by White, Karey
“Shocked.”
“Which sign did he decide to use?”
“There were different signs?” I looked at Angus. He smiled and shrugged.
“Uh, oh. Maybe I wasn’t supposed to say that.”
“I’ll show you when we get home,” Angus said.
Will’s voice got quiet. “Gina wants to know if you’re glad you went back.”
“Very.”
“She’s glad,” he said to Gina.
“Good,” I heard Gina say. “Tell her we love her. Tell them both.”
“We both love you,” Will said.
“You know what I meant,” Gina said, laughing.
“We love you both. Talk to you soon.”
Even though my parking place was covered, wind had drifted snow so high, my car was almost unrecognizable.
“I’ll help you dig that out in the morning,” Angus said. He drove around the lot to his parking place. He picked up several pieces of cardstock from the back seat when he pulled out my suitcase. I gave him a questioning look and he held them up. “My sign options.”
The cold bit into my skin and burned my eyes as we walked up the flight of stairs to my apartment.
“I used the key you left my parents and turned the heat up before I came to get you,” Angus said. I was glad. The apartment felt warm and cozy, the way home should feel.
I took off my coat and put it on the back of one of the stools. “I can head home if you’re tired,” Angus said.
“No way are you heading home yet. I want to see those signs.”
Angus took off his coat and put it on the back of the other stool. I pulled him to the living room and we sat down, facing each other.
“Don’t let these freak you out,” he said.
“I’m not going to freak out.”
“Don’t be too sure. You haven’t seen them yet. Let me explain what I was thinking.”
Angus held up the first sign. It read “Charlotte.”
“Ooh.” I pretended to tremble. “I can see what you mean. That’s pretty freaky.”
“This should make you happy. I didn’t write Chuck or Charles or even Charlie.”
I nodded seriously. “I do appreciate that.”
Angus held up the second sign. It was the one he had held at the airport. “My girlfriend.”
“I almost didn’t use this one,” he said.
“Why?”
He shrugged. “Girlfriend sounds like we’re seventeen or something. It’s such a cheesy word.”
“I love cheese.” I leaned forward and kissed him on the mouth. “And I love this sign. Can I keep it?”
“I don’t need it.”
“Can I keep all of them?”
“You might not want the last one.”
“Why not?”
“Because this is the one I was afraid might freak you out.” He held it close to his chest. “In some ways it felt like this one would be okay because we already know practically everything about each other. But in another way, it seemed like it might be assuming a lot, considering our history.” With every word, my heart raced faster. “That’s why I didn’t use it, even though I seriously thought about it. I don’t want to scare you off. But don’t worry. I don’t have unrealistic—“
“Angus. Be quiet and show me the sign.” Angus took a deep breath but still held the paper against him. “Please?”
He slowly turned the sign around.
“The Future Charles Barclay”
I caught my breath. “I was not expecting that.”
“Sorry. Are you frea—“
I cut off his words with a kiss.
Charlotte
One Year Later
“Hey, Charlotte. You got a minute?” Margaret Atkinson, my project coordinator at Hallmark, stood just outside my create space. It was really just a slightly larger than average cubicle, but Margaret thought the word cubicle stifled our imaginative spirits, so while most of the Hallmark designers worked in cubicles, Margaret’s team worked in create spaces.
“Sure.”
“Let’s go down to the conference center.”
Margaret was a tiny woman with short legs, so I slowed my pace to match hers.
“Have you and your husband found a new place?” Margaret asked.
“We found an adorable little house in Gladstone last weekend. I think we’re going to take it. It’s about the same distance from the hospital, but it will make my commute a lot easier.”
“That sounds perfect.” She sounded a little more enthusiastic than I would have expected.
I didn’t recognize the two other people in the conference room, but they seemed to be expecting us. Margaret shook their hands and then turned to me. “This is Charlotte Barclay. She’s the one who submitted the proposal. This is Doug Johnson and Ellery Standifer.”
So this little impromptu meeting was about my proposal? I tried not to act too excited.
“Charlotte, it’s good to meet you.” Mr. Johnson said.
“You, too.”
“I loved your proposal.” It was Ms. Standifer. “What a brilliant idea. And what a great way to give back to the community.”
“Tell us how you came up with the idea.”
I sat forward in my chair. “A little over a year ago, my husband had a patient with a condition that required he be in traction for almost two weeks. He was only six years old, and after about a week, he was beside himself. He was depressed and angry and was acting out. It was hard for him and his parents, especially his mother, who was there with him almost all the time. At the time, I was working at Imaginarium, and Angus had the idea that maybe I could do one of the craft projects I was doing with the children at Imaginarium with this little boy. He took to it immediately and the rest of his stay was pleasant. He just needed something fun to do to take his mind off what was happening to him.”
“I’m glad you submitted the proposal,” Mr. Johnson said. “We’d like to launch a program that would be in conjunction with Imaginarium and we’d like you to be in charge of it.”
