Page 205 of The Parkers' Handsome Holiday
“Jessica doesn’t matter anymore,” he said. “She’s a bitch. I made a mistake. How many times do I need to tell you that?”
I wasn’t sure how to respond. Part of me wanted to see him. I wanted to forget the past year had ever happened. But, there was another part that was angry. He wasn’t allowed to just call me and expect me to meet up with him.
“Will you meet me tonight?” Brad asked. I could sense the desperation in his voice. He really wanted to see me.
“I’m not sure,” I finally spoke. Brad let out an exasperated sigh.
“I’ll tell you what,” he said. “I have to go meet with this guy about my new gym, but I should be done with him about four. Text me before four if you want to go out tonight. If I don’t hear from you, I’ll get the hint and we can forget I ever called you.”
“Okay,” I said. It was all I could manage to say. I couldn’t tell him yes, but I couldn’t tell him no, either.
“Just promise me you will really think about it, Tiffany,” he said. “We have such a history together. We know each other better than anyone else does. We belong together. I know you are mad at me for how I left things, but we can get past this. I hope to hear from you soon.”
He hung up the phone, leaving me reeling. I sat down on a nearby bench to process what had happened.
Brad was back in town. He was single and wanted me back. He thought we could pick up where we had left off. My text message alert pinged. It had to be Brad, begging me via text. I looked down at my phone, prepared to read what he had written. Instead, I saw a text from Cayden.
Cayden. I hadn’t even thought of him since I heard Brad’s voice.
CHAPTER 25
CAYDEN
“Wow, boss, you didn’t have to do this,” Maurice said, looking at the watch I had gifted him for Christmas. His eyes were lit up like a Christmas tree. It was a grand gesture, but he deserved it. He had been an awesome assistant this year and I was pleased with his work. He needed to be rewarded, plus I was in an extremely good mood this Christmas.
It was because of Tiffany, of course. She had reignited the Christmas spirit inside of me. I was looking forward to spending the holidays with her, even though we hadn’t made any concrete plans. I didn’t care what we did, or when we did it, I just wanted to celebrate Christmas with her.
I hadn’t seen her since this morning and was curious about how her interview had gone. I was sure it had gone fine, but I found it odd that she hadn’t returned my text yet. Maybe she wanted to talk to me about it in person. After Maurice left my office I would stroll around to see if I could “accidentally” run into her.
Maurice was still staring at his watch when my phone dinged. I smiled without looking at the phone. It must have been Tiffany, returning my earlier text. I picked the phone up, but the smile disappeared from my face once I saw who it was. My mom. She never texted me at work unless there was an issue. I unlocked my phone to read the text.
Please call when you can.
“Everything okay?” Maurice asked. He had noticed the change in my facial expression. I looked up at him.
“It’s my mom,” I explained. “She never contacts me when I’m at work. I should probably call her to see what this is all about.”
Maurice nodded.
“I’ll give you some privacy, boss,” he said, standing from the chair that he was seated in. “Thank you again for the watch.”
“You deserve it,” I said. He smiled and left my office. Once he left, I shut the door and picked up my office phone. I dialed my mother’s phone number, a bit nervous about what she had to tell me.
“Hello?” she answered.
“Mom, what’s wrong?” I asked.
She sighed.
“Austin is sick,” she said. “He told me he has a stomachache and he wants his daddy. I told him that you were at work, but he doesn’t seem to care. He said he needs you now.”
My heart ached. I hated it when Austin was sick. Luckily, it wasn’t often, but when he was sick, it broke my heart.
“I can come pick him up,” I told her, looking at the clock. It was 3:00pm. I had work to do, but I could finish it at home after I picked up Austin.
“Are you sure?” my mom asked. “I can tell him he has to hold on a few more hours. Maybe I can get him to take a nap.”
“No,” I said, shutting my laptop. “I can leave work early, it’s not a big deal. I’ll be there in twenty minutes or less.”
