“Not really, especially now it’s only me and the kids. Mike left us in a good place financially. I’m not rich, but with the children’s survivor’s benefits, I could probably afford to work part-time and go back to school. But my job is great, and the people I work with are like family. I have good benefits, and most days I’m not under a lot of pressure. When I come home after work, I’m not completely drained with nothing left to give my children. If I went to school, I could get a better paying job, but I’d also have a lot more responsibility. There’s a reason people get paid big bucks.” Rae faced her laptop again. “I can go back to school when they’re older. It’s kind of funny because Amelia’s giving me a hard time about tying my identity with my kids. I can't win.”
“You don't have to do this eRapport thing if you don’t want to.”
“I know, but it’ll probably be good for me to step outside of my comfort zone.” Rae nudged his shoulder with hers. “And I’ll have good company. I might have backed out of it if you hadn’t agreed to do it too.”
Dylan yawned.
“This went way later than I expected,” Rae said. “Leave Jayden here for the night.”
“I appreciate it,” Dylan said. “If I try to wake one, both of the Littles will be up.”
* * *
He closed his laptop,debating if he should drop the bomb tonight. It was getting late. Was ittoolate?
“What’s bothering you?” Rae asked. “I can tell something is, and I’ll bet it had something to do with your little meeting this afternoon with Mr. G.”
She knew him so well now. Dylan let out a breath and met her gaze.
“He’s had an offer to sell, and his wife wants him to take it.”
Rae’s complexion blanched; she understood the implications too.
“My thoughts exactly.” Dylan dropped his gaze to his clenched fists and chose his words carefully. “He told me about another option.”
“Something that involves you?” She blinked. “Does he want you to take over?”
“Sort of. He wants me to buy the company from him.” Saying the words aloud made all Dylan’s earlier doubts come back full force.
“Have you got a fortune you’ve never told me about?” Rae asked with a disbelieving snort.
“Just that trust my father’s made clear he won’t release early, but it wouldn’t be enough to buy a company like GPC anyway.” Dylan told her what their boss had said.
“I love the idea of keeping our independence, and I think you’d do great running the show, but you’d have to finance it. So, again I ask how someone in your situation could qualify for the funding.” Rae shook her head.
With her statement, the myriad of thoughts that had been rolling through his mind seemed to coalesce into one. “Mr. G. said there were ways to work around that. I think the real question is if I’m willing to do it.”
“Maybe you’re right.” Rae’s expression turned contemplative. “Have you decided what you’re going to do?”
Dylan shook his head. “There’s a big difference between going back to school to be a supervisor . . . and being the manager.” He grimaced. “Theowner.”
“It might be happening sooner than you planned, but it’s not all that alien an idea, is it?”
“I don’t know. Maybe.” He rubbed his face, weary. There were so many more things pulling at him now. He had the care of Jayden and was as involved with Beth and Preston as if they were Dylan’s responsibility too. And trying to help Rae.
“I’ve never made good decisions when it’s late, and I’m tired. You must be exhausted,” Rae said, rising. “Mr. G. told you to think about it. I’d suggest you take some time to do that. Weigh the pros and the cons. I’m sure he’s expecting you to have more questions.”
Dylan looked up at Rae, glad he’d decided to tell her. She was always the best sounding board.
“As always, you’re right. Thank you.” He rose, resisting once again the temptation to kiss her. At least, if he were busy, he’d have something to distract him from her. A little.
4
After two weeks, Rae had received a surprisingly high number of eRapport contact requests. She felt like she suddenly had a score of pen pals, especially when she discovered a couple of the men were from outside of the US. She found it fun to learn about them and appreciated how the system required them to spend time getting acquainted. One local man had suggested they hook up on the second message. She’d told him to try a different app. He’d been ugly in his response, so she’d blocked and reported him.
Eventually, she would face the possibility of having to meet some of these men. The thought made her a little sick to her stomach. Amelia’s suggestion that some of her new contacts might be catfishers also made her uneasy. As a result, Rae worked hard to be scrupulously honest about her intentions. If she were ever to meet any of the men, she wanted them to feel like they already knew her. She had to hope they’d be as forthright themselves.
If only she could talk with Dylan about it. Ever since she’d almost kissed him, their relationship had turned strained. It made her sad. Of all the times to need a best friend to talk to, it was now. It felt like they’d had a fight, except they hadn’t. Was she the one making things awkward between them? If so, she’d have to fix it or go crazy.
