“I would have no objections if you choose to do that.” I reply.
I wasn’t sure if we were there yet. If we were at the point where we would determine who would move to be with one another. But I’m definitely lying to myself as I have been looking into options for the past month. Opening an office in another state wouldn’t be an overnight thing, but it appears that Peyton’s boss put his gears into motion faster than I did.
“It’s not pathetic?” She looks to me for assurance.
“Why would it be pathetic? Your boss is actually opening an office in my city. That was something that was in the works before I tracked you down.” I tell her.
“I guess that’s true.” She smiles taking another bite of her stack. “I will talk to my boss on Monday, gauge where he is and then we’ll see. More conversation to come, but I just wanted to see if this would be an okay thing.”
I stand up and scoot her over on her side of the booth, place my arm around her and pull her to me.
“Babe, this is the most okay thing that I’ve ever discussed. I told you that I want to have my mornings and nights with you, this is just a more legit way of getting it to happen instead of kidnapping you.”
“Kidnapping? You wouldn’t dare!”
“Don’t you know that the first road trip, up to Seattle was my first attempt?” I joke.
“Yet, you still let me go,” she teases right back.
“That’s a part of my charm.” I wink.
“You’re horrible.”
“Want to adventure today?” I ask.
“You… adventure?” She quirks an eyebrow as if she doesn’t believe me.
“Humor me.”
We leave the diner and I get behind the wheel of her car. I use the address in my email and find parking at the bottom of the hill of the parking lot.
“What are we doing here?” she asks.
We’re walking up the hill to head to the Griffith Observatory, something that I’ve always wanted to do. A location that you see countless times in movies and I’ve wanted to see it for myself.
“I’ve never been here before,” I tell her. “I thought that it would be a fun thing to do. Have you ever been here before?”
“No,” she shakes her head.
I grab her hand and we make our way up towards the top of the hill. We stop at a bench halfway up with a view of the Hollywood sign and we rest on the bench for a minute.
“I never really looked at Los Angeles as being anything other than a concrete jungle. I didn’t think that all of this was really lush in greenery.” I say to her.
“There’s a whole other world here, you just need to know where to go. There’s canyons, there’s trails and it’s not too far for the forest. We have mountains and then we have the beach,” she explains. “Then there’s the other end, the freeways and the roads. That’s what you would call the concrete jungle. But it’s all about finding the level of what you want.”
“And what level of the world, do you normally look for?” I ask.
“A mixture. I don’t do the hiking thing, but I like to get outdoors whenever I can. I work downtown, so I have a lot of concrete in my life on a regular basis.”
“True, but you have the options for all of it, right?”
“I do. Sometimes, work takes me out of the office and to nice venues outside of downtown. But when I’m driving, it’s alright because I get to listen to my podcasts or my music.”
“That doesn’t sound like a bad thing,” I take a deep breath, look up the hill, and then return to her. “Are you ready to get to the top?” I ask her as I stand and offer her my hand.
* * *
We did Los Angeles tourist things while in the city and later that night ordered Chinese food. I’ve gone from the constant working and never having a moment that wasn’t focused around work to lounging around with a girlfriend and eating takeout without looking at or touching my phone. Enjoying my time and not rushing through it.
Sunday night came too fast and I was boarding a red eye plane back home, hoping that this is one of the last times that I would have to.
I go to sleep upon getting home, with the thoughts of how different my future could be, all because of a night that happened in Vegas.
Chapter Seventeen
“This one time in Vegas, I tried to get married, but both 24-hour license offices were closed, telling me to go to the other. “
PEYTON
I knock lightly on my boss’s door the day after my visit with Max ended.
He looks up and smiles immediately which normally puts me at ease, except today, my nerves are sky-high and I’m pretty sure there’s sweat dripping down my spine.
“How are you?” he asks sitting back in his chair.
“I’m good, I’m good. I have something that I wanted to run by you, do you have a moment?” I step further into his office.
“Of course. I always have time.” He motions to the chair across from him, “what’s on your mind today?”
“Well, I was doing some thinking about the Seattle office, and I was thinking that maybe it would be a good move, for me.”
“Do you think that you can elaborate here?” he asks.
“I was thinking that maybe I can take a lead role in the new office?”
A large smile forms on his face and then he claps startling me.
“At last! I have been waiting for you to make it your idea.”
“Excuse me?” I ask.
“I’ve told you before, you’ve turned this office around and have made our client base even more provocative to new customers as well as being the sole reason that our offices would expand.”
“So, the looking at property and asking my opinion was a plan to get me out of here?” I ask in shock.
“The office is yours, you can be managing director if you choose to make the move. We would of course pay for lodging for three months and I would of course have Marjorie in Human Resources come and assist with the hiring process for staffing. I, of course would be in and out of town as well, I wouldn’t leave you completely alone.”
