Oliver stood before the tee, golf club in his hand, gazing out over the green with his eyes narrowed into slits and his mouth pressed into a thin line. “You know, you’d think that along with inheriting an obscene amount of money, decently acceptable golf skills would be inherent in my blood, but somehow those seem to have skipped my generation.”
“Maybe it’s your swing.” Alexander smiled at his best friend.
“Maybe it’s my over abundant gayness.” Oliver mused thoughtfully.
“Not at all. Being gay has nothing to do with how well you play golf, but I’d certainly attribute it to your fabulous fashion sense. You’re the best dressed man out here, by a long shot.” He paused as Oliver stared at him.
“Is that supposed to be a golf joke? A long shot?” Oliver narrowed his eyes at Alexander then.
“Where the hell is the drink cart when you need it desperately? Can I buy you a drink? Cosmopolitan? Whiskey? Shirley Temple?”
“Kiss my gay ass.” Oliver state dryly.
“I suspect strongly that your husband would object to that.” Alexander laughed softly.
Oliver brought his arm back and then let his driver fly, smacking the ball and sending it flying down the green, hooking it sharply to the right. “Well hell. Maybe we should have gone furniture shopping today. You know, I found this great place on Capital Hill. You’d love it. Vintage perfection in every corner. So worth an hour or two.”
“Do you want to whack that one out of the rough or call it a drop?” Alexander asked, walking up to the tee and placing his ball delicately on it. He too gazed down the green and then brought his club back behind his shoulder. As he began his swing, Oliver answered him.
“Drop, of course. I’m not taking these designer pants into the bush.” It was drier than his last comment, and Alexander snorted and choked at the same time as he began laughing so hard that he dropped his club and fell to his knees, burying his face in his arm as he lost it.
“You bitch,” he cried as he laughed and wiped the tears from his eyes.
Oliver shrugged with a straight face. “Well, now both of our balls have dropped. Let’s move on, shall we?”
Alexander was laying on the ground weeping tears as he roared laughing, struggling to breathe.
When he finally calmed down, Oliver, who was leaning nonchalantly on his golf club, reached a hand out to him to help him up. “This is really the only reason that I come golfing with you. You know that, don’t you?”
Alexander nodded. “Ditto, my friend. Ditto.”
They started the hole again and Oliver looked at Alexander as he set his ball on the tee. “So how are things going with your new lover and co-worker? I’m so proud of you, by the way, for hiring her as fast as you did. Listening to me is always the smartest thing that you could do.”
Alexander laughed and nodded. “I know that, that’s why I listen to you. You’re not always right, but you are never, ever wrong.”
“Damn straight.” Oliver nodded once. He focused on his ball as Alexander caught him up on the latest in his life.
“Well, as you know I hired her, which has suddenly become the only thing that everyone in the industry can talk about besides her revision of the app. I put her in the office across from mine. We’ve decided to keep everything strictly business, so no romance, which has been really tough for both of us. No one knows about her dancing background; they just think she’s a whiz kid college student and so far, everyone loves her; especially Rosa, which is a good thing.”
Oliver flung his club at the ball and it went sailing down the hill and landed about thirty feet away in the middle of the green. “That is the best thing. Rosa is the glue that holds that whole place together.” He planted his hands on his hips and lifted his chin as he considered the placement of his ball. “Would you look at that? My father would be so proud. It’s straight down the middle.”
“He’d have been prouder of that straight shot you sent down the pool table last time we played. That ball went farther.” Alexander gave him a sympathetic eye.
“Right you are,” Oliver said indifferently as he turned to face Alexander. “I want you to know that I fully support you having a romantic relationship with Callie. I don’t think that you two should deny yourselves that. You both want each other, and the hell with protocol and social norm nonsense. The hell with what everyone else thinks. Do you think if I cared what anyone else thought that I would be as happy as I am right now with Josh? No. Definitely not. I’d still be weeping in therapy. Instead, I am gloriously devoted to the love of my life and we are both much happier. Nothing about anyone else makes their opinion matter in your life. No one else is living it but you, so do whatever makes you happy as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone else.”
“Thank you, Oliver. I appreciate that.” Alexander said thoughtfully, considering his friend’s perspective carefully.
“You’re welcome. What other purpose could I possibly be here for in your life if not to leave little pearls of wisdom along your life’s path, like so many coins in a fountain.” He looked directly at Alexander and his tone grew more serious. “I also think you should have Callie in the meetings with your prospective partners. She’ll offer you a different perspective. She has no allegiance to anyone but you, Alexander, and she’ll be the most honest.”
