Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14
LEIF
H ome again and back to my regular day-to-day, I got to our offices before anyone else the morning after we’d landed. Switching on the lights as I went, I mentally reviewed my to-do list, ready to dig in with both hands so that my trip to Franklin wouldn’t be delayed.
I had a ton of stuff to get done if I wanted to be on that plane when I’d told her I would be, and I was so lost in thought about it that I didn’t immediately notice the gift sitting on my desk. When I finally realized there was small, wrapped package sitting there, I tossed my bag down and strode across the office to open it. My heart squeezed at the thought that it might be from Laurel.
I snatched it up, surprised at how very light it was, and tore it open eagerly. A slip of red lace fell out and I groaned. My cock twitched and immediately my mind jumped to seeing her in it. I slid my fingers under the straps to get a good look at the gift that would for sure be traveling to Franklin with me, surprised again when I realized how very little fabric it actually was.
Crotchless and with only red ribbons of lace connecting the shoulder straps to the panties, it seemed a little racier than I would’ve expected from my girl. This naughty list thing is really going to be fun.
I folded it neatly. After fantasizing for another minute, I decided it really was time to get to work. I was going to be on that plane, come hell or high water.
When I sat down behind my desk, I saw a slip of paper nestled in the wrapping paper I’d dropped. I picked it up and turned it over to read what she’d written, but as soon as I saw the loopy, very familiar handwriting scrawled on the note, I knew it hadn’t come from Laurel.
My stomach plummeted, my hard-on completely gone. I scanned the short message, recoiling at the words that once more confirmed that she was completely psycho. Christmas Coupon: Use when you want to see me in this. Rainy.
Completely thrown off, I tossed the lingerie back into the wrapping paper and chucked it all into the nearest drawer so I wouldn’t have to look at it. When I’d broken up with her, I had been very clear that we would have to keep things professional at the office.
Every single time she’d come on to me since, I’d turned her down in no uncertain terms and I’d reiterated on multiple occasions that I had no interest in seeing her romantically or even just fucking her, for that matter. I didn’t know how much clearer I could’ve been, but I knew I would have to address it with her again later.
This definitely couldn’t carry on. Especially not now that Laurel was back in my life. I had to put a stop to this apparent belief of Rainy’s that I’d only been kidding before or that I was eventually going to want her again.
It was over between us and it had been for a while. She needed to accept it. It was time.
Frustrated, annoyed, and feeling irrationally guilty, I shoved the incident out of my head and fired up my computer. I was still determined to be on that plane to Franklin, and stewing about my ex’s inappropriate behavior when I’d been perfectly clear with her wasn’t going to get the work done that I needed to do. Immersing myself in catching up with what I’d missed while I’d been out of town, I slowly made my way through a slew of emails before I could finally get to my actual work.
A few hours later, Jack popped into my office, grinning. He slid his hands into his pockets and walked over to my windows. He looked out at the snow, apparently happier about it now than he had been when it first started falling.
“Isn’t it great to be home?” he said in a sing-song voice. “No sweating. No heat. It’s marvelous. How’s Laurel?”
“She’s good. Sad to be leaving Austin, but also excited to get back to her store.”
He stared out at the snow falling beyond the window. “It was surprisingly good to see her again. All of them, obviously. Deb’s still awesome and Mariam and Gemma are still a good time, but Laurel surprised me. She’s different.”
“How? She’s all grown up, sure, and she’s more mature, but deep down inside, she’s the same person.”
He shrugged. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that. She was so much fun the night we TPed Suzie’s house. I didn’t know she had it in her. Are you two seriously back together now?”
“We are,” I said cautiously. “Why do you look so surprised about it?”
“Nothing. I just thought it would be holiday hookup, but then I looked again and there you are, holding hands and smiling at each other like idiots. You looked like Leif and Laurel.”
“We are Leif and Laurel.”
He grinned. “No, I mean it as like, one word. LeifandLaurel . Like you used to be. You couldn’t ever have one without the other. Except that Laurel is apparently fun now.”
I narrowed my eyes at my brother in warning. “She’s always been fun. Where is this coming from?”
He chuckled. “She’s funnier than she used to be too, and so fucking hot. I mean?—”
I cleared my throat. “You better ease up, Jack. If you’re doing this to get to me, it’s working.”
