15. Chapter 15 #2
I can imagine the moment. Eric, reluctant to try new things, stepping into a room and feeling out of his element.
His gaze probably caught on Avery as soon as he walked through the door, and I’d bet she was talking to someone about the book, her eyes bright and her whole face lit up by her enthusiasm.
If there were any other single guys at that book club, they would have seen the same thing Eric did, but he was the first one to make the move.
Or the one who said the right thing. The one who won the jackpot.
What would I have said if I were there? Would she have seen me if I wasn’t the only option she had? If I didn’t have the romantic atmosphere of Florence on my side, would she have given me the time of day? Am I the kind of guy Avery would want to date?
Not likely. Not unless I were able to offer her more than casual, which I never will.
“But enough work talk,” Eric says, pulling me out of my thoughts.
“I want to hear more about you! It’s been so long since we talked that there’s this massive gap of time I know nothing about.
You’ve built up this whole marketing consultant gig and made yourself a bigshot, and I’m surprised you’ve stuck with it this long. ”
“So am I,” I admit, letting out a tired laugh. “I think it helps that every company is different. And it’s more than marketing. It’s kind of everything.”
“You get the thrill of something new and the satisfaction of success, and you get to start all over again on the next one.”
“Sounds perfect for me, doesn’t it?”
He laughs. “How long are you going to stick with it?”
I don’t think he means it as an insult, but it still feels like a slap.
Yeah, I know I’ve struggled with committing to things my entire life, but I’ve been doing this for a decade.
“I’m actually working on getting some bigger clients to help me scale up and start a whole firm,” I say, doing my best to keep frustration out of my voice.
“Bring on some more consultants and give myself a little flexibility.”
Though his eyebrows rise high, like he thought for sure I’d be finding something new soon, he smiles. “Like your dad did with his law firm?”
Thank goodness for the waiter arriving with our check so I don’t have to respond to that question.
A flash of discomfort crosses Eric’s face, but then he reaches for the check. “We’ll call this a business dinner.”
I snatch the bill before he can touch it. “This is friends getting together,” I counter. “I got this.”
“Thanks.” Eric visibly relaxes. As far as I know, Rose & Quill is bringing in decent money, mostly because of Dani’s book, but I’m going to assume my pragmatic buddy doesn’t love excessive spending. Not that two bowls of ramen is excessive, but he’s smart to be cautious.
We’re both quiet as we wait for the waiter to return with my card, which is fine by me.
I’m eager to get to my hotel room and crash, though I’m wishing I had a whole weekend to recover from the last…
year. I’ve slept in my own bed maybe a dozen times in the last six months, and while that’s never bothered me before, I’m feeling it now.
This is one of the reasons I’m trying so hard to scale my business.
Give myself some room to breathe so I don’t have to work eighty-hour weeks just to go to a friend’s wedding.
“How is your family by the way?” Eric asks, wincing when my scowl hits him. “Sorry. I was curious if they know you’re here in Utah.”
I shift in my seat, thoroughly uncomfortable. What’s taking the waiter so long? I thought for sure I’d managed to avoid this subject. “Uh, no. Not yet.”
“Are you going to tell them?”
“Of course.” But the words come out strangled.
I was planning on texting my mom at some point and letting her know I was in town, but I figured I would wait a bit.
Make sure my availability has an expiration date.
If she finds out I’m here for the next month, she’ll try to convince me to go to every family dinner and baseball game and piano recital.
That would be as awkward for my nieces and nephews as it would for me, since they only see me for the occasional holiday, a day or two at a time.
“Things are still rough?” Eric wrinkles his nose in sympathy. I must have been making a face, or maybe he knows me too well.
“They’re fine,” I say with a heavy sigh. “But McKay has like six kids now, and Kimball is a partner at Dad’s firm so he’s as perfect as always.”
Eric frowns. “From what I can see, your company is already pretty successful.”
“But not the right kind of success.” I shake my head and run a hand through my hair.
“They’re still waiting for me to get a real job and find a pretty wife who will keep me close to home.
That’s never been my path.” An image of Avery flashes through my mind, but I ignore it.
No matter how thoroughly she imprinted on my heart, that path leads to a dead end.
Even if I do manage to hire people to consult with me, it’ll be years before I can stabilize things enough to have any free time.
No woman in her right mind wants a relationship with a man who’s never around, and that’s fine.
“Maybe you haven’t met the right girl,” Eric says with a shrug.
I chuckle. Maybe he shouldn’t say things like that when he’s as single as I am. He did meet the right girl. Then he gave her up and made her cry.
The waiter finally returns with my card, and I get to my feet, more than ready to go to bed. We make it outside before Eric speaks again.
“Hey,” he says, offering a warm smile as well as a handshake. “It’s nice having you around again. Kind of feels like old times. Thanks for agreeing to come out here and help.”
I look at his hand for a few seconds, then pull him into a hug that he quickly returns.
It’s a greeting we skipped this morning, instead jumping right into talking, but I’ve missed this guy more than I realized.
I’ve missed the way things used to be, before life pulled us apart and I was on my own.
“Thanks for asking me to come.” Even if I have to fight my attraction to Avery while I’m here, this trip is going to be good for me. I can feel it.
By the time I get to my hotel room, I am completely spent. Normally, I like to settle in and unpack, but I simply change out of my suit and collapse into bed, eager for a full night’s sleep.
It doesn’t come. I spend the night wide awake, mentally wandering the streets of Florence, the imaginary smell of chocolate in the air.