22. Margeaux
22
MARGEAUX
“I could kill those kids,” Dolly mutters, fiddling with the spout of the large, insulated beverage dispenser. “It’s one thing that I spend my entire Thanksgiving in charge of hot drinks at the Gobble Wobble and Tree Lighting, but to have to extend this. Seriously, if I see them tonight, I can’t promise I’m not going to leap over this table and strangle them.”
I grimace, the visual of her hurling herself over this table in pursuit of some small child a little too vivid. I can’t say that I disagree with her frustration though.
The panic that spread through all those involved during setup last week when it was discovered that the baby Jesus was missing from the church’s nativity set was something straight out of a movie. To the point where most of the Hayes boys and both the Keller twins weren’t convinced that he was actually missing. That is, until it was almost show time, and there was still no tiny Lord. And the nativity scene isn’t quite the same without its star.
At one point Bronwyn pointed out that it would be more accurate to leave the manger empty at this point in the story, allowing the event to go on as planned and giving everyone more time to try and locate the missing piece. But Reverend Terry wasn’t having it.
“I still don’t understand why you agreed to set up cocoa for this,” I tell her. “Seems like more work than it’s worth.”
“Because Reverend Terry asked, and gave me these puppy-dog eyes telling me that he wanted this to be just as special as it usually is as part of the tree lighting, and I’m not trying to piss off the man who is performing my wedding in five months.” She sighs, the heavy exhale deflating her entire body. Still messing with the spout, her face scrunches, her frustration escalating. “And damn it, I grabbed the one with the broken spout. Ugh, and I don’t have enough time to go back and get the other one?—”
“Doll,” Hux’s voice cuts her off, the both of us whipping around to see him strolling over.
No, strolling isn’t the right word. Because there is nothing easy about the way Huxley Hayes is moving right now. He’s a man on a mission, his solid frame stomping toward us, leaving Gus, Jace, and Ewan in his dust.
“Is that the one with the broken spout I still need to fix?” he asks, not skipping a beat. Dolly nods, not bothering to look at him, still staring at the offending serving equipment like she could chuck it. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll make this work.”
Gathering her in his arms, Hux presses a kiss to the top of her head, holding her for a moment. My insides squeeze, the tenderness between them so pure and sweet that you can’t help but swoon. Even if it is platonic.
I stand and watch, my inner romantic silently wishing that there was something more to what I’m witnessing. Gus slides up next to me and slips his arm around my waist, drawing me into him, the heat from his body welcoming me home. Right where I belong. Next to him .
“Hey pretty girl,” he whispers, a chaste kiss delivered to my temple.
“Hey yourself,” I return, snuggling into him.
Hux turns to Jace and Ewan, still holding Dolly while giving them orders, with the juxtaposition of his gruffness with them versus his gentleness with her shining bright. The two do as he barks, not questioning him.
“Can I ask something about this?” I nod toward the scene playing out in front of us. Gus raises an eyebrow, his curiosity clearly piqued. “Why did he hesitate last week? At Friendsgiving. After that call, he started to go after her, but he stopped. Didn’t go in the house. Why?”
“Because if he’d gone inside, he wouldn’t have been able to keep a promise he made to himself.”
The answer rolls off his tongue like he knew what my question would be. Too bad it only half answers mine though. I start to follow up, wanting to know more about this promise, but Gus has another idea.
“Wanna go make out behind the church?”
I look up at him, a little taken aback by his question. “In the cemetery?”
Gus chuckles, squeezing me. “I was thinking the swing set over on the library side. I know how you’re afraid of ghosts.”
I shove at him playfully, earning me another laugh. “I am not afraid. I?—”
“Believe in giving them the space and respect they deserve,” he says with me.
My tummy does somersaults, loving that he remembers my carefully crafted statement to obscure my fear. Not for the first time, I feel like Gus gets me. Really, truly, deeply gets me. All I can hope is that someday I’ll get him the same way.
“I could go for that.”
