November 29th
You’re fire.
Ainsley
“Ainsley,” my uncle Tripp says when I answer his call.
I’m sitting on the couch, reading, while a Kansas City game is playing in the background.
“Hey, how are you?”
“Good. Wish you could have come to the game on Saturday. We ended up being able to fly up for it, and we’ve already secured a suite for the conference championship. You want to hitch a ride?”
“Is it possible to let you know at the last minute? All my final projects are due that Monday. I’m pushing to get them done before. And if they make the playoffs, I will definitely take you up on it.”
“Of course. I’ll hold you a seat and a ticket. Damon’s a really gifted player.”
“I know, and I actually started watching the whole game instead of reading through them,” I say with a chuckle.
“Now that the small talk is over,” he says. “Your mother told me that you were offered a job. Have you accepted it yet?”
“I actually got two offers. I’m supposed to call and let them know tomorrow.”
“Are you excited about them?”
“Well, one is with a commercial firm based out of Des Moines. They specialize in workspaces for offices, so I’d mostly be doing CAD designs of cubicles.
It won’t be nearly as fun as working with you, Jadyn, and the team.
And I’m not thrilled about the location.
So, I’m planning to take the other one. It’s residential design, which isn’t my preference, but I can work from anywhere, and it pays decent, so it makes sense. ”
“You don’t sound all that excited.”
“I am excited that I could work from anywhere.”
“Anywhere, like Lincoln?” he asks.
“Exactly,” I reply.
“Well, I’m about to throw a monkey wrench into your plan because I want to offer you a job. The only problem is, it’s also not exactly what you’re looking for, and you’d be based in Kansas City. At least for the first two years.”
“Is it for your hotels? Or something else?”
“It would be for the hotels. As you heard me tell my investors on the yacht, we’re going to build a hotel near the stadium, but the plan has grown significantly since then. We’ve been buying up land all around it, and we finally got the area rezoned for retail development.”
“Oh, wow. Can I just accept it now?” I say with a laugh.
“You can’t do that. Don’t ever do that,” he chastises. “You need to know everything about the role—where it would be located, the working conditions, as well as the compensation package—before you make a decision.”
“I was kind of joking. But I would love to hear about it.”
“You would office out of our corporate building in The Plaza. I think you are aware that when Jadyn sold me her company, we agreed she would consult and not get involved in the everyday decision-making. But she’s as passionate as I am about what we’re doing and is working more than she should.
Your job would be a hybrid role. Part of the time, you would serve as Jadyn’s executive assistant. ”
“Oh,” I say, trying to not sound disappointed. I mean, I’d love to work with her, but I want to design spaces.
“Before you say anything,” Tripp says, “the other part of your role would be making design choices and project management. It would give you a chance to learn every aspect of what she does.”
“I like the design part,” I say tentatively.
“Ainsley, you are quite organized, incredibly talented, and I can’t think of anyone better for the role.
And the reason why I’m hoping you are interested is because it would be on-the-job training.
You would learn everything you can from Jadyn.
After six months, you’d start taking over tasks.
In eighteen months to two years, you’d take over completely, and she would only consult a few hours a week. ”
“Are you serious?” I gasp. Talk about the dream job.
“I am. Aside from your talent, I need someone in this position who I can trust. And so far, even with some of the designers we’ve outsourced to, we haven’t found the right person. I’m hoping that person can be you.”
“I would love that.”
“Excellent. And now to the terms.”
He runs through the full compensation package. How I would need to spend a couple of days a week in the office, but could choose to work from home or wherever on others.
Once he’s done, he says, “So, it’s up to you.
And there are additional perks,” he tells me, a smile in his voice.
“You’re going to need an SUV to haul around materials and such, so a new company car could be in your future.
And of course, a country club membership.
We do a lot of business on the golf course, so you’ll need to keep up on your game. ”
“What? Are you serious? It’s an amazing offer, Uncle Tripp. Can I have a few hours to think about it?” I need to call Damon.
“Just call me tomorrow with your answer.”
I could eventually run the design team?
I glance down at my belly.
In a few weeks, I’ll tell Damon he’s going to be a dad.
He wanted me to move in with him without knowing I was pregnant. With a baby in the mix, he definitely will want me to.
But how do I pass up an opportunity like this?
Before I chicken out, I call him so we can video chat.
“Hey, beautiful,” he says.
“Hey to you,” I say, noting his sleeveless T-shirt and how every time I see him, his biceps look bigger. I want to just sit and stare at them. “Um, I have something to tell you. I got another job offer. An incredible offer, and I just don’t know how I could turn it down.”
“Well, congratulations then,” he says.
“There’s a catch. It’s based in Kansas City.”
“Oh,” he says, looking disappointed, which breaks my heart. “I thought we were going to move in together.”
“I did too. But this job wasn’t on the table until just now.”
“Tell me about it,” he says sweetly.
“I’d be working with Jadyn, half executive assistant, half designer, but more importantly, I would be learning everything she does so that, eventually, I could take over her job, and she would just consult. I’m talking a corporate car, country club membership, and a nice compensation package.”
