It Was Always You (Love Chronicles Book 1)

by Ashelyn Drake

  “No doubt lobbying for you to be hired instead of her.”

  “What?” I ask, finally sitting back in the seat.

  Paul stands and walks to the window. “You two had a lot in common. You both spoke more for each other than yourselves.” He turns his head to face me. “Why is it everyone around you two can see what you both can’t?”

  Relationship advice from my boss. I’ve sunk to an all-time low. “All I’m asking is that you give her a fair shot. Interview her again. She’s between jobs while Monohan gets his paper on its feet. It’s the perfect time to bring her in.”

  “Bring her in to interview for a position I’ve already filled? Dixon, this is insanity. It’s a waste of everyone’s time.” He moves toward his desk, opens the top drawer, and removes his wallet and phone. “I’m sorry, but my decision is final. If you don’t feel you can handle this position, let me know. But even if you leave, I won’t be filling your spot with Aria Carmichael. She doesn’t have the experience I need. Now”—he motions for the door—“if I don’t leave this instant, my wife will have my head for letting dinner get cold.”

  He can’t dismiss this. If Aria doesn’t come to work here... I stand up, but I make no move for the door. Taking a deep breath, I extend my hand to him, which he takes. “Thank you for the wonderful opportunity, but I’m afraid I’m not your man. I’ll send you my official resignation, effective immediately.”

  Paul’s brows pull together, deep lines creasing his forehead. “Nate.” It’s the first time he’s called me anything but Dixon. “Are you sure about this? I meant it when I said I wouldn’t hire Aria.”

  I nod. “I understand, but my place isn’t here. I’m sorry.”

  “I guess I should have seen this coming. Perhaps I’ve been out of the field for too long and that’s why the clues evaded me.” He gives my hand another shake. “Good luck to you. I hope you get the girl after all this.”

  “Thank you, sir.” I hope so, too.

  I walk out, not bothering to grab anything from the office I occupied for such a short time. I have no personal effects there. My wallet and phone are on me. Paul hangs back, even though he’s in a hurry to get home, and I can’t help wondering if he’s waiting to see if I’ll change my mind and beg for my job back. I won’t. The elevator arrives with Doris on board. She smiles at me.

  “My daughter had the baby early.” She’s beaming as she grabs my hands. She whips out her iPhone and pulls up a series of pictures. I’d be surprised if the baby wasn’t seeing spots for the next few hours after that many camera flashes.

  “Congratulations, Grandma!” I say, giving her a hug.

  She rushes off to show everyone else, and I call the elevator back. My eyes meet Paul’s as the doors begin to close. I give him a nod, which he returns. Maybe I am sacrificing my career, but jobs are replaceable. Aria isn’t.

  I dial Monohan as soon as the elevator stops on the ground floor.

  “Dixon, how the hell are you?”

  “I’m surprised Paul didn’t call you already.” I thought he’d pick up the phone the second I was in the elevator.

  “Oh boy. What did you do? Should I be sitting down?”

  “First, I want to thank you for recommending me to Paul. Second, I want to apologize.”

  “Good grief. You quit, didn’t you?”

  Nothing gets past him. “It’s complicated.”

  “No, it’s really not. Aria is coming to work for me and you two have always been a package deal, which means you want a job.”

  “I know I’m putting you in a tough position since Paul is your friend.”

  “You’re damn right!” He exhales loudly, surely for dramatic effect. “But what the hell? Paul can have his pick of great editors, and I need good people working for me. Aria’s taken the managing editor position, but the advertising manager is still left to fill. It’s yours if you want it.”

  “I do. Thank you.”

  “I’ll be in touch. But, Dixon?”

  “Yes, sir?”

  “Don’t mess this up. If I lose two of the best editors I’ve ever had because you screw things up with Aria... Well, let’s just say ‘pissed’ would be a major understatement for the way I’m going to react. Got it?”

  “I hear you loud and clear. Thank you.”

  “Go get her.” He hangs up.