He kisses my forehead again, keeping it PG since we’re at a town event. The fact that he’s touching me like this at all is already scandalous and pushing it, sending a rush through me.
Every part of me wants to curl into him, climb him like a tree, and claim him as mine, right here, right now. But I know I can’t. I know what a bad idea that would be. So I settle for walking alongside him, close enough that our hands brush up against each other every couple of steps, but not close enough that we look suspicious.
“Congratulations on your new project,” he says as we weave our way through the crowd of people milling around the town monument that sits in the middle of the square across from Hickory Hills Baptist.
“Thank you. I’m still a little in shock,” I gush.
“Why? Percy’s right; it was a brilliant idea. And not the only one you’ve had since you got here.”
I blush, the heat prickling my cheeks contrasting with the cool night air.
“I don’t think I would call it brilliant. It’s a little known loophole, and it’s going to take some creative argument to get the patent office to agree. They aren’t likely to budge.”
Gus stops, taking my hand and looking me directly in the eye. “Margeaux, I mean it when I tell you that your brain amazes me. But it’s not just your brain. It’s all of you. Your drive, your fearlessness, your willingness to take things on—head-on. Forget the fact that I want to kiss the fuck out of you right now. I’m proud that you’re part of Hayes, representing us. Because you’re everything I want in an employee.”
I swallow hard, fighting back tears. Knowing that Gus sees all that in me means more than I can say. I’ve worked so hard over the last decade to get to where I am, fought hard to be taken seriously. I want a future with Hayes Industries just as much as I want one with Gus Hayes.
“I spoke with Percy this morning.”
The statement feels like a non sequitur, even though I know it’s not. Gus starts walking again, away from the crowd, and I follow, waiting on him to elaborate.
“Are you going to make me ask what he said?” I pry.
“I tried to be careful in my wording, because I wasn’t sure how he would take it. Not only is something happening between us these last couple of weeks against policy, but he is also the dad of my ex. Sure, it’s been twenty years since Carly and I dated and she’s married with kids, but still, I didn’t know how that would play into it.”
“So, what did you tell him?”
We turn the corner into the shared parking lot between the church and the library, passing a group of families arriving for the event. We smile, saying our hellos, waiting for them to pass.
“I told him that his absence was challenging for me on a personal level, not only because I had to take over a department that I had no business running, but because I had a personal interest in you, and would be pursuing said interest.”
My breath hitches. Not out of surprise—I know Gus has a personal interest in me. But more that he told my boss, in no uncertain terms, that he would be pursuing it. Hearing it put that way is more of a turn-on than I realized.
“And?”
“I’d say that he couldn’t have been any more excited if it were his own daughter, but given that his reaction to his discovery of me and his daughter was less than stellar, that’d be a misnomer. Then again, that might have to do with the fact that I had my hand up Carly’s shirt when he found us.”
I burst into laughter, hand flying to my mouth to try and suppress some of the noise. I can’t control myself though, the giggles taking over, and I fall into Gus, his own laughter ringing out into the night. Wrapping his arms around me, he yanks me into him, our bodies flush, faces close enough that the steam from our breath mingles in the cold air.
“We have to be strategic about who we tell, how, and when though,” he says, those deep-green eyes holding on to my soul. “I still have that matter with the accounting that needs straightening, and it’s more of a nightmare than you can imagine—actually if anyone would understand, it’s you. I just can’t say anything more yet.” I nod, knowing that he would if he could, choosing not to point out that he’s already slipped too much in even mentioning the weird invoices involving Willa’s projects. “And you’ve got your new project. But, what matters is that we don’t have to sneak around anymore. We can officially go to HR and make our intentions clear.”
“What about Percy’s retirement?” I ask.
“What about it?”
“What does it mean for…” I pause, unsure of how to word my question. It’s been weighing on me all afternoon, and despite running it through my head a hundred different ways, every version of the question comes out selfish.
“Us?”
I nod.
