by Ali Parker
“I’m sure you remember Amanda,” he said, drawing me from my thoughts. “I’m going to pass the torch over to her and let her explain the technical side of it all.”
“Thank you.” I smiled, standing up. “Elon has done such an amazing job explaining everything, but I will explain some of the simpler technical aspects of the project.”
I got my rhythm, feeling motivated by what Elon had just done. I could feel him staring at me from the side, watching me work my own kind of magic. I glanced over and had to hide a smile, seeing the smirk on his face. When I was done, I sat down next to Elon and gave him back the reins.
“So, what do you think?” Elon asked with a grin.
“It’s interesting,” the owner said, getting up and walking over to the board. “It’s different, but in a way that I could see expanding our brand to areas we’ve never thought of before. I have to admit, I love the whole thing from edge to edge. You and your team have gone above and beyond, and you truly did meet and exceed every one of my expectations. I see now I was right to trust my friend when it came to you guys. I haven’t had any marketing company capture the essence of our brand as well as you have.”
“Thank you, sir.” Elon smiled. “Does that mean you accept?”
“I accept.” He smiled for the first time since we’d met him. “And I will be sending final payment as well as new contracts over to your office for our upcoming projects. You’ll want to schedule a meeting for next week with my secretary so we can go over the next line of ads that I want you to create.”
“That’s excellent news,” Elon said, shaking his hand. “I appreciate you and your company for working with Truitt Marketing.”
“And good job, young lady,” he said, nodding at me. “You’re very educated on your projects. I hope Elon is taking care of you.”
“Always.” I smiled and shook his hand.
We walked out of the office and made an appointment with the secretary before heading back outside. When we got out of the building, Elon turned and wrapped his arms around me, picking me up in the air and cheering. I laughed, slapping him on the back as my feet left the ground.
“We did it,” he said.
“You guys did it.” I smiled. “I was just the conveyer of facts. The team and Marcus are the unsung heroes here.”
“Either way you look at it, though, we just probably saved the company from the clutches of Clayton,” he said. “And that is the best news, besides you coming back, that I have gotten in a really long time. I’m going to call Marcus and let him know really fast.”
“All right.” I laughed as he set me down and pulled out his phone.
I watched him as he talked excitedly to Marcus, smiling as he bounced around like my son on a sugar high. He got off the phone, his happy grin seemingly permanent, shaking his head and walking back over to me. He took me by the hand and pulled me into the car, shutting the door and looking over at me.
“The board is already being notified,” he said. “What do you say to you and I taking the rest of the day off together?”
Chapter 61
Elon
I couldn’t believe the kind of excitement that was running through me. I hadn’t felt this good about work in a really long time. I knew it wasn’t just that, though. I knew it was Amanda and the fact that I had her there to share in the excitement with. I wanted to do something special, something that would make her really fall in love with me. I wanted to take our relationship to the next step, and I didn’t want to waste any time getting there. Everything had been so wishy-washy for so long that I wanted to cement her and her son’s place in my life.
“So, boss man.” She chuckled. “What are we doing with our day off? I could get used to this, working for a couple of hours and then taking the rest of the day off. Now I know why you like your job so much.”
“Very funny.” I laughed. “Actually, I was going to see how you felt about taking Mikey out of school for the day and the three of us going to do something special.”
“I don’t really have the money to be doing a bunch of stuff,” she said, looking down at her hands.
“Who cares about money? I got this,” I said. “It can be your first step at letting me start to do nice things for the two of you.”
“What did you have in mind?”
“Animals, lunch, maybe a bit of sugar,” I teased.
“Where do you sign me up?”
“You are already signed up,” I said sweetly, leaning forward and kissing her lips. “Now, let’s go get that little man of yours and make some new memories all together.”
“You really know how to melt a girl’s heart,” she said.
We went to the school, and I waited outside while she went in and got Mikey out of class. When they walked out, he looked confused, so I stepped out of the car and put my hands out. Mikey lit up, which touched me right in the feelings.
“Mr. Truitt,” he said, running across the parking lot and giving me a hug.
“Call me Elon,” I said, bending down and ruffling his hair. “How about a day at the zoo? You gotta put those passes to some good use.”
“But what about you?”
“I got that covered,” I said, pulling a card from my pocket and holding it up.
“Yes,” he said, pumping his fist. “Let’s do this!”
We got in the car and headed over to the zoo, smiling as Mikey giggled, watching me reach over and take his mom by the hand. She blushed and looked out the window, seeing the large entrance to the park coming up on the right. Mikey immediately got excited, bouncing up and down in his seat as we entered.
“We have to see the monkeys,” he said. “I learned in class that we might somehow have the same ancestors as the apes. They don’t have apes here, but they do have monkeys.”
“I heard they fling their poo at people,” I whispered.
“Ew.” He giggled. “I’ll duck, and you take them down.”
“With my own poo?” He erupted into laughter.
