Page 84 of The Problem with Princes
Me: Haha. Maybe a little…
Me: Okay, I’ll let you go back to sleep (you were asleep, right???)
HPT: I wasn’t asleep. Just doing some Seinfeld homework. Winky face emoji.
Me: I’ll quiz you later. For now, I’m going to take a nap so I’m wide awake when you call.
HPT: Sounds good. Love you. Heart emoji
I let out a yelp and toss my phone to Texie.
“What?” She picks it up and starts reading. “Oh my gosh, Gee. He loves you!” She pulls me up and we both hop around in a little circle screaming like sorority sisters.
* * *
I’m sittingon the couch staring at my phone, not feeling nearly as rested as I had hoped. Twice now, Ty has disrupted my sleep with his parting words. And now he was one minute late calling.
I open my laptop back up and continue filling in the information that was requested by the Atraxian government. I stop on a question. Date of availability…If I put tomorrows date will that look too desperate? Maybe I should put three weeks from now, so they think I have time to give my two weeks notice and then pack my things and move.
But the thought of waiting another three weeks makes my guts hurt. I’m pretty sure most of that is because I miss Ty and the thought of waiting that long to see him, when I could see him much sooner, makes me want to cry. But I can’t deny that a small part of it is because I can hardly bear the thought of returning to my barista job. I smell my hair for added fuel to make my decision. As a compromise, I put a date a week away.
Do I feel bad that I may not be able to give two weeks notice? Not really. Mr. Patton, who’s really just a pimply faced twenty-one-year-old, will survive if I don’t give the full notice. I’m sure he’ll be disappointed in my lack of professionalism (I’ve already disappointed him on my very first day, so I’m sure he isn’t expecting much from me). He’ll probably be happy to have me go.
Kissstarts playing and I slam my computer screen down and answer the call. “You’re late.” I say.
He laughs. “Only by two minutes.”
I give him my it’s-a-shame face. “In two minutes I could accept a date from someone else.”
His smile falls. “Two minutes late and you are already looking for another guy?”
I bite my lip. “I don’t know. I guess it depends.”
“On what?” His brow rises.
“Depends on if you really meant what you said in our last two conversations.”
He puts his finger to his lips and taps. “Hmm. What I said? Nothing’s coming to me.”
If I had been next to him, he would surely have gotten a shoulder smack and a stern look. As it is, I can only give him the stern look. “You really don’t know what I mean?” I’m not buying his innocent look.
He shakes his head. “I think maybe you’ll have to be more specific. What was it concerning?”
My nose flares in frustration. He is trying to get me to come right out and ask.
He must see my frustration because he loses the fake innocent look and leans close to the screen. “Okay. You want cards on the table?”
I nod.
He shakes his head. “Only if you put yours there too.”
I swallow. That’s a big ask. Although, can I really expect him to lay his all out while I keep mine all close to the vest? I nod again. “Sounds fair.”
“Okay. I love you, Grace. I want you to come back to Atraxia. I don’t care if you have a job or not. I don’t care if you accept the title or even if you apply for the job. I just want you here with me where I can kiss you. Or I can run my fingers through your hair while you sleep on my lap. I like who I am with you in my life. I just need you, Gee.” He runs a hand through his hair. “I’m kicking myself that I didn’t tell you all this before you accepted your new job.”
I’m sure I’m smiling like an idiot.
He looks at me and leans back in his seat. “So there are my cards.”
