Emily pulled on the gold ribbon to untie it and opened the little box. Inside was a pair of car keys. The symbol on the keys was a sun radiating curly beams of light."I know my mom's been bugging you to get a car, so you might be annoyed by this. I could return it…""You got me an Inclussa?" Emily stared at the keys in amazement."Yeah," Byron said casually, even though the car cost nearly a hundred thousand dollars. "I thought you might like it. It's the lowest-emission car in the world. Certainly cuts back on pollution. And maybe you could use a car to get around once in a while, like if you need to transport something—"She interrupted him with another fervent kiss. No one had ever given her such a thoughtful present, or two thoughtful presents counting the donation to help otters."So you like it?" Byron asked, catching his breath. "You're not mad at me for getting you a car?""No, it's so sweet! I never thought I needed a car, but since it comes from you, I'm going to cheri
Pam was not joking about going back to work. Only a little over a month after her baby was born, she reported in, and Emily met her by the reception desk."I see we have two new employees!" she exclaimed.Pam was carrying her baby in a colorful sling with a teddy bear print."I hope you don't mind," she said, "It's not like I'm going to have any sales meetings on my first day. I'll need to learn about the company first.""Of course I don't mind." Emily felt cuteness overload coming on when she saw the baby's sleeping face. "She's so adorable!""Thanks, I'm not going to bring her every day," Pam explained, "but it was hard to let her go today.""So we can bring our kids to work once in a while?" Allie, one of the designers asked as she passed by.Emily thought she had been a bit selfish since she never talked with her employees about bringing their kids to work. But since she had no kids, it just never occurred to her. She was still new to owning such a successful and large enter
"You invited how many people?" Sylvia shrieked.She and Byron made the announcement in a crowded downtown café overlooking the harbor. They really needed to finalize plans for the wedding soon before all the good spaces got taken in the busy summer season. "At least fifty people from my company," Emily said, "Not all of them have RSVPed yet.""Uh… I may have invited some people from my company too," Byron added, "About a hundred.""I told you that this wedding was going to have a huge guest list," Sylvia said haughtily, "but did you listen? No, of course not.""Now I concede, you were right." Emily grinned, trying to win Sylvia over with her honesty. "I had always pictured a smaller wedding with just close friends and family, but if all these people want to see us get married… why not?""Next time you can save time by doing exactly what I say," Sylvia concluded."Next time we get married?" Byron asked, raising his eyebrows."Next time you do anything," Sylvia replied dryly."
"The success of Freerange Rider depends on you now," Emily said to her models. Twenty tall, handsome, and stylish men listened to her inspiring speech. A few of them looked bored, but that was just the way with male models. Also, a couple of them were missing… "Now get changed into your outfits, go out there, and make me proud! I know you will."At least Carter showed up, which seemed like a good sign since he was the face of Freerange Rider. The models went to change, while Emily turned to Katie, who hovered nervously behind her."Any word from those laggards?" Emily asked."Terence is sick," Katie replied, "He just texted. And I have no idea where Milo is.""Great! I have to find two models on short notice. Just what I needed today." Emily had not experienced a panic attack in recent weeks, but she felt like they were about to make a comeback. "I already called the agency," Katie said. "They're looking for a couple of guys who can fill in on short notice.""Good. Thanks, Katie
"Have you ever wanted to go to Tennessee?" Byron asked quite casually one evening as they were dining out in one of the city's best seafood restaurants.Emily looked out the window, the pane marred by sad streaks of rain. It was the coldest and wettest time of the year, and now that Christmas was over, the winter season seemed to drag on and on. Who wouldn't want to be in the warm, green valleys of Tennessee?"That seems like a random question," Emily said, "but I'm guessing it's not. Wait a minute… does this have something to do with Quinn Faines?"Byron's lips formed a mysterious and sexy smile. "It might…""What have you discovered?" she asked eagerly."Nothing," Byron said. "Which is why I'm going to see him in person.""It sounds like he wants to be left alone," Emily remarked, "Whatever is going on with him, maybe he doesn't want to do private concerts for us anymore.""I don't believe that." Byron picked at his mashed potatoes with his fork. "And if he doesn't want to do
Since it was past lunchtime already, there was lots of time to kill. Luckily, the city provided a lot of distractions."We could go to the country music museum," Emily suggested."Sounds like a plan," Byron said.They walked down the sunlit streets, enjoying the vibrant atmosphere of the city, and the fact that it wasn't raining."Any more thoughts on how to convince Quinn that you're not crazy?" Emily asked."I'll improvise." Byron's face had the same focused look as when he was thinking of business deals. "When I see him, I'll know what to say.""Is that how you get the ladies to like you too?" Emily asked, feeling flirty."That's right," he said, one side of his mouth curling up in a lop-sided smile. "It worked for you, didn't it?""I'd say it did."The next day, they made their way over to the Outback Buffet long before noon, trying to make sure not to miss Quinn."I understand Quinn Faines has lunch here sometimes?" Emily asked their server."Oh yes he does," the young
Quinn Faines's country mansion just outside of Nashville was booming with people. When he said a 'barbecue' what he probably meant was a huge party."This is the classic southern hospitality," Emily said. "They sure love to have company over."Music played inside the house and on the deck by a sizeable pool. Byron and Emily made their way through the crowd, some of whom looked like Hollywood celebrities and pop stars. "It's Perry McBee," Byron said, and Emily recognized the famous country singer with his trademark cowboy hat and dark goatee. They came over to where he was lounging by the pool with a couple of beautiful women by his side.When they introduced themselves, the country star actually seemed to know who they were. "Quinn told me about you. He said your tropical island was quite the trip!""Well, you're welcome to visit anytime," Byron offered."I might take you up on that," Perry replied. It seemed they were hitting it off already. Emily always did admire Byron's easy
Emily woke up to find the hotel room empty. It was probably a good thing, she figured, if Byron was out for a walk to clear his head and get those silly ideas out of there.She started to get dressed and was brushing her teeth when she heard him come in. She turned to see him carrying a bouquet of freesias. The beautiful flowers competed with the beautiful man carrying them. Byron looked adorably penitent, and she was already tempted to hug and kiss him despite their argument the previous night."I let my imagination run away with me. I'm sorry," he said. "Sometimes I worry that marriage is not what you were looking for when you met me, and it might not make you happy.""Of course it'll make me happy." Emily realized she was spitting toothpaste everywhere. She returned to the sink to rinse out her mouth and then accepted the bouquet of delicious smelling flowers. "I know that when we first met I wanted to have fun and not get into anything too serious, but that changed once I got to