Casual Affair

She listened to his assurances that the piece was exactly what she was looking for and that it was in “pristine” condition. She was surprised when he even offered to text pictures of it to her phone. One look was enough for her. They worked out a payment and delivery method, and she ended the call after thanking him about ten times.

She looked down at her list and eagerly checked off another item. The feeling of accomplishment came swiftly as she moved to the next piece she was seeking. Her new mission in life was to obtain every item on the list. She was relentless in her pursuit.

And it was all for Zane.

Her fuel was the look she couldn’t wait to see on his face when this secret display was revealed to him. The one he’d told her about with bright eyes and excitement in his voice.

She wasn’t sure why she was so determined to complete this project. Perhaps it was because it felt…personal. Which was…different. In her job, she didn’t do personal favors for her clients, nor did she take up her free time with secret agendas.

But she didn’t want to consider why she was doing it.

She just knew she couldn’t stop until it was exactly what Zane had imagined.

Later that afternoon, her office phone rang. She glanced at the number on the screen and her heart swelled.

“Hey, Sweet Bea,” a raspy voice said over the line.

Hearing the nickname he’d had for her since she was a little girl only improved her mood. “Hi, Daddy.”

“How y’doin’, baby?” If people thought her accent was thick, their father had thirty more years of deep southern exposure in his. Every word out of his mouth oozed with a heavy twang. It was the most comforting sound in the world to her.

“I’m good. How are you? How’s Mama?”

“Doing jus’ fine. You know her. Always got some charity somethin’-or-other to run, so she’s stayin’ busy.”

“Been able to play much golf lately?”

“Hopin’ to play this weekend, if your mama will let me. She’s threatenin’ to hide my clubs if I don’t get my cholesterol down. You’d think the exercise would do me good,” he grumbled.

She laughed at his dejected voice. “And the nineteenth hole has nothing to do with that, of course.”

“I’m deeply offended by the implication that I’d cheat on my ridiculously strict diet,” he drawled, though they both knew that was exactly what he did on those golf outings.

“Daddy, you know better than to argue with Mama when she’s worried about you, and with good reason. She doesn’t make threats lightly. Where do you think I get it from?”

He laughed. “Speaking of which. How’s the business doin’?”

“Great, actually. We should be able to make our last payment to you on time.”

His sigh came through the receiver. “How many times do I have to say I don’t care about the money? It was my way of helping my girls. That’s what a father’s supposed to do. I never expected nor wanted to be paid back. I would rather you keep the money and put it back into the business.”

She waited until he was done, then said the same thing she had so many times before. “And how many times have we told you it’s important to us to pay back our debts?”

She hated feeling beholden to anyone, financially or otherwise. Even if it was her own father. She and Felicity needed their business to be able to stand on its own two feet, and that meant being completely free of debt.

“I know,” he replied, his tone light. “I wouldn’t expect anything less of you. My independent Honey Bea.”

They talked for a few more minutes and hung up. She decided to call it a day, the phone call allowing her to end work hours on a positive note. With Felicity out of the office, she locked up and went home to sprawl on the couch with a bottle of red wine and an entire block of Hershey’s chocolate.

Communication between her and Zane had been sparse since their ice cream kiss, but her nights had been filled with thoughts and dreams of him since then. Envision Tech was supposed to get all the display merchandise in by this weekend, so she and Felicity would be back to working at the launch store starting Monday.