Waiting for Us

by Stanton, Dawn

  I don’t know how I’m going to break the news to Hailey. She’s going to be upset and it’s going to painful for my heart. We had so many plans for the rest of the summer that we won’t be able to make a reality. I’m glad we got to spend this past weekend together at the beach. It will probably be the only time I get to be there which is a really depressing thought because it’s my favorite place in the world. I’m even going to miss the July third fireworks with Hailey and we always watch them together. I wonder if she will be sitting with Cory this time? I clench my jaw so hard I can hear my teeth grinding at the thought of them sitting there cuddled up next to one another, but there’s nothing I can do about it. I have to help my dad out and I just have to believe she will be here waiting for me when I get back.

  I haven’t been completely honest with Hailey when it comes to how I feel about her working so closely with Cory. It makes me absolutely crazy. I can’t stand the thought of him being within fifty feet of her but there’s nothing I can do about it. Letting her know how much it bothers me and how much I worry that he will weasel his way back into her heart, will only upset her. I don’t want to cause her any worry or add to her stress level. I know it’s difficult enough for her to work with him on a daily basis so I try to be as supportive as I can by being a shoulder for her to cry on, a smile for her to count on and an ear, always there to listen.

  Who knows, maybe this trip will make her miss me and realize we belong together. Hopefully, it won’t do the reverse and make her realize she doesn’t need me. Just the thought of that is enough to make me nauseous and I refuse to think that way. She and I have gotten this far by me keeping a positive attitude about us, so I need to continue to do that. I need to make sure she knows I’m coming back to her as soon as I can and when I do, I’m not holding back anymore. I’m done sitting on the sidelines and waiting for her to commit. It’s time for me to actively pursue a true relationship with her and break down her walls.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  June 2015 - Cory

  I barely slept last night because I was so keyed up from my talk with Hailey. Waiting for the beeping of my alarm to sound, reminded me of when I was a young boy, waiting for Christmas morning to arrive. I actually have a nervous stomach from the thought of seeing her soon. I wonder what kind of a mood she’ll be in. Will she act as though nothing has changed? Will she be happy to see me? I hate this fear of the unknown that she brings out in me. In the past, I’ve never worried about what any woman thought about me or if they thought about me at all. Hailey completely throws me off balance and knocks me for a loop, every time I’m in her presence. The girl slays me with a single look and she has no freaking idea. I try to act so confident and cool but inside she has me quaking in my wingtips.

  ***

  I’m sitting at my desk, nervously drumming my fingers on the distressed wood, when she walks through the door. She has a smile on her face and she’s holding two coffees in her hands.

  “Good morning,” she says cheerily as she sets the coffees down on the desk, mine in front of me.

  “Good morning babe. Thanks for the coffee. I didn’t sleep well and I can really use the caffeine jolt.”

  “I didn’t sleep well either. I wonder if it was a full moon or something.” She says looking pensive. I rise from my chair, pushing it back and begin walking towards her.

  “I couldn’t sleep because I was too excited about patching things up with you.” I smile before I grab her hand and tug her into my arms. She lets out the most adorable, mouse-like squeal of surprise before wrapping her arms around my waist and leaning her cheek on my chest. God, I’ve missed this feeling.

  “Hmm, don’t move,” she says, nuzzling her face against my dress shirt covered chest. I need to spend the next hour just like this so I can have a nap. You’re so comfy it’s making me sleepy.” I pull her in tighter against me, but I’m trying to keep my hard on from making contact with her. Having her in my arms is making me anything but sleepy and my cock is fully awake and ready to go. I don’t want to ruin this moment, but I’m not sure how much more of this contact my sex starved body can take. I let go of her and step back, giving me some distance and helping to clear my head of the perverse images I'm having of her bent over my desk. That is the main fantasy I often find myself imagining. I picture her with a skirt on, much like the one she is wearing today, and I think about slowly pushing it up over her hips, to her waist, leaving her juicy ass exposed for me to grip in my hands as I fuck her roughly from behind. I groan out loud at the dirty thoughts flowing through my mind and turn my back to her, stealthily adjusting my hard on as I walk back to my chair. I feel better now that there’s some distance between us. Being friends with her once again, is the first step towards truly making her mine, but it makes keeping my hands off her, so much more difficult. Now that she no longer despises me, I want to touch her all the time, but I have to be careful not to come on too strong. I have to treat her with kid gloves and slowly become a bigger part of her life. Hailey is very stubborn and if I push too hard, she will push right back and we won’t make any progress if that happens.

  “Are you okay?” She asks causing me to groan again, this time in annoyance because she heard the first one I let out. Obviously, I can’t tell her what really provoked it. I don’t want to scare her off before we even get a chance to get started.

  “Yeah, I’m fine. I pulled my hamstring this weekend and it’s pretty painful.” I did actually pull my hammy, this past weekend when I was playing a pickup game with some friends. I felt it pull as I went up for a jump shot, so at least I’m not lying to her. I don’t want there to be any dishonesty between us, not even if it’s over something insignificant.

  “Well, that sucks,” she says. “You know that means you’re getting old, right?” She asks with a hint of a smile on her shiny red lips.

