you two? You do realize I used to catch criminals for a living, now I’m a glorified yenta.” He scowled. “So, whose life am I messing up this time?”

“No, you are going to fix…” Adam argued.

“Listen,” Jake said flying forward once more. “In my experience, there is little good that comes from spying on another person. Look at Haley.”

“So, you want me to look at Haley who is now in a loving relationship with my brother. You want me to think that just because you may have inadvertently alerted that slime ball to her location that she is worse off than she was before. Because she isn’t. She is happier than she’s ever been. She has a family. And soon all this court unpleasantness will be over and she’ll have a life she loves and a man who adores her to share it with.”

“Oh, so you’re one of those…the end justifies the means…guys. Yeah, I get it. But since I work for the company, and you pay me, and I really have no choice in the matter, let’s play. Who am I investigating? It’s probably better if I don’t know why.” He frowned as he picked up a pen, prepared to take notes.

“I need to know who Cammie’s sister is,” Adam said slowly.

“Sure. No problem…unless you count the fact that I don’t even know who Cammie is.” Jake sighed in exasperation. “So why don’t we start there.”

“Okay, but this may take a minute to explain…” He reminded him.

“Again with the explanations. Just let’s get on with it.” Then Jake pulled out a note pad and pushed the sticky notes to the side.



He kept telling himself he was doing the right thing. He needed to know. How else would he be able to figure out how to fix things? Admitting he was such a man whore that he couldn’t remember her sister was never going to fix anything. He tried not to think about it much. He worked diligently until the end of the day on Cammie’s ad campaign.

In his mind he hoped that if he could the mockups ready in the next day or so, she would have to come over to see them. Then he could charm her into staying, no trickery needed and no begging required. He thought about the other night when he wanted her to stay so badly. Well, maybe a little begging, but all for the common good.

That’s why he called her when he walked into the loft. “Hey, doll,” he said when she picked up the phone.

“Adam,” she replied. “What can I do for you?”

“Well, it’s more what I can do for you. I had hoped we could maybe have dinner at my place, try out some of those new recipes you are considering for the wedding, or maybe something for one of the other parties you currently have booked. It would all be in the name of research of course. It’s not because I miss you and I want to see you or anything, so don’t go getting a big head and all.” He hoped she would sense that need he was struggling to balance out with ambivalence.

“I can’t tonight. This is the last week before finals. I was crazy to take on the Whittier party and the office party.” He heard her sigh.

“Then why did you do it?” He was genuinely curious.

“I need the money. I need to build a reputation. And the office party is for your office, so I couldn’t very well turn that down.”

“So we’ll be at the same parties two nights in a row. I think it’s a sign.” He smirked.

“Oh yeah, what kind of sign?” She asked with a chuckle.

“That you should spend the weekend with me.” He said it with supreme confidence.

She laughed. “Really? That’s what it means?” She chuckled. “Fine. I’ll think about it. Gotta go.” Then she hung up.

It was a maybe. Good enough. By Friday, he would make sure it was a ‘yes.’