Page 63 of Sean
Much like the ending to their first outing at Oakleigh’s, Sean stood, picked up the bill the waiter had dropped at their table a few minutes earlier, and fumbled in his wallet for cash.He held out his hand.
“We should call it a night.”
Monica kept her seat and looked up at him.“You haven’t answered my question.”
Sean avoided her gaze.“I can’t.”
His words closed the door on her dreams.
Chapter 17
Sean paced the outeroffice.Nothing much had changed in the last year or so.The secretary’s desk still guarded the door to the inner sanctum.The Ficus trees still stood sentry on either side of the large window.Multi-colored desert roses bloomed brilliantly in pots beside the door he’d just entered.He watched his feet as he paced and realized that the carpet wasn’t the same.Gone was the plush gray, replaced with a patterned look.
That must be easier to maintain.
He rolled his eyes at the thought.Of all the things to think about, the carpet got top billing?Better to ask himself what he was doing here?Why was he here on the day before Christmas Eve?
He looked at the closed door.Was the occupant really on the phone, or was he as hesitant about this meeting as Sean was?Was he dragging his feet, looking for an excuse to send Sean away?That last question drained Sean of his remaining confidence.At least he hadn’t told Monica he was coming.
His thoughts of Monica were the only bright spot in this fiasco.She had pleaded with him for help, her eyes bright with hope.When he’d refused, she’d dropped the subject and accepted defeat.But with that defeat, her eyes had lost some of their brilliance, her smile some of its joy.
Monica wasn’t the type of woman to accept defeat.She moved heaven and earth to see her plans through to the end.
Sure, he’d been thankful she hadn’t pressured him.But watching her give up without a struggle had disturbed him.He didn’t want Monica to lose a single bit of her sparkle.
Sean’s desire to see that sparkle return to her eyes had caused him to book a last-minute flight that gave him a twelve-hour window to get this chore done and get home to his son before Christmas.He didn’t know if this trip would accomplish anything, but he had to try.
The door to the inner office opened and Matthew Wright stood framed in the opening.His appearance was another thing that hadn’t changed.He wore blue jeans, a button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, and trainers that looked like they’d been walked in for miles.The casual attire was his uniform on the days he wasn’t speaking.
“Sean.”
Sean stepped toward him, hand held out.
Matthew ignored it and pulled Sean in for a back slapping hug.
“Look at you.”
