Question 1: Do you have things in common with your crush?
So much!! or We don’t talk much
I circle the first.
Question 2: Do you have any inside jokes?
So many!! or We don’t really talk enough to have any
So many exclamation points.
It takes me a moment to think. Hope and I talk a lot, every night before I go to bed and when she wakes first thing in the morning. I’ve made adjustments to my schedule, so I’m not stuck in a meeting or something in the morning. At first, my colleagues were pissed because I blocked out every morning for the next few months, but they’re getting over it. She’s doing the same for me and making sure she’s free at night to talk before I go to bed. The time difference is a killer, but we’re adjusting.
Question 3: Could you see your crush turning into something more serious?
OMG!! or Not my thing
Should I tell Hope I’ve already looked at rings? It wasn’t like I purposely went out looking. I happened to be in Rockefeller Center and walked past Tiffany’s. There was a woman gushing about the window display and I stopped to see what the fuss was. I understood immediately because even I was impressed with the ring on display and could easily see it on Hope’s finger.
I give up on this test because it’s stupid. It’s too young for me. I flip to the front of the magazine to make sure I’m reading Vanity Fair and not Seventeen. Sure enough, but this edition must’ve been edited by the high school editorial team.
As soon as I get off the train, I set the magazine on the bench for someone else to read and head toward the stairs, taking them two at a time. My mind is elsewhere. I work a bit longer most nights so I can try and get ahead, although it’s near impossible with my job. It’s so fly by the seat of your pants in the moment that I can’t really look ahead, unless I’m doing a deep dive on some corporation that might be in trouble in the next couple of months.
Taped to my office door is a note from HR. My heart drops to the floor and back up. What could they possibly want?
I set my bag down, pull my laptop out and slide it into the docking station. My five-monitor set-up comes to life. The screen in the middle is where my daily everything takes place, emails, meetings, all the fun stuff. The monitors on the side, stock market for every major region. Reaching for the letter, I rip the envelope open and pull the folded sheet of paper out.
Kellan,
Please take some vacation time before you lose it.
I’m not a man who needs to be told twice, although like Hope’s job, there really isn’t a good time to take vacation. Still, I pull up one of the cheap sites for airline tickets and type in my destination to see what comes up. Prices are freaking amazing but there’s no way I can make a decision without talking to Hope. Showing up unannounced, while it sounds romantic, would piss her off, and that isn’t something I’m willing to do.
The alarm on my phone goes off and I smile. Hope is awake, out of the shower and has had her first cup of coffee. I set my phone up on my desk and press the video chat button. It rings five times until she picks up.
“Good morning,” she says. “I need a minute, I’m not dressed.”
“Let me see, please.”
Hope laughs. “You saw last night.”
I laugh in return. “I know but I need to see you every day.”
Hope adjusts her phone and shows me her chest. She moves the phone back and forth until it comes to her bright pink towel. “Have you seen enough?”
“Never. Show me more, please?”
“Is your door closed? I don’t want any of your co-workers busting in.”
“Shut and locked,” I tell her.
She smiles and slowly pulls the terry cloth away to reveal her creamy skin, her perfect breasts, curvy hips and the sweet spot between her legs where I long to be.
“Lassie, you’re killing me.”
“Hey,” she says, bringing the camera back to her face. “You asked.”
“I know. I’m a glutton for punishment.”
“I’ll spank you for being naughty,” she says, giggling.
“Speaking of. What do you think of me coming out to Phoenix for a few days? I have some vacation time saved up and I know you’re busy, but I figured I could explore during the day, find out why you love the city so much, make you dinner. I just want to be in the same space as you, Hope.”
I expect her smile to disappear because she is busy, and her workload is heavy. It doesn’t and in my opinion, it gets brighter. “When would you fly out?”