“I think you’re right, my wise friend. Thank you.” Alexander gave him a genuine smile.
***
Callie was going through the mail as she sat at the kitchen table one morning and her hand froze as she saw the envelope she was holding. It was from the Washington Department of Corrections.
With trembling fingers, she opened it and slid the letter out of it. It was printed on thick stationery, and it felt as official as it looked. Her eyes moved slowly over the words. She didn’t want to miss any of them or misunderstand anything that she was reading.
Johnathon Vicks was to be released from his prison sentence as a result of good behavior, and his sentence would be satisfied, pending six months of probation after his release.
Callie read the letter, and then read it again, and again. Tears formed in her eyes and rolled down her cheeks, and emotion caught in her throat. “Mama! Mama!” She called out loudly. Her mother came into the kitchen with concern written all over her face.
“What baby? What is it?” she asked worriedly as she sat down in the chair beside Callie.
Callie swallowed hard and looked up at her mother. With a trembling hand, she passed the letter to her. “Vick is getting out of prison.”
Noel’s mouth opened fully and her eyes went wide. “No! No… that can’t be!” She took the letter and pushed her reading glasses on, looking over the page in her hand twice before she set it down on the table and shook her head.
“I can’t believe this. It just isn’t possible.” She pulled off her glasses and rubbed her hands over her eyes. With a heavy sigh she laid her hand on the table and looked at her daughter. “I didn’t think they were ever going to let him out. He shouldn’t be out.”
“Well, he’s getting out,” Callie said in a low whisper.
“Let’s wait and see what happens. He’s not out yet. Maybe it will work out.” Noel said with quiet, half hearted optimism.
Callie shook her head defiantly. “No! We can’t wait to see what will happen. We can’t just sit here and hope that this goes away! He is a very real danger to all of us, no matter what the state thinks!”
“They think he’s reformed by the look of it.” Noel sadly gazed at the letter.
“Oh Mama! You know that’s not possible! What are we going to do if he comes her after Jenny?” Callie felt as if her heart was going to break right in two.
Noel sighed and rubbed her eyes again. “We’re going to wait and see what happens.”
“I’m not going to wait. I have to do something.” Callie jumped up from her seat at the table and began to pace back and forth through the kitchen, thinking on it as hard as she could. She finally came to a stop and picked up the phone, dialing it swiftly, punching her fingers against the keys.
“Oh please answer… please…” she murmured as she closed her eyes and hoped with everything in her.
“Callie! What’s up sis?” Jack asked with a bright voice.
Her eyes flew open and she gasped with relief. “Oh thank god. I’m so glad you’re home.”
His tone changed immediately. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
“I just got a letter from the state department of corrections. Vick is being released.” She’d said it with a level tone, though she felt anything but level headed at that moment.
Jack gasped. “No.”
“Yes. I couldn’t believe it myself. I’m just a basket case over here. What on earth are we going to do? What if he comes here looking for Jenny? Mama said just wait and see what happens, but you know that we can’t do that! What are we going to do?” She felt her throat tighten and her eyes sting with tears again.
“I’m on my way home. I’ll send you my flight times as soon as I have them.” Jack said in an ice cold tone. It gave Callie a shiver.
“Jack! Really? You’re coming home? Just like that? Oh thank you! We need you so much right now! Are you sure?” She asked, still in amazement that her brother would come back that fast.
“I’ll be on the next available flight out.” Jack said, his voice still as cold as steel.
“Okay. I’ll be ready to get you from the airport. Thank you, Jack. Love you. See you soon.” She breathed a sigh of relief. No matter what was happening with Johnathon Vick, she wasn’t going to have to face it alone or with only her mother there at her side. Her twin brother was coming home and there was no one she would rather have at her side when she was facing Johnathon Vick.
Jenny came twirling out of the hallway, her hair in a bun and her ballet bag on her shoulder. She was wearing all her new ballet clothes, and carrying her new pointe shoes in the bag. “Okay! I’m ready! Let’s go do this thing!” She sang out excitedly.
Noel and Callie looked at her in surprise, both of them struggling to come back to the present.
“The audition!” Callie gasped, lifting her hand to her mouth. “Yes… yes! Yes. The audition. Mama. Let’s go take Jenny to The Sleeping Beauty audition.” She turned and looked out of the window. “It’s raining. Everyone grab a hat.”
