Matt"Remind me again why I said I would do this? It seems rather masochistic now that we're in the thick of things." I glanced over at Sophie and smiled as she plucked her ear-bud out and growled at me softly."What? Are you complaining about the weather again? It's beautiful out here." The stern look on her pretty face didn't hold for long as she studied me.I wiped my forearm across my head and took a deep breath as we bounded along the outdoor track near her house. Her dark brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and even without makeup, she was stunning. Where the snot-nose bully from my childhood had gone to was a mystery, but the woman that took her place was beautiful, and even scarier than when we were little."I'm not complaining. I was simply asking how you talked me into this." I turned my focus back to the road ahead of us and let my eyes run across the tree line. The brilliant greens that covered the grass and treetops in Texas most of the spring and summer were fina
Matt"Why are you salty about this?" I couldn't help but study her for the answer. She had a thing for Damon when we were younger, but he was as much of an alpha as she was. They butted heads the whole time we were growing up and almost couldn't stand each other by the time Sophia and I graduated high school."I'm not. I'm just concerned that Damon's going to end up hurt. He's a tough guy, but I know the dude underneath all that alpha bullshit, remember?" She brushed her hand over the top of her head and locked gazes with me. "And you better be careful too.""We talking about Bethany wanting me too now?"She snorted. "No, silly. We're talking about Erica wanting to lick your skin from your bones.""Exactly!" I threw my hands in the air and walked in a circle, bobbing my head. "I told Bethany that Erica was a man-eater, but no one sees that but me.""I don't even know the woman, but I think you think that all women are man-eaters." She put her hands on her hips and tilted her head to t
Erica"You're late." I glanced up as my staff moved into the large ornate conference room where I sat. "The meeting was supposed to start five minutes ago. If anyone is going to be fashionably late, don't you think it should be me?"Mandy, my senior advertiser for the firm, glanced down at the floor and back up at me."I'm sorry, Miss Hall. We had a training we were all trying to sneak out of to get up here. The guest speaker was right in the middle of making his point." She took her seat, and the rest of the staff followed suit."Who was the guest speaker?" I forced myself to calm down.Being a bitch at the office was something I tried hard not to do too often. It would seem that the few times I let my guard down and raged angst across the advertising floor was more than enough though. I was labeled as someone to watch out for, and as a result of that, I was lonely in the midst of a crowd of people when I was there, which felt like it was most of the time."Dr. Leonard Jalling. He wa
EricaI'd already filled the position, but being the head of advertising had some serious perks, like creating new jobs. I knew without a doubt that Kent would have no problem with me trying to work out the perfect position for Matt. He wanted him there almost as much as I did."That's a wrap, Miss Hall. Did you have anything you wanted to add?" Mandy's voice pulled me from my thoughts."Nope. Just have someone do a quick write up and lay it on my desk by tomorrow morning." I stood up and glanced around, smiling at everyone. "Great job, and if you have staffing needs or anything else that might help you do your job more efficiently, just let me know."Everyone filed out but Mandy."I do need another designer. Celia is about to go out on pregnancy leave in the next few weeks. Did you decide on whether you wanted to just bring in a temp for her position or actually add a head-count?""Let me chew on it and I'll get back with you. I'm meeting with a guy this weekend that might be the per
Matt"So my little brother here has started jogging." Damon patted my chest at lunch the next day, a big smile on his face as our father joined us across the table. The restaurant was far too fancy for my liking, but it was close to their downtown accounting firm and incredibly tasty."Did you really? Who are you jogging with? Sophia?" My father picked up the menu and perched his glasses on the tip of his nose."Yeah. She finally talked me into it. She's getting a promotion at the station and wants to be in better shape for some of the places they’re sending her.""Such as?" Damon picked up his water and took a quick sip. The dark circles under his brown eyes let me know quickly that him and Bethany were still not speaking. He slept like a baby when life was good and suffered like crazy when it wasn't. He was exhausted. The tone of his voice was even off. It usually boomed with confidence and drive, but it was barely more than a strained whisper. I wanted so fucking bad to ask what wa
Matt"I'm doing my part. I love the environment. It's teaching me more about perseverance than I care to say." She took a piece of bread and turned to face me. "Tell me everything about your conversation with Jonathan. You're signing with his studio, right?""I need to get back up to the office. Excuse me, guys. I'll see you later." Damon stood up and bumped his leg on the table, causing the whole thing to jostle and the drinks to spill a little."Is it something I need to be involved in?" My father glanced up and pulled his attention from his phone."It's the Kissinger account. You might want to be on the call." Damon brushed his hands down the front of his shirt and gave me and Bethany a tight nod. "See you guys later.""I'll pack up your lunch and run it up when we-" I tried to offer."No, just pay the bill and take it home. It's fish, but you should give it a try." He turned and walked away as my dad stood up."Well, damn. Never a moment of rest when you're ruling the world, right
EricaI spent the next day immersed in projects just to keep myself from thinking too much about my family situation or about Matt. Neither were a healthy place for me to be, so I ignored everything but the pile of to-do's sitting on my desk. I had a standing dinner with my best friend Lanie every Thursday night, and though I really didn't feel like having anyone at the house, it wasn't fair to cancel. She needed to hang out with me as much as I needed to see her.After driving through the empty streets near my high-rise condo, I parked the car and walked up to my apartment, wondering what other people who had a life, a family, a spouse were up to. They were most likely sitting down to dinner, or cooking with the ones they loved and laughing about the events of the day.By the time I reached my condo, my heart hurt. How long was I going to hold myself out in hopes that the right guy would come along? It almost felt like any guy was better than the right guy, but it was my loneliness t
Erica“In a movie?” I laughed, unable to help myself. “Like you two are the only lone souls in the theatre and happen to be sitting next to each other? He reaches into the popcorn tub just as you do?”She glanced over at me and rolled her eyes. “No, but it’s getting old. I’ll be twenty-nine next month. I’m ready to get married, Erica. Unlike you, I’m not good being alone. I fucking hate it.”Her voice broke, and I hated myself for teasing her. Just because my loneliness was well hidden didn’t mean it didn’t exist. I just wasn’t willing to give it a voice for fear of what it might do to me to have to face it head on.I moved in behind her and wrapped my arms around her, squeezing softly and pressing my cheek to the back of her head.“It’s going to be okay. You’re a beautiful, talented, loving woman. You’re going to meet an amazing man, and we’re going to look back on this time in our lives and laugh.”“And what about you?” She turned a little and I released her.“What about me?” I igno