Page 19 of Matched with Her Runaway Groom

“Thank you, Clara. If you wouldn’t mind calling those last two clients and rescheduling their appointment or seeing if one of my team can handle it while I’m gone, that would be great.”

All the tasks on my mental list have been checked off. So why do I feel like I’ll be coming back to a disaster?

I’ve been able to switch over fifteen of my appointments to my team. I just hope they take care of the clients, and go above and beyond to find the ideal place for them. Sure, I can be a control freak, but I know how important a real estate agent can be in the lives of the client.

Not the kind where I’m invited for holidays and birthdays, but having an enjoyable experience when house or apartment hunting sets the tone for the future of those people living there.

My mom’s experience searching for a new house was rough after my father died. We came together as a family of six and decided that downsizing the house was the best idea. But trying to get an agent to even care about what my mom wanted rather than trying to sell only properties they’d listed in order to get the other half of the commission only irked me more.

It was probably that experience which spurred me on when a friend reached out to me about becoming an agent, right around the time I broke up with Rachelle.

A sound on the other end reminds me I’m still on the phone.

“That should be fine, Landon. I know Angela is free for some of those you’ve got scheduled. I’ll ask her to take them over.”

I say nothing for a few moments, knowing Angela might not be the best bet for taking care of people. She’s a newer agent and messed up the paperwork on the last house she sold, which was a nightmare to fix. But then again, she’d be better than handing them over to Savannah.

I need to step back and just hope for the best. Maybe I’m smothering my team a bit too much and they need room to work.

Me being on a cruise ship out on the ocean might be the best time to give them their wings. And I won’t have cell service to constantly check in, so there’s that.

“Sounds great. Thank you. Let me know if I can do anything for you when I get back.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” Clara says, and I can picture the smile on her face. I’ve had an inkling she has a crush on me for a couple weeks now, and I hope she doesn’t ask to go out for drinks or something. I’m not the best at carefully shutting people down. Because the only girl who has my heart is the one I keep running into, the one I’ll probably have to do something crazy to win back.

But I’m not losing hope, at least not yet. The two times we’ve run into each other, I haven’t been prepared, but this cruise is the perfect time to formulate a plan and set it in motion once I make it back.

Dani had a few things to turn into her teachers at school this morning and I just came from the office, but I’m hoping she makes it in time. Then again, the train is still four stops away from where the boat will depart and I’m sweating a bit that I might miss it.

How would that look to the owner of the company after Roman personally invited me?

The security lines aren’t as bad as I expect, but once I’m up on deck, it's a mess of people.

My phone rings and I glance down to see Dani’s name. “Hey, are you on the boat?”

“Are you kidding me? I’ve been here for at least an hour now. The meeting with my professors went pretty well. I just told them I have to be your emotional support human on this trip and they gave me an extension on some things.”

I close my eyes. “Please tell me you didn’t explain the complete story of my breakup with Rachelle.”

“Oh, I did. I obviously left out how long ago it was, but the professors were very sympathetic to the cause. And I might have to work for your company or something if this is one of the perks. What happened to you? Get hung up on divvying out the assignments?”

I groan. She knows me too well.

“Where is our room? I just got here.”

Dani clears her throat and says, “Ah yes, it’s kind of hard to find, so maybe I’ll come find you first.”

The double sound of her words tells me she’s right behind me.

“How did you find it so easily, then?” I tease, allowing her to take my laptop bag.

“Because, unlike you, I know how to ask for directions. And your British boss was the one who stood at the gate with a sign for Hamilton Group employees. Such a nice guy. They apparently paid extra so we don’t have to wait to check-in like everyone else. Why did you bring this?” She lifts the bag up to eye level, her eyes narrowed at me.

“This is technically a work trip, so I might as well have it with me in case I need to take notes or make a chart.”

She shakes her head. “There will be no service the entire way. Unless you’re planning on writing a novel in Microsoft Word, I suggest you take this time to relax. When was the last time you took a vacation?”

I don’t say anything for a bit, trying to picture the last getaway I was on. It was to a beach house my mom rented as a fun summer family gathering nearly two years ago.

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