“Okay, wow. Um, I really wasn’t expecting this to be the actual plan. When would you like to have the open date on the new office?” I ask.
“I’m looking for a three month turn around; would that be enough time?” He asks.
My mind is reeling. Is it enough time? Can I do this? Am I jumping into this too soon?
“I think so,” I stutter with self-doubt creeping in.
“You’re looking a little nauseous, are you okay?”
“I didn’t come in here thinking that this would actually happen. I had hoped so, because it sounds like a great opportunity, but I wasn’t thinking that it was something you were already planning.”
“Do you need to take more time to think about it?” He asks with concern.
Now that’s it’s all been said out loud, the offer and the expectation—everything just became a little more, no a lot more real and I’m freaking out. The potential plan of moving to Seattle is now extremely real, and not just talk, which makes all my emotions rush forward.
“I think I’m going to throw up.” I cover my mouth, stand and rush to the wastebasket just to the side of where I’m sitting. With one hand on the wall steadying me, I put my other hand on my forehead and take some deep breaths.
I’m getting dizzy at the thought of everything happening so fast.
“Peyton are you okay?” Mr. Frederick stands up and rounds his desk. He places his hand on my shoulder and looks at me.
“I’m good, I’m good. I should though probably think about it a little more. First it was an idea, now it’s an offer and oh boy, I wasn’t really expecting this to become real when it was said out loud.” I ramble.
“I want you to work from home today, think about it. It’s a huge decision, one that moves you from one city to another. I want you to do your pros and cons list, to really figure out whether or not this is something that you want and can do.” He says, “I have n
o doubt that you can handle this, but I want you to be one hundred percent sure.”
I nod and with a pat on the back, I leave his office and gather my things. I’m still freaking out. While I was completely sure that this was something that I could do, now I’m second guessing myself.
Now, I’m panicking.
Moving to Seattle would mean that I leave everything that I know. I haven’t lived anywhere outside of California before and while, yes, I would have Max—my friends are here.
I don’t remember driving back to Echo Park and walking in the front door. Quinn looks confused as I walk in the door and wouldn’t leave me alone until I asked her to call Hanna and tell her to come over.
Quinn looks terrified but did as I asked. She sat by my side in silence and as soon as there was a knock on our door, she jumps up quickly and a moment later, I have my two best friends on both my sides with worried looks.
“Are you pregnant?” Quinn asks.
“Did you guys break up?” Hanna asks.
I look between them. “No.” I say simply to both questions.
“Then what the hell is going on, you are worrying us to high hell!” Quinn says.
“I’ve got to talk to you guys about something, I need your help, your insight and advice.”
MAXWELL
I know that Peyton was going to talk to her boss today, and it’s got me on pins and needles. We exchanged our normal cheery texts in the morning, but I haven’t heard from her since and I’m also not completely sure when in her day she would be speaking to him, or even what he would say.
My hopes, of course are that this means within a short period of time, we would be living in the same city.
When I didn’t hear from her at all through the day, I tried to call her before I walked into the bar to meet the guys. When I couldn’t get through to her, I sent her a text.
Me: Is everything okay? I’ve tried to call you and haven’t heard from you all day.
I don’t see the dancing dots, I don’t see that the message has been read, maybe she’s just busy or driving, who knows.
I walk into the bar and see that the guys are already seated and talking up a storm. I unbutton my blazer and slide into the booth to jump right into the conversation to get my mind off of the woman who I can’t stop thinking about.
The night is full of banter and drinking, with no response back from Peyton. Concern is in the back of my head, but being over a thousand miles away, prevents me from being able to take initiative aside from driving or flying to LA myself. I’m not going to jump to conclusions and I’m not going to push my way in, just in case I am overreacting.
As soon as I get home, I try to FaceTime with her, but the call still gets unanswered. I check back with my text and that message hasn’t been read yet either.
I look down at Scout, laying with his head on my thigh. He looks up to me, as if knowing I’m worried about something. I pet him and give him a smile, though I don’t feel the smile.
What is happening? Is there something wrong?
Chapter Eighteen
“This one time I was in Vegas, I thought wow the strip is smaller, than I thought it would be. I realized I was in Reno the next morning.”
PEYTON
I’ve been putting off on talking to Max for two days. He’s texted, he’s called and I have controlled myself when his name would show up to not touch my phone. I don’t want to give him bad news and I’ve been trying like hell to come to some sort of crossroads in what my future plan is.
I ran through everything that has been said to all parties within the past few days. When talking to Hanna and Quinn, they were attentive with listening and then let me in on their thoughts and that’s when I realized that I made a mistake.
They were hurt.
They were mad.
And most of all, they felt that our friendship came last.
That’s a feeling that I have never wanted anyone to think.
They are concerned with why I haven’t spoken to them about any of this, when it was more of a beginning thought versus an actual offer and plan.