  The entire drive home, I’m smiling. It doesn’t matter that I don’t know how Aria will react. I’m relieved to finally come clean. To finally tell the woman I love how much she’s always meant to me.

  I’m so excited I almost miss Aria’s form sitting on my front porch.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Aria

  My pulse races as Nate’s truck pulls into the vacant parking space next to my Accord. I think I broke every speed limit on the drive here from Delaware, making it in record time. The fact that I hadn’t unpacked at Mom and Dad’s helped, as did the fact that Dad had been expecting me to flee from the moment I arrived. He always could tell when I needed to be somewhere else.

  This is it. Aria Carmichael isn’t a quitter. I repeat Dad’s mantra over and over in my head as I watch Nate get out of the truck, his eyes trained on me.

  “Aria? What are you doing back here?” He closes the door and looks like he wants to rush me like a linebacker.

  “I need to talk to you.” I stand up, using the railing for support.

  He nods. “I need to talk to you, too. Let’s go inside.” He moves toward the door but stops to wrap me in a hug.

  I breathe in deeply, letting his scent fill me and give me courage.

  “I missed you. I know it’s only been two days, but...” He pulls away and looks into my eyes.

  “I know what you mean.” I smile and nod toward the house, not wanting to pour my heart out on his front porch, where his neighbors could easily overhear or see.

  He lets go of me and opens the door, holding it for me to enter first. “Sorry it’s a mess. I haven’t been home much to clean up or finish unpacking.”

  The pizza boxes from Monday night are still on the coffee table. If I had to guess, I’d say that’s what he’s been eating for breakfast. Good thing he has a strong stomach to handle food that should have been refrigerated. The notes I made for him are strewn along the couch, and boxes are stacked in the corner, all neatly labeled by the moving company.

  “I’m surprised you didn’t hire a company to move you in, too.” I laugh.

  “No point since I’m not staying.”

  I whirl around, not sure I heard him correctly. “What?”

  He tosses his keys on the coffee table. “I quit The Sentinel today.”

  “Why? After everything we did? All the research? Did the staff still—?”

  He grabs my arms and cuts off my words with a kiss. My entire body stiffens, not sure what’s going on. But then I remember why I’m here. Why I drove for three and a half hours to see him. This right here.

  I press my hands to his chest and kiss him back. Our tongues dance, perfectly in tune with each other. He moves us toward the couch, swatting at the papers and sending them flying everywhere. One falls directly in my lap when I sit, and I laugh.

  Nate pulls away and laughs with me. “Sorry. This place could use a woman’s touch.”

  “Nate, I—”

  He presses a finger to my lips. “Let me explain, okay?”

  I nod, and he lowers his finger. His chest rises as he inhales. I watch it fall, and then he starts.

  “I’m not sure what’s been going on between us lately. Why things started changing and getting...complicated.” He shakes his head. “I know I pushed you and it made you question us.”

  He didn’t push me. It was the other way around. I came on to him. “It was me. I was drunk, and I crossed that line.”

  His face falls. “Are you saying you only slept with me because you were drunk?”

  “No.” I hold my hands up in defense. “I mean, that was part of it. I don’t know exactly. Believe me, I wanted it to ha
ppen. I really did, but then... I didn’t want to lose my best friend, and I was afraid our random...encounters would ruin this.” I motion back and forth between us. “This means more to me than you’ll ever know.”

  He takes my hand, sandwiching it between his. “Aria, we’re not in college anymore. Why do you think I never pursued this before?” He pauses, but I know he’s not really looking for me to answer, so I let him continue. “Because I knew you were it for me. I couldn’t admit my feelings until you were ready to hear them and ready to accept that it’s you and me. Together. As best friends and as a couple.”

  “I want that, too.” God, it feels good to finally admit that, but it’s not that simple. Something is still bothering me.

  “I know you’re about to say ‘but.’” He squeezes my hand. “You don’t have to. There doesn’t have to be a ‘but.’”

