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When he disconnected the call, he glanced up to see Mattie entering his office. “You look happy, Mr. Connelly.”
“I am, Mattie. I am.”
“And I’m happy for you. Are you happy enough to give me a raise?”
Frazier threw his head back and laughed. Mattie was probably one of the highest paid administrative assistants in the city. “I’m happy, Mattie. Not crazy.”
Noon couldn’t come fast enough. It had been years since Frazier had taken the elevator and hall that led to the IT Department. The moment he entered the floor, the place went silent and everyone stared at him.
“Hello everyone,” he greeted loudly, throwing up his hand.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Connelly.”
He kept walking to the office with Rylee’s name on it. Keeping the door open, he smiled at her. “Ready for lunch, sweetheart?”
She smiled up at him and stood from her desk. “Yes.”
As they walked through the department, Frazier would have sworn he saw a few jaws drop. What had they thought? That Rylee was just his latest fling. Well, he had news forthem. She was the woman he was going to marry, the woman he couldn’t wait to spend the rest of his life with.
When they stepped on the elevator, he said, “I remember discussing a scenario such as this. You, me, alone in an elevator at Connelly Enterprises.”
A huge smile touched Rylee’s lips. “I remember that, as well.”
He tilted his head. “And?”
“And?”
Grinning, he pulled her into his arms for a very passionate kiss.
“DID I TELL YOUhow much I missed you while you were gone, Uncle Roland?”
Roland turned around and smiled at his niece. He had been staring out at the beautiful view of the mountains from Striker and Margo’s backyard.
“Yes, Margo, you told me. Several times, in fact.” He smiled. “I understand Frazier has been rather busy the last few weeks,” he said, thinking about how often his brother had appeared in theDaily Progresslately. Word on the street was that he was spending a lot of time with the same woman.
A huge smile spread across Margo lips. “Yes, and her name is Rylee Danville. I can’t wait to meet her. He’s bringing her here today.”
Roland eyed his niece suspiciously. She was up to something. “Is that why you had this cookout?” He’d only seen his brother twice since he’d been back, but he’d been preoccupied and Frazier had been spending a lot of his weekends on that island he owned.
Margo gave him a look without shame. “What can I say? I was dying to meet her and since I have you back home, safe and in one piece, I thought a celebration was in order. I invited Lennox too, but she can’t come. She’s getting ready to leave town Monday for New Orleans.”
Roland knew all about that trip Lennox would be taking and the reason for it.
A few moments later, he found himself alone again when Margo rushed off to greet more guests. He turned back around to look at the mountains. It was hard to believe he’d been back home for two weeks now. Wishing Lennox the best and then walking away from her had been the worst thing he’d ever had to do.
But it had to be a clean break. That was the only way he’d be able to do it. But he hadn’t expected leaving her to be so hard. Even throwing himself back into his work hadn’t helped. She still managed to invade his thoughts, day and night.
The nights, though, were the worst. That was when the memories really got to him. He would think back to them sharing meals together, taking walks, spending time in the hot tub at the treehouse, even simply sharing cooking duties.
But when he remembered the times they’d shared a bed, his chest would ache and he would have trouble breathing. How long would it take for the yearning and longing for her to go away? How long would it be before he stopped driving by the house where she was now staying, every single night before going home, just to see her car in the drive and know she was safely inside and in the bed sleeping?
It had been two weeks and instead of lessening, his desire to stay connected to her, even from a distance, was growing stronger. Even while on the run for their lives, their time together had been nothing short of perfect. He had enjoyed every hour he had spent with her. Every minute. Every second.
He was missing her like hell. But there was no reason for it, at least, not this much. The fifth floor of the condo building was suddenly very lonely, since he was the only person living there now. He wondered if Lennox would eventually sell her place or rent it out? And why should it matter to him what she did?
He knew, thanks to Stonewall, that Lennox had met with Special Agent Warner a couple of times, in an official capacity. But Roland knew the man wanted more. What if they began seeing each other? And why should he care if they did?
He figured what he was going through was nothing more than sexual withdrawal. Before Lennox, he’d only shared his body with women to satisfy his own physical needs. With Lennox, though, it had been more than that. It hadn’t been just sex with her.
