clandestine military background where Presidents know who you are. They follow you and your business. You might just be a little too, what’s that saying, rich for my blood.”
I’m shocked. Clearly we’ve spent too much time apart and she’s had way too much time to think.
Giving her hands a last squeeze before I let them go, I come around to her side of the desk and sit down in the chair next to her. Taking her hands again, gently I rub my thumbs over her soft skin. Her eyes don’t look as open as I’ve seen them in the past. I need that door to reopen. Let me in, Sierra.
“You started out by saying ‘You’re you’ and out of everything you said, that was where you nailed it. Everything that followed that is just stuff, details to sort through. I want you to trust me, Sierra. How do I get you to trust me?”
As she looks at me I realize there is a story there, a story she is not yet ready to share. That will only come with time. I want to know everything now. That’s the only way to save her, but she has to choose to share with me of her own volition.
“I miss your nightly pictures, mermaid.”
“Hale…”
“Shhh.” Bringing her hands to my face, I kiss the center of each palm. “I know what we have to be for the next few weeks until the event is over. I respect that. Universal was an eye-opener for me, but I watched and learned. You handled yourself with so much finesse and grace. You’ve worked hard and with integrity and it makes me look at things differently. You’ve set the benchmark and you’ve set it high.”
“Thank you.” And with a small smile, “So, would you think less of me if I kissed you?”
Sitting forward in the chair, I laugh. “Expect the unexpected from you.”
As she leans in with a smile, I cup her small face with my right hand. “You’re safe with me, Sierra. Don’t run. Please don’t run.”
“I just don’t want to ruin everything.”
Kissing the edge of her mouth, “I need you to have faith that this will all work out. Can you do that?”
“I can try.”
“That’s my girl.”
Her look is priceless. My girl. I place a small kiss on her lips, “Want to hear something else?”
“Only if it’s good.”
“It’s very good.”
“Okay, then.”
“That same night, with Susan and Robyn right there, one of the ladies in accounting asked me if I had a girlfriend.”
“What did you tell her?”
“I told her the truth.”
“And what is that?”
“I told her that there’s someone very special in my life. And they said, ‘Call her. Have her come meet us.’ And I told them I can’t, she lives in Austin.”
“Anyone I know?” Sierra looks most amused.
“I don’t know, you might know her. She’s a really pretty, intelligent blonde. Very driven. I’m working with her on an event and she’s got amazing, kissable lips.” Putting my lips close to her ear, “And nipples that like to torment me.”
“Where have you been, Bev and I have been trying to reach you?”
Putting my cell phone onto speaker, I bring Monica into the bathroom with me so that we can talk as I wash my face and brush my teeth.
“I was having dinner with Hale.”
“Dinner with Hale? Oh my God, we have so much to talk about.”
“What’s going on?” Looking in the mirror I can see how much happier I look. One conversation that set everything straight was like lifting a hundred pound blanket of gray gloom. Being out of sorts with Hale causes this odd, empty pain. Everything feels out of sync and I’m too distracted to function properly. I hate the feeling.
“The rumor mill is spinning wildly. Have you spoken to Kemp?”
“What’s the rumor and no. He was flying back to New York today. He’s been at that seminar in Seattle all week.”
“Rumor is Mannon is going to announce his so-called retirement soon and will be out the door December 31st.”
“Where did you hear it? I mean, we’ve been hearing this same shit for eighteen months now, when is he just going to fucking leave already?” Toweling off my face I leave it a little wet and grab my Vitamin C serum. With a squeeze to the rubber tip of the little medicine dropper, I release some onto my fingers and start to massage the slightly viscous liquid into my cheeks. “Just think, Robyn will need to find a new mentor,” I laugh. “So, where