Page 55 of Lost Times

That happiness faded a tiny bit when I remembered what he said before. His father had planned this, but why? The man had apparently been against the expansion, but now he agreed, only to use it for this?

When the confusion didn’t abate after a minute, I asked. “Why would your father do this, though? I thought he was against the meeting?”

Mom had left to get drinks, and the somewhat privacy was necessary as he grimaced, rubbing a hand through his hair. “He was, but he probably thought he would drive a wedge between us by doing this. Or maybe he planned on using group meetings to drag me away whenever I tried to take time off. I didn’t stay to ask him.”

Fair enough.

Leaning on his shoulder, I offered. “I’m sorry that he did this to you. You worked hard to get that meeting lined up, and now this.”

He shook his head, dropping a kiss on my hair as he did. “The most senior of the people at the meeting seemed to support my leaving, and with just his support I can still make it work. While I’m frustrated my father did this, I would still choose to be here.”

I didn’t have a chance to pull him into another kiss before Jasmine wedged herself between us, her arms around both our shoulders as she turned to Ludwig and asked.

“Can we still play soccer when we get home?”

He nodded. “Absolutely, though I should probably stop by the office to talk to my secretary first. It’s better to be sure there will be no more scheduling mishaps sooner rather than later.” He looked almost apologetic about that, but I kissed his cheek.

“That’s fine. I sincerely doubt Jasmine minds stopping by the office, and I don’t either.” Then I noticed Mom from the corner of my eye and asked. “Can you wait at the house for us? It might take a bit.”

She nodded, ruffling Jasmine’s hair and giving me one last hug. “You mentioned you had a cake and ice cream ready, right? I’ll get those ready in the meantime.”

Ludwig got up, offering a hand to me before leading the way to the parking lot. The entire drive to the office was spent with Jasmine’s excited chattering, an air of tranquility settling over us like a blanket. When we got there and walked up to our floor, though, Ludwig stopped short with a choked noise of surprise.

“You’re still here?” He asked, and I peeked around him, taking in the elderly gentleman, a woman, and two men that were seated at the various empty desks. Wait, were these the people he’d planned to meet with?

Kelly all but danced in from the break room with coffee and snacks, serving them with a wink Ludwig’s way. “Yup, they are. Well, aside from that one guy, but honestly, I think we’re better off. He was downright rude after you left.” She tutted, and Ludwig winced.

“It could be argued that I was rude first, since I wasted all of their time.”

The woman rolled her eyes. “It’s only a waste of time if we don’t get anything done. Besides, I have a son at home who refuses to sleep if I’m not there to read him a story. I get it.”

Then she looked at me and Jasmine with a smile. “Honestly, it’s nice to see someone who has their priorities straight. The world could use a few more dads who actuallycareabout their kids.”

Ludwig relaxed a bit, turning to the eldest, who nodded.

“She’s right. Now how about we get this meeting started? I’m intrigued by the brief proposal you sent, and want to hear more.”

He went to step forward, then froze, looking back to Jasmine and I. We shared a look, then waved him on.

“We’ll still be here when you’re done, go wow them with your ideas.” I said and he smiled, kissing my head, then bending to hug Jasmine. Turning, he walked into the designated meeting room with the others following behind him.

…With grass stains on his suit and a smile curling his lips.

Shaking my head at the hilarity of the situation, I looked down to Jasmine and beamed. “Want to draw pictures for him while we wait?”

She nodded, all but racing for my desk as I followed at a slower pace.

Things had turned out far better than I’d expected, and I couldn’t be happier. There’d be times in the future where Jasmine would get her hopes up and inevitably be disappointed, but without a doubt, if Ludwig promised he’d be there, he would.

That was more than enough.

Epilogue

The car was quiet, only Ludwig and I in it, thanks to Jasmine being at school. I adored having her along, but it was nice to have quiet times like this too.

Sneaking a look at Ludwig, I smiled at the stern frown curving his lips, his fingers tapping the wheel irritably. We were due to meet one of his friends today. We were in fact sitting in the parking lot now, but he was late.

Squeezing his hand, I soothed. “Take a breath, he’ll be here soon.”

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