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Kicking off my dress shoes, I pulled my shirt out of my pants as I took a long drink. Setting it down, I called Avery.
“Wow! You have to be exhausted.”
“You have no idea. The last meeting was at a restaurant, and I swear to God, the way these men drink, it’s a wonder they get any business done at all.”
“Did you drink?” Avery asked.
“No. That’s one thing my grandfather always told me, stay sharp no matter what. But I don’t want to talk about my day. Tell me what you did,” I said, lying back on my bed.
When she started talking, I could hear the smile in her voice.
“Emily and I had a business meeting at my house over some takeout Chinese. We’ve got another few rows of seeds and seedlings to plant in Mom’s greenhouse, then we’ll be finished. I’m so glad she is here to stay! My father got a contractor over to give us a bid for the high fence we’re going to put around our garden.”
“Mmm,” I said, barely hearing what she was saying.
“Beck?”
“I’m here.”
“Thought I lost the signal for a minute. I’m going to move into the apartment above the boutique this weekend. At least I’ll have an easy commute to work, but not to the farm, but that’s okay. It will be worth it to have my privacy.”
Her voice started to slowly grow more distant, until the only thing I heard was…nothing. Blissful silence.
Chapter Twenty-Six
AVERY
“Beck? Are you still there?”
The sound of light snoring caused me to smile. Poor guy was so tired he fell asleep while on the phone. I hung up and sent him a text.
Me: You fell asleep. If you wake up and see this, I hope your alarm is set.
When I didn’t get a reply, I sighed. So much for FaceTime tonight. I lifted my cell and took a selfie, being sure the phone was out far enough to get the lingerie I was wearing, then sent it to Beck.
Me: Rain check?
I plugged my phone in and slipped under the covers, falling asleep and wishing I was with Beck, or better yet, he was here with me.
Just as I was falling asleep, my phone went off with a text.
Beck: Baby, I’m so sorry. I’m exhausted. You look insanely beautiful, and I cannot wait to hold you in my arms again. Sleep tight. XoXo
Grinning like a fool, yet feeling like my heart was tearing in two, I sent him a text back that said goodnight. It took everything I had not to type those three words.
“Avery? Avery?”
Jumping at the sound of my name, I glanced over to Emily.
“Sorry, what did you say?”
“I asked if Beck had a chance to add that one page to the website?”
Rubbing my eyes, I stretched, then yawned. “Yeah, he said he was going to add it today. I think he might actually get a tiny break. His grandfather has been running him ragged.”
Emily gave me a knowing smile. “I know what’s it’s like to have your guy working all the time. When Doug was doing his internship, I swore he slept more at the hospital than he did at home. Do you know when he’ll be coming back up for a visit?”
I shook my head. “No. It’s been three weeks now, and Beck said his grandfather’s doctor hasn’t released him to work full time yet, even though he’s at the office now. Beck’s still trying to pick up the slack.”
“What about the ex?” Emily asked.
One night, during dinner out with Emily, Mackenzie, and Lily, I’d shared details about Rachel. Her answering his phone that first night, and the fact that she kept asking Beck out, even after he’d said he was seeing someone, and also rejected her during a surprise visit to his office. He’d told me about all of that, and reassured me he wasn’t interested. Still, I hated that she was there with him, and I wasn’t.
“I’m hoping she’s leaving him alone.”
The door to the greenhouse opened, and my father walked in. “Mackenzie said I’d find you both in here.”
“What’s up?” I asked as I pulled off my gloves.
He quickly looked at the rows of flowers that were already growing, and smiled. “This is just after a month? Wow!”
Emily and I both grinned. It even looked like Emily puffed her chest out some.
“The soil will be warmed up enough by late May to start planting out in the field. Since we’re in April now, I wanted to make sure you girls have created your supply list, so you’ll have everything you’re going to need to start planting when the time comes.”
“Beck was going to email me a spreadsheet he’s been working on. I sent him all the information, and he made a rotation schedule for planting.”
Dad smiled. “Does the boy ever find time to sleep?”
I felt a pain in my chest. Beck was constantly falling asleep while we were talking on the phone.
