“God Jules. What about your children?”
“Oh, please, they were visiting Jack’s parents. Give me a little credit, won’t you. We did it in practically every room in the house, in the greenhouse, in the yard and the tool shed. Oh, the tool shed… that was hot.”
“The yard? Right there out in the open?” I was aghast. “What if the neighbors saw you guys… you know… going at it?”
“I have needs.” She flatly retorted.
I closed my eyes and opened them. “Jules, can we get back to my problem? I don’t need any more visuals of you and… Christian? That doesn’t even sound like a gardener’s name.”
“Sweetie, I’m sure it’s not his real name. That’s part of the game.”
I groaned and rolled my eyes. Jules was a good friend and always had good advice, but sometimes that advice was only good for Jules. Still, the possibility of breaking my engagement with Chip, like Aedyn suggested, had crept further into my mind. Was I like Jules; bored and looking for some excitement? Or were my feelings for Aedyn real? Getting it out in the open and talking to Jules hadn’t brought a decisive conclusion. She was pushing for me to make my own decision, but I was deathly afraid of making the wrong one. I’d done that in the past. Maybe I should leave this one up to destiny and it would make the decision for me.
“If you go, when would you leave?” Jules leaned forward. “Because I gotta get my story straight in case Chip asks questions afterward.”
“I still don’t know if I should…”
“And don’t worry, I’ll stay clear of him while you’re gone,” she added.
I bit my lip and said, “Tomorrow… if I go.”
“Damn, girl.” Her eyebrows shot up when her phone buzzed. “Hey, I gotta go…”
“I know, I know. The gardener.”
“Let me know what you decide about Chicago. It’ll be okay, just do what your heart tells you to do.” She stood and gave me a quick hug and walked off with her eyes glued to her cell phone screen.
Before I returned to my apartment, I decided to stop in the insurance office and say hello to Chip. My pulse picked up when I walked through the door, knowing I was about to tell him a huge lie—well, maybe—if it felt like the time was right. I needed to see him in person, look at his face to get an accurate reading before I could gauge his mood. I was going with my gut on this one, but wanted to feel out the situation before dropping the idea on him of going out of town. If he appeared agreeable and in a good mood, I might be able to do it. I took a deep breath as I walked past my empty desk. I could hear him shuffling papers and banging drawers in his office in the back. He must not have heard me come in, because when he finally looked up from stuffing folders into a brief case, he looked startled.
“Lauren, what are you doing here?” He froze with one last folder in his hand, then quickly shoved it in the briefcase and slammed the lid shut.
“Hey. Just thought I’d drop in and surprise you.” And that’s exactly what it appeared I’d done. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw me. “Surprise!” I tried for levity, but couldn’t stop my curiosity. “What are you doing?” He shot a glance at the briefcase and set it down on the floor behind his desk. “It looks like I’ve caught you on your way out. Do you have somewhere to go?”
I took a step forward and he clicked off the computer screen on his desk without shutting it down properly, making it go black. Then he walked around to greet me with a light kiss. “Oh, not right now, but yes, I do have somewhere to go tonight.” He took me by the arm and began steering me out of his office while saying, “Let’s go out front, I’ll tell you all about it.”
This was strange. I could see the nerves dancing inside Chip’s eyes as he rushed me into the other room. He was clearly absorbed in something urgent related to his work, but that was good, it might soften the blow.
He stopped me at my desk and leaned on the edge of it, folding his arms across his chest. “I’m actually glad you dropped by. I was going to call you and let you know that something’s come up and I won’t be able to have you over tonight.”
Now it was my turn to look surprised. “Oh. I hope everything’s okay. That’s kind of strange for a Friday night.”
He unfolded his arms and rubbed the back of his neck. “Sort of…well, you see I’m afraid I have to go to the city. I need to put in an appearance at this fund raiser event and…”
I furrowed my brow, playing along, when inside I was jumping for joy. He said, “I” not “We”. I wasn’t expected to go with him. I had the perfect opening now to make my suggestion. Thank you, Lady Luck!