Page 48 of Colt

Sylvia leaned back in her chair. “So, you have strong feelings for him?”

“Yes,” Chelsea affirmed. “I’ve always had a crush on him, even when I was fourteen.”

“How old is he now?”

“He’s forty-three.”

“Oh, you had me worried for a second there.”

Chelsea grinned. “Sorry. Back then, he seemed like such a man to me at twenty-one. Now, he truly is a man.” She furrowed her brows. “Does that make sense?”

“Yes, it does. As a young girl, he probably did seem like a grown man to you,” Sylvia replied.

“He’s so angry with me. I don’t know how to make things right. I shouldn’t have acted that way,” Chelsea lamented.

“No, you shouldn’t have. You’re a mature woman of thirty-six years old, Chelsea. Acting like a jealous high school girl won’t solve anything,” Sylvia scolded.

Ashamedly hiding her face behind her hands, Chelsea groaned. “I know. I just hope he can forgive me.”

“Is there more going on here?”

“We, uh... We, uh—”

“I understand. Are you in love with him?”

Chelsea shook her head before nodding. “Yes, I am. He’s an amazing man but I have no idea how he feels about me.”

“Don’t you think that’s something you should figure out? You’re his boss, and if he doesn’t feel the same, it could make things awkward between you two.”

“I know. I just need to talk to him about what happened yesterday.”

“I agree—” Sylvia paused as a knock echoed through the room.

Chelsea stood up from her chair and walked over to open the door. It was Colt, and she could tell by the look on his face that he was still angry.

“Colt? Come in out of the cold.”

He took off his hat and entered the room, looking surprised to see Sylvia there.

“This is my mother, Sylvia Hawkins. Mom, this is Colt Monroe.” Chelsea held back a laugh as her mother’s eyes widened before she composed herself and smiled at Colt.

“Hello, Colt. It’s nice to meet you,” she said warmly.

“Ma’am. It’s nice to meet you too,” he replied politely.

“Is something wrong?” Chelsea asked him.

“I wanted to let you know that Bobby quit. We should probably start looking for someone to replace him.”

“Did he say why he quit?”

“No, not to me at least. He just left.”

“Oh, okay. Do whatever you think is best.”

His eyebrows raised in surprise. “Are you sure about that?”

Chelsea clenched her jaw. “Yes, I am.”

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