“That’s awesome, Ainsley, seriously. I know you were excited to move in with me, but you loved your internship. Every time you talk about it, you just light up.”
“Like you do with football. It’s my passion.”
“So, you won’t be coming to Lincoln. It’s too good of an opportunity to pass up,” he says. “I’m excited for you. It just makes me sad, I guess. Because I thought after this semester, we’d finally be together.”
“I know. So did I.”
“I keep coming back to the fact that I have enough money for both of us. That you don’t need to work.”
“Damon, we already had this conversation, and you know that I want to work. I want a career. And you know what happened with my parents. How my mom is so grateful she never quit her career even though my dad had tried to get her to numerous times. And I just feel like it’s not really fair of you to ask me to give all that up.
You’re still in college. You have at least two more years before you go pro.
And as much as I want to be with you—I mean, you are happy and fulfilled, playing football, which is essentially your job. Shouldn’t I get to feel that way too?”
“I get what you’re saying. I do. And I agree. It’s just … you know I miss being with you. I think I tell you that every time we talk.”
“I know you do, and I miss you too. But at least this spring, you won’t have games, and we can spend more time together. And I only have to be in the office a couple of days a week. The rest of the time, I can work remotely. So, I can come up there, and you’ll be able to come down here.”
“What if you meet someone else?” His voice cracks slightly.
“Well,” I say with a wide smile, “I’m sure I will meet a lot of new people, but no one that I will like more than you.”
“You’re supposed to say love,” he says, his cocky grin coming back after a brief moment of vulnerability.
And it gets to me.
“It’s what I meant, Damon. In fact, I love you so much that I—” I stop speaking, realizing that I was about to tell him I’m pregnant. The words want to slip out just like they did the day I told him I loved him.
But I can’t tell him right now. Not over the phone. Not at this point.
“That you what?” he asks, studying me.
“That I’ve become, uh … a diehard football fan,” I tease.
He arches an eyebrow at me.
“Fine, I’m just a big fan of you.”
He grins, but then turns serious again. “I’m a big fan of you. I’m sorry for what I said earlier about you just moving in with me. Both Jennifer and my sister would be disappointed in me. I’m excited for you. It’s your dream job. And we’ll make it work. Do you know where you will live?”
“I literally just got off the phone with Tripp and had to call you. But since Sammy’s job is also in KC, I’m hoping maybe we could still be roommates. Both my office and the store where Sammy will work is on The Plaza.”
“It’s going to be hard,” Damon says.
The baby gives me a swift kick to the ribs, taking my breath away. I let out a gasp.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, sorry. I don’t want to upset you, Damon.”
“I know it’s a couple of years off, but we’ve both expressed wanting to be together in the future. How would that work once I get drafted? I can do distance for a while, but I don’t want to do it forever. I want to have kids. A house. A dog. You as my wife.”
“I want that too. And although it will suck, not being together every day, it will allow me to get going in my career while you’re in school, so that by the time you get drafted, I’ll be able to work from wherever I want. Which will be wherever you go.”
“I’m going to hold you to that.”
“You’d better,” I say with a grin. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” Damon says, blowing me a kiss before ending the call.
“What the hell?” Sammy says, plopping down on my bed. “You got another job offer and didn’t tell me?”
“It literally just happened.”
“Yeah, right. Like they called on a Sunday.”
“They do when they’re your uncle,” I fire back. “He wants me to work with Jadyn to learn the ropes so that, eventually, I can take over her role, and she can just consult.”
“Holy smokes! Girl! You’re fire!” Sammy says.
“Want to share an apartment with me?”
“You mean, with you and the baby,” he states, giving me the eye.
“Don’t look at me like that. You know I’m telling him as soon as he’s back home for the holidays. Then scandal be damned.”
“In that case, I’d love to still be roommates and besties.”
He pulls a bag from behind his back. I try to look surprised over the fact that he got my favorite takeout even though I smelled it the second he walked in.
He gets everything set up while I think about the logistics.
“Our lease is up in less than a month. We’re going to have to find a place to live fast. It helps that we’ll both be working in the same area. We’ll find an amazing apartment. I can’t wait.”
“Are you sure you’re okay with having a baby around? We might not get much sleep.”
“You mean, you might not. I will be wearing earplugs. You know I need my beauty rest. I’ll grab my computer so we can look at options while we eat.
I just don’t think I’m going to be able to go with you though.
Why I decided to take so many hours so I could graduate with you is beyond me right now.
I have three projects, an essay, and two finals between me and being done with college forever. ”
“That is a lot. I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed, but I only have two projects and one final.
So, why don’t we pick them out together, and I’ll go look at them, um”—I glance at my phone—“the day before graduation? I should have my final projects close to being done and only have one final to study for. Plus, I need to tell my mom. Alone. So I can explain the situation. I don’t want her showing up at graduation and just seeing this belly. ”
“How do you think she’ll take the news?”
“I’m sure she will be surprised—both that I didn’t tell her and that I am. But I think once she gets over the shock, she’ll be very supportive. She and my dad got pregnant with me very early in their relationship. But that doesn’t mean I’m not nervous.”