Jimmy

I woke with Ashley in my arms for the second morning in a row. Holy shit, I could get used to that. I pulled her body close to mine, clad in nothing but one of my shirts. I pressed a small kiss to the nape of her neck and watched goosebumps rise to the surface. She groaned and stretched, her leg pressing between mine. She was the most beautiful woman on the planet in the mornings. With her auburn hair tangled up and her sleepy green eyes trying to focus. She was raw in the mornings, untainted with the stress of work. She rolled over and smiled at me, and I smoothed her hair out of her face to help her see.

“Morning, Jimmy.”

“Good morning, beautiful.”

“You know you don’t have to call me that every morning, right?” Ashley asked.

“Fine. Good morning, gorgeous.”

She giggled and shook her head, her beautiful smile encompassing her cheeks. I saw a lot of her mother in her whenever she smiled. Meeting her mother yesterday had been such a treat. I knew she was nervous about it, but I hadn’t been. She had met Markus, who was more of a father to me than anything else, so it was only natural I meet her mother.

But I could see why she kept her private life away from her mother.

The topic of conversation didn't bother me. In fact, it actually gave me a few ideas for my own wedding. I could see myself eventually marrying Ashley. She was an incredible woman who warmed my soul as well as my body. Waking up to her these past two mornings had put the cherry on top of my weekend with her. I enjoyed every single moment I spent with her, and I enjoyed the intelligence and professionalism she brought to my company.

And as I gazed into her eyes that were reflecting the morning sun, my heart skipped a beat.

I was falling in love with Ashley, and I didn’t want it to stop.

“Coffee?” I asked.

“Mmm, sounds wonderful,” she said.

“You stay here and wake up. I’ll get up and make it.”

“If I could figure out how to use your fancy coffee maker, I’d make it for you.”

“Or you could stay in bed and be gorgeous.”

“Or you could get a pot coffee maker like everyone else,” she said.

“Now what would be the fun in that?”

I made my way into the kitchen and began making coffee. I pulled out a couple of bagels, toasted them, and spread a thick layer of cream cheese around them. I heard the pitter-patter of steps coming down the hallway, and I shook my head. I knew that woman wouldn’t be able to stay in bed much longer.

“Coffee and bagels? My hero,” Ashley said.

“Keep talking like that and my ego might blow the windows off this place,” I said.

“At least you’re honest about it.”

I looked over at Ashley and took her in. She’d thrown her hair up and stuck her glasses on, and she was more beautiful than I could’ve ever imagined. My button-down shirt hit her at her mid-thigh, taunting me with just enough of her curves to get my engines roaring. Her legs were smooth, and the sleeves were rolled up so she could use her hands. My shirt was baggy as hell on her, and she wore it with a pride I basked in.

“Coffee with cream and sugar for you, and a toasted everything bagel with cream cheese.”

“Hope you have a spare toothbrush I can borrow,” Ashley said.

“Don’t worry. My guest bathroom is full of things you can use to clean up,” I said.

“Do you have plans for the day?”

“Nope. Sunday’s the one day I take off from the company. Unless an emergency takes place, it’s my day to do as I wish.”

“Well, I have to go check on my puppy at the resort.”

“I didn’t know you had a dog.”

“I haven’t mentioned Chipper?”

“Nope.”

“Awww, I’m a terrible puppy owner. Yeah. I got him about a week or so ago. He’s a beagle puppy,” she said.

“I take it this resort you speak of is a place for him to go and play with other dogs?”

“It’s lots of things. They groom him and feed him, and yeah, he gets to play with other dogs. He gets pampered while he’s there, and it makes me feel less guilty that he’s there while I’m at work,” she said.

“I’d like to meet this puppy sometime,” I said.

“Well, once I move into my new place, we could stay there one night, and you can meet him.”

“When are you moving, by the way?”

“The end of next week. Saturday, actually.”

“I want to be there to help,” I said.

“You don’t have to do that, Jimmy.”

“Well, I’m going to, so there. What time?” I asked.

“Ten in the morning, but there are people helping me on the other end.”

“So what time do you need me and where?”

“Eight o’clock at my place?”

“Are you sure?” I asked.

“You’re a dick?”

“Possibly?”

She giggled over her coffee mug as my phone rang out into the apartment. I rolled my eyes and got up from my seat, reluctant to leave the beauty of Ashley behind. But when I saw it was Markus calling, I got excited.

“Hey, hey, hey, Markus. What’s up?” I asked.

“I take it you’ve already had your coffee,” he said.

“In the process, yes,” I said.

“Is that Markus?” Ashley asked.

“It is.”

“Hi, Markus!”

“You tell that beautiful woman I said hello,” Markus said.

“Markus says you’re beautiful and hello,” I said. “So, to what do I owe this morning phone call?”

“I wanna take you out to lunch.”

“I’m there,” I said. “Just tell me when and where.”

“Toro Toro? Around noon?”

“You want to eat at Toro Toro?” I asked.

“Hell, yeah, I do. I love that place. I don’t have to spend a hundred bucks on lunch when I can get great food there for thirty.”

