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“You do that, and I’ll start dinner. Will you be home by six?” he asks.
“I can be at your place by six.”
“Yeah, home by six.” He winks, and I can’t help it. I smile.Smug bastard.
We finish our lunch and clean up our trash before Spencer drops me off at the office. He leans over and kisses me goodbye, and I’m thankful for his tinted windows. “See you tonight, Charlie girl,” he says softly.
“Thanks for lunch.” I blow him a kiss as I climb out of his car.
* * *
I’ve just pulled out of the parking lot, heading home to get what I need to stay at Spencer’s, when my phone rings. I glance at the screen and see that it’s the call I’ve been waiting on all day. This is it. I slowly inhale as I hit Accept on my steering wheel. “Hello,” I greet Tabby.
“Charlotte, hi. It’s Susan.”
My heart jumps in my chest. It has to be a good sign that Susan is calling me herself, right? “Hi, Susan.”
“I know you were expecting a call today, and I’m sorry it’s so late. Is now a good time?” she asks.
“Yes, now is good.” I signal and pull over to the parking lot of the grocery store and place my car in Park. I know my concentration won’t be what it needs to be while I’m on this call.
“I wanted to be the one to call you, and my day got away from me. Anyway, I’m calling to offer you the position of Chief Operating Officer for Calloway Cancer Center.” She goes on to tell me the pay, which is a significant increase to my current salary as well as the rest of the benefits package. “If you need the weekend to think about it.”
“No,” I rush to say, and force myself to take a calming breath. “No. I would like to accept the position. There is nothing to think about. This is an incredible opportunity, and I’m so incredibly grateful that you’re taking a chance on me.”
“Excellent. Trust me, Charlotte, we are the lucky ones. We are very fortunate that you applied. The board, as well as I, agree that you are a perfect fit for our organization.”
“Thank you so much.”
“Now, I’ll have Tabby call you tomorrow to work out a start date, background check, drug test, and all of that.”
“Thank you so much, Susan.”
“We’ll talk soon,” she says, and the call ends.
I sit in my car with a smile on my face, fighting back the tears. I busted my ass in college. I didn’t party or stay out too late. I worked two part-time jobs and studied my ass off to make the grades to keep my scholarship.
Closing my eyes, I swallow back the lump in my throat as I think about my parents. I know they would be proud of me, proud of me and Audrey for the lives we’re building for ourselves. I wish they were here. I wish I could tell them about this. How I just landed my dream job, and that the guy who I thought was my rival turned out to be my heart.
“I love you,” I whisper. I don’t know if they’re watching over us, but I’d like to think that they are, and they can hear me.
Once I have myself together, I put the car in Drive and head home. The journey is quick, and when I see my sister's car in the driveway, I smile. I can’t wait to share this news, and then tonight, I have to tell Spencer. I just hope he understands my need to make sure that I did this on my own. I hope we can get past this. I have faith that we can, and when we do, I want to tell him what he means to me. I want to tell him that I’ve fallen madly in love with him. I want to finally feel as though I can stop holding back and let this relationship of ours take flight. I want to see where we can go. All the images in my head lead to forever, and I really hope that he’s on the same page, or at least the same chapter as me.
I don’t bother pulling into the garage since I’m leaving again. I do grab my purse and phone and head inside. “Audrey!” I call out.
“In my room!” she calls back.
Kicking off my heels, I toss my purse and phone on the couch and start down the hall. I knock on her door, and she tells me to come in before I push it open. “Hey.” I smile at her.
“Have you been crying?” she asks.
I nod. “Yeah, but I’m good. I promise. Happy tears.” I point to my eyes that are once again welling up.
“Oh! Did Spencer propose? Let me see the ring,” she demands.
I toss my head back in laughter. “No, Spencer did not propose. We’re not there yet.”
“You’re not there yet. That man would change your last name in a hot minute if he thought you would be okay with it.”
