beating three thousand miles away.
If it wasn’t for work, I’d be going mad with the intensity of how much I miss Kara and Kevin. Even though we FaceTime daily, it’s not the same. I miss them constantly.
When I first left for Alaska, I was devastated over Jed. I’ve come back as someone my employees don’t recognize. I’m polite and sociable, but more often than not, my door is closed to outside distractions. I’m driven to get through flights and paperwork, because each day I do means I’m one night closer to happiness.
Whether the people I work with miss the old me, I frankly don’t care. I don’t miss who I was; I just miss the family I made.
“What am I going to do?” I mutter, shoving my hands through my overlong, unruly hair. My office is lit only by the glow of my monitors.
A ping of an incoming email comes in. I sigh, knowing because of the late hour, it’s not going to be Kara. She and I talked earlier before she crawled into bed. She spent the night grading tests and making me laugh with the creative answers she read aloud by her students who “feel they’re too good to read a textbook. Jennings, I swear, if they think I’m tough, wait until they go to college.” She was fuming.
I chuckled, leaning back in my office chair. “So, what you’re saying is that I shouldn’t take Ms. Malone’s AP Physics class?”
Her voice dropped to a seductive purr. “I’m sure we could figure out a way for some after-school tutoring, Mr. Jennings. Since you are much older than my average student, I don’t have to play by the same rules.”
“Jesus, Kara,” I growled as I shifted my hardened cock behind the zipper of my pants. “The minute we’re alone again, we’re totally role-playing that shit.”
“Nineteen days, Ace. And whatever you want, since all I care about is holding you.”
She slays me when she says things like that and I’m not fucking there. I closed my eyes and leaned back in my chair. “God, I love you,” I said gutturally.
“I love you too. Now, go get some rest.” Shortly after, we hung up, and here I am hours later trying to clear my board so nothing can stop me from leaving in nineteen days.
Nothing.
With a heavy sigh, I look at the email. Then I frown. “When did we bid on…” My voice trailing off, I pull up our bid proposal system. And there it is from just under three years ago.
A multiyear charter contract Jed dared me to bid on as a “long shot to expand your business in the southeast. I mean, what’s the worst that happens, Jennings? You win and you actually have to come visit me in Florida?”
“I promise, I’ll come to Florida if I win,” I joked with him over the phone, as I was pressing Submit on the proposal. “Just don’t hold your breath. I’m sure they’re going to go with someone local. That’s how it normally works.”
“Hey, you never know. Miracles happen. But you’re buying first round at my bar for everyone in the place when you win.”
“That’s a deal,” I laughed as I ended the call.
Now, I can’t move.
Fingers trembling, I move the mouse over and double-click on the file attachment. The top-sheet summary acknowledgment of an award of a contract for a billion-dollar company whose corporate headquarters is mere minutes from Kara. The screen blurs as I scan it.
I told you, miracles happen, I can hear Jed’s voice in my ear. “They damn sure do, buddy. Thank you for mine. And I don’t just mean this. I don’t know how you realized we were perfect for each other. But because of you, I have everything. There will never be another like you,” I whisper aloud.
Excitement churns the blood into my veins and through my heart. I shove to my feet and bellow, “Lou!”
The door to my office flies open. “What’s wrong?” she asks anxiously. With my mood over the last several weeks, it could be anything from “I want lunch” to a major part to an engine is missing.
Coming around my desk, I grab my assistant into a massive hug. “I’ll be leaving for Florida. As soon as possible.”
“What?” she screeches, shoving me back a good three feet. “You weren’t planning to head out to Kara for almost three more weeks…”
I just laugh. “This is business.”
“Business?” she scoffs.
I walk behind my desk and turn my monitor around. “Business,” I reiterate firmly. But damned