  “I’m like fine wine...I get better with age.” I wink at her before turning my thoughts to work related topics. I need to keep us busy so I can get some work done and not think about how I’d like those glossy, stained lips wrapped around my cock. Jesus, I need to get a grip. I pick up a folder on my desk and hold it out in front of me.

  “I need you to proof all of these documents, make sure everything is in order and then file them. That should take you most of the morning. Then I was thinking we could go to lunch.” She reaches forward, taking the file from me before quickly perusing it.

  “Okay, I can get all this done this morning. I’m sorry, I can’t go to lunch with you today. I already have plans. Maybe we can go another day?” She asks tipping her head to the side and twirling the ends of her hair. My lips quirk in a small smile when I realize that she’s flirting with me. She may not consciously be doing it, but she is and that’s all that matters.

  “We can definitely go another time, no worries,” I tell her as I turn to my computer and get started on my next task.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  June 2015 - Hailey

  It’s lunch time and I’m on my way to meet Marcus at Stan’s Stop, which is one of our favorite places to eat. It’s located in an old recycled train car and it has the quintessential diner decor you’d expect, from the black and white checkered floor to the booth seating, covered in red vinyl. I’m wondering what’s going on with Marcus that he wants to see me now. I was surprised when he invited me to lunch via text message when I was on my way into work this morning. We don’t usually get together for lunch during the workweek. He’s usually too busy to take a whole hour break so he will bring a sandwich from home. Sometimes I make his lunch for him and he shows me his appreciation in some pretty creative ways. I haven’t seen him since yesterday morning and I’ve missed him. He went out with his friend Dave last night to see an up and coming band perform. He invited me along, but I was too tired and emotionally exhausted from my afternoon. It must have been really late when he got in because he slept in his own bed and he had to leave early this morning before I was even up. He’s trying to finish up a big projec
t this week so they will meet their projected deadline. His boss promised him a bonus if they complete it on time.

  When I walk in the main entrance to the diner, I see him right away. He’s sitting in the back corner booth, facing me. His tall, handsome form stands out among the rest of the patrons as I begin to wind my way towards him. He stands and hugs me to him, before gesturing for me to sit down. Our waitress immediately comes over to take our order. We both decide on cheeseburgers, fries and chocolate milkshakes before handing our menus back to her.

  “So how was the band last night?” I ask.

  “They were really great. I can’t believe Dave’s brother is their manager.”

  “Yeah, that is kind of shocking to hear. Alex was always such a screw up. It’s hard to picture him managing anything when he couldn’t even manage himself.” I giggle quietly thinking about some of the crazy stuff he did in college. “He was craaazy back in college. He’s lucky he survived it. I swear he should have died from alcohol poisoning on more than one occasion and he had a long list of girls that wanted to do him bodily harm. He was the king of one night stands. It was kind of gross. He asked me out a few times but I always refused. I’m not really keen on being part of a harem.” I snort at the absurdity of it.

  “I didn’t know he asked you out. If I had, I would have told him to stay the fuck away from you. He’s actually doing pretty well now. Dave said he has his act together, so hopefully it will continue. It was good to see them both.” Our waitress comes over, setting our plates and milkshakes down on the table in front of us.

  “Do you guys need anything else?”

  “No, we’re all set,” Marcus answers as I vigorously shake the bottle of ketchup before opening it. I always do this because there’s nothing worse than when it pours out all watery on your plate. I shiver in disgust at the thought before taking off the cap and tapping the bottle on the number fifty-seven. The ketchup slowly oozes out in a thick puddle on my plate. It works like a charm, every time.

  “I missed you last night. I thought you would come in and at least cuddle with me.” I fake pout.

  He smiles at me before taking a large bite of his burger. He holds his finger up as he chews, telling me he needs a minute. He washes it all down with a sip of his milkshake before talking.

  “I wanted to come in and more than cuddle with you,” he waggles his eyebrows, making me giggle. “I didn’t get home till after two and I had to be up at six. I was trying to be considerate, but I’m kicking myself now.”

  “So what’s going on with you? You never invite me to lunch during the week.” I ask as I dunk a fry in my milkshake before eating it.

  “I got a call from my dad yesterday and he needs me to head out there immediately. One of his employees had a heart attack.”

  “Oh, that’s so horrible. Is he going to be alright?”

  “I guess he’s still in I.C.U., but he is stable at this point. The doctors told his wife he has a long road of recovery ahead of him and he will be out of work for a while.”

  “So what does that mean, in terms of you staying there?” I ask, knowing in my heart exactly what it means. He’s going to California and he’s not coming back any time soon. I push my plate away, suddenly no longer having an appetite.

  “I don’t know exactly, but I would guess that I won’t be back till the start of school.” He exhales a large breath and shakes his head before continuing on. “I don’t want to leave you and miss out on all our plans for this summer, but how do I let my dad down when he’s counting on me?”

  “I know you have to go and if you didn’t, it would eat you up inside. I’m going to miss you so much Marcus. How will I survive without you for that long?” I ask, wiping the tears from my eyes. I’m not being overly dramatic when I ask him that. I really can’t imagine the whole summer without him. He is such a huge part of my day to day life.

