Total pages in book: 55
Estimated words: 51530 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 258(@200wpm)___ 206(@250wpm)___ 172(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 51530 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 258(@200wpm)___ 206(@250wpm)___ 172(@300wpm)
I open my car door for Ollie to get in and look at Lily hopefully. “That’s up to Lily.”
She nods. “I’d love to come over.” She leans down to look through the car door. “But that depends. Are you going to call me old if I take a little nap?”
I put my hand to her back as Ollie shakes his head. “You’re not old. You can take a nap at our house.”
She raises up. “Is that okay with you, Ford?”
I lean in, and her eyes widen as I kiss her. I don’t know if she thought I was going to break it in slowly with Ollie or what, but I’m not. I want the world to know that she’s ours.
She looks at Ollie to see his reaction, and he just keeps smiling at Lily and me. I lean in and whisper to her, “Is nap code for something else?”
She puts her hand on my chest and whispers back, “As long as I’m in your arms, it can be code for whatever you want it to be.”
Lilian
I pick up the phone, knowing that it’s Ford calling me from his office. “Can I see you in my office, Lilian?”
I try to keep the smile off my face, but I can’t. “Sure thing, boss. I’ll be right there.”
I look over at our new hire, Elle, and she’s busy entering last week’s delivery numbers. She’s proven to be a good hire, and I’m so glad that Lucas took a chance on her. She’s a hard worker. “Elle, Ford needs me. I’ll be right back.”
She smiles at me. “Sure, I got the phone.” No sooner does she get the words out than she’s looking back down at her computer screen.
I grab a pad of paper and a pen off my desk and go to Ford’s office. I knock on his open door, and he waves me in.
I get into the room, and he points to the hard wood behind me. “Shut the door, please.”
My nether regions start to tingle as I shut the door. He’s sitting at his desk, looking all calm. He has his hands folded together on the desk in front of him.
I stand awkwardly, and he points to the chair that I usually sit in.
My cheeks heat, and I go to sit down. I’m here to work. I don’t know why I thought he would be calling me in here for something else. “So this week you have appointments with Axle Distributing, and then Caro Distributing is sending one of their people on Thursday. Then Friday, you go to North Carolina to meet with Mountain Moonshine. Ollie has a night game on Saturday, so you may be able to make it back in time for that.”
He’s nodding his head, but he’s not with me. He seems to have his mind on something else. “Is that it?” he asks.
I nod and then stomp down the nerves I’m feeling. This is Ford. I need to just say it. “Actually, I was hoping to talk to you about something, but it’s personal, so if you feel like this is not a good time, I can wait until tonight.”
His jaw tightens, and he encourages me with only a nod. The loving Ford from last night seems to have vanished in this suit and tie. I sit up a little taller and pull my shoulders back. “Yeah, well, I thought since you were going out of town, you could let Ollie stay with me.” I hold my hand up before he says anything. “I know that your brothers take turns watching him, but they have their own lives. If he stayed with me, I could focus on him. We could hang out, and I could make sure he’s rested for his game. I’d make sure he’s there an hour before it starts like he’s supposed to be.”
He’s watching me with no expression. He gets up from his chair and comes around to sit on the edge of his desk right in front of me. “Are you sure you want to do that? You know that you don’t have to.”
Now I’m starting to get pissed. He acts like I can’t handle it or something. “I mean if you don’t trust me or want me to hang out with Ollie then just say so—”
He pulls me out of my chair so quickly, I drop the pen and paper in my hands. My body slams against his, and he has his hands at my back, holding me flush against him. “Of course I trust you with Ollie. I want you to hang out with him. But I don’t want to force you. I don’t ever want you to feel like I’m holding you back or forcing you into something you don’t want to do. I’ve tried to give you your space.”