They headed out to the academy and Callie forced herself to be present in the moment and share in all the excitement and fun with her little one. Looking in the rearview mirror, she gave Jenny a smile. “Are you nervous? How are you feeling?”
Jenny looked upward, giving it some consideration. “I’m half nervous and half excited. Or maybe like three parts excited and one part nervous.” She was quiet a moment thinking about it. “Nah, I think I’m half and half. This is my first big audition, and I’m ready for it, but I really want it to go well.”
“Awe honey, you’re going to do so well! I know you will. Don’t you worry about it, just go out there and have a good time. Do what you love to do and don’t think about anyone watching you, just put that beautiful smile on your face and go. Okay? That’s all you need to do.” Callie told her with a widening grin. It was working. Just watching Jenny beaming in the backseat was making her happy, and at least for that afternoon, she could her worry about Vick’s release from her mind.
Callie and Noel sat in the audience with the other parents who were present.. They watched as each child came out, spoke their name and the role for which they were auditioning, and then danced for it. They held each other’s hands and their own breath as Jenny twirled around, spinning and leaping, performing her arabesque and her grand jeté en tournant. She grinned brightly, her eyes on everything but the people in the audience. It looked to all of them as if she was dancing alone, all to herself and was completely unaware of anyone else in the room.
When she was finished, she bowed low and thanked the audience, and then walked gracefully off of the stage. She went to sit with Callie and Noel and cheered on all of the other children who auditioned, no matter which roles they auditioned for, including her other friends who also auditioned for the role of Aurora.
When the auditions were over, they thanked the instructors and Miss Maria, and left. Jenny walked out with one hand holding tight to Callie, and one hand holding onto Noel.
“We thought you were the very best, but we love you, so we always think that,” Callie told her with a smile. “How do you feel that you did?”
Jenny breathed a happy sigh. “I did my best. I guess we see what happens. They have to choose the best dancer for the role. It might not be me, but I did my best. I know I’ll be in the production, so I just have to wait and see what role I’ll be dancing.”
Callie smiled in surprise at her. “You’re quite a grown up young lady, do you know that? I’m so proud of you, and your mommy would be, too.” Jenny raised her eyes to Callie and glowed from the compliment.
They hadn’t been home longer than half an hour when the phone rang. Noel answered it and then held her hand over the mouthpiece with an excited smile. “Jenny! It’s for you, it’s Miss Maria! Hurry honey, come quick!”
Jenny ran to the phone, looking as if she might throw up, she was so nervous to get the call. Callie and Noel waited nearby as Jenny talked with Miss Maria. Her hand went over her mouth and her eyes turned red and filled up with tears as she lowered her head and looked down at her feet. She nodded silently, listening to her teacher, and then she did her best to swallow her emotions and wipe at her face.
“Yes, Miss Maria. I understand. Thank you.” She managed to croak out, and then she hung up the phone and turned to look at Noel and Callie.
“Well?” Callie asked in anticipation as she held tight to her mother’s hand.
Jenny began to cry again, her eyes spilling over once more. “I got the role of Aurora! I’m the lead in the production! I just can’t believe it! I got it!” She cried and then she yelled out, “I got it!” and she jumped up and down for a few moments before she sank down into a kitchen chair and wept with tears of happiness and relief.
Callie and Noel went to her and held her, and then held each other, and rejoiced together.
***
Alexander stepped into Callie’s office the next morning and sat down at the chair before her desk. She smiled at him and he grinned back at her. There was no denying the connection between them, but they were both doing their level best to maintain a strictly professional relationship.
“Good morning!” Callie greeted him happily.
“Good morning!” He replied, pausing for a moment. He seemed lost in thought, staring at her and she tilted her head a little.
“What’s on your mind?” she asked in a gentle voice.
“On my mind…” He repeated quietly. “I was actually just thinking of the first morning that you and I spent together. When we…” He trailed off and cleared his throat, looking out of the window for a moment. He rose from his chair and walked over to the windows, pushing his hands down in his pants pockets before turning to face her.
“I’m sorry, it was totally inappropriate of me to bring that up.” He gave her a half smile. He reminded her of the first time that she had seen him, sitting in the strip club with his tan trousers and his tan and red suspenders over his white button up shirt. She was charmed thinking back on it.
“What can I do for you?” She eyed him curiously.
