Gabe leaned against the wall of boxes. “I don’t know. Maybe.”
Quinn taped up one more box, stacked it, and sighed. “You know, I’m not going to like not seeing your ugly mug every day.”
Gabe laughed. “Xander hasn’t accepted my resignation. So I might be around occasionally.”
“Good.” Quinn strode over, picked up his jacket, reached into his inside pocket and handed Gabe a folded piece of paper.
“What’s this?”
“If you want it, it’s yours.”
Gabe’s breath caught in his throat. It was a posting for a trainer in Edmonton. “Part-time. The pay is awful.”
“I hear your girlfriend is rolling in it.” Quinn grinned.
Gabe laughed. “Thank you, man.”
“You’re welcome.”
“You got this tonight?”
“Xander asked me if I knew of anything in Edmonton a couple of days ago. I guess he saw the writing on the wall.”
“Scary fucker, sometimes.”
“Yeah. We’re going to need to have a going-away party.”
Gabe’s chest suddenly felt tight. “We can do that. Thanks, brother.”
Quinn wrapped him in a bear hug, patted him on the arm, and pointed his finger at Gabe.
“Call if you need anything. Go get your girl.”
“I will,” Gabe said, clasping his arm.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT - IVY
Atanemptytableagain in the restaurant next to the hotel, it wasn’t lost on Ivy how for so long, she wished this was her life. Growing up on her parent’s berry farm, being in a ritzy hotel seemed like the thing to achieve. And now she could do it without blinking, worrying about paying rent or having a job. Her first six weeks of working with Sunset Corp were in the books, and already Ivy had proven herself. It felt good. But she frowned, spinning the lime and ginger drink around.
It felt lonely.
She could hang out at Alice’s, chilling in the family room or helping to clean up Alice’s kitchen while Alice rocked her baby to sleep, or she could be at her parents with her mother’s theatre friends, noisily talking about what went wrong on stage. But that wasn’t the kind of company she wanted; after putting in a twelve-hour day, she wanted quiet. She’d grab a bite here, then go upstairs to the suite she had reserved, put something on the hotel tv and try to zone out, hoping for a good night’s sleep.
Ivy sipped her drink. Every other table in the place was occupied by a couple, and she knew why it felt lonely.
It was because Gabe wasn’t sitting across from her. And even though he hadn’t been supportive in the way she thought she wanted, he was supportive by making sure the laundry was done; he washed the dishes and put them away and never told her she had to eat salad. He pushed her to be better. By demanding more of her in the bedroom, he boosted her confidence. She had wilted a little during their time apart, gone into her shell. When she was with him, she was more of herself. His calm broodiness complimented her outward confidence.
Her phone buzzed, and she smiled.
“Hey, Princess. How was your day?” His warm sultry voice sent heat to her cheeks.
Ivy sat back in her chair and closed her eyes, wondering where he was. She pictured him at home in their condo, wearing his favourite sweatpants in his worn black Henley.
“I had three meetings with clients, pitched to a famous up-and-coming songwriter, and finally caught up on the client list. Oh, and I met my assistant.”
“Are you going to keep her?” His voice had a bit of an edge.
“Him, actually, and yes, he’s super qualified. He’s invited me for dinner with his husband later this week.”
