What Matters Most

by Longley, Barbara

  “Are you kidding me?” Greg leaned back in his chair and scrutinized Will. “So, are you asking if I want a piece of that?”

  “Yep.” He grinned. “I’m asking you if you want a piece of that.” If this sudden surge of excitement was any indication, this was absolutely the right thing to do. “Remember when we were at Harvard? When we weren’t studying, we talked incessantly about setting up a practice together. We were going to set the world on fire, avenging the wronged and downtrodden. Why didn’t we do that?”

  “Hell, yeah, I remember. We didn’t follow through, because you went after the money job.” Greg crossed his arms in front of him and arched a brow. “That was never my path. I went into law to make a difference. I’m not the one who derailed our plans, buddy.”

  When home on breaks, he and Greg had been inseparable, and Greg had spent time around Will’s parents. His parents had looked down their noses at the incredibly brilliant young man who’d come from nothing and earned a full fellowship at Harvard Law School. “Yeah, sorry.” Will cringed. “I got sidetracked, but you know what my family is like, the kind of pressure they put on me.”

  “And what? Your folks have recently changed their tune?” Greg’s brow rose to a sardonic crest.

  “No, but their plans for me … I just can’t do it anymore,” Will said, shifting in his seat. “Here’s the thing. If we do this, I’m not interested in working seven days a week or twelve-hour days. I need to get my priorities straight, and having a life is at the top of my list.”

  “I hear you.” Greg grinned from ear to ear. “We found out just this week Sondra is pregnant, and after waiting so long to start our family, you can imagine how thrilled we are.”

  Another surge hit his bloodstream, this one felt a lot like envy. “That’s wonderful! I’m excited for you two. You and Sondra are going to be great parents.”

  “Oh, I know. The point being, I’m not interested in working seventy hours a week anymore either. I intend to be there for my child—school recitals, ballgames, chaperoning dances, and bedtime stories. See, I made a promise to Sondra before she’d agree to marry me. I swore I’d be all in with parenting, just like my dad and mom were with me. Sondra grew up without her father in the picture, and she wanted to be sure she and I were on the same page when it came to what it means to be a family.” Greg grunted. “Hell, Will, we can bring on interns and associates to take up the slack.”

  “Do you want to keep it to just the two of us for now, Prescott & Fletcher?”

  “I like the sound of that, but maybe Fletcher, Prescott & Associates.”

  Will laughed. “We can argue about the name later. I’ll arm wrestle you for it, or we’ll flip a coin.”

  Greg waved the issue away. “We can bring on one or two attorneys and see how it goes. You buy the building, and I’ll bring in the clients to start. I have connections, and so does my wife. She’s been after me to do this since the day we said, ‘I do.’ ” He chuckled. “Lord, I love that woman.” His gaze sharpened. “Speaking of women, tell me about Josey? Is it serious between you two?”

  “It’s too soon to tell, but she’s been good for me. Jo is really supportive, and I enjoy being with her.” Not to mention he wanted her with a desperation that defied reason.

  “Is she on your mind all the time?”

  “Nah, only when I’m awake and when I’m dreaming.” Will shrugged and flashed his friend a dry look.

  “Do you find yourself smiling like a damned fool all the time?”

  “Pretty much,” he said, smiling like a damned fool.

  “Then it’s serious.”

  “I hope things are heading in that direction. We’ll see.” He and Greg ordered food, and spent the next hour hashing out the details and spitballing ideas for their joint venture. It would take some time before they could make the move, and dammit, he didn’t want to wait. He’d made a decision, and impatience poked and prodded at him to act. “How do you feel about renting temporary office space until ours is ready?”

  “I’m all for temporary space.” Greg pushed his empty plate away and leaned back in his chair. “I’ll look into finding us something. Realistically, it’ll take more than a year before you find, close on and renovate a building. I don’t want to wait that long before setting up our practice.”

  “Me either. I’d like to give notice by the end of June,” Will said.

