left, Chase turned to Sunny. “It seems, my dear wife, that you’ve made a hit with everyone in my life. My children, my mother, my staff, my friends, and now my attorney, all adore you.”
And what about you, my dear husband, do you adore me?
They were interrupted by a phone call so Sunny went into her own office to get some work done before it was time to pick up the children.
She looked at the family photo on her desk and smiled. It had been taken on her wedding day. The day that changed my life forever, she thought. Drifting back to the evening last spring when Chase Dupont had entered her life, she realized she’d fallen in love with him that night at dinner. Wow, she thought, I’ve loved him from the start.
Forcing herself to concentrate on the new menu selections that needed her attention, she finished her work quickly, emailing the managers of each store with her choices. When she was ready to leave, she went in search of her husband to let him know. As she was about to enter the office, she heard his voice.
“Lindy, you and your father need to accept our decision and move on. Goodbye, Lindy.” He slammed down the phone as Sunny entered.
“She’s not happy, I take it,” Sunny remarked.
“Of course she’s not. I didn’t figure she’d take the news well. And as I’ve said before, an angry Lindy is not a good thing,” he said, frowning.
“Maybe it’s a good thing we’ll be at the beach house for several days. It’ll give everyone a chance to cool off.”
“That’s probably true. Are you leaving now, baby?”
“Yes, I’ll see you at dinner. Don’t stay late. You need to get some rest.”
“Yes, Ma’am,” he agreed as she leaned over to kiss him goodbye.
The night before their flight to Florida, an exhausted Sunny fell into bed.
“Tired, baby?” Chase asked as he joined her.
“Just a little, I can’t wait to get to Florida tomorrow. I want to walk on the beach the first thing.”
“We probably can do that. There will be plenty of people there willing to spoil our kids, while we take some time for ourselves, I’m sure.” Looking at her tired face he added, “Come here, I’ll give you a massage. No strings attached. It’ll make you sleep better.”
She rolled over on her stomach. He poured the cool lotion in his hand and began gently massaging it into her skin. He could feel the tightness of her shoulder muscles and he concentrated on loosening them. He massaged her back for several minutes before moving to her legs.
“Ah…are you sure you weren’t a masseuse in former life?” Sunny asked.
He chuckled. “Feel good, does it? No I was never a masseuse, just thought you could use some attention.”
“You’re too good to me,” she murmured drowsily.
He finished the massage, kissed her and said, “Sleep now, baby…I’m right here.” He pulled her into his arms and gently rubbed her brow until she fell asleep. She slept soundly until the next morning, when she was awakened by Ali, Brice, and Chase entering her room with a breakfast tray.
“Breakfast in bed for my lady,” Chase informed her as he set the tray on the bedside table.
“We helped,” Brice chimed in as Ali handed her the morning paper.
“Why thank you. Why are you all being so sweet this morning?” She took the paper from Ali and reached for a glass of orange juice.
“It’s the first day of our adventure, Mama,” Ali told her.
“We love you, Mama.” Brice said as he climbed up on her lap and gave her a wet smooch.
Tears sprang to her eyes as she looked over the little boy’s head at Chase. He smiled and said, “You’ve worked hard this week getting everything ready so these two can have the holiday of a lifetime. You deserve to be pampered. Now eat up, we have a plane to catch. I’ve fed the kids already.” Looking at the two youngsters, he said, “You two leave your mama alone so she can enjoy her breakfast. Come with me and we’ll load the car.” He looked back at his wife and said, “Enjoy.”
What a sweetheart, she thought, as she sipped the coffee he had laced with her favorite flavor of creamer, white chocolate. He’d also made waffles and they were heavenly. Well, he does own a chain of restaurants so I shouldn’t be surprised that the man cooks. She finished her meal and set the tray back on the nightstand. Swinging her legs