Page 23 of Worlds Apart
She looked at her screen and saw a line of flower emojis along with three words.
I miss you.
“This isn’t goodbye.” Sunny blinked back tears. “When we get to the beach, we’re forming a plan, Alice.”
“Oh?” Her friend raised both eyebrows. “What kind of plan? About you moving to Nairobi? I love that plan. I have been trying to get more of my friends to relocate for five years.”
“No, not relocating to Nairobi. We’re going to make a plan for how to have a successful long-distance romance.” She quickly texted Martin back that she also missed him and she’d send him pictures of the ocean. “We’re still getting to know each other. We just have to figure out how to do that with an ocean between us.”
Alice snorted. “Okay. I have a Swahili program that I can recommend for you.”
“Perfect!”
This could work. Why not? People met and fell in love at long distance all the time. Didn’t they? She wasn’t giving up on the kindest and most handsome man she’d ever met just because he lived on another continent.
They could make this work.
ChapterSeven
Nairobi, Kenya
Martin wokeup and immediately reached for his phone.
Good morning, handsome.
He smiled at Sunny’s message, then he checked the time in DC, hit the call button, and waited for her voice.
“Good morning,” she sang.
“Good evening.” He sat up in bed and swung his feet over the edge, digging his toes into the luxurious carpet of his apartment in Nairobi. “How was your day?”
“It was a day. I had a meeting with my supervisor about coming back into the office full time, but I managed to convince him that two days a week was more than adequate since almost all of my meetings are remote anyway.”
“Why is that?” Birds were singing on his balcony. He pulled back the curtain and opened the French doors, breathing in the cool morning air.
“Why did he want me to come into the office more?”
“That is no question. Any sane person would want to have you around more. Why are your meetings remote?”
She was silent for a moment, and Martin noticed it again. Sunny was unaccustomed to receiving compliments. What on earth was wrong with American men? Was her family unappreciative of her quiet goodness? He was baffled how this woman could be so overlooked.
Sunny continued. “Most of the bank’s fund managers are in New York, so while the actuarial department where I work is in DC, most of the people who want the information I research are in New York.”
Martin rose and walked to the bathroom, putting his phone on speaker. “Did they ever consider moving you to New York?”
“They’ve suggested it, but like I said, most of my work can be done remotely. I don’t want to have to pay for a New York apartment if I don’t have to. And all my family is in DC.” She stopped to take a breath. “How are the elephants?”
He smiled. “Probably as destructive as ever, but I’m in Nairobi right now. I flew in yesterday afternoon for that meeting with my father.”
“Oh, that’s right! I forgot. How’s Nairobi? I heard the birds, so I assumed that you were at the camp.”
“I have a nice balcony here in the city, and the caretaker waters the garden, so the birds are very happy out there. The compound where my apartment is has a beautiful garden behind it. I’ll send you pictures.”
His apartment in the Karen neighborhood in Nairobi was actually the second story west wing of a large mansion owned by a British family who were friends of Errol’s. Martin had been eager to leave his parents’ home, even though there was plenty of room, and this family was looking for an influx of cash to keep their old house running. It was a perfect match, especially since Martin wasn’t in the city full time.
“Send me all the pictures,” Sunny pleaded with him. “Everything is hot and humid here. If I even step out of my apartment, I’m dripping.”
“So summers in Washington DC are warm?” He carefully trimmed around the short beard that he had decided to grow out. “On the positive side, that must mean winters are mild and pleasant.”