  “In that case, we need to come up with articles of incorporation and a partnership agreement. You busy next Saturday? I propose we get together to begin the paperwork.”

  “I have a wedding to go to in the afternoon, but I’m free in the morning. We can get started at least.”

  “Your place? Otherwise, Sondra will hover and fuss.”

  “My place is fine. I’ll text you my address. By the way, where are you living these days?”

  “Sondra and I bought a house near the U of M Twin Cities campus near the river. She likes to bike to work when weather permits, and I like being centrally located between Minneapolis and Saint Paul.”

  “Makes sense.” They split the bill, decided on a time for their meeting Saturday morning, and said their goodbyes. As Will walked to his car, he couldn’t help mentally ticking off a few items from the list of changes he intended to make in his life. Excitement thrummed through his veins, and he couldn’t wait to talk to Jo.

  He stopped in his tracks for a second. How about that? He had a woman in his life, a woman who inspired and offered him support. She didn’t emotionally manipulate him, and she didn’t have a passive-aggressive bone in her entire body. With Jo, he was free to be himself, and that meant the world to him. Once he was in his car, he called her, syncing his phone through his car so he could drive.

  “Hey,” she answered. “What’s up? How’d your meeting with Greg go?”

  Just hearing her voice scrambled his insides, and his happy-idiot grin came back. “It went great. We’re forming a partnership and opening our own law firm.”

  “I’m so happy for you, Will. I have news too. I was going to wait until tomorrow, but since we’re sharing … I set up the meeting with our Haney & Sons shareholders for Tuesday morning, July third at eight. The week of the Fourth is usually slow for us because of the holiday, and everybody is available that morning.”

  “That’s great. I’ll put it on my calendar.” Talking to her on the phone wasn’t nearly enough. Not when spending his nights and making love with her constantly filled his thoughts. How amazing would it be to fall asleep with his arms around her? Whoa, too soon to be thinking like this. He and Jo still had a lot to learn about each other and more trust building to do. Besides, he knew Jo well enough to intuit she needed to be the one to make that first move. “Can’t wait to see you tomorrow.”

  “Me too.” She sighed.

  “What are you doing tonight?” If he had his way, he’d see her every day and every night and every moment in between. There went his pulse, and once again his blood headed south.

  “I’m on my way across the hall to help Kayla and her maid of honor put together wedding favors for the reception.”

  Disappointment squeezed out the breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding. “I guess I’ll have to wait until tomorrow then. Have fun.”

  “I guess.” She chuckled. “See you tomorrow.”

  They ended the call just as Will merged onto the freeway. He’d gone from dreading his interminable days to wishing time away so he could be with Jo again. Just as he’d suspected, his sexy plumber was good for him in every way that counted.

  “I’m guessing that was the first arts and crafts fair you’ve ever been to. So, what did you think?” Jo asked as Will walked her to her door. She went breathless as he drew her into his arms—her new favorite place to be, pressed against the man she was falling for with every fiber of her being. Her fears melted away when Will held her, and the ability to summon her defenses deserted her. He never pressed her for more than goodnight kisses. Still, with his brief skin-on-skin touches, he’d tea
sed her into a frenzy of wanting him even more.

  “Any time I get to spend with you is amazing, and I’m looking forward to seeing how the pieces you picked out look on my fireplace mantel.” He nuzzled her temple and kissed his way to her mouth. His warm hands found their way under her blouse to stroke the curve of her waist.

  She wanted those hands all over her. His kisses weakened her knees and made her throb for him. His tongue tangled with hers, and she gripped his shoulders to keep from slipping to the sidewalk in a boneless, quivering mass. That would be embarrassing.

  “Hey,” he croaked. “Are you doing anything tomorrow morning? I have an appointment with my realtor. He’s going to show me three commercial properties in the warehouse district, and I’d love to get your professional opinion. We can go out for breakfast first.” He drew back and gazed into her eyes. “If you’re free, that is.”

  “I’m free, and I’d love to look at buildings with you.”

