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“Of course.”
“I… I missed him,” Ali admitted. And I suddenly like the idea of having a guard dog.
“I’ll come back with his water bowl. You’re okay? I promise I’ll talk to the guys—”
“It’s fine.” Ali shook her head and looked over at her monitor that was starting up. “I just have a lot of things to catch up on. I’ve got to tackle this inbox before I sit down with Beth. It’s going to be a long day.”
Cornell pursed his lips together. “Don’t push yourself.”
“I won’t. Promise,” Ali told him, watching as Cornell leaned down across her desk. She could see he was waiting. “You don’t have to ask,” Ali reminded him. “But this is a one-time thing. You know I don’t like kissing at work.”
Cornell leaned further, pressing his mouth to hers. “I know. But you were gone for a while. I’ve got a lot of kisses that I shouldn’t be giving you at work to make up for.” He kissed her quickly again before straightening and heading to the door.
“Cornell,” Ali called out, stopping him. He turned when her voice dropped to a whisper. “You didn’t say anything, right?”
His eyes squinted in confusion.
“About… what happened. To Beth, or anyone.”
Cornell’s eyes softened. “No.”
“This… what happened… ” Ali’s eyes bore into him. “It stays between us, okay?” If no one knows, it’s like it never happened.
She could see Cornell’s brain practically spinning. “No. You’re good.”
Of course, he’d never say anything. You’re being ridiculous, Ali.
“Thanks,” Ali said, relieved. “Um, could you shut the door? Need to focus.”
“I’ll be back after the coaches’ meeting. Love you,” he said over his shoulder as he closed the door. The click of it closing allowed Ali to release the strangled breath she had been holding since Dwayne first came in.
Gently, Ali pushed Mowgli aside as she stood and went to lock the door, leaning against it and taking a deep breath.
Overwhelmed, she thought, I’m just overwhelmed. It’s normal. Everything is fine. Ali had to keep repeating the words to herself because she could feel it rising within her, a harsh wave of emotion. “I’m fine,” she sputtered, angrily wiping at the tears that had begun to slip down her cheeks before she slid to the ground.
Mowgli wasted no time sitting beside her. “We’re fine,” she whispered into his marbled coat when he nudged closer. Ali sat, clutching him for minutes until her cell began to ring on her desk.
“Hello?”
“Ms. Whitaker, this is Rebecca calling from Dr. Linda Buchanan’s office. How are you? I’d just like to confirm your appointment tomorrow for 10:00 a.m.”
Ali glanced around her office, at the wall behind her desk covered floor to ceiling in celebratory photos of all the young men she had mentored and guided through Hopperville. This was where she belonged. But not on the floor. Get up. Quickly Ali stood, smoothing her pants down, and returned to her desk.
“Rebecca, I’m sorry. I returned to work sooner than planned.”
“That’s not a problem,” the receptionist replied. “Would you like to reschedule for later in the day? We have evening slots a few days a week, let me—”
“No need to reschedule. Thanks for calling.” Ali hung up the phone and took a deep breath.
She grabbed a tissue, wiped her face, and began to tackle the hundreds of emails needing her time and attention more than a few minutes of her past did. Because that’s what it was—just minutes. Ali looked at the flowers, at the note Cornell had left while she was away, at Mowgli staring at her with his head tilted from the other side of her desk.
“Time to get back on the offense, Mowgli,” she told the dog with as much confidence as she could muster, digging into her inbox.
