Chance Encounters

“I got hired as staff!” Caroline shouted into the phone.

Jackson laughed at her enthusiasm. “Congratulations, babe! That’s great!”

“I know! I’m so psyched. I just had to tell you.”

“Well, I’m glad you did. Can I call you later?”

Caroline realized that Jack

son was in the middle of handling some business and although he didn’t want to blow her off, he really needed to go. She smiled at how considerate he was of her feelings.

“I’ll call you! Talk to you later,” she conceded.

“Okay. Hey, Caroline?” Jackson asked.

“Yeah?”

His voice radiated affection. “I’m proud of you.”

Caroline bit her bottom lip with excitement. “Thanks, Jackson. Call you later.”

She found more happiness in his reaction than she could have imagined. She realized there would be no getting him out of her head now.

Still beaming from her promotion, Caroline walked through her apartment door that evening and yelled out Clay’s name. When only silence greeted her, she took a quick shower, changed into her pajamas, and then snuggled into the couch.

When her cell phone rang she answered it absently. “Hello?”

“Hey, babe. Just calling to let you know I’ll be pretty late tonight. Probably won’t be home before midnight. You okay?”

“I’m fine. Go back to work,” Caroline assured him.

“I love you.”

Caroline smiled. “I love you, too.”

Once she ended the call with Clay, she calculated the time difference in her head and thought for a second that it was probably too late. It was after eleven p.m. there, but she dialed his number anyway. The phone didn’t even ring twice before she heard Jackson’s thick, deep, slightly accented voice. “Caroline,” he said and chills coursed through her body.

“Hi,” she said, half nervous, half confident. Her body wouldn’t stop shaking.

“So, how was the rest of your day?” Jackson asked through a crackled reception.

“Amazing! How was yours?”

“Not amazing,” he joked. “Hey, are you alone?”

Caroline laughed. “No, my boyfriend’s sitting right here.”

“Funny. No really, are you at home?” he asked seriously.

Caroline answered, “Yeah, I’m home. Why?”

“Just wondering how you can call me if you’re home. Are you hiding in a closet? You are, huh?”

She laughed out loud. “No! I’m in the bathroom!”

“You are, aren’t you?” Jackson teased.

“No!” she continued to laugh, “Clay’s at work. He’s gone most nights until pretty late.”