Chapter 2: Forever With The CEO: Chapter 2

“Allison, I just need your signature before you leave for the day,” my assistant said, poking her head into my corner office.

I eyed the clock. It was 5:20 p.m.

“Sure. Put it here on my desk.”

“Sorry it took so long. I wanted to have it ready for you at lunch.”

“No worries.” I signed everywhere she’d put a Post-it. “All right, here you go. Sorry, but I’ve got to run.”

She gave me a sympathetic smile. “Sure. Thank you.”

Before everything happened, I usually left the office around seven. But many things had changed since I lost my sister and Jim. This wasn’t even the worst of it. I worked from home after the twins went to bed to make up for leaving at five. So far no one had complained. Then again, I didn’t expect them to, given my executive position—and because I was very good at my job.

Everyone else in my department was still working as I gathered my things to go. There was a common joke in the company that when everyone else left for the day, finance was still here, and it was true. But numbers made the world go round, as far as I was concerned, and the later hours never bothered me.

My office was downtown in a huge skyscraper that housed over ten thousand employees. The best part was that we had a daycare in the building. I’d been unaware of it until I was desperate for someplace for the kids that wasn’t far away from the office. I felt a bit guilty for leaving the twins there for so many hours a day, but what else could I do?

My sister had only taken them to daycare for three hours in the mornings. The rest of the day, she did a lot of activities with them, from baking to painting to playing games. She’d been an amazing mom and sister. Nora had simply been amazing all the way around, and I missed her like hell.

No, no, no, Allison. Don’t think about Nora. Not now.

Because every time I did, I teared up. She and I had been as tight as sisters could be. She was my best friend and my everything. She’d been three years older, and I’d worshipped her ever since I could remember. Some days I still couldn’t believe she was gone.

When I arrived at the daycare, there were only five other kids left. I sighed at the sight.

“Hi,” the daycare worker said. “These two have been great today.” She pointed to Jack and Annie.

They seemed to love this place, but I couldn’t help feeling guilty anyway. When they noticed me, their faces broke into smiles, and they ran toward me.

I lowered myself onto my haunches. When they wrapped their arms around my neck, I instantly forgot about the spreadsheet that had been percolating at the back of my mind. I hugged them both tightly, enjoying the feel of them and their little kid smell.

“Ready to go?” I asked.

“Yes,” both of them chorused.

With a grin, I took their hands and led them out to the car.

We arrived home forty minutes later. We still had some leftover pizza from yesterday, which I heated up along with steamed broccoli and chicken from the night before. Cooking was never my strong suit. Honestly, before I had to care for the twins, I didn’t even give dinners much thought.

We ate at the dining room table tonight because it was too cool to eat outside. June could be fickle in Boston. I loved my house. It was much smaller than the one where they lived before, but there was enough space for us. The only crux was that I had two bedrooms, so they had to share. That was fine now, but down the road… Well, I’d figure something out. I was a CFO, for God’s sake. I made good money, and I’d do whatever needed to be done.

“All right, little guys,” I said once we were done with dinner. “Let’s go upstairs so you can brush your teeth.”

They both started to wail at the same time.

“Can we watch cartoons?” Annie asked cheekily.

“We read books before bed,” I reminded her. TV was too stimulating, and they’d never want to go to sleep. Reading to them always did the trick.

“Okay.” She looked so much like my sister when she pouted that it took my breath away. It instantly transported me back to my own childhood, which had been loving and warm. I thought fondly of those days. Even though we were born to older parents, we never realized that because they played with us constantly.

My mom used to joke that their age caught up with them the second I left for college. After my sister passed away, they asked if I wanted them to move to Boston to help with the kids, but they were far too frail for that.

To my astonishment, we were done with the routine only forty minutes later. Normally, putting these two to bed could take up to one and a half hours. I kissed their foreheads before leaving their room and heading downstairs.

I yawned as I sat on the couch. Before, I spent my evenings going out with friends or binging TV series, but right now, I still had to catch up on work.

As I opened my laptop, I couldn’t help but wonder if Nick had already spoken to his lawyer friend. Before I dove into spreadsheets, I decided to call him.

“Hello,” he answered on the first ring.

My stomach somersaulted. His voice was unbelievably sexy. But it fit him because he was, hands down, the best-looking man I’d ever met.

“Hey,” I whispered.

“What are you doing?”

“Funny you should ask. Eating leftover pizza. Don’t worry, I actually found the twins something very healthy to eat. Leftover steamed broccoli and chicken.”