  “Hailey, please don’t cry. I can’t take it if you do. I’m barely hanging on here myself and if you lose it, I’m a goner.” He takes my hand in his and rubs it reassuringly before pausing to take a deep breath. Oh no, I can tell he needs to tell me something else and it’s not going to be good.

  “I’m flying out at eight o’clock tonight Hails.” There’s so much apology laced within his tone, I can tell this is as hard on him as it is on me. Tears pour down my face in a steady stream and I can’t speak because I’m doing everything I can to hold the sobs in. Marcus gets up and comes over to my side of the booth, taking a seat beside me. He carefully pulls me into his arms and holds me as I cry. He keeps kissing the top of my head and whispering in my ear that we’ll get through this. I know we’ll get through it, but it sucks big hairy balls! I want to be a little girl again, just for a moment so I can stomp my foot and throw a temper tantrum over the unfairness of it. I lift my head from his shoulder and look into his eyes and see the same sadness I’m feeling, mirrored in his. He cups my cheeks in his palms and leans forward placing a tender kiss on my lips before swiping his thumbs under my eyes to wipe my tears away.

  “You’re going to be fine while I’m gone. We’ll talk and text all day and night until my time there is up. We made it through four years of college without each other, we can handle one summer.” I don’t want him to feel any worse than he does so I nod my head in agreement.

  “I need to get back to work now, so I can finish up. Then I still have to find the time to pack my bags.”

  “I can pack your bags for you. I know what you need to bring. You’re going to have to buy some more dress shirts when you get out there. You’ll need them if you have to wear a tie to work.”

  “You’re right. Just pack whatever you think I should take and anything else I need, I can deal with, once I’m settled in.”

  “Can I take you to the airport?” I ask in a hopeful tone.

  “Of course you can Hails. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  ***

  I’m late getting back to the office from lunch and I know I look like a disaster. The thing is, I don’t really give a shit, right now. I am totally devastated that Marcus is leaving tonight. I can’t stand the thought of him being so far away from me. I’ve had a nauseous stomach since he first told me he was leaving and it’s probably going to feel that way until he returns home. I try to avert my face as I hurry past Candy, seated at her desk. I can’t stand this bitch and there’s part of me that knows she will gain some sick sense of enjoyment from seeing me upset and I don’t want to give her the satisfaction. When I reach the hallway that leads to Cory’s office I pause for a minute, trying to regain some composure, before continuing on. His door is closed so I knock twice before being told to enter. He’s sitting at his desk reading through some papers. He has on a pair of glasses with thick black frames and he looks ridiculously sexy in them. I close the door behind me and walk towards him.

  “I didn’t know you wear glasses.” I stop in front of his desk before continuing on. “They look great on you.”

  “Thanks. I don’t need them all the time, but my eyes are really straining today. It’s probably from my lack of sleep last night. Wearing these usually helps.” He looks up from the pages he’s been studying and takes in my face. My blotchy, red, puffy eyed face. You don’t need to be Einstein to figure out that I’ve been crying.

  “What’s wrong babe?” He asks looking concerned. I shake my head and bite my lip trying to hold in the tears that are on the verge of exploding all over again. I breathe in deeply and hold for three seconds before exhaling. I probably look like a weirdo, but I will look really crazy if I have a panic attack.

  “It’s nothing. I’m fine.” I say, my lips forming a tight smile. He watches me closely and I start to squirm under his close scrutiny. He removes his glasses placing them upside down on his desktop, before crooking his finger at me.

  “Come here babe.” I shake my head and stay where I’m at. “Hailey, if you don’t walk over to me on your own accord, I’m going to come over there and make you.” His tone is soft, b
ut the threat is real. I know he would do exactly what he said, so I walk around the side of his desk and stop beside his chair. He rolls the chair back before angling his seat to face me. He unexpectedly yanks me onto his lap and I make a weird screeching noise. It’s so high pitched it doesn’t sound human. Cory laughs at my reaction before asking me again.

  “What’s wrong? I can tell you’ve been crying and I want to know who made you so upset?” I’m reclining sideways in his lap with my back supported by one of his arms. My legs are bent over the arm of his executive chair and it’s not the most comfortable position to be in.

  “I had lunch with Marcus and he told me he has to go to California for the whole summer. One of his dad’s employees got sick suddenly and he’s taking his place. He leaves tonight.” I don’t even make it through the first sentence before I start to cry, big salty tears that are dripping down my face and onto my gray blouse, leaving little wet spots scattered all over it. They almost look like polka dots.

  “Babe, I’m sorry to hear that. Come here.” He says as he closes both arms around me and I naturally rest my head on his chest. I continue to cry and sniffle for the next fifteen minutes and Cory stays silent and lets me get it all out, handing me more tissues as I need them. He caresses my head and rubs my back intermittently. It feels so soothing and relaxing that I actually drift off to sleep in his arms.

  The ringing of a phone brings me back to consciousness and the realization that I fell asleep on Cory’s lap. I push myself up and try to get off of him. He tightens his arms and holds me still.