  “Good.” Smiling, he smoothed the hair away from her face, kissed her forehead and then each of her cheeks. “Good night, Jo. I’ll come for you at nine tomorrow morning.”

  “See you then.” He started to walk away, and she couldn’t take her eyes from him. Screwing up her courage, she called, “Hey.”

  Will turned to face her. His hands in his pockets, he cocked his head.

  Her heart skipped a few beats. “I want to tell you something.” She could do this.

  He walked back to her and stood at the bottom of the steps. “I’m all ears.”

  Lord, she loved his intensity, like he listened to her with his entire being. “If you count all the times we’ve been to Lucky’s, and tomorrow, that’s what … six dates?”

  Will made a sound, almost a chuckle, but from a deeper place. “Yes?”

  Jo gripped the strap of her purse to keep from fidgeting. “I don’t know if I mentioned this, but Wyatt and Kayla reserved a block of rooms at the Saint Paul Hotel for their wedding. I booked a room, figuring with the open bar, it might be best to spend the night.” She bit her lip, and every one of her nerve endings crackled and popped. “What do you say? Shall we pack a couple of overnight bags?” She swallowed a couple of times. “You, me and a king-size bed?”

  Will strode up the steps and hauled her back into his arms. This kiss was anything but soft and sweet. His tongue swept into her mouth as if claiming her. He cupped her bottom and brought her close enough to feel his erection. His ragged breathing, the demanding possessiveness brought on a surge of wetness and a throb that reverberated through every inch her. Then he let her go. Damn. She wanted to invite him into her condo this minute, but waiting until the wedding, being together in a luxurious hotel for their first time seemed … so romantic.

  “Are you sure, Jo? I’m asking because spending the night together is going to change things between us.” Will ran his hands up and down her arms, his eyes meeting and holding hers. “Do you want me as much as I want you? If you have any doubts about us, now’s the time to speak up.”

  She nodded, then shook her head. Stringing words into coherent sentences was beyond her. Breathing was beyond her. A slow, sexy grin, a heated look, and he kissed her again. Oh, yeah. He’d gotten the message.

  “See you tomorrow.”

  She nodded again, eliciting another deep chuckle from Will, and then she forced her feet to move and her hand to put the key into the door. She floated up the stairs to her condo, glided through the door and drifted on a cloud to her bedroom. It wasn’t until she’d gotten ready for bed and snuggled between the sheets that the enormity of everything happening between her and Will hit her with gale force. She was doing this, letting down her guard and taking that leap of faith straight into Will’s arms.

  What if they didn’t last? What if she gave him her heart, and he decided he didn’t want it after all? Another rug would be yanked from under her feet. Panic rose; her poor heart pounded and her mouth went dry. She curled her hands into tight fists. Nope. Not gonna do this.

  Time to face her fears, because without taking risks, her dreams of a lasting relationship and a family of her own were unobtainable. She sucked in a long breath and let it out slowly. Dammit, no more repeating the whole “loss” experience. Not this time. Not with Will. She’d see things through, stand strong.

  Jo sat up, punched her pillow a few times and laid back down on her side. Closing her eyes, she tossed, and then she turned. Her mind continued its spin, robbing her of sleep. “Screw it.”

  She turned on her beside lamp and slipped out of bed. If she couldn’t sleep, she may as well read. Focusing on someone else’s fictional romance might take her mind off her own, and hopefully she’d be able to get a few hours of sleep.

  Jo checked herself in the mirror one last time before putting away her makeup and tidying her bathroom. Will would be here any minute to take her to breakfast and to look at commercial properties. She went breathless at the thought of seeing him again.

  Had she done the right thing inviting Will to spend the night with her after her brother’s wedding? She’d booked the room long ago while she’d been dating someone else. Good thing she hadn’t canceled the reservation.

  She couldn’t help feeling as if meeting Will had set a current in motion, and now the two of them were being carried forward toward a powerful convergence. She snorted. Might be time to take a break from the romance novels.

