Page 118 of April

Asher knew what she meant, but now wasn’t the time to deal with that, so she kissed her again, took a deep breath, and left the room before she got pulled back into the bed for a second time.

She’d sent the text while Linden had been in the bathroom and had gotten an immediate reply. Everything was set up, so now, she needed to actually go through with this. It meant that there would be yet another change in her life when she was already going through so many all at once, but she knew it would be for the better.

???

“Hey, Ash,” Carolyn greeted. “It’s your only day off this week, so I was surprised to hear from you.”

“I know. Thanks for meeting with me so last-minute. I needed to talk to you as soon as possible, though.”

Asher sat down at the café table across from Carolyn.

“Is everything okay?”

“Not exactly,” she said.

“Should I finish my coffee first, or should we have gone for drinks?”

“I can’t run Dallas, Carolyn,” Asher blurted out, which wasn’t at all what she’d planned.

“What?”

“The office; I can’t run it.”

“You can’t? I have an offer letter all ready for you. I was going to get you to sign it tomorrow.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“You’re sorry? What happened, Asher? Just a few days ago, you came into my office and told me you wanted this.”

“I did at the time,” she replied.

“That was days ago. What the hell happened, Asher?” Carolyn asked as she leaned over the small, two-person table. “I’ve made plans. Everything was set.”

“I know. I’m sorry, Carolyn. I thought that was what I wanted. I really did. I needed to get away from here and run an office mostly on my own.”

“So, why are you saying no now, then?” Carolyn asked.

“Because I don’t want to leave. I thought I needed to get away from here, but I love New Orleans,” she replied, leaving out the part about also loving Linden Washington because Carolyn was Linden’s boss, too, and they hadn’t talked about anyone at work knowing what they were doing yet. “My whole life is here. I thought I wanted to move out on my own, so to speak, but I’ve been thinking a lot about it and making plans for movers and apartments, and the more and more I plan, the more and more I realize that I don’t want to go.”

Carolyn shook her head and said, “I really can’t believe this. We’ve been talking about you taking on more responsibility, learning the business side more, and doing fewer and fewer weddings. You’ve been with me for twelve years. That’s the longest any planner has been with the company, Asher. I thought this would be perfect for you. More money. More responsibility. And you’d have the office to run however you want, for the most part. I’d leave you alone. Is that what this is about? You’re worried I’ll be there too much or be too involved?”

“No, that’s not it.”

“Are you sure? If it is, I’ll stay out of your way as much as you need. It’s still my company, so I need to be involved, but it would be your office and your staff, Asher. I really think you want this. Maybe it’s the stress of moving that’s getting to you. Why don’t I have someone call you? I’ll have a service take care of things for you. They’ll send you listings for apartments, arrange a trip there for you to check them out, and the movers will pack everything for you and unpack it when they get it there. I’ll include that in your offer letter. That will help with the move and the stress of it all.”

“It’s not the stress, Carolyn. If it were, I’d tell you. And I really appreciate you offering to help with and pay for the move. I’m grateful. I’m eternally grateful to you because you gave me the career of my dreams and a great place to work. I just don’t want to run an office in Dallas.”

“So, you want to stay here and plan weddings forever?”

“Yes,” Asher said with a nod but left out any details or commitments to Carolyn’s company.

“Well, can’t say this is how I thought my day off would go.” Carolyn took a drink of her coffee. “I’m very surprised. Is there really nothing I can do to convince you? I’d offer you more money, but I don’t think that’s it, is it? If so, you would have just given me a number.”

“No, it’s not the money,” Asher answered honestly.

“Okay.” Carolyn sighed. “Well, that’s that, then.”

“I’m sorry,” Asher added.

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