  I close my eyes, trying to gather my thoughts to make this as clear as possible. “I can’t let you lose this job for me. It’s what Drake did, and he resents Stephanie for it.” Once the words are out, I meet his gaze again.

  “Drake?” His eyes shift upward, searching for a memory. “Do you mean Drake Malloy? When did you see him?”

  “At my parents’.” I wave the thought away. “It doesn’t matter. What’s important is that you can’t sacrifice your career for me.” I get up and start pacing, the nervous energy overwhelming me.

  Nate stands up and steps toward me, his hands finding my hips and rooting me on the spot. “I’m not. I called Monohan on my way home, and he agreed to hire me as the advertising manager of his new paper.”

  “But that’s a step backward.”

  He presses his finger to my lips to stop me. “To be honest, I’m not managing editor material. I don’t want to run every department. I want to be in advertising. It’s what I went to school for, what I do best. The hours are better, too.” He shrugs one shoulder. “But most of all, I’m not moving backward at all. For the first time, I’m taking a huge step forward.” His hands rise and cup my face. “You’re my future, Aria. You always have been, only I’ve been too afraid to say it or go after it. Being with you is more important than any job will ever be.” His mouth dips closer to mine, but he pauses mere centimeters away. “I love you.”

  My heart skips a beat, and warm tears of joy fill my eyes. “I love you, too. I think I always have.”

  His lips meet mine, softly at first and then with more passion. All the time we spent questioning our relationship and tiptoeing around the subject has made this long overdue. I wrap my arms around him, and he breaks the kiss long enough to grab my legs and wind them around his waist. He carries me upstairs to his bedroom, kissing me the entire time. When we reach the bed, he lowers me onto it, his body hovering above mine.

  “Is this okay?” he asks.

  “More than okay.” I smile and bring my lips back to his. Without the cover of a few drinks, we allow ourselves to explore our feelings as well as each other’s bodies.

  Nate undresses me slowly, like he’s trying to commit my image to memory. I do the same with him, and we stare at each other in appreciation for a moment before he lowers himself back onto me.

  Even though it’s not our first time together, it feels like it is. It feels like the first of many. Nate and I fit together so perfectly in every way. I’m not sure why it took us so long to get here. But I guess the saying is true. Some things really are worth the wait.

  Epilogue

  Aria

  The office building where Mr. Monohan set up For the Record is close to my apartment and Last Call, making it the perfect place to work for several reasons. We had a lot of planning meetings at the bar so the staff could get acquainted. Of course with Nate, David, Emily, and I back on board, some introductions were unnecessary. David was promoted to news editor, and Emily is the opinions editor. It’s safe to say the editorial staff will work quite well together.

  It took a little while to get the office into shape, but it has a very open feel to it. Instead of the cubicles being in a row like at Priority News, they’re arranged in groups of four, so the staff is facing each other. Mr. Monohan and I both have large offices with walls and doors, a first for me. I’m getting used to the extra space, which I’m sure will come in handy when I need to request a special meeting with Nate. Mr. Monohan even sprung for a mahogany desk and leather chairs for me. I’m also enjoying the great view from my office, though I chose to position my desk so I could look out onto the news floor and see everyone else. The fact that Nate’s desk happens to be conveniently located outside of mine might have something to do with that.

  We’ve all gathered in the meeting room, where Mr. Monohan has a spread of assorted donuts, pastries, and muffins. At the head of the table, Mr. Monohan holds up a glass of punch, which we all swear Emily spiked, especially since her response when we asked was, “No comment.”

  The murmurs die down and everyone looks to Mr. Monohan.

  “I want to thank you all for coming on board with me as I launch this paper. It’s always been a dream of mine to start my own press, and yes, we will have weekly newspapers in addition to being online.”

  Cheers ring out and cups of red punch are raised in the air. Mr. Monohan nods in approval. “I guess it’s only fitting that we raise our glasses to Marjorie and Oliver Strauss for making this all possible.” He winks at me, and the former Priority News crew exchange glances since we’re the only ones who know what happened weeks ago. The others are probably assuming one newspaper helped another get on its feet, and in a way that’s true. We all saw the sinking ship and swam for a better one.

