Page 5 of Love.V2
She smelled like candy, something sweet and light. “Oh, Angel, that’s easy.” I waited until her eyes were on me again. Lightning struck. “We make another list.”
Twelve years later
Dylan
Nashville, Tennessee
The empty hallway greeted me, shiny gray-veined marble as far as the eye could see. Pristine white walls. Vacuum lines still on the carpet from when the cleaners were here a few days ago.
It was good to be home.
I abandoned my beat-up carry-on somewhere near the island, and as my laptop bag thumped onto the counter, it dislodged a piece of paper that had been laying there.
“Congratulations, son. Hell of a deal.”
“It’ll bring in about ten million to start.” I cradled the phone between my head and shoulder, digging into the depths of the freezer for a lasagna. Desperate times called for desperate measures and all that. My flight from Tokyo had been delayed twice, and that was after the entire fucking trip had been extended three different times. What was meant to be a quick two-day visit to seal the deal of the year had drawn out into ten full days.
Now, after nearly thirty hours of travel, I wanted to eat something that wasn’t airport food, throw my arms around Tess, and sleep for the next week.
“That’s my boy.” The pride in my dad’s voice seeped through the phone, making me smile. “One step closer, huh? When are you finally gonna start running that place?”
Just like that, the happy feeling tanked. “I just won a multi-million dollar contract. Let me take the win before you complain I haven’t gotten promoted yet.”
“You know what I mean. You should be proud of yourself. But you can use this as leverage. Finally start taking the next step we’ve been working towards.”
I bit my tongue as I popped the tray into the oven. I could remind him I was already well on my way up the corporate ladder, but we’d had that conversation before and it clearly hadn’t stuck. Sometimes it seemed like no matter what I did, Dad still wouldn’t be satisfied until I got to the next level. Then the level after that.
“Yeah, sorry.” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Just a long travel day. I’m getting there, but it’s a lot of work. That Aruba trip with Tess in a few months can’t come soon enough.”
Even before my ridiculously extended trip to Japan, I felt like I hadn’t seen her in weeks. I glanced around the condo. Where was she? Maybe still upstairs.
“Now’s not the time to take your foot off the gas, Dylan. You close a client this big, you need to be around to see it through. Show leadership you’re committed.”
I bristled. “Henry knows I’m committed.” I had years of late nights and closed deals behind me. Henry Worther, CEO and founder of one of the world’s biggest media and advertising conglomerates, had personally taken a chance on a college grad with zero business experience,and taught me to be the best at what I did: Seal deals with some of the biggest companies in the world.
Now, I was the youngest VP in the company’s history with only one place to go from here: C-suite.
“He also knows I deserve a break, and Tess has been on me about working too much again.” I jogged up the stairs, padding across the carpet to our bedroom. Huh. The bed was made, with towels folded on the end. The maids left it like this when they came to clean every week, but Tess would have put the towels away and mussed up the covers by now.
“Tess doesn’t know what it takes to support a family,” Dad grumbled. I could feel my jaw clench as I checked the other rooms upstairs, only finding more of the same.
Where was Tess?
A beep sounded in my ear. Probably her. Maybe she had gone to stay with Lexi and Mac, or something.
The thought made me smile. She spent too much time holed up at home these days. It would be good to see her get out and do something with our friends.
“Dad, I gotta go. Tess is on the other line. Talk later, okay?”
“Remember what I said about leverage, son!”
I hung up without responding, frowning at the name on my screen.
“Henry?” I answered my boss’s call, jogging back down the stairs. The more time I spent in the house, the emptier it felt. I could practically hear my voice echo down the hall.Where was Tess?
“Morris! The man of the hour!” Henry’s voice boomed. I pulled the phone away from my ear as I stuck my head into the garage. Her BMWwas sitting in its usual spot, keys hanging by the door. “Impeccable work in Tokyo. I told Randy we’d have lost it if anyone other than you had been in the room.”
I let out a breath, the smile my dad had scared off growing once more.
