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“Of course,” Brittany said, her expression changing into one of joy. She stood and headed over to Madison, who glanced up at me.
I subtly nodded to her. She knew to meet me in my office after hours today. We had plenty to celebrate, but we also had plenty of work to get done before then. I stood and headed out of the conference room, feeling determined and hopeful for the first time in a while.
~*~
At five o’clock, everyone started to file out of the building. I lingered behind in my office, watching my door and waiting for Madison to walk through it. My knee bounced impatiently. Despite all the work that I did today, the hours still felt like they crawled by.
After another five minutes, my door finally inched open, and Madison slipped inside. She dropped her things off in the chair in front of my desk before coming to me and settling on my lap, wrapping her arms around my neck.
“Hey,” she greeted me softly.
I rubbed her thigh as I peered at her, noting how her eyelids seemed to droop slightly. She looked tired.
“Are you hanging in okay?” I asked. She said that she hadn’t been feeling good the other day, but she hadn’t brought it up since. I figured it was the sickness that a lot of college students caught at the end of the semester. I remembered getting sick right before my exams because I had been so stressed.
“I’m okay,” Madison replied.
I could tell that her words were a bit forced. She was exhausted and probably still not feeling well. I tightened my arms around her, holding her close against my body. I couldn’t help but want to cradle her, shielding her from the world and wishing that I could make her feel better.
“Anything I can do?” I asked. If I could do anything to make her life at least a little bit more bearable, I would do it. I had a feeling that she was going to act tough, though. She didn’t jump to accept help.
Madison passed me a grateful smile before shaking her head. “I promise that I’m okay. I’m just trying to make it to the end of the semester. I only have a few weeks left,” she sighed as she rested her cheek against my shoulder.
I rubbed her back in a comforting manner. A thought then crossed my mind.
“I’d like to come to your graduation,” I told her. We hadn’t discussed it yet, but I wanted to be there for her. It was a special day, and I wanted to be there to celebrate her achievements.
Madison hugged me tighter. “I’d love that,” she said before lifting her head. “It feels unreal that I’m almost there.”
“You deserve it. You’ve worked so hard,” I pointed out. She wasn’t the type to sleep through classes or slack off. She had busted her ass, and it had paid off in the end.
Madison dropped her eyes, chewing on her bottom lip for a moment before speaking. “You chose my idea because it was actually the best, right? Not just because it was my idea?” she asked me.
I frowned as I peered down at her. I didn’t want her to worry about that. In all aspects other than business, I was biased when it came to her.
“Your idea was the best,” I assured her. “We needed something innovative, and you gave us that.”
Gradually, the worry on her face melted away, leaving behind a glowing smile that made my heart skip. She reached up to trail her fingertips along my jaw.
“Thank you,” she said.
“No, thank you. You came up with something great. It’s a bit risky, but I think it’ll be good for us,” I told her.
Madison sat up more in my lap. “Are you nervous to try it?” she asked me.
I knew that there was no point in lying to her. She knew me, and I wanted her to know me. If I was going to let anyone know me, it would be her.
“A little. It feels like my company is already teetering on the edge. I’m afraid something risky might push me off,” I admitted to her. It all came from my own insecurities that I needed to deal with, but I was afraid of failing to Brandon. That fear made me hesitant to try something new, but something new might save my company.
“I get it. You can always try a watered-down version of my plan first to test it out,” Madison suggested as her face softened.
I shook my head, giving her a squeeze.
“I want to do your plan. I believe in it,” I replied, believing my own words. She worked so hard to form that plan, so I was going to put it in full motion.
“Risks can pay off. We took a risk on each other, and it worked out,” Madison pointed out as she lifted her eyebrows at me.
