Page 34 of Christmas in Watch Hill
I sent a few more texts that afternoon, hopeful she’d reply before I flew back to DC. I didn’t want to leave her like that, not with so much left unsaid between us. This was heavy stuff, and I didn’t want her thinking I shirked my responsibilities to her or her baby—ourbaby.
But when I boarded the plane that night, she still hadn’t returned my calls or texts.
ELEVEN
IAN
“Ididn’t expect youto be back in the office this week,” my boss, Alex, said when he saw me walk into the small space that we leased on K Street. He stood near the coffee bar that had been billed as one of the features of working at his firm.Unlimited refills, any time of day.“I thought you were planning to take time off until the new year.”
“Plans change.”
“Wow.” He dumped sugar into his drink. “That’s not a very merry reply.”
“You’re right.” I sighed. “Just have a lot going on.”
“Need some coffee to wake you up? Sometimes going home can be complicated.”
I dropped my briefcase on the floor near my designated cubicle. “I know when Congress gets back in town, we have a lot of work to do, so I figured I’d get a start on scheduling the meetings we need to have.”
“I like that idea.” Sipping his drink, Alex strode over to my workstation. “I can always count on you to think ahead. It’s one of your best qualities.”
“Thanks, man. I appreciate that.”
Alex disappeared into his small office, leaving me alone among the array of cubicles. We were the only people working in the building and likely the only people working on K Street, but that didn’t bother me. Our firm had a goal, and I’d been devoted to it. If that meant working long hours, that’s what I’d do. I fired up my computer, opened my Google calendar, and set about emailing half a dozen staffers about schedules and necessary introductions for that year’s incoming freshman class of congresspeople.
Alex stopped by my desk around four. “You really are working too hard.”
“Three meetings scheduled for after the new year. Congressmen from Texas, Wyoming, and Idaho.” Even I marveled at my work. Stress often made me focus. “I think I’ll have another two set up by the end of the week.”
“Good.” Alex looked at his watch. “Since you’re unexpectedly in town, there’s a party tonight at Ambassador Santiago’s place in Kalorama. Black tie. Seven. Ashlee is coming with me, but our invite says four. There’s a good chance a couple of contacts we want to make will be there. You in?”
“Sure.” I had nothing better to do anyway, and attending the party seemed like a welcome distraction from the enormity of what I’d left behind in Ohio.It might even reinvigorate my taste for a job that had gone stale in the last six months.“Just text me the address, and I’ll be there.”
“Excellent.” Alex slapped the top of the cubicle wall. “See you soon.”
He sent the directions a few minutes after leaving the office, and I headed home, too. Once I got back to my apartment, I knocked back a beer and watched thirty minutes of a professional hockey game before digging my dry-cleaned tuxedo out of my closet. It didn’t take long to get ready, and I walked out to the waiting car about ten minutes before seven. That put my arrival at about seven fifteen. Late enough, but not too late.
