Page 73 of Forever Wild

“Well, I’m glad you told me. I promise I’ll learn from my mistake.” I kiss her one last time and pass her the drink she ordered before we head out into the crowd, ready for mingling.

Chapter thirty-six

Bryn

“I’ve got to go, Izzy. I’m going to be late for my flight,” I say as I hastily pack my laptop into my backpack.

“Ugh. Fine. I still can’t believe you’re going to see him instead of me. You haven’t been home in three weeks either. Some of us want to see you.”

“I know. I know. But you know how important it is that I’m at headquarters right now. Luckily, Jameson’s tournament is in California too.”

I scan the office I’ve been using one last time, confirming I’ve got all my chargers and other paraphernalia. “Love you, bye, Iz.”

“Love you, bye.”

I’m standing in the lobby of our floor, waiting for the elevator, when I hear a sound that makes my ears bleed—okay, I guess Kyle’s voice isn’t quite that bad.

“Leaving early?” he asks.

I look at my watch. “It’s five o’clock, Kyle. It’s the end of the workday. I understand you don’t have a life, but some of the rest of us do.”

He offers what I’m sure is supposed to be a charming smile, but he just looks constipated to me. “Unfortunately, neither of our teams is getting to go home tonight. The big bosses are coming in for a last-minute meeting this weekend. Apparently, they’ve called a last-minute leadership team meeting.”

“Okay, but neither of us are on the leadership team…yet,” I say.

“Well, they did mention that we should come. Of course, I’m sure they would understand that you can’t be here. I know you all are buddies since you all came from Wild Bluffs. I’m sure they will give you a pass for missing this meeting, just like they give you so much more flexibility than the rest of us.”

I scowl at him, mentally trying to figure out how I can still see Jameson while also being in this meeting. No way am I going to let Kyle be in that meeting without me. It would all but guarantee him Tara’s seat next time.

“When are the meetings?” I ask, ignoring his dig at me.

“All day tomorrow and Sunday. Drinks tonight at eight at the bar around the corner.”

Why? Why does it have to be this weekend?

“Great,” I say as I move into the waiting elevator. “I’ll see you at eight.”

“Bummer about your weekend plans. I guess sometimes your work has to be your life too,” Kyle says as the doors close.

The entire elevator ride down to the first floor, I consider how I’m going to break the news to Jameson. This is the first weekend we were supposed to be able to get together. The first. God, how is this going to work if we can’t even manage to see each other once a month? I can’t miss these meetings. And Jameson obviously can’t miss his tournament. He made the cut today and scored well enough that he’s actually in the running for placing in the top 10.

When I get outside, I nervously pace back and forth, my finger hovering over the button to call Jameson. He’s going to be so disappointed. Hell, I’m so disappointed. I like Jameson. So much. But how is this ever supposed to work if we can’t ever be together? Neither of us is at a place in our career where we are willing to settle for anything less than the best, but I really thought that we’d be able to see each other at least once a month.

I mean, we’d planned. We’d actually sat down with his tour schedule and my work calendar and found dates that would work for us to get together. Who’s to say this won’t keep happening? That we won’t continue to have one conflict after another arise and, soon, we realize it’s been months since we’ve seen each other. Can a relationship survive that? Should we just call it quits now, no matter how much we like each other? At least it would save us from the heartache later.

I don’t know what to do, but I do know there is only one person who can make me feel better right now, so I FaceTime Jameson.

“Hey, B. You on the way to the airport?”

“No, I’m…shit. There’s a last-minute leadership meeting at work this weekend. Kyle and I both got the invite, and I obviously can’t not go, especially since he’s going. But even if he weren’t, it’s a big deal that I got invited, but it’s also the first weekend that we were going to be able to be together.” I sniffle, my image in the upper right-hand corner of the screen staring back at me with a red nose and tear-rimmed eyes. “I’m so sorry, Jameson. I really wanted to be there.”

I can see he’s upset by the news, but he tries to play it off, likely knowing I already feel terrible enough without having the guilt of a sad man on my hands. “That’s…it’s…it’ll be okay. We’re supposed to be together in New York in two weeks. It won’t be so bad.”

“Yes it will.” I sigh. “It will be terrible.”

“Yeah, it will be terrible, but we can still talk every night. We’ll make it work.”

“Will we? I’m so worried about what this means for us. I mean, what if something happens, and I can’t go to New York? What if my job just keeps getting in the way?”

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