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Willow looked up from her computer and smiled. “What did you expect? She’s a sweetheart. And I have to tell you, she’s damn good at her job. Can’t you persuade her to not go back? I want to bring her in so that we can get started.”
Bentley chuckled. “I’d love to. Do you think that I’m not in a hurry to get her here? But she has meetings tomorrow and Friday. All I can do is hope that the contracts don’t come off. I hate saying that, though. I don’t want to wish that she doesn’t get the jobs. I just want her to stay here.”
“I’m with you. I suppose we’ll just have to wait a while. Obviously, I’m not as invested in getting her here permanently as you are.” She smiled. “Although, I’m not far off. Yes, I want to get her in to do the audits. I think it’s important, like Mom said, to give ourselves a new baseline. But more than that, I like having her around at home, too. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I like you better with her.”
Happiness buzzed in Bentley’s chest. “Don’t worry, I know what you mean. I like me better with her, too.”
They both turned at the sound of a tap on the door. Alyssa stood there, smiling at them. Bentley didn’t know if she’d heard what they were just saying. He hoped that she had. It was true. For years, he’d only seen himself as a cog in the machine that was DuPont Wineries – an important cog, but still. Now, with Alyssa, he was happy – happy at work, and more importantly happy in his own life. She made him a better person, and she made his life better just by being in it. With Alyssa by his side, he couldn’t help thinking that he had a very bright future ahead of him.
“Hey,” she said with a smile.
“Come on in,” said Willow. “I’m afraid he beat you here. And that means I don’t get you to myself before you have to go.”
Alyssa shot him a smile as she came in. He couldn’t help it; he went and pressed a quick kiss to her lips.
Willow rolled her eyes at them. “See! I don’t stand a chance of getting to talk business with you now.”
Alyssa started to move away from him, but he tightened his arm around her.
“I’ve still got a bit of time before I need to go, don’t I?” She looked up at him.
“You do …”
Willow laughed. “It’s okay. I’m sure Bentley wants to keep you all to himself for whatever little time you have left. Call me, okay? I was only going to bend your ear about what we can work on when you start. But we don’t even know when you’re going to start yet. If I get a vote, I think you should tell both of those companies that you’re waiting on that your priorities have changed, and you’ll get back to them later in the year. Or never,” she added with a laugh.
Bentley hugged Alyssa into his side. “And you know I’d never dare say that, but if we were voting, the decision would already be made.”
He felt bad when Alyssa looked up at him. “You know I’d love to do that.”
“I do. But you know that I understand.” He smiled as a thought struck him. “It’s probably for the best if you tie up all your loose ends now. Once I get you here, I’m never going to want you to leave.”
“Aww.”
He shot a quick scowl at Willow. He didn’t need her making fun of him. But to his surprise, she had a goofy smile on her face. “Go on. You guys get out of here. I’ll see you soon, Alyssa.”
~ ~ ~
“You didn’t need to fly back with me, you know,” said Alyssa.
She’d thought that he was just going to walk her out to the plane and wave her off. But he’d insisted on coming with her. He’d even ridden in the Uber with her back to her apartment.
Now, they were standing outside her building. The car was still waiting, and she knew he had to go, but she didn’t want him to.
“I did. I needed to know that you got back safely.”
She slipped her arms around his waist and rested her cheek against his shoulder. “Is there any chance that you can stay now that you’re here?”
He pressed a kiss to her temple. “I’d love to. I really wish I could. But I can’t. Ollie and Reaves have an early flight in the morning, taking the sales guys up to Seattle. It wouldn’t be fair of me to ask them to stay over just to wait for me.”
“Oh. Okay. I didn’t realize that. I wouldn’t have asked if I did.”
He cupped her face between his hands and pressed a kiss to her lips. “I know.” He glanced over his shoulder at the car that was still waiting by the curb. “I have to go.”
She nodded sadly and linked her fingers behind his head, pulling him down for one last kiss before she let him go.
He stepped back with a rueful smile on his face. “Make it even more difficult for me to go, why don’t you?”
She tapped two fingers in the middle of his chest. “I just wanted one more, sorry.”
