Page 35 of When the Walls Come Down
But I was.
Wholly.
Completely.
Utterly.
“Enough, huh?” He rolled into me, flipping me to my back.
“Something like that,” I replied, but the truth was clear even to my own ears.
Shane and I lay in that bed, kissing and laughing, giving each other hell for another half hour. By the time we emerged from his apartment, the movers were wrapping up and everything I owned was stacked like a sky-high pyramid on the top of my mattress.
Between stolen kisses and the occasional ass grab, Shane spent the day helping me unpack my apartment. Then we spent the night eating delivery Chinese, sharing a few beers, and putting my bed together.
By the time it was all said and done, my apartment was in organized disarray and we both collapsed onto my queen-sized mattress. I had big plans to end the night much as the day had started—with him moving inside me—but exhaustion won out.
I fell asleep that night on Shane’s chest, his fingers sifting through my hair, and his heart playing in my ear.
Yeah. It was safe to say I liked him.
A lot.Me: I have to get up early, and since your weak ass fell asleep at eight thirty anyway, I swiped the extra key I found on your counter, let myself out, and locked you back up. Also, I rigged that piece-of-shit lock enough to get you by until Don from maintenance can get there to replace the whole thing. I don’t think it’ll take him long to do it. I told your boyfriend Clarke at the front desk your door wasn’t safe. He took the news as seriously as I did.Me: And don’t bust my balls for the long texts, but this weekend was…well, it was fucking awesome. Okay? I said it. If you want to meet me at Two Ships when you get off, I’ll buy you a steak and a cranberry vodka to celebrate your first day. Hope it’s a good one, Peach.Fuck if I couldn’t get that girl off my mind, but even as thoughts of her danced around my head, I sat at my table that night with my laptop and came up with a way to convince Casey that there was no need to give me my marching papers.
In fact, I was now, more than ever, committed to staying at the brewery and spearheading the entire new line of ciders he’d been obsessing over. It was like there was new wind in my sails, and before I went to bed, I had a plan to not only up my game at work but also admit to them that maybe they were right. I had been in a rut personally, and I’d needed their nudge.
As if suddenly, after a witty blonde had waltzed into my life, I was ready to tackle the world.
After I’d left her apartment and sent her a few messages, the last few days re-played in my head. I can’t say I hadn’t slept well because I had. Between all the sex and moving over the past forty-eight hours, I was beat.
Maybe Maggie wasn’t entirely wrong, either. My body was feeling all kinds of old and battered. Then again, maybe it was just feeling well used for once—not that I was complaining. I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat. Actually, I was looking forward to it.
I woke up before dawn, ready to face head-on what I was walking into at the office, and I planned to get there early. I went to the gym. Showered. Dressed. Caffeinated. And I was in my office before seven.
Work mode kicked right in. I busted through all my emails, approved some proofs we’d sent off the week before, and got them out of the way a few days ahead of their deadline. It wasn’t until around eight when everyone else started filing in that I got a text.Casey: Meeting in the upstairs conference room in thirty. Work for you?Me: Perfect. In fact, if you want to meet sooner, I’ve thought about a few things over the weekend, and I have some new ideas I think you’ll like.Casey: We had a Lucky Charms meltdown this morning. I’ll be cutting it close in thirty. Talk later.It didn’t worry me much. They’d both reassured me I wasn’t being run off by any means. They were making a point, and now, I got it. Besides, so what? We get a new person for the team and optimistically that could be another positive change. Spread the work around.
Plus, I was sure I could find more entertaining—more blond and sassy—ventures to occupy my time.
I checked my phone, but there was still no message from Maggie. She was probably focused on her first day. I respected how she was giving her full attention to a job she’d traveled across the country for. I’d been there before, and it took guts.
