Alex finishedher shower after work and hurried to get ready for her Wednesday dinner date with Fin. She had worked late both nights so far this week, even missing volleyball on Tuesday, and was looking forward to seeing him. She dressed comfortably with minimal makeup. As she got ready, she reflected on the last three days.
What a nightmare. She’d worked with Jackie in IT to compile a list of software packages they wanted and put in requests for quotes with their vendors. All but one had responded, and she’d updated the project budget accordingly. She’d pushed back her CEO’s requested update while waiting on this final estimate, but if she didn’t get that quote early tomorrow, she would either have to fudge the number or omit the software from this year’s budget.
Her team was in shock at the speed they were moving with the plan for splitting the PMO from their financial support team. As she suspected, when given the option, neither Grace nor Sam were interested in changing, but Natalie was all in. While she was enthusiastic, Natalie wasn’t qualified to be a project manager, but her skill at identifying unspoken requirements definitely showed her potential as a business analyst.
Alex had spoken privately to Grace yesterday about taking over as manager for the GFS support team. Grace had been stunned, flattered, and a little overwhelmed, so Alex left her thinking about the offer with the promise to circle back on Thursday.
As she finished applying her lip gloss, Alex checked her watch. Time to go. She closed her eyes and stood still for a moment, willing her body to let go of the run-run-run mode she’d been in for three straight days. In that short time, she’d accomplished an enormous amount, and fatigue pulled at her as if she were recovering from running a marathon. Tonight, she could relax and be stress-free. She hoped. She hadn’t seen Fin since Sunday, when she’d asked him for some space. They’d talked over the phone and exchanged texts here and there, but the topics were light or a simple matter of passing information to each other. The butterflies in her stomach reminded her the discussion tonight would be deeper.
Alex squared her shoulders, added her phone and lip gloss into her clutch, retrieved the bottle of wine she’d picked up on the way home, and walked to Fin’s apartment. She knocked three times and entered when he answered from inside.
The savory smell that greeted her immediately took her back to meal time at the ranch and her mom’s home cooking. “Oh wow, it smells wonderful in here.”
“Alexis… come on in.” He kissed her cheek as he took the wine from her. “Let’s open this so it can breathe, aye?” He deftly opened the bottle and set it aside, then turned back to her.
“Hi,” Alex said.
“Hi, yourself,” Fin answered as he pulled her into his arms. “I’ve missed you.” He didn’t give her time to answer before covering her mouth with his. The heat rushed up from her toes as she pressed against him. Her arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him closer.
Fin pulled back. “I see you’ve missed me too,mo leannan. And as tempted as I am to explore that, I need to finish our dinner so it doesn’t burn.” He smiled down at her.
Alex cleared her throat. “Right.” She grinned. “Let’s not burn down Eddie’s garage.” She moved toward the stove. “What smells so delicious?”
“Ah, let me show you. We’re having grilled pork chops, grilled asparagus, and twice-baked potatoes. Gabe let me borrow that stupendous grill by his backdoor—which is fantastic, by the way. I took down the make and model so I could get one for my place back home.”
Alex grinned at the enthusiasm that showed on his face as he described Gabe’s grill. He acted like a little boy discovering a new toy. She set the table and poured the wine while he pulled the potatoes out of the oven.
The food was delicious. As they ate, Alex apologized for missing volleyball on Tuesday and told Fin how her bosses had taken her idea and run with it, making things crazy at the office.
“I mean, talk about taking it to the next level,” she said in between bites. “Wanting this first effort to be the basis for a bigger operation later means I have to get there faster than I had originally planned. I thought we’d be growing the department slowly as the demand for our services increased. Now they want everything up and running by January. This vision? It’s like they took my already accelerated time frame and demanded hyper-speed. Ugh, I’m exhausted just thinking about it.”
“But you’re excited about it, right?” Fin asked.
“Thrilled! But, ya know… exhausted too. It’s like how you feel on a roller coaster. Terrified and holding on for dear life in between screaming with joy.”
They grinned at each other, and Fin raised a toast to her success.
She sipped her wine, then asked, “So how was volleyball?”
Fin updated her on the latest gossip with her friends. Apparently, Andy had a new girlfriend and people weren’t sure how they felt about her. Fin had played a few matches, filling in for missing teammates, and they’d all sang happy birthday to Alex’s new teammate, Julie.
Alex laughed at the stories Fin told, and the meal passed pleasantly. Once finished, Alex moved to pick up their plates, but Fin stopped her. “Nope, sit down.” He took the dishes from her and moved back to the kitchen area. She tried to see what he was doing, but he actively blocked her view with his body.
He returned carrying two bowls and set one on the table in front of her. It held angel food cake covered with strawberries, some kind of red liquid sauce, and a dab of whipped cream.
“Dessert!” he proclaimed. “Gabe told me this was your favorite, and I missed your birthday earlier this month. Happy birthday!” he declared with a flourish.
“Yum.” She rubbed her hands together in anticipation. “Yeah, my birthday was the week I was in England, a few days before we met. My coworkers took me out pub-crawling where we danced our hearts out. This is way better though.” She bit a generous portion and moaned in appreciation.
Fin leaned forward and wiped at her mouth with his thumb, showing her the whipped cream he’d collected. She licked her lips to get any leftover cream. She watched him swallow and his lips part. Warmth poured through her body like liquid magma.
“Eh, okay.” Fin cleared his throat. “Let’s finish our dessert before it becomes inedible.”
Agreed, Alex thought. They needed to talk about things, and it wouldn’t happen if they wound up in bed too soon. She grinned to herself that ending up in bed was definitely on the menu—it was simply a question of when.
Fin told her about his exchanges with Addie and Mac and how they’d be meeting in Los Angeles next week. As they finished dessert and cleared the table, Fin talked about his schedule for the weekend and some obligations he had coming up over the next few weeks related to the film. Luckily, they were nearing the end of the promotional campaign, so the activity was winding down, with only a few events remaining.
Alex realized he was setting the tone for discussing the future. They moved to the living area where Fin turned on the stereo system. She smiled as soft jazz filled the air, comforting and relaxing. He was attempting to make it easy for her. She appreciated it.
