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“I have to go to work, but can I call you after so we can plan?”
“Of course, dear. Go. We have plenty of time to talk. I have all the time in the world.”
After a lot of dancing around my apartment, I drive to work, walk into my boss’s office and smile, “Hi, good to see you. I’m sorry but…I quit.”
Over the following two weeks, what I don’t ship off of my personal items, I give away to friends and family who ransack my apartment. The furniture they don’t take, along with left-over kitchen supplies, knick knacks and the like, are donated to The Salvation Army’s local thrift donation department that picks up everything in their semi-truck.
My parents have video-phone meetings with Ben’s parents, and they meet Ben the same way. My brother calls him a beast, because my brother’s a hipster type with slender body and a lot of black clothing. He hasn’t seen the inside of a gym since graduating high school.
A tear-filled goodbye party later, with twenty-nine family and friends all in attendance and partying until one in the morning, save for our parents who leave at ten, and I’m on a flight back to Georgia to start not just my new job…
My whole new life.
THIRTY-SEVEN
Ben
Leaving my old truck at home for the occasion, I’m standing by my Jeep at the airport, awaiting Willow’s arrival when I see her wheeling two large suitcases toward me, raven black hair flowing freely, grey eyes sparkling, black, cotton sundress flowing with her walk, white sandals moving fast. “Hi!”
I meet her more than halfway and she releases the suitcase handles, throwing her arms wide. I embrace and spin her, kissing with everything I’ve got the lips I last kissed right here at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport, and have missed ever since. Willow sighs into me, body relaxing, our kiss hot enough to draw passerby’s attention.
Not that we care.
“I can’t believe you’re really here,” I rasp against parted lips.
“I missed you.”
“Don’t even get me started,” I smirk.
“You can’t leave your car here!” A parking-security guy shouts.
Giving Willow one last kiss, I grab her suitcase handles and wheel them over. “We’re leaving now. Thank you,” Ben smiles. “Just kissing my woman.”
Willow beams at me, “Your woman?!”
We drive the hour north of Atlanta to home, talking about her party, when the boxes are expected, what I’ve been up to.
“How’s Jonny doing?”
“Good, kids are resilient. I told him you’re coming to work at Sunflower.”
“Yes, you told me.”
“But today when I dropped him off at my parents’ he said, ‘Dad, do you like her like I like Mary?’”
Willow turns in her seat. “Who’s Mary?”
“That’s what I was wondering,” I smile. “Turns out she’s a girl in his grade who said she was bummed that summer break was so long because she wouldn’t see him again until school started.”
“Ooohhhh how sweet. A girl who goes after what she wants.”
“I told him, ‘Yes, I like Willow like that.’”
“What did he say?”
“He frowned and said, ‘Then that’s a lot. Are we going to dinner at Sunflower tonight?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ He said ‘Good.”
“He did?!”