  “To new beginnings and better times ahead,” I say, standing up and raising my glass. Mr. Monohan encouraged me to take a leadership role so the staff writers saw me as his right-hand woman, and I plan to do exactly that.

  “To new beginnings,” Nate says from his seat beside me.

  “Now, let’s eat this food and get to work,” Mr. Monohan says with a smile.

  I sit down, and Nate kisses my cheek. “Good work, boss.”

  “You’re really okay with me being your boss?” I ask.

  “Definitely. I love my job here, and you deserve this.” He leans in closer and whispers, “Are you okay with the fact that I’m madly in love with my superior?”

  I turn my head and press my lips to his. “Yes, and so you know, I won’t be bossing you around. Despite the difference in job titles, we are equals in my mind.”

  His mouth brushes my ear. “I don’t mind a little bossing around, but I’d prefer if it happened at home in our bedroom.” In one swift motion, he presses a kiss to my neck and stands up. I’m not sure anyone saw it, but I definitely felt it. My entire body is on fire with desire for that man. I watch him walk over to Mr. Monohan, and I take another sip of punch to cool me down.

  “How’s life living with Nate?” David asks, bumping his shoulder into mine in the seat next to me.

  I look over my shoulder at Nate laughing at something Mr. Monohan said. His dimple surfaces, drawing my attention. His eyes flit to mine, conveying how much he’d love to blow off work and rush me back to our home. He won’t, though. Not after Mr. Monohan gave him a second chance.

  “That good, huh?” David says with a laugh.

  “It’s only been two weeks, but it’s going great.” Waking up in Nate’s arms every morning is pure heaven. I think it was fate that kept him from getting back into his former apartment. The place was rented out again immediately, and neither of us complained. After waiting to be together all these years, there’s no such thing as moving too quickly. Living together seemed like the perfect next step.

  “I can see that. And I saw that little maneuver he pulled, kissing your neck. I made a mental note to try that with Emily.” He eyes his girlfriend, their relationship having become official days before at a meeting we all had at Last Call.

  “How am I going to deal with my staff all dating each other?” Mr. Monohan asks, coming up behind us with Nate in tow.


  Nate stops behind me, placing his hands on my shoulders. I cover one of his hands with mine.

  “I’ve got these two pawing each other and sneaking kisses when they think no one is watching, and David and Emily making googly eyes at each other all the time.” He claps his hands together to get everyone’s attention. “This is a damn newspaper, people. Let’s get to work!” While his tone is authoritative, it’s filled with warmth. He’s genuinely happy to have us here.

  Everyone files out, and Nate follows me to my office, closing the door behind him. “I love that you have an office.”

  I walk around the desk and swipe the touch pad on my laptop to bring it out of sleep mode. “You love that I have four walls and a door that locks.”

  “Isn’t that what I said?” He walks to me and takes my hands from the computer, resting them over his shoulders.

  “Do you know what I love?” I ask.

  “Me, hopefully.” He kisses my neck.

  “Yes, that’s true, but it wasn’t what I was thinking.”

  “Were you thinking this?” He kisses my neck again, finding the spot that drives me crazy.

  “That, too, but no.” I cup his cheek and make him look at me. “I love that all of this feels right, natural.”

  “Because it is. This is exactly where we’re meant to be. It just took one of us longer than the other to see it.” He winks and gives me a devilish smile.

  I shake my head. “No. Not really. Even when I was with Aaron—hell, even with Drake before him—it was always you, Nate. I was afraid of jeopardizing what we had to pursue it.”

  “Thank God we’re not stupid college kids anymore.” He drapes his arms around my waist.

  “No, we’re not.”

  “And for the record, I knew it was always you all along.”

  I roll my eyes. “Nate.”

  “Yes, boss?”

  I smile. “No more arguing about who knew what and when. Just kiss me.”