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“Thank you, Kate. You’re doing fine. If I see some discrepancies, I’ll bring you in and help you spot them. I don’t expect anyone to do it perfectly when it’s all so new.”
She smiles. “Thank you. Will you have lunch with Mr. Armstrong here or in his office?”
I don’t quite stop myself from glancing at the rug. “Have him come here. And can you order us some Thai? Our preferences are in the miscellaneous folder.”
“Will do.”
When she’s gone, I sit at my desk, turning to survey the rug. Rhett’s right. It could be farther from the sofa.
I open my notes app to jot some ideas from the meeting with finance, then take a moment to savor the space. The rug was the last piece, a joke made into reality.
Maybe Rhett did get a company from his uncle, and maybe this promotion did come about because Rhett and I are so close.
But those things don’t diminish the work we’ve done, the plans we have, and the commitment we’ve shown.
I can’t change where I’m from any more than Rhett can.
But we can definitely work with what we’ve got.
I spin back to my computer.
And that means crunching all this data before lunch, so I can bang my boyfriend in my new office.
Again.
EPILOGUE: BAILEY
One year later
Rhett appears at my office door in yellow board shorts and a bright green shirt that reads, “I’m feeling picklish.”
He frowns at my wine-colored wrap dress. “Hey! Your farewell party is an island theme. What’s with the fancy clothes?”
I walk around my desk, piled high with packed boxes. “They’re so I could do this.” I grasp the tie of the dress and strip it away. Beneath I have on a silky version of a grass hula skirt and a coconut bra.
“Now THAT’S more like it.” He reaches forward with both hands as if he’s going to take my coconuts.
“Bailey, you—” My assistant Kate stops in her tracks. She whirls around, and not for the first time in the last year. “Oh! Okay. You two are being you again. I’m letting you know it’s time for the party.” She takes off for the door.
Oh, dang. I lost track of time. That’s probably why Rhett’s here, too.
Rhett takes the dress and lays it over the pile of boxes on the fur rug, which he’ll be moving to his office. We can’t give up our favorite spot. “I’m here to escort the guest of honor.”
He holds out his elbow. “Are you ready, madame vice president?”
“Ex vice president,” I remind him.
“Not for another two hours. We’re going to be much worse off without you.”
I slide my arm through the crook of his elbow. “Martin is going to be great. I picked him myself.”
“He’s going to be considerably less interesting on that rug.”
“Thank goodness!” Kate calls from outside the office.
Rhett and I grin at each other like teenagers busted behind the Texaco.
By the time we walk into the meeting room, everyone is assembled.
