Page 16 of Twenty-Three Years of Longing

“Damn. Figures,” he let out an overly dramatic sigh.

Some things never change. No woman had ever held his attention very long. We are as different as night and day, but there seems to be one thing he and I agree on, Raya is gorgeous.

And hands off for me as well.

“Now back to your question, you know who hires for that role. President O’Connor hand-picked Ms. Davison. I have seen her resume, and it is impressive. Given the chance, I think she will do an amazing job,” I said, honestly.

“And you? What are you going to do?” he asked.

“I have a plan in the works. Give me a couple of days to firm things up and I’ll share it with you. Now, are you hungry, because I haven’t eaten dinner yet.”

“It’s after eight. You never eat this late,” he said.

“I’ve been busy,” I replied.

He laughed. “You’re unemployed. How busy can you be?”

Mayson had a sense of humor from a young age. The girls seemed to love it. I...I dealt with it. But after the day I had had, the lightheartedness was refreshing.

Snickering, I said, “You’d be surprised how exhausted you can get at the beach.”

Mayson raised a brow. “Not that I’m calling bullshit, but no one wears a business suit to the beach.”

Fuck.

This just proved how distracted my mind was. “Never been able to fool you, have I?”

“Nope. I will cut you a break. But I expect you to talk to me in a couple of days. Something is going on and I want the details,” he said.

“That’s fair. But for tonight, how about we see what I have in the fridge to eat instead?” I asked.

“Already beat you to it. There’s not much. And also, you’re going to need more beer.” He shrugged and added, “I’ve been waiting a while.”

“Guess we’re going out and I’m driving,” I said, holding up my keys.

“Good. And maybe while we eat, you’ll change your mind and spill it.”

Heading back out to my SUV I said, “All you’re getting tonight is dinner.”

Mayson was right. I needed to tell him something soon. Even though Reesa wanted to be the one to make the announcement, Mayson was my brother. I couldn’t let him find out with the rest of the country. It was bad enough that he learned the hard way that I wasn’t head of the school any longer.

Can I run an entire country if I can’t even manage to keep my relationship with Raya, strictly business?

CHAPTER 6

Raya

Joey was right, today was a much better day. At least my morning had been. Not one issue. Even the boys that had fought yesterday came to my office and apologized.

I’d like to think that they had come to the realization that their behavior was wrong and came to me on their own. But given that Orion changed our plans to meet at work during lunch instead, my gut said this was his doing, and not the boys’.

He would be arriving shortly, and I would hopefully have my answer. My cell phone rang, and I thought it would be Orion letting me know of another change of plans. But it was Kathy. My heart skipped a beat and instantly, I panicked. Had something happened to Joey? He was fine when I spoke to him a few hours ago when he went to bed.

“Kathy, is everything okay?” I blurted out, nervously.

“Yes, Joey is sound asleep. It’s you that I am worried about,” she said.

“Me? Why?” I asked.

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