“Damn, I’d take the pizza over that.”

That made me grin. “Me too. My cooking skills aren’t fabulous, but I’ll continue to work on them. I wanted to ask if you talked to your lawyer friend.”

There was a pause, and my chest constricted. I didn’t know Nick too well, but he didn’t seem like the type of guy to hesitate unless he didn’t have good news.

“I did, but just briefly. He did say that he needs some more details to make recommendations.”

“But what does he think? Do they have a case?”

“He said that custody cases are always complicated. He wouldn’t just outright dismiss it.”

I felt as if someone had put a stone on each of my shoulders. “That was not what I was hoping to hear. But of course it’s better to know the truth and prepare. What kind of details does he need to make recommendations?”

“He’ll be in touch soon. I caught him before a business trip, so he didn’t have much time to chat.”

I took a deep breath. “When’s he coming back from the trip?”

“Next week.”

Suddenly, I felt like maybe I shouldn’t be waiting that long.

“But I asked him explicitly to work on it while he’s away, and he said he would,” he added.

“Thank you, Nick. I truly appreciate it. I can reach out to a lawyer too. Get a couple of opinions.”

“I’m sure. But why don’t you let me take this off your plate?”

“Thank you. You’re my favorite person right now.”

“Only right now?” he teased. “How about the rest of the time?”

“I don’t even see other people, so you’re the only one in the running.”

“Ahhh, so I have no competition.”

I laughed. God, it felt good. I’d been a bit on autopilot these past few months. The only time I seemed to be able to relax and laugh was when Nick was visiting.

“Oh, Nick, I’ve been living a Groundhog Day lifestyle for a while now. The same day is on repeat all the time.”

“Come on, that can’t be true. What do you do to relax after the twins go to bed?”

“Well, funny you should ask. I catch up on work.”

“Allison!” he practically growled.

I groaned. “Hey, I feel like you’re about to judge me.”

“Not judging you, but that’s… a lot.”

“I have a demanding job. Which was never a problem before, but now the hours I spend at the office are simply not enough.”

“I have a proposition for you. You do have a sitter, right? You mentioned something a few times.”

“Yes. About once a week so I can work the second I get home. Doreen gives them dinner and puts them to bed for me.”

“How about you book her for Saturday evening?”

“Why?” I asked, frowning at my laptop.

“Because I’m taking you out.”

I straightened up on the couch as if electricity ran through me. “Wow. Why?”

“Because you deserve a break.”

I thought hard for a second, guilt hitting me immediately because I was actually considering it. “Let me think, okay? I don’t know if I should… I mean…”

“Just say yes.”

“Why can’t I think about it?”

“Because you’ll guilt yourself into saying no.”

I bit the inside of my cheek. How did he know that was what I was doing? “There is a high risk of that.” I paused a minute and then threw caution to the wind. “You know what? I’ll do it.”

“Hell yes!”

I chuckled. “Nick, thanks. This means a lot to me. I mean, everything you do means a lot—that you drop by with dinner, you ask the twins about their daycare. You actually remember their favorite toys. It makes me feel less lonely.”

“Allison, you’re not alone. I should have helped you more all along.” His tone had softened with a tinge of sadness.

“No, you shouldn’t. This is not your responsibility.”

“Maybe not, but I don’t mind in the least.”

I vaguely wondered why Nick had been as involved as he had been. No one else had shown nearly as much interest. Nora and Jim were social people, and they had a ton of friends. But after the first few weeks, the calls stopped coming. Why was Nick different? “So, what are we doing on Saturday?”

“I’ll think about it and let you know. I promise you’ll have fun.”

“That’s all I need. Actually, you know what? Surprise me. I don’t want to know anything.”

“Now we’re talking.” I could hear the grin in his voice.

I felt more alive right now than I had in months. My entire body was vibrating with excitement. It hadn’t even occurred to me to book Doreen and go out. It had felt completely wrong.

But my thoughts immediately jumped back to where this smoking-hot man was going to take me.

Oh, Allison, take him being hot out of the equation, okay? Just look at Nick as Jim’s best friend. That’s all. The last thing you need right now is any guy trouble. You’ve got enough on your plate as it is.

“What time are we leaving?” I asked.

“Whenever you want. I’m at your service.”

“Careful, Nick. You don’t know me well enough to make such an open invitation.”

“True, but I’d love to get to know you better. And what better way to start than by spending Saturday together?”