“I know.” He shot me a smug grin when he finally turned away from the view. “I was just making sure you knew that she’s a total catch. You’d be an idiot to mess up things with her again. Have you guys worked through all your issues from back in the day?”
“We have and I know what I’ve got with her, so knock it off. I won’t be doing any messing up, but I also don’t want to feel like I have to watch my back with my own damn brother.”
Jack laughed and lifted his hands in surrender. “Relax, bro. I don’t want her that way. She’s like a sister to me. You know that. I was just pointing out that she’s grown up well. But speaking of messing up, do you want to play some golf this afternoon? I’ve missed beating you on the course.”
I groaned. “You just changed the subject so fast, I think I might have whiplash, but sure. I have some more work to get done, but I’ll let you know if I’ll be able to get away in time.”
“If you can’t, I’m meeting Terry and Josh for indoor tennis and drinks tonight. I can beat you at that, too. Come with us.”
“How many sports do want to play in one day?” I asked incredulously.
I’d known him all my damn life and it still never failed to surprise me how he was all about sports, all the time. He smirked, flexing his biceps before he strode back over to my door. “I’ll play as many as I can. You should know that by now. Andrew can’t come to tennis tonight, so if you do decide to join us, bring a friend. We’ll play doubles.”
He rapped his knuckles on my doorframe and left, leaving me once again in awe of his love of anything active. Shaking my head, I went back to work. I didn’t make it to golf after all, but I wasn’t that broken up about it.
Golfing wasn’t nearly as much fun for me as it was for my brother. I’d only learned to play because my dad had said it was something that every man had to learn to do—and then Jack had insisted on taking clients out once we’d started the firm.
Apparently, I had to golf with them for them to take me seriously as an accountant. Fucked up how that works.
I finally packed up for the day and checked my watch. I could make it to indoor tennis if I left right away. Eager to get at least some form of exercise today, I tapped out a quick text to Liam, an old friend from college, and then I headed out to the courts.
By the time I arrived, the club was already packed. There were bodies everywhere. The squeaking of tennis shoes and the occasional grunt filled the air. I weaved my way through the other people here to work up a sweat, searching for Jack and our friends.
I finally found them waiting for a court in the break area, drinking some or other green sludge while they shot the breeze. I grimaced at the swampy drinks when I joined them, grabbing a chair and shaking hands all around but declining Jack’s offer to grab me a sludge of my very own.
“I’ve got my water and I know what’s in it, so I’m good,” I said. “Vegetables are meant to be eaten, not drunk, and that’s the last I’ll say about it.”
Josh picked up his bottle of sludge and stuck it right in my face. “Just taste it. It’s not bad. I think there’s apple in there too, if that makes you feel better about it.”
“It doesn’t.”
He laughed, shrugging. He brought the bottle to his own lips and took a sip. “I would say it’s your loss, but it’s not. It’s fucking disgusting, but Terry said it was good for me.”
Terry, one of Jack’s sports-nut friends, nodded at me. “It’s not just good for you. It’s great for you. You should try it.”
I shook my head. “I’m a water, beer, or coffee kind of guy. Just the way God intended.”
Terry smirked. “God also intended for you to live longer than you will if you don’t look after your body.”
Groaning internally, I squirted some of my water into my mouth and left them to their guy time, distracted with thoughts of Laurel. It was crazy the hold this girl had on me again, but I sure wasn’t mad about it.
The rest of my week was full of meetings, projects, quiet dinners, and lots of time alone. It hadn’t bothered me before Thanksgiving, but after my time in Austin with Laurel, I couldn’t help but notice how lonely my life actually was.
The only time I saw anyone outside of work was when I went out for some kind of workout or drinks with the boys, and even that had lost its shine. Going back to Austin and seeing her had been one of those defining times of my life that had split it into the before and the after.
In the before, I’d been perfectly happy with everything as it had been, but here in the after, I was beginning to realize that the before hadn’t been so great after all. While I wasn’t proud to admit it, for the first time ever, I was pining for a girl.
And not just any girl.
My girl. My Laurel.
At least I would be seeing her again real soon this time, but I was seriously starting to understand why long distance had the reputation it did. We were only a few days in, and it was already damn hard. While I was still hellbent on making it work, I had my work cut out for me in ways I hadn’t understood before—and it was dawning on me that actually making it work in the long run wasn’t just going to be a challenge.
It was going to be damn near impossible.