“All right, you two,” Amanda said, leaning forward. “This will be a poo-free trip.”
I winked at Mikey as the car pulled up out front, and we jumped from the car, watching Mikey staring up at the giant giraffe statue out front. Amanda took my hand and kissed me on the cheek, smiling at how excited Mikey was. When we got inside, we made a detour for the monkeys, spending over twenty minutes standing there watching them move around the cage. Luckily for us, there was no feces throwing going on. Otherwise, I was pretty sure Mikey would have lost it. We moved from there to the reptile building because that was his favorite. I sat down on the bench in the center of the room next to Amanda and watched Mikey run around with the other kids.
“Has he always loved zoos like this?” I smiled.
“Since he was old enough to see them,” she said. “I thought it was going to be a phase, but it has never worn off.”
“We’ll have to take a trip to San Diego sometime,” I said. “They have one kick-ass zoo out there.”
“And the wind doesn’t get over a light breeze unlike here in Chicago where I get swept away every winter.” She shook her head.
“It looks like you get swept away other times too,” I said, winking at her.
“It would appear that way,” she said with a coy smile.
“Elon,” Mikey said, interrupting our almost kiss. “You have to see this snake. It’s eating something that’s, like, three times the size of its head.”
“Oh, yeah?” I smiled. “Show me the way, sir.”
I wanted to spend time with Amanda, but the entire reason for going out that day was to bond with both of them. I wanted Amanda to see that I wanted her and her son, not just her. I wanted something real, not just something that was inside the office or whenever Dalton could watch Mikey. I knew from the moment I felt love in my heart for her that it was going to be a relationship with her and her son, not just her, and I was okay with that. Mikey was an amazing kid, and I found that sitting there having him tell me everyt
hing he knew about snakes was as entertaining as listening to his mom talk about her life.
When we were done at the reptile house, it was already time for lunch, so we headed over to the restaurant on-site and got some real food instead of hot dogs from the concession stand. Everything in the restaurant was animal themed, and Mikey looked like a deer in the headlights. Amanda laughed, patting him on the head.
“How many times have you guys been here to the zoo?”
“Gosh, since he was a baby?” she said, thinking. “Maybe twenty or thirty times.”
“You’ve never eaten here?”
“No,” she sighed. “Always wanted to, but money was always tight, so we would pack a lunch in the car, or we would grab food from the concession stand.”
“Gotcha,” I said with a smile. “Well, today we will feast.”
“Can I get the mac and cheese?” Mikey asked.
“You can get anything your mom says is okay.” I smiled, winking at Amanda.
“Yes, mac and cheese fiend.” She laughed. “I swear the kid could eat his weight in mac and cheese.”
I laughed and smiled, watching the way Amanda was with her son. She was protective, but she had the ability to stand back and let him make his own choices. He was definitely his own person, but I could tell how much he loved her. It was good for me to see. It made me understand her apprehension of having someone there for them. They were a team, one I could tell by watching had been through the fires together and were always hand in hand. It should have intimidated me, but it didn’t. It just made me want to be part of that team even more. It made me respect Amanda even more and showed me that this whole time, she did have someone there to protect her. He just happened to be only eleven years old.
When we were done with lunch, we went back out in the park, running through the whole thing, seeing every animal we could. By the end of the day, Amanda and I were exhausted, and Mikey had slowed down, dragging his feet through the walkways wearing a flamingo hat and eating cotton candy.
“Thank you for this.” She smiled as we walked along behind Mikey. “This has been an amazing day.”
“It has,” I agreed. “But it’s not over. How about we pick up some takeout and go back to your place and watch a movie? The three of us.”
“I would like that,” she said.
“Good, because I wasn’t going to take no for an answer,” I replied with a wink. “Hey, flamingo man, wait up for me.”
“I’m tired,” he said as I ran to catch up with him.
“You are? Well, how about you climb on my back and ride the rest of the way?” I smiled, bending down.
“That’s a really good idea.”
“Just don’t get cotton candy in my hair.” I laughed, pulling him on my back.
“I can’t make any promises,” he said, making me laugh louder.
I stood up and bounced up and down, galloping back around Amanda. She laughed and smiled, taking the cotton candy from Mikey. I leaned over and kissed her before taking off at the sounds of Mikey’s groans. We went back to the car and headed toward her place, stopping and grabbing a pizza on the way. By the time we got back, Mikey was nearly comatose, nodding off and on from the day he’d had. We went inside, and he curled up on the couch with a plate of pizza and a blanket. Amanda and I sat at the dining room table eating pizza and talking about the day.
“I was pretty sure he was going to explode when he found out there was a panda exhibit on special at the zoo,” she said.
“I know.” I laughed. “His eyes almost popped out of his head. It was amazing. I wish I still found excitement in simple things like that.”
“Life gets in the way,” she sighed. “To see the world through the eyes of a child again would be amazing. But alas, you’re stuck in that old body and me in this younger one.”