  Her buzzer rang, and her heart tap-danced along her ribcage. Oh, what the hell. She wanted the convergence, no matter what happened in the end. She hurried to her living room, grabbed her purse and headed out the door. Will stood in the tiny foyer, looking sexy as hell in jeans and a T-shirt. He sent her a smoldering look, and his slow smile did funny, erotic things to her insides.

  “Good morning,” she said. “Where do you want to go for breakfast?”

  “Since we need to be downtown, I was thinking The Buttered Tin on Seventh Street. Where would you like to go?”

  “That sounds good to me. I’ve heard of The Buttered Tin, but I’ve never been there.”

  Will leaned in and gave her a quick kiss. “You look lovely this morning. I vote we go out for breakfast frequently. In fact, let’s make it our thing—Sunday mornings, out for breakfast at least twice a month.”

  Our thing. He wanted them to have a thing. Her breath caught. “We could start a blog,” she teased. “Kind of a ‘best places to go for breakfast’ review site.”

  He reached for her hand, twining his fingers with hers as he led her down the street to his car. She studied him. “You know, you look a lot different now than you did when I first met you.”

  “Oh?” One side of his mouth turned up, and he looked askance at her. “How so?”

  “The dark circles under your eyes are gone, and you seem a lot more relaxed.”

  “Makes sense.” He opened the car door for her and crossed around to slide into the driver’s side. “I’m leaving work earlier, getting more rest, and I’m more optimistic about my future than I have been in years. Reconnecting with Greg, meeting you … it’s all been good.”

  Her heart flipped over the part about meeting her, and Jo laid her hand over his. “I’m so glad things are turning around for you.” Her stomach chose that moment to gurgle. As if on cue, his rumbled too. She laughed as she put on her seatbelt. “We’d better go eat, and you can tell me about the buildings we’re going to see.”

  As he drove them to the café, Jo took yet another step back and tried to look objectively at her current situation, checking in with her defenses. Will was fast becoming a significant part of her life. They talked and texted everyday, and they’d slipped into a routine of getting together between the “official” dates whenever they could. She woke with a smile every morning just because she knew him. She was ready for the next step.

  Over breakfast, Will showed her the printouts for the three buildings they were going to see, and they talked about the pros and cons of each one. Even though she had nothing to do with his new venture, she got
so caught up in the excitement she forgot all about the food in front of her. She picked up a piece of bacon and waved it in the air before taking a bite. “Have you thought about staff?”

  “Staff?”

  “You know. A receptionist, paralegals.”

  “Oh.” He sat back and drank his coffee. “Hadn’t gotten that far.”

  She slid one of the property descriptions out from the bottom and placed the sheet of paper on top of the stack. “The reason I’m asking is because this building has room for a daycare on the first floor. The space is large enough for a small indoor playground as well. I was just thinking about Haley. She’d jump at the chance to work in a building with a daycare located onsite.”

  Will nodded slowly. “Excellent idea, and I’d love to steal Haley away when I go.”

  They continued to study the three options the realtor had given him and finished their meals. Their server cleared away their plates and left the bill. Will put a couple of bills under the clip on the small tray. “Shall we go look at buildings?” he asked, radiating that endearing excitement again.

  Jo grinned. “Yep.”

  Soon they were parked at a meter in front of the first building on the list. This one had always been an office building amidst the warehouses. A Lexus pulled into the spot behind them, and a well-dressed, silver-haired man emerged.

  She and Will climbed out and met him on the sidewalk. “Jo, this is Michael Carrington; Mike, this is Josey Haney.”

  Jo found her hand engulfed in the realtor’s. “Nice to meet you,” she said.

  “Nice to meet you as well.” He let her go and raised a folder. “Listen, Will. A property just came onto the market this morning that I think would be perfect for what you have in mind. The owner had already completed a lot of the renovations, but he recently passed.”

  “Oh, no,” Josey murmured.

  “It is sad,” Mike said. “His family is eager to sell. This one is going to go fast, so if it’s all right with you, I want to take you there first.” Mike handed him a sheet of paper. “Take a look while we head over. We’ll go in my car.”