“Well, we’re meeting with two prospective partners today, and I thought you should sit in on those meetings. How would you feel about that?” He lifted his brows halfway between hope and optimism.
“If you want me there, I’ll go. I don’t know how much help I’ll be, though.”
“I think you’ll be of great help, actually.” He gave her an encouraging smile.
“Then I’ll join you. When are they?” she asked, reaching for her calendar.
“In about ten minutes.” He grimaced. “Sorry for the late notice.”
She laughed at him and looked down for a moment, shaking her head. “No problem.”
She raised her eyes to meet his again.
Callie stood up and picked up her tablet and phone. She was getting more comfortable not only in her office, but also in the Summitech Corp offices, and she was enjoying being there. Rosa grinned at her and gave her a wave.
“Good morning, you two!” She winked at them.
“Good morning, Rosa!” They chorused back to her, and she chuckled at them, watching them over the tops of her glasses.
Alexander walked with Callie to the kitchen to get a cup of coffee and then they headed to the board room. He sat at the head of the table and he had her sit to his right. A few other people joined them, and Alexander leaned over to Callie and spoke quietly.
“We’re meeting with Tony first, and then we’ll meet with Janine.”
He gave her a reassuring look when the shadow of panic washed over her face at the mention of Tony’s name. Alexander shook his head. “It’ll be okay. Don’t worry about him.”
She nodded, but she didn’t feel like anything would be okay. A tall thin man with horn rimmed glasses and a tweed jacket walked into the room and took a seat at Alexander’s left hand side. He eyed Callie with a narrow gaze and then reached across the table to introduce himself.
“You must be Calista Forrester. I’ve heard so much about you.” He said evenly. “I’m Norman Wainwright, the company attorney.”
She frowned at him in surprise. “Oh, hello, Norman. It’s nice to meet you. Please call me Callie. Everyone calls me Callie. I don’t think I remember the last time someone called me Calista.”
“Callie, then.” He said indifferently and turned to talk with the man on his other side. Alexander leaned over to her and gave her hand a squeeze.
“I love both of those names. They suit you.” He smiled and she smiled back at him and decided to let it go.
Tony Barretti walked through the door looking in much better shape than the last time that Callie had seen him. He stopped in his step for a moment as he stared at her and then looked over at Alexander. “So you really did it.” He said in a surprised tone. “I wasn’t sure if the rumors were true.”
Alexander stood and shook his hand. “Callie turned our main app around and put this company on a global map. I snapped her up as fast as I could. She’s a real asset to this company and our head team.”
Tony’s gaze left Alexander and rested on Callie for a moment. “I bet she is.” He half smiled and she saw his eyes drop to her breasts, which were covered but noticeable in the blouse she was wearing. She cursed herself for not wearing a blazer that day to cover herself more, but at the same time, she hadn’t known that she was going to be seeing Tony again.
She tried to push away the fear that he might say something to anyone there or anyone at all about her stripping days. The rest of the company respected her and she dearly wanted to keep it that way.
Tony Barretti presented his case to them all, glancing now and then at Callie with a look in his eyes that was indistinguishable to her. She could not tell at all what he was thinking, but she hoped with everything in her that it was good.
When he was finished, he looked at everyone in the room as proud as a peacock, as if he had just offered them the golden goose. He thanked them for their time and shook Alexander’s hand, followed by Norman Wainwright’s hand, and then he left them with his chin in the air and his chest puffed out.
Alexander called a ten minute break before the next meeting, but he stayed in his seat. Norman rose to get a cup of coffee, but he gave Alexander an almost authoritative, fatherly look as he spoke. “I think this next meeting won’t be much more than a courtesy meeting. It’s obvious that the best that we’re going to do is Tony. We should have just signed the contract while he was here. The rest of this is a waste of time, to be honest.”
Alexander stood up and looked at Norman in the eye. “We will see what Janine has to say, and we’ll make the best decision for the company based on the best applicant after that.”
Norman twitched his nose and walked away to the breakroom without another word.
The meeting resumed and Janine McCartney walked into the room. She said hello to everyone and set a box of gourmet cupcakes and donuts in the middle of the table.
“I thought you might like a treat. Sometimes these meetings are easier to get through with frosting!” She laughed lightly and made her way around the table, shaking each person’s hand and introducing herself to the people she didn’t already know.
When she got to Callie, her eyes grew wide and she grinned brightly. “You’re the wonder woman!” She exclaimed with delight. “What a tremendous pleasure to meet you! You’re the talk of the tech world and after looking at your work, I can see why! I understand that you’re still in college for a bit longer, is that correct?”