“Nothing?” Gus shakes his head, rubbing his hand up and down my back. The heat from the movement feels good, and I snuggle into him more. “He won’t retire until the spring—that way he can collect his annual bonus. That gives us time to create a plan for his exit and the department.”
“But if you can’t find a replacement before then, are you going to have to take over again?”
Narrowing his eyes, Gus studies me for a moment. “Are you asking because you thought I was a bad boss, or because you don’t want to sneak around again?”
I smile, holding back a laugh. “While I have no major complaints about you as a boss, as an employee, I do prefer having a manager who does have actual knowledge of my role, responsibilities, and department.”
“Fair,” Gus laughs.
“But as your girlfriend,” I continue, pushing up to my tiptoes so that we’re at eye level. “I know the legal department is not something you enjoy either. And you, Gus Hayes, already take on enough. You don’t need to be adding anything that doesn’t fuel that fire in you.”
Heat flashes briefly across Gus’s pupils as they blow wide, his hands flexing against me. My heart skips, the intensity between us cracking in the air, and understanding only we share binding us together.
“It’s a good thing I have you looking out for me then, isn’t it?”
“It really is.”
“I know what Percy said to everyone when he told y’all about his decision, but he does have an idea of how he wants it all to play out. Of who he wants to name as his successor. So, I’m fairly confident that I won’t have to step back into the role of interim department head.”
“I thought no one was ready?” I ask, drawing back to a conversation we had on the way to Savannah when I asked why he had to be the one to step in and not someone from our department. Maybe I got it wrong.
“At the time, they weren’t,” he answers, carefully choosing his words. I smile, loving that I get an up-close view into the inner workings of his mind. Gus in CEO mode is impressive, but like this—unguarded and at ease—is something special. “But again, we’ve got a good four to six months to put together a succession plan. But, even if for some reason that person is uninterested and we aren’t able to identify a candidate for his role before he leaves, as far as you and I are concerned, we’ll have already been well established and declared, so it’ll be a nonissue. ”
A nonissue. If that isn’t music to my ears.
There’s still a small part of me that is uncertain about how I feel regarding Percy’s retirement and what it all will mean long term. But borrowing that trouble now is not going to solve anything.
“So, you want to be strategic,” I say, tugging on the lapels of his coat, the soft fabric heightening my senses. “What exactly are you thinking?”
“I didn’t say want ,” he corrects, poking my side. I wiggle in his arms, biting back a giggle. “I said have to be. If I had my way I would have kissed you in the middle of that meeting this morning. That said, we should probably give it a few days before we rush to HR.”
“Let’s give it the week,” I suggest. “Allow Percy’s return to have some breathing room, and then on Monday we do what we need to do. What’s another week at this point?”
“It’s four days of you eating lunch with my sister instead of me, that’s what.”
“I like having lunch with your sister. How else am I going to get all the good dirt on you?” I lean back, still holding on to him, pretending to try to get away.
Gus smirks, but only for a brief second. That Cheshire cat grin morphs into something a lot more purposeful, his arm tightening around my waist, pulling me impossibly closer. Soft, steady lips find mine, capturing them in a kiss. Instantly, I melt into him, losing all my sense. Because this kiss isn’t like any of the others. This one is a statement. I am his. He is mine.
And that’s all there is to it.
It’s over too quickly, the brief, stolen moment slipping away, as we separate, emerald eyes full of love and respect shining back at me.
“There are better ways.” Winking, he steals another kiss, making my knees wobble. “Like Sunday dinner at my parents’ house. If you think Willa is something, wait ’til you meet Miss Belle.”
Wait ’til you meet Miss Belle…
Sunday dinner with the Hayes family. If I thought I was ready to burst before, I was wrong. Now I think I could explode. The only thing I want more than to have dinner with Gus’s whole family is to bring him to New Orleans so he can have dinner with mine. Papa Duck will have a field day cooking for him.
“This Sunday?” I ask, trying to keep my voice calm. It’s not working though, that Irish jig from earlier today working its way back into my voice.
“Every Sunday. From here on out.”