Yet again, Pauline had performed better than any of his assistants in the past decade. “Thank you, Pauline.”
“You’re very welcome. The pleasure is all mine.” She emphasized the word pleasure, then her voice pitched a bit higher. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”
Keeping her at arm’s length was critical. He’d been down the dating-your-assistant road before—more than once, unfortunately. It never worked. He might even have to address the situation outright, but he hoped it wouldn’t come to that. He reminded himself to keep it strictly business. “That’ll be all. I’ll be in touch once I’m on the ground if I have any questions.” He hung up the phone just as the driver’s knock sounded on his office door.
Chapter 6
Calli
Calli stood by the front door, staring into the gray morning over a cup of creamed coffee. Upstairs, a series of footsteps rushed between the bedrooms and the bathroom—the boys hastily readying themselves for school. The clatter was music to her ears. Last night had been their first night back from Bennett’s, and she’d ordered gnocchi, Jax’s and Kent’s favorite, from the Italian place down the street. Having them back made her feel whole again. She was tempted to keep them home from school today but talked herself off that ledge. Powering through the separation from her two favorite young men was really the only way to get through their new arrangement, and she had to work.
The house smelled of warm cinnamon and sizzling pork. In the small hours of the morning, Calli had prepared cinnamon rolls, eggs, and sausage for their breakfast. Last night had been the first real snow of the season . . . the one that stuck and started the months of white that would blanket the city. Her boys typically ate cereal for breakfast, but she wanted Jax and Kent to have something warm before they stepped into the cold.
Thud . . . thud . . . thud. Kent ran down the stairs.
Calli looked away from the window to greet him. “How is Superman this morning?” She grinned. When she’d been pregnant with him, she and Bennett had argued relentlessly over names. It was to the point where she had believed that he’d be called Baby Boy Stockton, but a week before, she’d seen an author named Kent Rogers. When she mentioned Kent, Bennett had chewed his lip for a long time. Her mind had gone to Clark Kent and Superman, but apparently the name had sounded professional enough for Bennett and he’d agreed.
Kent rolled his eyes and made a disinterested groaning sound as he half-heartedly hugged his mother. Jax followed his brother down the stairs with a bit more grace and a lot less noise. The differences in two boys who came from the same genetics never ceased to amaze her.
“Hey, Mom,” Jax said.
“Good morning,” answered Calli, looking toward the kitchen where Kent had disappeared. “Let’s get breakfast.”
“Smells amazing.” Jax followed his brother, binding his hair into a ponytail.
When they had finished eating, the boys grabbed their backpacks, and she kissed them each goodbye on the cheek. “Have a wonderful day at school.”
Jax only smiled.
Kent let out his standard disinterested groan again.
Jax started the car, and each grabbed a brush to sweep snow from the car before they left.
Standing by the open door with the cold stinging her face, she waved and called, “I’ll see you toni—this afternoon.” Calli had made the decision mid-sentence to work from home. She had no desire to trek through the snow to the bus, and she certainly did not want to drive on the first snowy day of the year. Traffic would be a nightmare. She eased the door closed and flipped the lock into place before climbing the stairs to dress for the day. Nothing fancy, maybe some yoga pants and a frumpy sweater were in order.
Scooting up to her desk in her home office, Calli opened the computer and connected to her work network, then typed out an e-mail titled WFH. She made sure her boss and teammates were all included, then threw Jordan in the bcc line. They worked in the same office but on different teams.
Good morning,
With the snow today, I’ll be working from home. Available via normal means.
Calli
A trail of similar WFH e-mails came in from her coworkers and one from Jordan where Calli was in the bcc line. She deleted them all without reading . . . they all said the same thing. Her Outlook calendar indicated she was free until after noon, so she responded to the other questions and inquiries, then made a list of clients to follow up with. She called probably a dozen that morning before she heard a car outside. Confused, she looked out her office window to the driveway.
The door to the black Jeep Wrangler opened, and Jordan slid out. She slung a laptop bag over her shoulder and grabbed a paper bag and a Chinese take-out box. Kicking the door closed, she shuffled up the steps to Calli’s door.
Calli met her, relieving her of the takeout and led the way to the kitchen island. “What are you doing here?”
“Working from home.” Jordan smiled and dropped her computer bag on the chair. She hung up her coat and went to Calli’s cupboard to retrieve bowls. She handed one to Calli and kept one for herself, then fished out two large soup containers from the paper bag. “I never said whose home.” She raised her brows, then added, “Anyway . . . I thought Taom Yum was appropriate for a cold day.”
Calli’s mouth watered as she grabbed two spoons from a drawer.
“You doing okay? This is your second time working from home in a week. I wanted to check on you,” said Jordan.
“Everyone is working from home today.” Calli rolled her eyes.
“Still.”
“I’m fine . . . feeling wonderful, in fact, since Jax and Kent are back from their father’s.” Calli dumped some rice in a bowl and poured in the soup.
Jordan raised a brow. It may have been Calli’s imagination, but it formed an almost perfect question mark.
Calli gave a short laugh. “I’m telling the truth. Last Friday, I was wallowing, but today, I’m tight.”
“I don’t know why you’re upset over him.” Jordan lifted her bowl and took a spoonful.
Calli did the same, savoring the lemony broth and chewing an oyster mushroom. “I’m not upset over him. We fell out of love just after Kent was born. He had his first affair then, although he still won’t directly admit it started that soon. The signs were there though . . . once I figured them out and looked back. Well, anyway, we all know how things worked out.”
“Why’d you stay with him so long?”
She shrugged, not really wanting to go into all the reasons. “You know, marriage isn’t only about the intimacy.”
Jordan sucked in air to cool her mouth from the hot soup. “But it’s a really big part.”
“I know. We just got into a routine. I spent time at school functions and made friends with other moms. When he was around, he constantly was taking the kids to try new sports. Those nights, I had freedom to go out with you guys.”
“I guess . . . ” Jordan eyed her suspiciously. “You always were the first to instigate happy hour.”
“For the most part, I just kept myself busy enough that I didn’t have time to think about what was going on beneath the surface.”
“Call me crazy, but I just don’t get it.”