So, we sat on the couch, with me in the middle for over an hour as I explained to them what has been going on.
Neither of them thought that the relationship with Max was that serious, serious enough to move out of state for. And neither of them had any clue about the expansion of the company.
I’ve been a shitty friend and I’m not sure if it’s because I’ve been so wrapped up with Max or if I’ve just become so selfish that I let everything else slip through my fingers in ignorance.
“I thought that you were just going to have your fun with the hot guy in the suit and then be done with it, get that divorce and shit?” Hanna asked.
“I thought so too, at first. But then things became real. We became more and more real, and in turn—I fell for him.” I shrugged.
“Are you in love with him, Pey?” Quinn questioned.
I nod my head. I do. We told one another that we did, was that too fast?
Shit, I was, or I am planning to move to Seattle, and the added benefit is that Maxwell lives there.
Am I being blinded by lust or am I trying to advance my career by taking the job my boss is offering me?
* * *
What do I do?
What am I doing?
I checked in with my boss and let him know that I’m still thinking about the details of the offer and he even offered to give me the rest of the week to decide. I’ve taken half of the week to mull over the pros and cons, only to start to feel more and more stressed based off of talking with my friends.
I’ve dodged phone calls from Max and in return would text him back that I’m not feeling well.
Which made me feel even more guilty when he sent me flowers and had Grub-hub deliver soup to the apartment. I sent him texts, that were short and didn’t hold much of a conversation, all because my mind was fucking with me and I wasn’t sure that I was making this decision because of him or not.
But after a full week of not talking to him, a lot of pulling my hair and my subconscious taking over for me, I came to my final decision.
I was nervous, but I knew that I needed to give my boss an answer. I waited long enough. And then after I talk to him, I will have to put on my big girl panties and talk to Max.
I walk into work and settle into my office. I go about my usual start-up of my day and keep my eye on the clock, waiting for Mr. Frederick to come in.
Busy work and catching up keeps me occupied as well as makes me lose track of time.
Mr. Frederick steps into my office and sits down in the chair in front of me, while I’m putting the finishing touches on the invoicing for the week and places a coffee in front of me.
I look up surprised, then look at the time.
“Oh God, time got away from me,” I say.
“That’s what happens playing catch up,” he smirks.
“I was going to come and find you when you normally get in, but I got distracted with work.”
“I guess that’s a good thing to be distracted with, how are you?” he asks.
“Well sir, to be truthful, my stomach has been in knots all week.”
“Is this about the offer?” He quirks an eyebrow.
“It is,” I pause. “Maybe we should shut the door.”
He stands up and closes the door to my office and then turns around with anticipation.
MAXWELL
More radio silence.
I’m not used to a woman going radio silent on me. Truthfully, it’s usually the other way around. I’m the guy who doesn’t call back or doesn’t make a second date. I avoid phone calls and texts, because that’s who I have been since Marisa.
I haven’t been the relationship guy in several years, and right now, I’m wanting to be and give this thing between us a real shot—but I’m afraid that she’s icing me out.
She says that she’s sick, but a part of me is worried that she is completely avoiding me.
/> I’m concerned that she’s not being completely honest with whatever she’s dealing with and I fear that it has to do with her moving here or even potentially with our relationship. Even with her silence, I’ve still discussed with the board and had a new office location approved. I’ve virtually toured spaces in Los Angeles and put a bid on two properties after a friend of mine in the area having vouched for it.
When discussing with the board my plans, they mentioned that the market was currently good and agreed with me that our name brand would benefit in expanding down the coast.
While I know that the marriage happened on a drunken night, I feel that the time we’ve spent getting to know one another, has been perfect. We complement one another and for that, it gives me hope that this relationship, this marriage could really last.
My phone on my desk buzzes and I turn it over, nearly fall out of my chair in excitement, but straighten to play it cool when I answer the call.
I clear my throat, pull my collar from my skin and put a smile on my face as I swipe across to receive her call.
“Peyton.” I say.
“Hi Max,” she says quietly.
I look at the time and notice that it’s still mid-day.
“How are you? Are you feeling better?” I ask with concern.
“Do you have a minute to talk? Am I interrupting anything?” she asks, her voice sounding off.
“I have all the time in the world for you. Is everything okay?”
I hear her rummage around in the background and then the sound of a door closing.
Where is she?
Is she home? Work?
I scratch my head and wait for her to talk.
“I don’t think that I can do this anymore,” she drops.
“Say that again?”
Chapter Nineteen
“This one time in Vegas, I was walking through a casino in the middle of the day when a "pretty, young thing" asked if I would like company. Immediately, a woman in a suit and a big guy in a security uniform intercepted us. The suit said with a smile to my companion, ‘You know that you're not supposed to be in here at this time of day’”
What Happens In Vegas Page 12