Callie nodded and smiled at her. “Yes, for a year or so. I think it might be sooner if I can manage it.”
“Well no matter what, I wish you the best of luck. I have a lot of admiration for you.” Janine said it directly to Callie with a soft voice, unconcerned with whether or not anyone else in the room heard her.
She shook Alexander’s hand last and then turned to speak to the room. “I want to thank you all for having me here today and for taking the time out of what I know are very busy schedules to see me. I will make this succinct for your benefit!” She chuckled lightly and headed for the opposite side of the table from Alexander and began her presentation.
Fifteen minutes later she thanked everyone for their time and she was cheered and applauded. She passed out coffee gift cards and said goodbye to everyone with a smile, a handshake for each, a sincere thank you, and then she left.
Alexander ended the meeting and then walked with Callie back to her office and closed the door. He stood with her near her desk and slid his hands into his pockets, gazing at her intently. “I’m interested to know what you think about the meetings and what your opinion is about what we should do.
Callie bit at her lower lip for a moment and Alexander watched her, caught his breath and looked away from her. She drew in a breath and spoke.
“I’m not sure that my opinion should matter as I’m so new here, but I thought Tony was overinflated and pompous. I think he’s not a team player, and there seems to be a great deal of team atmosphere here. He talked a lot about what he wants to do and not much about what he wants the company to do as a whole. I think he’s very self-focused.
I think that Janine is interested in the entire organization as a whole, as well as each person individually, and I think she has a team mindset. She’s inclusive. She is kind and thoughtful, smart and funny, and she’s humble. I think she would be a great partner to have. If I was going to choose, I would choose her.” She stopped there as she had nothing more to say about it, and Alexander looked back at her and nodded.
“My best friend Oliver told me to put you into the meetings and to ask you what you thought. He said your perspective would be unbiased and he was right. That’s a very honest and refreshing position, and I agree with it completely. I believe we’ll go with Janine.” Alexander gave her an earnest smile.
“You talked to your best friend about me?” She asked in surprise.
Alexander nodded. “Oh yes. Do you have a best friend that you talk with about practically everything?”
Her mind immediately went to Amanda. “I… um… yes.” She answered quietly. It was the simplest response.
“I talked to him about you, because I can’t stop thinking about you.” Alexander took a few steps toward Callie and closed the distance between them, looking into her eyes. He raised one hand and traced his fingertips down the side of her cheek slowly. “Do you have any idea how difficult it is to be in the same place as you, to be near you, and not touch you? Not reach out and kiss you?”
He drew nearer to her, so that his nose was nearly touching hers. “I breathe in your perfume if I get too close, and it takes me back to the hotel, to you being in my arms and me being surrounded by that scent and feeling the most intense pleasure that I’ve ever known. I watch your eyes dance when you laugh, and I’m completely enchanted with you, I want to see you laugh more or do anything to make you happy.
I see your sweet lips when you smile, and I want to kiss them, I want to taste you again just like I did on that first night, when you kissed me at the door and took my breath away. I’ve inhaled you and I cannot seem to exhale and let you go. I’m drowning in you, and there is nowhere else I want to be, no one else that I want to be with, except with you.”
Callie’s heart pounded in her chest and blood rushed in her ears. His words filtered through to her like sunlight dappling through the dark, and her breath caught in her chest. “Then kiss me.” She answered, for there was no other answer, no other thought or action, except to feel his lips against hers and to taste him once more as she had so longed to do.
He did not hesitate. In the next breath Alexander pressed his mouth to hers and slid his hands behind her head, pulling her close to him and kissing her tenderly. She gasped as his tongue found hers and they lost themselves in each other.
“I’ve wanted this so much…” She whispered against his lips, drinking him in.
“So have I,” He replied. “I cannot stop thinking about you, watching you, desiring you…” his hands moved from her neck to the buttons on her blouse, which he began to undo as he trailed his mouth down her throat and she held fast to him, her eyes closed and her body catching on fire. “Needing you so much…” he murmured against the swell of her generous breasts as he peeled her clothes from her.
Her breath came short and quick as she pulled his clothes from him as well, her hands and her mouth searching out his flesh as the ache in her grew stronger for him. He took her to the soft leather sofa against the wall of her office and reached up with one hand to lock the door as he pulled her down onto the thick cushions, spreading her legs open beneath him.