“Very funny.” I threw my napkin at her. “I’m young at heart, and I’m pretty sure this old body still has it.”
“I won’t argue,” she whispered. “How about that movie?”
We walked over to the couch and both smiled, seeing Mikey completely passed out on the cushions. I leaned down and picked him up, cradling him in my arms and looking over at Amanda. She smiled and nodded her head toward his room. I carried him in and laid him gently in his bed, stepping back and letting Amanda tuck him in. When she was done, we crept quietly out of his room and out to the living room. She yawned, covering her mouth, and I could tell she was tired.
“How about a raincheck on the movie?” I asked.
“You sure?” she replied.
“Yeah, we had a really big day today.” I smiled, pulling her in and hugging her. I’d really like to see you tomorrow. After work I mean. I could cook you and Mikey dinner or something.”
“I would like that, but I was planning on going to the support group,” she said. “I haven’t been lately because of everything going on, and I’m ready to face that decision again.”
“I understand,” I said. “Would you mind if I came with you? I’d like to be there for you, to be there through the whole thing.”
“I’d like that. It is hard, and it felt better with you there with me.”
“Good,” I replied, tilting her chin up. “I will always be there for you. I promise that.”
“I believe you,” she whispered.
I kissed her gently and walked to the door, opening it and turning back to her. She looked so beautiful standing there with tousled hair and a tired look in her eyes. She was even more beautiful in that moment than she was any other time I had seen her.
“Sweet dreams.” I smiled before walking out the door.
I went to the car feeling like I was walking on air. I had fallen in love with Amanda quite a while before that night, but that day, I had fallen in love with her son too. It was more than I ever imagined.
Chapter 62
Amanda
I hadn’t slept as soundly after a long day with Elon and Mikey in a very long time. It wasn’t just the fact that we’d walked around the zoo all day in the warm sun or that I had gotten up super early that morning and nailed a presentation. It was also the feeling of security knowing Elon was in our lives and he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. It made me feel a settled stillness that I had never experienced before, and I could even see a change in Mikey that next morning. There was no anxiousness or fear. He just went about his morning like everything was okay. When he left for school, he told me to tell Elon hello for him, and it warmed me knowing that Mikey seemed to care for Elon as much as I did. I hadn’t realized until then how much Mikey needed a man in his life until we had Elon. It was an addition to our little team that had come out of nowhere, but I felt like I was starting to welcome it with open arms.
The office was busy, everyone switching their systems, getting rid of the project data, and me compiling all the formal notes from the project. We kept a really good log of everything that happened during projects, but for this one, I had to take the notes from Marcus. At the end of the day, we called everyone together in the conference room for a team meeting. I sat in my normal chair, watching Elon and Marcus running the meeting. The team was excited to hear the final report on the ad, but I could tell they were all exhausted from the work they’d put in.
“Thank you, everyone, for coming,” Marcus said. “I want to start out by telling you that Elon and Amanda rocked their presentation. They secured the project and a ton of other projects from the company. The new contracts have already started rolling in, and we all have you to thank for it. The work you did before I showed up laid the groundwork to allow us to get the final project done in record time. Not only do we have you to thank for that, but we have Dalton to thank for stepping up and leading the team when we couldn’t be there.”
Everyone clapped for Dalton, and he stood up and took a bow, making us all laugh. He sat back down, and Marcus waited for the team to quiet. I looked over at Elon and winked, catching a smile from the corner of his lips.
“Now, just a coupl
e of words from our fearless leader,” Marcus said, giving Elon the floor.
“Marcus said so much, but I also want to thank you guys for everything you did over the last two weeks and beyond,” he said. “I know I was hard to get in contact with this last week, and I appreciate the slack that you guys picked up. I promise that won’t happen again. And to thank you for everything and prepare you to get back on the ball next week, I’m giving you guys Friday off with pay. So, take a long weekend, be with your loved ones, go to the bar, or do whatever it is you do to relax. I’ll see you all on Monday, bright and ready to attack the next projects coming our way.”
Everyone clapped and cheered, thankful for they were going to have an extra day off for the weekend. This was the hardest working team I had ever seen, and they deserved that and more. I also needed to give Dalton an extra thank you for picking up my slack and Elon’s slack as we went through everything. He was the unsung hero of the group, and I would make sure I let him know that. Projects might be stressful when they were in motion, and the team may put everything they had into every stroke of the pen or press of the key, but Elon had taken care of them, and now Marcus did too. It was something that hadn’t happened until Elon was thrown into the mix, and between that and the fact that we found love in each other, I was starting to think Clayton’s war against Elon had been a blessing in disguise.
I stood up and wished everyone a happy and restful evening as they talked excitedly and filed out of the room. Marcus walked over and shook my hand, nodding at Elon before leaving the conference room. Elon leaned back in his chair and put his hands behind his head, smiling big.
“Another success,” I said.
“That it was,” he replied. “And none of this could have happened without you.”
I laughed. “I wasn’t here for most of the project.”