“Ah, that’s right. I seem to remember a certain someone having issues with flying. The more things change…”
“Thatwill never change. Been flying around the country for decades and I still hate it. Although, there was one flight where I didn’t seem to mind at all. Maybe it was the company I had.” He glanced over at me and smiled shyly.
“Maybe that’s the secret—hire me to be your personal travel buddy. Every time you have to fly somewhere, I’ll fly with you and do what I can to make the flight go easier.”
“Hmm, tempting. I do remember what happened after the flight being even better.”
My pussy clenched at the mention of our hookup. I bit my lower lip and felt my heart begin to race.
The smile faded from his face. “Sorry. That was a little inappropriate.”
“It’s alright. I mean, thatwaspart of our past. Not like it makes sense to pretend it didn’t happen.”
Great. The mental image of him over top of me, his powerful body flexing and tensing as he entered me over and over, was clear as day in my mind.
“Speaking of work,” he said, thankfully changing the subject. “How’s the business going for you? You were in graphic design, right?”
“Yep. And it’s going really well, actually. I’d been working for the same company for years, and now I’m starting to branch off and do my own thing. Well, Britt and I are doingourown thing. We’re still working with my old company and the client list we had, but as of a few weeks ago we’re totally freelance.”
That brought a smile to his face. “That’s great. Trust me, as someone who’s been running his private practice for years, you’re going to love working for yourself. Especially someone with as much of an independent streak as you.”
“I’m loving it so far. And the best part is that I get to work from home. I can stop work, pick up Mads from school, take her out for dinner, then come right back and continue to work. It’s perfect for my situation.”
He smiled warmly, as if he were genuinely happy for me.
“Then it sounds like you’re having all kinds of new beginnings. I’ll drink to that.”
He reached over with his glass, and I did the same. We tapped rims and drank.
“Thanks,” I said. “It’s exciting and scary all at once.”
“All the best things in life are. Anyway, I’m not sure what I can offer, but if there’s anything I can do to help you get settled in, or anything after that, let me know.”
There was something, actually. “You know of any good kid-friendly places in the area? Parks or restaurants or anything?”
He scrunched his forehead, thinking it over. “Not really. Well, there’s the dog park. I take Mick there all the time. But something tells me that Maddie already knows all about that.”
“You’re dead-on there. I swear, she’s got a radar for dogs. She spotted the one near here the second it was in sight.”
He chuckled. “The bad news is that you’re asking the wrong person if you want to know where to take kids. But I do have a couple of sisters, one of which is married with kids and doesn’t live too far from here.”
“You’ve got sisters?” I asked, surprised.
He nodded. “Yep, Greta and Veronica.”
The names sounded familiar. “Wait, if you’re named after Rudolph Valentino, then Greta has to be…Greta Garbo?”
Valentino smiled. “You got it. Any guess on Veronica?”
I shook my head. “Not ringing any bells.”
“That’d be Veronica Lake. A little more obscure, but classic nonetheless.”
“Your mom sure knew how to pick a theme and stick with it,” I replied.
“She’s stubborn—just like me. Anyway, I can ask Veronica what she likes to do with her kiddos. No doubt she’s got some good ideas.”
“That’d be amazing.”
