26
1091 Words
Wednesday
I closed the lid of my suitcase. James would be home any minute. I touched the center of my chest. All I needed to do was go to this appointment and get the all clear. Then I could focus on Bee's bachelorette party. We were leaving at the crack of dawn tomorrow morning. Separate cars so that we'd have a little girl time before meeting the guys at the beach. It was going to be so much fun. And I was beyond excited for their wedding on Saturday. I had been waiting for years for Bee and Mason to tie the knot.
My phone buzzed and I lifted it off the bed. There was a text from James. I clicked on it.
"We just pulled into the garage. We should probably get going if we're going to make the appointment on time."
I laughed and slid my phone into my purse. That was his nice way of saying, "get your ass down here or we're going to be late." I made my way down the stairs. The house was too quiet today. Scarlett had insisted on going to the park and Ellen had insisted that I wasn't allowed to accompany them. She usually tended to agree with James.
I stepped onto the elevator and watched the doors close. The day alone had given me time to read through my rough draft for my second book. And our heated night made it easy for the words to flow. I was pretty sure all the scenes with him were perfect. It was the moments with Tyler that were tripping me up. Picturing him in his Wesley costume on Halloween put this feeling of guilt in my stomach. And my son could feel it. It was as though he was trying to kick it out of me.
I needed to talk to Hails. That's what was bothering me. I'd be hanging out with her all day tomorrow. Certainly I could smooth things over. But maybe she wasn't even upset about that. We had never talked about my past with Tyler. She had always seemed cool about it. Was there something else bothering her? I tried to shake away the thought. The last thing I needed before going to the cardiologist was to get upset.
Breathe in. Breathe out. "Hi, William," I said as I walked up to the car. "How has your day been?"
"Very good, Mrs. Hunter." He bowed slightly as he opened up the door.
Had I just imagined him doing that? Our relationship or lack thereof was really starting to bother me. "You really can just call me Penny. Did James torture you all day?"
"Not at all, ma'am." He sounded slightly offended.
Ma'am? I wasn't seventy years old. If anything, I should have been the one that was offended. I stepped into the car and slid next to James in the back seat. The door closed behind me.
"Stop terrorizing him," James said with a smile.
"I'm trying to get to know him. How was class?"
"Good." He kissed my temple as he pulled me into his side. "Although, I was pretty tired all day."
"A s*x marathon will do that to you."
He laughed and rested the back of his head against the seat.
"Are you okay?" He really did look exhausted.
"I've just been worried about this appointment all week."
"I'm sure the doctor will say there hasn't been any change." I rested my head on his shoulder. "How did the board meeting go this afternoon?" Rob had taken over as CEO of Hunter Tech. James still remained on the board, though. The company was still his baby, but he was happier teaching. Plus his blood pressure was back in the normal range now. His days of barking orders were over. And I was happier because of it too. He smiled more now. He was more relaxed grading papers and giving lectures. It helped that the university was crazy flexible with his hours. James was only teaching two classes this summer. He had even given a few lectures via video chat from bed. Those were my favorite mornings.
"The rollout is still on schedule. I think the board is still getting used to Rob's sense of humor, though."
"Why do you say that? Did Rob say something and hear crickets?"
"More like gasps. Today he said the launch was going to be as big as his dick."
I laughed. "Wait...you're not serious?"
"You've met my brother, right? He comes up to about here," he said and put his hand against his nose. "The one with no filter and the overtly s****l phrases?"
I shook my head and laughed again. "I'm still having trouble picturing him in a suit and tie all day. But I kind of just assumed he'd tone it down at work."
"I think the board secretly loves him. Besides, our client list is growing faster than ever. Everyone finds him super relatable, I guess."
"He's probably talking mostly to guys then."
"Or flirting with the ladies."
I lightly slapped James' arm. "Is that what you did? You grew your companies by schmoozing rich women?"
"A guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do."
I rolled my eyes. "Fortunately for both of us, you're out of the game."
"Speaking of that, I may need to go to London for a few days. There's a deal that we really need to land. Rob's been flitting around with it for months. So I think it's best if I handle this one in person."
"When do you have to go?"
"Right after the wedding."
"Oh." I wasn't sure why, but I felt disappointed. Weddings were so romantic. I was hoping to spend a few days after the wedding with my head in the clouds. It was hard to do that when he was gone. I hated when he traveled. Scarlett did too. She always cried when he didn't tuck her into bed.
"It's just for a couple of days." He kissed my temple again.
The good I could draw from this was that James must not be too worried about my appointment today. If he was seriously concerned, he wouldn't be flying across the ocean in a few days. I took another slow, deep breath. That was good news.
The car pulled to a stop outside the high rise where my doctor's office was located. A minute later, William was helping me out of the car. Stay calm. This would all be over in about an hour.
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- Writer
