42
BODI
EPILOGUE
Iglanceatmy phone vibrating on my desk, feeling like my smile is stretching to my ears.
“You better not have scratched my car,” I answer jokingly.
“No, your car is just fine,” she replies, a little offended before her tone turns smug. “You’re never getting her back, though.”
“Baby, are you okay? Did you bump your head or something? Because I could’ve sworn you said I wasn’t getting my car back.”
“I’m dead serious, babe.” She is serious, because there is not an ounce of humor in her sweet voice, keeping my smile in place. “Ginger and I have a connection now. She purrs underneath me and, well, she made me hooked from the second I took the wheel. Here, listen.” I hear her hit the throttle over the line. “It’s perfection. It’s exhilarating. It’s mine.”
“We’ll see about that, babe.”
“No, baby, I’m serious. I’m taking your car. She’s my best friend now. But don’t worry, I’ll drive you to work every day,” she sasses.
A laugh comes from my throat, shaking my head.
“You can drive it. But it’s still mine.”
“Oh, whatever.”
“How is your first day?”
“It’s amazing!” The enthusiasm is clear in her voice, warming my heart. “I forgot how much I loved walking around campus.”
“Yeah?” I bring my feet up to my desk, glancing at the ceiling. “You think Georgia State can compete with Stanford?”
“Oh, definitely! And they have this burger place right around the corner. Oh my God, it was so good!”
“If you’re going to eat burgers for lunch every day, I’m not going to be getting you burgers for dinner as well.” I try to sound scowling, but I’m pretty sure I’m failing miserably.
“Yeah, you are. Besides, they are not as good as yours.”
“Good to know.” I chuckle. “I’m glad you like it.”
“I love it, baby,” she confesses. “It feels like I’m where I belong, you know? Like all that shit happened for a reason.”
“I’m sure it did.”
“You know what the best thing is?” I can hear the excitement in her voice, making a flutter run through my stomach.
“No?”
“When my classes are done, I can come home to you.”
“That definitely is the best thing to me too.” When Kayla decided she wanted to go back to school, I would be lying if I wasn’t scared she’d pick a school in a different state, but she put that thought to ease real quick by shoving a Georgia State University folder in my hand. I would’ve supported her in going to whatever school she wanted to, and I’d even pay for it if that would be an issue, but I was more than relieved when I realized she was planning on going back to school in the fall and staying with me at the same time. Because she makes me selfish when it comes to her. I want her around all day, every day. Even the office feels empty without her.
After her birthday, I officially asked her to move in with me, and I even redesigned my closet to fit all her clothes. Now, I can’t sleep if she’s not in bed with me, and I wake up a lucky man every single morning. But as much as I am selfish when it comes to her, I also want her to chase her own dreams and I want to be there to help her reach them.
“Just know that after graduation, you can come back if you want.”
She huffs, amused. “You’re only saying that so you can bend me over your desk and fuck me during work hours.”
“Definitely,” I reply, resulting in a laugh from her side.
“You got that meeting with Charlotte today?” she asks.
“Yeah, she’ll be here any minute now,” I reply at the same time a knock sounds on my door.
“That’s so exciting!” she yelps. “It’s going to be a bestseller. I can feel it in my bones.”
“I agree it has great potential. Come in!” The door opens, and I put my feet back to the floor. “I have to go now, baby. You wanna make reservations for dinner tonight? We can take Charlotte with us–” My eyes move up, and I look into the brown eyes of Julie, who’s giving me a coy smile. “And Julie.”
“And Julie?”
“Yeah, Julie is here.” I frown, motioning for her to take the chair in front of my desk while I glance at the door, wondering if Charlotte is following behind her. When no one else walks through the door, I arch my brow at her. Her dirty blonde hair is up in a ponytail high on her head, and she’s wearing jeans and a cream sweater, which gives her a more casual look than what I’m used to from her.
“Why?” Kayla pushes.
“I don’t know, baby, but I’ll let you know as soon as I find out, okay?” Amusement is etched in my voice, and I can almost hear her roll her eyes at me through the phone.
“Fine, talk later. Love you.”
“Bye, babe. Love you too.” I hang up the phone, pointing my attention to Julie. “Hey!”
“Hey,” she offers with a friendly gaze.
“I’m a little confused. I thought I had a meeting with Charlotte?”
“You do. But Hunter had some meetings he couldn’t get out of, so she had to take Logan with her. Now that she’s pregnant again, I offered to come with her and help her out. She’s giving Logan a bottle in your cafeteria.” She points her thumb over her shoulder.
“She could’ve given the kid a bottle in my office. I don’t mind.”
“I know.” She gives me a tentative look. “But I wanted to talk to you for a second.”
“Okay,” I drag out the word. “Is everything alright?”
“Well, yeah. But Hunter told me that you still have some connections in L.A. I hope you can help me find a place to live for a few months.”
“You wanna move to L.A.?”
She nods.
“Why?”
“I got a new job as a brand rep for North Viking Sports. They want me to move within two weeks, or the job goes to someone else.”
“That’s amazing! Congratulations. This must be a big jump from real estate.”
Her eyes sparkle. “Thank you, it is.”
“I bet you are going to be great at it.”
“Fingers crossed. I’m excited, but also really nervous.”
“Don’t be. You’re good at real estate. I think you can sell any product you want.” I pause, a thought suddenly occurring in my mind. “Isn’t that the brand Jason’s athletes work a lot with?”
Her face tenses. “It is, yeah.”
I cock my head a little, narrowing my eyes in confusion. “So, if you don’t mind me asking, why aren’t you asking him for help?”
They were really close at Kayla’s birthday, and from what I got from Kayla, they went home together. Not to mention the fact that they have been friends since high school, while Julie and I have only known each other for a few months.
A deep sigh erupts from her lungs, her eyes closing briefly.
“Because I screwed that up.”