Nathan
Nathan wished the night would go on forever. He wished that the dawn would never come. If he had the power, he would have frozen time so that he and Holly could stay in this moment forever.
But he had money, not power over time, and dawn came as expected.
He lay in bed, his eyes closed against the sunlight, his arms wrapped tightly around the woman of his dreams. He didn’t know how she did it, but she just got better and better.
They’d talked all night when they weren’t busy exploring and enjoying one another’s bodies. She made him laugh. She’d listened when he spoke. She told him of her favorite books and why she loved to teach. When he told her things, she nodded and understood. Never once throughout the night did he feel judged or inadequate. Now that it was morning, he found himself wishing they had another day.
Usually, he was already out the door and forgetting their names by now.
But not Holly. Holly was different. The way she smiled at him was real. The way she laughed at his jokes was sincere, especially because she didn’t laugh at all of them. He loved the way she looked at him when she thought he couldn’t see.
Was it possible to fall in love with someone in just hours?
He sighed. She wouldn’t come to San Francisco before Christmas. He’d tried a couple more times, but she was firm. She had a community that depended on her. Responsibilities at home. There was apparently a parade and of course her father’s Christmas party.
He was sincerely considering having her come out after the holidays. He could probably get away between meetings. He could pass more tasks on to Lucy. That thought made him grimace. He gave her too much of his responsibility as it was. She had done so much of the work around combining these tech companies. He didn’t doubt her abilities, but it did make him nervous how much power he was giving her.
That made him think of Holly’s request to look into ECT. He’d given that company to Lucy. It was supposed to be his responsibility, but he had so many things on his plate with RentTech. A move was a big decision. He didn’t remember approving the company to move, but given how stressed he’d been this past month, it was a possibility.
Either way, it was concerning. He was going to have to look into things as soon as he got home. Lucy did a good job, but she wasn’t hired for this kind of thing. He needed to make sure she wasn’t overstepping her boundaries.
The thought made him tired. He’d needed this weekend getaway more than he realized. He was tired. The job exhausted him. He didn’t really want to go back, to be honest, but he didn’t know what else to do.
Money was everything. This was his job. This was whe
re his money came from.
Before he could give it more thought, the beautiful woman sleeping beside him stirred. She sighed with contentment, nuzzling her head onto his shoulder. She fit like a long lost puzzle piece.
“Good morning,” she whispered, her voice husky with sleep.
“Good morning,” he agreed. He stroked her soft hair with his fingers, memorizing the way she looked. If nothing else, this weekend had been good for his soul.
“What time is it?” Holly asked, purposefully not opening her eyes. “Tell me it’s midnight and not morning.”
“It’s midnight and not morning,” he repeated dutifully.
She chuckled and opened one beautiful green eye to look at him.
“It’s a little past nine. We still have time.”
Checkout was soon. She was leaving then to avoid the traffic and get home before dark. He had things he needed to do today as well.
She sighed, this time with disappointment. “Did it snow more?”
He shook his head. He’d already checked. The roads were clear. It was a beautiful Monday morning and the sun was shining. It was supposed to be a beautiful day.
“Maybe you could call in sick?” he offered.
“Tempting,” she told him, nestling back into his shoulder. “But I’m out of sick days. Plus, it’s the last week of school before break. The kids are expecting me. I can’t.”
He admired her dedication, even if it meant less time. It didn’t matter anyway. They were just pretending at this relationship thing anyway.
He wasn’t meant for happiness like that.
He sighed. The magic of the weekend was wearing away. Soon, he too would have to return to work. It was a beautiful escape to a dream, but they both knew it was time to wake up.