Page 21 of The Jealous Boss

Content, I lie next to him. He pulls me back against his chest, wrapping his arms around me. A feeling of warmth and security that I’ve never known suffuses me. Drew pulls a blanket over us, and my eyes grow heavy. I struggle to keep them open, not wanting this moment to end. Because for the first time in my life, I feel as if I’m actuallyhome.

At some point, though, I must fall asleep because when I open my eyes again, light is streaking the sky over the Pacific. And the bed is empty.

Disoriented, I sit up, clutching the blanket to my chest. “Drew?”

He steps out of the en suite, hair damp, fully dressed. “Shh, go back to sleep, angel. I didn’t mean to wake you.”

I rub my eyes and glance at the bedside clock, barely after six. Typical for Drew who often runs along the beach before work. Except it’s the weekend, and he’s wearing jeans…

“Where are you going?” I ask, trying to keep my voice nonchalant.

“There’s some stuff I need to take care of at Twinge. Heather has plans later, so she wanted to get an early start.” Bending down, he kisses the top of my head. “Get some more sleep, angel. I kept you up late last night.”

Not wanting to betray my jealousy, I nod. “Of course. I’ll see you later.”

But my heart clenches in my chest when I hear his car pull out, and the house somehow feels emptier than it ever has before.

* * *

Drew

I hate leaving Anna, but the text from Jared I woke up to leaves me no choice. If I want the key to the safe deposit box before Monday, I need to get to the airport before his 7:00 a.m. takeoff time.

Given that there’s no way in hell that I’m waiting until Monday, I haul ass to SFO and arrive in time—barely. When my brother meets me in the VIP lounge for the private terminal, he makes an obnoxious show of tapping his watch.

“Care to explain what the fuck has you flying to New York at the crack of dawn on a Saturday?” I ask by way of greeting, still pissed that he forced me to run out on Anna like that.

Jared rolls his eyes. “About as much as I’m sureyoucare to explain why getting your hands on Mom’s ring is suddenly an emergency when you haven’t dated since your divorce. You sure about this? A band from that awful mall store was good enough for your last mistake. This time you could afford Tiffany’s.”

“Mom was still alive the last time I proposed, asshole. And Anna isn’t a mistake.”

My brother whistles softly. “You’re marrying your fuckingnanny? Sarah’s going to lose her shit.”

“The key, Jared,” I say, my impatience growing.

Shaking his head, he hands over the key to the safe deposit box. Thankfully, a crew member comes over and informs him that it’s time to board, so I’m spared any further questions.

Key in hand, I return to the parking lot, glad to have that out of the way. I love my brother, but sometimes he’s too good at pushing my buttons.

As I’m preparing to pull out, my phone rings. I put the car back in park, then glance at the caller ID. Heather.

“I thought you said you were going to fax the damn contract last night,” I say by way of greeting.

“Wow, who pissed in your Cheerios? Good morning to you, too, boss.”

“Sorry,” I say, sighing, then add by way of explanation, “I just left Jared at SFO.”

To her credit, this is all the explanation Heather needs. “It’s a miracle Twinge exists with how you two fight. Anyway, long story, but I ran into some issues last night, and you aren’t the only one with annoying family members. But the contract is done, and I’ll fax it over as soon as I get to the hotel.”

My stomach clenches. “Are these ‘issues’ something I should be concerned about?”

“No, just lawyers being lawyers and me having a life outside of being your wing woman, speaking of…” She hesitates, and from the length of the pause, I can tell that I won’t like whatever she has to say.

“Spit it out, Heather.”

“God, youarein a mood today. Look, I was just going to ask if you’ve really thought this through… like in terms of how it will impact Elijah if it doesn’t work? Are you really gonna risk putting him through that? He’s really attached to her.”

I want to tell her that I’ve thought about nothing else for the past three years, but all I say is, “I’m sure, Heather. Try to enjoy New York.”

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