Eligible Ex-husband - Marie Johnston Page 0,20

almost over and I know if I leave here and go to work tomorrow then it’s all over. I’ll go back to my condo when work’s done and see the kids one night a week and every other weekend.

I glance over my computer at where the girls are playing on the lawn. The deck smells like citronella and we’re all loaded with an obnoxious smelling bug spray that claims to be natural. The coolness of a June morning is losing way to the summer sun with a dash of extra humidity from the rain we got yesterday.

But the girls are content and I can snatch a few moments to catch up with my inbox.

Natalie’s on her way back from her parents. My mother-in-law is doing better, but still weak. I can’t take another week off and an unfamiliar feeling settles into the middle of my chest.

Resentment.

I want more time with my family. I need more time to win Natalie back. Why can’t I get away for longer? If it wasn’t for Helena, I wouldn’t have gotten the week I did.

As it was, I still clocked plenty of time on my phone and on my laptop during the late-night hours.

I stuff the feeling away. I wouldn’t have gotten this far without the money Liam left behind. My company is relatively young and I have no business resenting the time it takes to make it successful. It’s my legacy. It’s going to be what I leave the girls, whether they go into investing or not. When they were born, Natalie and I barely had a quarter each to rub together.

In those days, I was terrified that something would happen to me. Natalie had her parents, but we couldn’t count on mine. They had retirement funds they used to constantly travel the world and avoid their personal problems.

Natalie threw all her support and education behind me and Gainesworth Equity. I was frantic to build it to a stage where it could support her and our kids if something happened to me.

No one predicted my brother would have a heart attack and die behind the wheel. But he’d left enough to take care of his wife and the child, and me.

I tackle the detailed reports Helena sent. I can do both—win my wife back and run a successful business. I’ll make damn sure I get it done.

One of our top clients is trying to micromanage his accounts instead of trusting me to do my job. I don’t mind fielding questions and inquiries, but when I can prove his investment ideas actively lose money he doubles down. And it’s usually on the weekend. I’m certain it’s after he plays eighteen holes with his equally rich and bored friends, who I suspect get shitty investment advice from several people in their lives.

My phone lights up and I’m grateful for the distraction from the Lancaster mess. Sending Helena to deal with him should’ve been a no brainer. Lancaster can be a pest because he misses the adrenaline of high stakes business. We’ve become good friends over the years and he even had me and Natalie over to his place before he moved to Arizona. And that’s probably why Helena can’t get very far with him.

I answer and Charlie’s chipper voice flows through the phone. “Sunday check-in, boss. Is this a good time?”

“It’s fine.”

“Great.” He runs down the list that’s the same every week. “So, your suits have been picked up and delivered to your place. The freezer is packed with heat-and-serve meals and I put a few in your fridge at the office in case you end up eating in.” That happens more than I anticipate. Conference calls that drag on for hours. New company profiles to study. I have a dorm fridge and microwave in my office for such occasions. Most days, Charlie orders in for me and Helena. The meals in the fridge are for the evenings and weekends when no one’s around to make the order.

“The maid service called last Wednesday. You had a leaky faucet. It’s already been fixed.”

Right. My place. How easily I’ve settled back into the house.

“Anything else you want to add for the upcoming week?” He asks the same each Sunday, and I never fail to have a short list. Today, I’ve got nothing.

“No. Sounds good, Charlie. Thank you.”

“No problem, Mr. Gainesworth. I have my phone on me if you need anything.”

I disconnect the call. When was the last time I saw Charlie in person? I hired him and we