Euphoria replaced her bitterness about the Fraser Hillsproject. At least it would be good for something. Now to hope and pray that no one else was shopping for a house like that one, and then break it to Anna that the big Christmas assignment was in North Carolina… not Paris. What a disappointment.
She took her arms out from under the covers, then let out a long slow breath and laid her arms by her sides, trying to relax.
Don’t stress. Get in. Do the job. Get out. The quicker the better. Relax.
And Anna will be there. It’s going to be fine.
Friday morning Vanessa hit the gym feeling better about the Fraser Hills assignment, and that her dream was now within reach because of it. Almost guaranteed.
She pounded out mile after mile on the treadmill; her ponytail swept across her back as she ramped up into a high-intensity interval, staring out the window that faced the busy street below. She’d grown oblivious to the traffic and the hustle of the people below on the sidewalk.
Call Sally to make an offer or wait?It was a gamble. If she called today, she’d be rewarding Sally’s bad behavior for showing her a house over her budget. But if she didn’t call, someone could sweep her dream house right out from under her.
Only the truth of the situation was, she was going to have to trust that the right thing would happen and wait until she got to North Carolina and got down to work on that project. For two reasons really. If she couldn’t pull off the shutdown and ready the warehouse space on time, there’d be no bonus. And if she put in a successful bid on her dream house too early, she’d be up to her ears in mortgage paperwork, and she didn’t havetime to be dragging out old tax returns and statements while working on the Porter’s project. It would be too big a distraction. And today her priority was packing and preparing to get out of Chicago and be on site in Fraser Hills by Monday.
She mentally set Sally aside.
She’d done a search on Fraser Hills, but aside from fruitcake, horses, and Christmas trees there wasn’t much to read about.
Either way, it would be good with Anna along for the stay. She’d get things moving on the project, and then she’d book a flight for Anna to join her.
She slowed her pace, to catch her breath and cool down. She pulled the hand towel from her waistband and dabbed the sweat from her face. When she looked up, Robert was stepping up on the treadmill next to her.
“Good morning,” he said, tossing his towel over the rail of the treadmill.
She took the right earbud from her ear and let it drop against her tank top. “Hey. You’re late.”
“You’re early.” He stepped on the machine and started a slow jog. “I called you yesterday.”
“Oh gosh, it was a crazy day. I didn’t want to drag you into all the drama.”
“Probably for the best. I was busy too, but I wanted to share some news with you.”
“Oh? What’s up?” He was an attorney. Good news to him wasn’t always that good to her, but she feigned excitement. “Tell me.”
“Well, it doesn’t really matter now. It was yesterday’s news. We don’t seem to be talking as much lately.”
“We’re a typical two-career couple,” she said. “Time is a premium. We’ve got priorities. Right?”
“Yeah, but I do expect you to be there for me when I’ve had a tough day.”
“Umm. Yeah, of course.” But when she had a tough day, she really preferred to handle it alone. She’d always handled it alone. It was one of the things she liked about Robert. Low maintenance. Well, at least about most things, but lately he’d been pushing for more time, more commitment. And staying away seemed easier than talking about it. What was wrong with how things were?
“You’ve canceled or rescheduled half of our dates over the past three months to accommodate your projects.” He reached over and put his hand on her arm. “I want to spend time with you.”
She smiled gently, unsure of how to respond without lying or leading him on.
“I told my folks that we’d spend the holidays with them this year.”
Vanessa stumbled over her own feet. Swatting at the control board, she steadied herself and slowed the pace. “What?”
“Christmas is magical there. Okay, maybe a little over-the-top old-fashioned, but it’s fun. And you’ll love my parents. They’re going to love you as much as I do.”
Her heart rate jumped and she was only at a walk now. “I can’t.”
“Why not? It’s just a couple of days. Everyone takes time off for Christmas.”
“I told you I’d probably be working through the holidays. I’ve got an end-of-year deadline. There’s no time to take off at Christmas. It’ll be a quick project. We can go visit them in the new year.”
