Page 73 of The Meeting
He tightened his arms around her, squeezing to let her know he was there. She looked up at him. “It’s okay if you don’t want to go. I don’t want you to feel pressured.”
“Oh no. It’s not that. I would love to go. I just,” she stopped. “I just want to make sureyouwant me to go. I don’t wantyouto feel pressured.”
“Kailynn, I would love nothing more than for you to meet my family. I know they’ll love you. Heck, my mom already does. And if I didn’t want you to go, I wouldn’t even be talking to you about this.”
The fact that she was considering coming with him was exciting in itself. Their relationship was still on the newer side, but they had been friends for a few months now and he felt he was a good judge of character. He knew she would fit in nicely with his family, and as far as he was concerned, she was the perfect addition to his family.
Slow down, he reminded himself. They hadn’t been together that long, and he needed to rein in the excitement.
“When is it?”
“Next month on the sixth. I’m thinking about flying over on Friday and coming back Monday. What do you think?”
“I just worry about leaving the company since I’m on my own now.”
He could understand that. He also worried about leaving his. It was a legitimate concern. “What did you and Drew do when you took vacations in the past?”
She shrugged. “We rarely took vacations. I guess we took a few days off here and there, but we both did. I mean, it wasn’t really a big deal, since we would just post things whenever I would finish them. If I took time off, I just made it up another day.”
“Sounds like exactly what I’m going to end up doing. I’ll be working weekends before and after, I’m sure, but it’ll depend on my caseload at the time.”
“Yeah, I guess there’s no reason I can’t go. I can just put in extra hours later. I could always bring my sketch pad with me in case inspiration hits and maybe take some time to work on that while we’re there. If that’s okay, that is.”
“Baby, that’s more than okay. You can do whatever you’d like.”
She smiled and leaned forward to press her lips against his. “I’ve never been to Montana before.”
“We’re going to be in rural Montana. It’s quite a bit different from here.”
“It sounds fun.”
19
Kailynn’s first morning of work with Maddie was starting shortly. She paced around her apartment. Everything needed to be perfect. She had her coffee maker set up in her kitchen with an extra mug sitting out, along with some creamer. She hadn’t thought to ask Maddie if she even drank coffee.
Chase had helped her purchase and set up a desk and computer for Maddie’s workstation. Things were still getting underway. She had finally gone to her old office and grabbed her items, but she had yet to set anything up. But canceling her lease at her old office had been a huge step for her. She didn’t realize how much it would make her feel like the company was hers and only hers. It was a relief to finally break away from Drew completely.
A knock on her door made her stop pacing, and she raced over to the door and brushed the hair out of her face. It almost felt as if she were on a first date. She took a deep breath and pulled the door open.
“Hey baby,” Chase said, stepping over and giving her a kiss.
“Hey! What are you doing here? I figured you’d be at work already.” She looked past him and out into the parking lot, but didn’t see Maddie.
“I was, but realized I forgot a file at my place, so I had to come back. Is Maddie here?”
“Not yet.” Kailynn glanced at her watch. Maddie still had ten minutes before the workday started.
“You’ve been pacing, huh?” Chase gave her a half smile.
Kailynn leaned closer to him, as if she were whispering conspiratorially. “I’m so nervous. I hope she likes me.”
He laughed. “You don’t need to worry about that. Besides, you’re her boss. It doesn’t matter, anyway.”
“It’s a lot easier to have a working relationship with someone if you get along. Especially since we’re the only two here all day, every day.”
“I know, I know. Just relax. It’ll all be okay.” He glanced at his watch. “I need to get back. Dinner tonight?”
She nodded and stood on her tippy toes to kiss him. When their lips met, he wrapped his arms around her and deepened the pressure. Her arms slinked around his neck and she completely relaxed into him.