“Toro Toro it is. I’ll see you then.”

“Sounds like a date,” Ashley said with a grin.

“I figured with you needing to go check on your puppy, I could get some lunch with Markus.”

“You don’t have to pass anything by me. I get it. He’s important to you. Even if I didn’t have something to do, I wouldn’t want you to feel like you had to turn it down.”

“You’re amazing, you know that?”

I bent down to kiss her cheek before I went to get ready. I could hear Ashley cleaning up in the guest bathroom, and a part of me wanted her to come in here with me, to stand at the empty sink next to me and get ready, to brush her teeth with me and get in the shower so I could get in behind her.

Hell, I’d miss lunch if that happened.

I took her home before heading to meet Markus. I was excited about seeing him again so soon. We had a lot to talk about, especially since he’d been gone so long.

“Took you long enough. Good thing this isn’t a business meeting,” Markus said.

“Good to see you too,” I said.

I embraced him and patted his back before I took my seat. It had been a long time since it had been the two of us, and I was ready for whatever was going to happen. I felt like a lost son finally finding his father in the woods or some shit.

Like I’d been scared, but he was now there to provide comfort.

“I take it that pretty lady stayed with you last night.”

“And the night before,” I said.

“I like her. You keep her. Otherwise, I’ll swoop in and claim her,” Markus said.

“I don’t think Jamie would like that too much.”

“You have no idea the kinds of things Jamie likes,” he said with a grin.

“You seem happy with her. How did you guys meet?”

“I took on a new investor, and she’s his daughter.”

I choked on my water as he threw his head back and laughed.

“I’m just kidding, Jimmy. We met at a bar. I was out with a couple of the guys from the board discussing some bullshit I didn’t wanna talk about, and she was sitting there all alone. Went up to her, struck up a conversation, and the next minute, we were falling into bed. Over and over and over again.”

“You guys got anything in common?”

“You asking because of our age difference?” he asked.

“Possibly. I want to make sure you're not getting swindled for your money,” I said.

“It’s nothing like that. If anything, I have to fight with her on getting her things.”

“Fuck, Ashley’s the same way. I can’t pay for a thing in her life without it striking up some sort of discussion.”

“That’s how you know you got a good one, when they fight you on spending money,” he said.

“To good women,” Markus said.

“Here, here.”

We clinked glasses as the waitress came to take our order. Markus ordered us a round of margaritas, and I rolled my eyes. It was always a party when he was in town, and I didn’t know why I expected this lunch to be any different.

“How did you and Ashley meet? And don’t give me this shit about work. I know you better than that,” Markus said.

“I actually met her at the last party I threw for the company,” I said.

“While you were still with Nina.”

“Not the best look, I know, and part of it was fueled by the alcohol, sure.”

“You were drinking at your own party? Must’ve been a hell of an accomplishment.”

“It was. It was around the time we were named one of the top companies in our field worldwide,” I said.

“Oh, that party. I got that invitation, by the way. But it was at the start of all this bullshit I’m having to deal with, so I wasn’t free to leave my post.”

“What’s going on with that, by the way?” I asked.

“Fuck, don’t make me go into it. I wanna enjoy my lunch before the heartburn sets in.”

“Spoken like a true old man.”

“You’ll get there one day, and I’ll be there to mock you.”

“If you’re still alive,” I said with a grin.

“You keep pushing those buttons, Jimmy.”

“You know I’m playing with you. I can hardly believe you’re fifty-four. You only look thirty-four.”

“I blame it on Jamie. She’s got me on this skin care bullshit. Moisturizing and wrinkle creams and masks and stuff. I couldn’t care less about the stuff, but she cares about a lot of my shit I know she hates.”

“Aw, she wants you to stay young so she doesn’t look weird standing next to you.”

“She calls me ‘Daddy,’ you know.”

“And that’s enough for today,” I said.

“Told you to keep pressing those buttons,” Markus said.

The lunch was wonderful. We talked about nothing regarding work and talked about everything else. Ashley. Jamie. How we all met and what we all thought of everyone else. We kept poking fun at each other and drank through way too many margaritas. We had to order dessert to soak up some of the alcohol before either of us could even think about driving anywhere.

It was almost three in the afternoon before Markus went to pay.

“Nope, this one’s on me,” I said.

“Give me that check.”

“You got dinner for all of us Friday night. I’m getting lunch.”

“But you got those drinks when I came into town,” he said.

“Still means it’s my turn to pay. You can get the next one.”

I paid the waitress, but Markus was hell-bent on leaving something. He dumped some cash onto the table on top of the tip I’d already left. I shook my head and held my arm out, waiting for him to make his way to the door. He kept stopping and talking to people like he’d known them for years, probably networking for his own business and trying to wrangle in new clients.

I’d never stop learning from that man.

“Pick up any new clients?” I asked as we headed out the door.

“Two potentials, yep. Set up some meetings with them.”

“You’re relentless,” I said.

“And what have I always told you, Jimmy? A businessman isn’t a career—”

“It’s a way of life,” I said.