Page 11 of Yes to The Holidays
“How long have you owned that company?” I asked, attempting to keep the conversation going and hoping I could atleastallow my panties to dry a little before he ruined them.
He sipped his beer. “About five years now. It has its good days and bad days.”
“You mentioned before that you like to check out places you travel to for business. Do you travel a lot?”
He nodded. “Yes and no. So much is done electronically now. But some deals are best suited in person. The one I’m working on this week is a little different, so I needed to get a feel of things before we closed.”
“Smart. I like it.”
“Thorough. I like to really do my research. Take my time.”
My mouth watered, and I took a sip of beer, then grabbed a cheese wedge from the plate.
“Tell me what you do, Janie. Do you like your work?”
I waved the wedge through the air. “I love my work, yes. It’s a lot of tech mumbo jumbo. But I’ve been there a long time.”
“I sense a but.”
I nodded. “It’s been strained lately. My soon-to-be-ex works there as well.”
“Oh, I could see how that would be uncomfortable. How did that happen?”
“Well, I guess it happened when he decided to play fiddle-the-diddle with someone other than me.”
Odin let out a belly laugh. Some heads turned our way, but I was out of fucks to give, so I sipped my beer.
“No. I meant, how did both end up working together? Most companies have clauses that prohibit that.”
I sighed. “We were headhunted more or less by our boss somewhere else. We were dating secretly at the time, but the boss knew and didn’t care. We went as a package deal because back then we thought we knew everything, and it would all be a huge dream come true to help build this business together.” I sipped my beer again. “Fucking twenty-somethings. They don’t know shit, but you can’t convince them otherwise.”
“Are you in different departments, at least?”
“Yes, thank God. But we do have to interact occasionally. Honestly, I think we both knew it was over for a long time so it’s not really sad at this point. He’s just annoying. But our boss is amazing, our staff is amazing, and I love the work, so it’ll fizzle out and be fine soon.”
“You have such a great attitude about all of this. You seem very sure of yourself. I like it.”
“Good. Because I like you.”Damn, these beers are strong or something.
He rubbed his thumb over his bottom lip again, but this time it didn’t seem as sensual. More contemplative. “I really like you, too, Janie.”
Nope. No chance of dry panties. This will be a long day.
Chapter 8
Odin
After lunch, we rode back into the city. It was still early, nearing two in the afternoon. We both were a little buzzed from the brewery, handsy and chuckling most of the ride.
We eventually pulled up to a huge structure. I leaned forward to look out the window as we came to a stop. “The aquarium?”
She grabbed my hand. “I know, I know. Super well-known. But I know for afactthey already have it decorated for the holidays. Plus, it’s kind of a big deal in Georgia, ya know?”
“Miss, please text me when you’re ready. I’ll have to park elsewhere,” the driver said from the front.
“Of course. It’ll be a couple hours. Thank you.”
We stepped from the SUV onto the sidewalk. But I stopped her progress and pulled her close. I tilted her face up and looked down into those hazel eyes. I couldn’t get over how much she warmed my chest with her smile and cute laugh.