Ms. Standifer slid an envelope across the table to me. “We’d like you to design a variety of projects that would be easy to take into hospitals in the community, things that children will enjoy and can make their stay a little more interesting. Obviously what’s entertaining for a small child will be boring for an older child, so you’ll need to come up with a variety of projects that would be appropriate for different age groups. We’ll provide the supplies and you can work with the hospitals to tailor the program for their needs.”
“We’ll leave it up to you to let us know if you’d like an assistant to work with you. I’d imagine that starting out, you might not need one, but if the program is successful, you’ll probably need help.”
I wasn’t sure what to say. When I had submitted the idea, I hadn’t pictured myself being the one to do it, although the thought of it did excite me.
“I’m sure you’ll want to talk it over with your husband,” Margaret said.
“Yes, I would.”
“Can you let us know by the end of the week?” Ms. Standifer asked.
“We’d like to get started right away,” Mr. Johnson added.
“Of course.”
“Take that with you.” She pointed at the envelope. “We want you to know exactly what we’re planning to do before you take it on.”
“Please tell me you don’t have to work late,” I said when Angus answered his phone. “I’m leaving the office right now, and I can’t wait to talk to you. In person.”
“What’s going on?”
“I got offered a job and I want us to go over everything together and decide if I should take it.”
“What job?”
“No, no, no. We’re not talking about it over the phone. Just hurry home, okay?”
“I’ll get there as soon as I can.”
“Thank you. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
It still thrilled me to be able to say those words so eas
ily to each other. It was hard to imagine that barely a year ago we had been unsure of our future together. What a difference a year can make. Our wedding had been exactly what I had wanted. Angus had chosen Luigi’s for our rehearsal dinner and had asked everyone to be our therapists for the evening, sharing good advice, funny stories, and lots of laughter. Our honeymoon was spent moving everything from our apartments into a spacious two-bedroom in the A building. A real honeymoon to somewhere romantic and wonderful would have to wait until Angus could get a little more time off.
I don’t know how he managed it, but Angus almost beat me home.
“You’re not going to believe this,” I said.
“First things first, Charles.” He pulled me into his arms and kissed me.
I put my arms around his neck and kissed him back. “What did you call me?” I said against his lips.
“Sorry, Charlotte.” He emphasized my name. He called me Charlotte most of the time now, but every once in a while, he’d forget and call me one of the old nicknames. I wasn’t crazy about any of them, but Charles had to go. For obvious reasons.
“That’s better.”
After a minute, I pried my lips away and pulled him by the hand to the counter, where my new job offer was waiting.
“Imaginarium Outreach? What’s that?”
We sat down, and I told Angus about my meeting. “They liked the idea and they want me to be in charge of implementing it.”
“That’s great, but you wanted to design.”
“I know. I’ll still be designing. They want me to come up with the art projects.”
Angus grinned. “Art, huh?”
I smiled back. “Art, crafts. You know. Probably some of both.”
“Uh huh.” He leaned forward and kissed me just under my ear.
It was difficult to stay focused when he did that, so I pushed him away. “Anyway, they want me to design the projects and work with the hospitals to make it work for them. And I get a raise. And an assistant if all goes well.”
“You know whatever you decide is fine with me. I just want you to be happy.”
“I am happy.” I put my hand on his cheek.
“Do you want to do this?”
I nodded. “All afternoon I’ve been thinking about Braxton and the change that came over him. And then I got home and saw that.” I nodded toward the Christmas tree Braxton had given to Angus. It now hung on our new refrigerator. “I want to do it.”
“Then you, Mrs. Barclay, have a new job. I think we should celebrate.”
“Say it again,” I said.
“I think we should celebrate?” he asked.
“No. The other part.”
Angus pulled me into his arms. “The Mrs. Barclay part?”
I put my arms around his neck. “Yeah, that’s my favorite.”
He covered my mouth with his and kissed me like he meant it. “This is my favorite.”
I might have agreed, but my mouth was otherwise occupied.
I’m honored that you decided to spend some time with my books. Thank you! Thank you! I hope you enjoyed Charlotte and Angus’s story. As I wrote the series, I realized I wanted to know if Aleena and Flynn will get a happily ever after (not necessarily together). Sometime in the near future, we’ll find out. Sign up for my newsletter for the latest updates on their stories and others. While you’re there, feel free to send me a message. I love to hear from readers!
As an author, I hope to have happy readers who spread the word about my books. If you’d be willing, I’d be so grateful for a review on Goodreads or Amazon or wherever else you might share your thoughts on books.
Happy Reading!
Karey
Other Books by Karey White
My Own Mr. Darcy
Maggie’s Song
(From the Timeless Romance Anthology: Love Letters Collection)
Lost and Found
(A Ripple Effect Romance Novella)
Gifted
For What It’s Worth
