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CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Austin
Austin scrolled throughthe seemingly endless flight options as the monotonous sound of a screw gun drilled into his brain. He peeked through his newly erected office door to see another piece of drywall go up down the hall. With a grin, he exhaled out the bundle of nerves that had taken up a permanent residence in his belly ever since the small setback in his timeline.
Getting closer.
His gaze scoured the calendar on his screen, zeroing in on July ninth as it drew nearer. He swallowed, frowning at the impending wedding date as his heartstrings involuntarily tightened. Austin exhaled and closed his eyes, willing the dip in his stomach to disappear. “Princess...” he murmured, balling his hands into fists. The familiar longing for her love washed over him, returning for the first time in several weeks with full force. Mavis appeared before his eyes, clad in a long white dress, a smile playing across her lips as she whispered his name. The green of her eyes pierced his soul, squeezing his heart with forbidden love.
“You’re a goddamn fool, Austin Templeton.”After all this time, why am I still doing this?A groan escaped his lips as his elbow bumped into a picture frame on his desk. It fell forward, clattering against the surface of the wood. Guilt swirled in his belly as he scooped it up, locking eyes with the commemorative Kiss Cam moment from the infamous night at Wrigley Field. He ran his index finger over the glass, resting his fingertip over Casey. “My sweet Cinderella,” he whispered, propping the frame back into its place. He blew out a breath and willed the ghost of lost love away from his heart. “I need you, Casey girl,” he whispered. “Now more than ever.”
His gaze rested on the photo, pulling him back to the moment they locked lips in a sea of cheering fans. He smiled, allowing Casey to reclaim his heart—her quirky habits and silly antics tripping into the age-old emotions of sorrow and defeat. Forcing the ancient feelings back into a box deep within his soul, Austin mentally locked it shut with a key labeledMavis.
“Casey...” Austin exhaled, dragging his fingers along the growing smile on his lips. And with a snort, he scooped up his phone and called her.
“Hello?”
“Hi, beautiful. Do you have a minute?”
“Umm, yeah. Hang on one second.” Papers shuffled in the background, followed by a clank and a muffled curse. “Okay, sorry. What’s up?”
Austin grinned. “Where are you?”
“The library. I forgot to put my phone on silent. Apparently, it’s frowned upon if you make any noise whatsoever.” She snorted.
“Well yeah, Case, it’s a library.”
“Eh, whatever. What’s up? Need something?”
Austin leaned back in his seat, his heart rebounding from the momentary relapse of confusion. “I’m looking at flights for the umm, wedding.” He cleared his throat. “When did you request off work again?”
“Hang on, let me check...”
The image of her disorganization grew in his mind as the shuffle of papers met his ear again.
Constant chaos.
“Okay, umm, Jim gave me Thursday through Sunday off. I close on Wednesday night though, so nothing crazy early.” She snorted.
He smiled, scanning the flights for the best options. “How about 11:20 AM out of O’Hare Thursday morning?” He scrolled. “And then 2:44 PM on Sunday out of L.A.?”
“Sounds good to me.”
“Booking it now.” Austin clicked and confirmed, pulling his wallet from his back pocket as he selected two seats together on each flight. “Hey, when will you be home tonight?”
“Like an hour, maybe? I need to swing by the bank.”
“Okay, what do you feel like having for dinner?” The flight confirmation popped into his email. With a roll of his eyes, he stuffed it into a folder in his inbox without opening it.
“Champagne and a cheesy sandwich.” She laughed.
“Champagne, huh? And what are we celebrating?”
She giggled. “My amazing tutor. He helped me get an ‘A’ on my test.”
“Casey!” His lips twisted into a smile as his cheeks warmed, a flood of excitement filling his chest. “That’s incredible! I’m so proud of you.”
“All you, sir. There’s no way I would have gotten that grade without you.”
