Chapter Nineteen
After a spectacularweekend spent mostly naked with Landen Weber, I walked into work Monday morning with a spring in my step. I was definitely feeling good. A session in Landen’s sauna followed by a swim in his amazing pool had relaxed me tremendously. Not to mention more orgasms than I could count.
I had never enjoyed a weekend like that with a man in my life. Sure, I’d gone on short trips with past boyfriends, but by Sunday night, I was usually more than ready to get home because I wasn’t used to having someone in my space twenty-four hours a day. I usually found it exhausting.
That wasn’t the case with Landen. Yes, he exhausted my body, but he didn’t annoy me. Not truly. I wasn’t counting the bickering we did because it felt fun, a light verbal sparring that made me feel alive rather than mean-spirited. We talked and laughed. A lot. We also sat around and did our own thing, even though we were in the same room. He had some work to finish up on Saturday morning, so he sat on one end of the couch with his laptop while I stretched out on the other side and alternated between watching television and reading a book with an app on my phone.
It rained until around noon then the sky cleared. It was humid and hot, the perfect day for a swim. So after Landen’s work was finished, we went skinny-dipping in his pool, which ended with me sitting on the edge of the pool while he went down on me. Though he had neighbors, the neighborhood he lived in had huge lots and none of the houses were close enough to have a clear view of the backyard.
Though I did have to work at muffling the sounds I made when he brought me to orgasm.
Then Landen had carried me into the house because the condoms were all upstairs in his bedroom.
Lunch consisted of fruit, cheese, and slices of roasted chicken. We consumed all of this while lounging naked in his bed. It felt decadent.
Sunday had gone along the same lines, only Landen didn’t touch his computer or phone all day. I had his undivided attention and I found that I loved it. We argued and debated about a variety of topics. This bickering invariably ended with us back in his bed.
When I’d gone to bed alone in my apartment on Sunday night, I felt oddly bereft. In just two days I’d become accustomed to having Landen next to me, his arm wrapped around me or my body draped over his back.
But even sleeping alone didn’t dim my good mood on Monday morning. I unlocked the office, disarmed the alarm, and went about turning on the lights and making a cup of coffee. I was twenty minutes earlier than usual, having woken up before my alarm, feeling refreshed and energized.
I carried my mug to my desk and settled in my chair. As I turned on the computer and waited for it to boot up, my cell phone rang. When I saw Landen’s name on the screen, I couldn’t suppress my smile.
I lifted it to my ear. “Good morning.”
“Good morning to you too,” he replied. “You sound…perky today.”
I made a face even though he couldn’t see me. I was in a good mood, but perky had never been an adjective I’d associated with myself. “Well, I had an awesome weekend.”
He chuckled in my ear. “I’m feeling perky today myself.”
I rolled my eyes but didn’t reply. I discovered this weekend that while Landen could be intense, sexy, and serious, he also had a bit of a dorky side. I doubted he would agree, but I thought it was cute. I liked seeing glimpses of it.
“Unfortunately, I got a call this morning that dampened that a bit,” he continued. “I have to go back to Oregon this week, this afternoon in fact. I’ll be there until Saturday or Sunday, maybe even longer.”
I frowned. “I know things aren’t okay so I won’t ask that, but is the situation getting worse?”
He sighed. “Yes and no. With law enforcement involved, it’s likely I’ll be going out there regularly until this is resolved. They need more information and my cooperation.”
“Are they still considering you a…” I trailed off, unsure of how to word my question.
“A suspect?” Landen supplied. He chuckled, but it was dry and held little humor. “No, definitely not. But they need my compliance to complete their investigation. And I want to be there so my employees know that I am doing everything I can to fix this. Any kind of criminal investigation is bad for company morale.”
I choked back a laugh at his words because I shouldn’t find them funny. Unfortunately, that was me. I found humor in the most inappropriate things. So much so that Yancy once sent me a meme that explained it perfectly. It was a Venn diagram with two circles. One was labeledThings I Find Funny, the otherReasons I’m Going to Hell. They were very nearly superimposed over one another, meaning that most of the things I found humorous would likely result in a one-way ticket to Hell. I’d laughed uproariously at the graph and nearly printed it out to hang up in the kitchenette in the office, but I figured Chris would draw the line there.
I heard the smile in his voice when he said, “I want to see you when I get back.” Clearly, Landen didn’t mind my tendency to laugh at things that weren’t funny to anyone else.
For a moment, I flashed back to a few weeks ago when he disappeared without a word. Since we talked it out, he’d texted me a few times a day and called regularly. Not daily, but often enough that I knew he was thinking about me.
“Okay,” I murmured.
“And I’ll keep in touch,” he stated.
I smiled and knew he would be able to hear it as well. “That would be nice.”
“Well, I don’t like to make the same mistake twice.”
My smile widened. “Good to know.”