Alexander canvassed her breasts and belly with his hands, his ravenous mouth following along behind them, and then brought his lips back to hers and kissed her passionately as he slid his erection into her slowly, filling her and making her gasp. His kisses quieted her soft moans, and he began to move in her, holding her tightly as she lifted her hips to meet his, wrapping her arms and hands around his shoulders.
“I’ve barely been able to think of anything else but this…” he thrust the fullest extent of himself into her and moved again and again as she wrapped her legs around him, “anything but you, Callie… “ He whispered her name and kissed her again as their orgasms began to rise in them.
“I want this to last, I want to make love with you for hours on end, until we can’t move…” He whispered softly in her ear as he kissed her neck and drove himself into her faster and harder, kissing her moans away as her fingers dug into his back with wild, erotic release. “The next time I’m inside you, it’s going to be that way. I promise.” He groaned as quietly as he could and buried his face in the large cushion of her breasts as she held him close to her heart.
“I don’t care that this is fast,” she murmured in his ear, “I needed you no matter how it happened, and if you want a next time, there will be a next time.” She promised him as she gasped with intense pleasure.
“I want endless next times with you.” He whispered as he closed his mouth over hers and they held each other tightly as the both lost themselves in the tumultuous release of their orgasms, gasping hard and gripping one another as if they were holding on for dear life, until their breathing began to slow along with their pulses and their hearts, and they gazed at each other and smiled.
“I can’t believe we did that in here.” She laughed quietly.
“You need a bigger sofa. I’ll see to that this afternoon.” He winked at her and kissed her again, softly and slowly as his hands moved over her body like a sculptor appreciating his work. “You amaze me without limits and I cannot get enough of you.”
“I feel exactly the same,” she said softly, and then pressed her full lips to his for a long moment.
They rose reluctantly from the sofa and redressed, and he raked his hand through his hair as he began to pace across the floor. “I don’t care what anyone thinks. I really don’t. You know what? To hell with the rules. I want you and I don’t give a damn what another living soul in this world thinks about that. I want you to be mine. Be my lady. Please.” He went to her and took her hands in his, gazing at her imploringly.
Her heart broke inside of her as she looked back at him and shook her head. “I can’t do that. I’m so sorry.”
Alexander stared at her. “Why not? What… what’s keeping you from saying yes?”
Callie sighed. There was no way to keep it from him. It was time to come out with the truth. “I have a daughter.”
He blinked in utter shock and his mouth fell open slightly. “You… you what?”
She sighed and leaned back against her desk. “I have an adopted daughter. My best friend died in a terrible car crash four years ago, and left her little girl behind. We’d been best friends since we were ten years old. If I hadn’t stepped in, her little girl would have gone into foster care. I had to do something. I adopted her. She lives with my mother and me.”
Comprehension dawned on his face. “The responsibility… the reason that you started doing exotic dance because you had to make money… it was her, wasn’t it? Your best friend’s daughter?”
Callie nodded. “That’s why.”
Alexander nodded and pursed his lips together. “I understand. I definitely understand. That’s… that’s a perfectly understandable reason.” He went to her and kissed her softly once more, gazing into her eyes for a long moment, and then he turned and walked out of the door.
She felt a knot forming in her throat and she closed her eyes, wishing that things could be different, and just as she was wishing it, the door of her office was flung open and Alexander came striding back in.
He walked right up to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “No, that’s not going to work. You know what, I don’t care if you have a little girl. I think it’s incredibly admirable of you that you took her on, and I would be glad to meet her and know her, especially since she is so important to you. I am not about to lose a chance at any kind of pure happiness with you, and as far as I’m concerned, this little girl of yours is a bonus.” He brought his hands to her cheeks and held her face, his eyes locked on hers.
“I want you, Callie Forrester. I want you to be mine, and your family right along with you. Say yes to me. Please, say yes, you’ll be my lady, and we can figure out the small details together.” He kissed her softly and then looked at her again. “Say it, Callie. Say yes.”
She laughed at him sweetly then and nodded. “Yes. Yes please over and over again, yes.” She lifted her chin and kissed him, and he kissed her back, with the door wide open behind them.
They heard a few gasps, and he lifted his mouth from hers and smiled at her. “I guess we’re official now, and the whole world is going to know it. I couldn’t be happier about that.” He grinned, and she hugged him tightly and buried her face in his neck.
From out in the hall they both heard Rosa. “Finally! Yes!” And they laughed softly.