Page 13 of Hard To Leave

Chapter 4

Jack

I usedto love coming to work each day and watch my father command the room and broker deals across this very desk.

I’ve been groomed to take over this company before I could even walk.

There was never a doubt in my mind about what I wanted to do after college. Working a nine-to-five job selling copy machines like most of my friends were doing straight from graduation was never an option. I watched many of them struggle over the years trying to find a way to utilize their degrees and make enough money to live and pay off their enormous amounts of student loans. The same ones whose parents took out a second mortgage to fund. I was one of the lucky ones, or so I thought.

My father built this company from the ground up. He took some of the greatest risks to receive the greatest rewards. But sometimes even your biggest investments come with an expense.

Most of what we believed about money was true. It gives us flexibility, and it allows us to enjoy many things. But it doesn’t provide happiness. Cash is a lousy compensation for misery.

I threw my pen across the desk and tried to loosen the tight muscles in the back of my neck. I shouldn’t have been thinking about the little waitress with long silky hair and green eyes that were so warm they practically glowed. Our conversation yesterday morning threw me off my game.

She had that something extra special going on, and she didn’t even realize it. I’ve done my fair share of casual dating with sleeping my way through a good amount of women. She was gorgeous, but nothing I haven’t seen before. Not to mention, I don’t fucking chase a woman. EVER. Sure, I’ve been turned down before, but I’ve never thought and stewed about a woman like this.

Instead of calling my IT department about installing the new software program for our latest construction project, I found myself staring at the number she had programmed into my phone.

I liked how she acted like I didn’t affect her even though I knew I did. Most women I met tried hard to get my attention, but not this one. She was the exact opposite.

The more I thought about it, why should it matter to me if she had a kid or not? Chances were high that we would only see each other a couple times and I would start to lose interest. That’s the way it has always worked with me. No one held my attention for very long, especially in a town where I only visited on occasion. So, why was I stalling? Why was I wrestling with the idea of calling her?

My phone vibrated on my desk. I glanced down and saw Liam’s name on the screen.

“What’s up?” I greeted into the phone and propped my feet up on the desk, looking like a big shot businessman.

“Hey man, I’m going to have to skip the gym tonight. But, Cassie wanted me to call you and tell you to get your ass over here after your work out. We owe you dinner.”

Cassie was one of my best friends since college. I introduced her to Liam a couple years ago. They were now married and expecting twins. Cassie was always one of those people who knew what she wanted, and once she realized it was Liam, he didn’t stand a chance. They were opposites in every way, but where one zigged, the other zagged.

I looked at the clock on my wall and sighed into the phone. “I’m kind of beat. I want to get this workout done while I still have the energy. Can I reschedule?’

He laughed. “How well do you know your friend?”

I groaned through the phone. “Do you think I could play the guilt card? You know with burying my father a few weeks ago.”

“She feels horrible that she wasn’t able to make it the funeral.”

I rolled my phone over to my other ear. “She’s not going to take no for an answer, is she?”

“Nope,” he said, popping that P out at the end like the pussy whipped man he was. “She said if you know what’s good for you, you will get your ass over here.”

I knew she was trying to make up for her absence at the funeral because she felt guilty. She was sick and unable to travel, which I understood completely.

I plowed my hand through my hair. “All right, I don’t want to piss her off.”

“No, you don’t. Trust me.” Liam laughed awkwardly, which I took as only half joking.

“Be there in two hours.”

“All right. Sounds good.”

I hung up the phone and grabbed my duffel bag off the floor. I was actually kind of glad I had agreed to go. I was feeling hungry and having Cassie cook a home cooked meal solved that problem.

After an intense workout, I took a quick shower at the gym and headed over to Liam and Cassie’s. It felt good to work my body into a sweat. Feeling my muscles burn and the rush of adrenaline pump through my blood was almost as good as sex. Well, almost.

Cassie greeted me at the door while eating a white powdered donut. I would have laughed if Liam hadn’t warned me about how sensitive she’d been lately. Leaning in, I kissed her cheek. “Hey, beautiful.”

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