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PLAY WITH ME 30
"I'm ready whenever Bryce Collins is ready“ he said"Timothy..." Chloe began."I have to go," he said before she could finish speaking. And then, just as he’d done the day she told him she was leaving years ago, he calmly walked out of the living room, the deafening silence left by his departure confirming what she already knew. They had crossed a line and she was forced to face the fact that the dream she was secretly chasing would never come true. That Timothy Kavell-Packard would never belong to her again. That walking away instead of clinging to false hope had been the right thing to do then, and probably was now.That really, when it came down to it, he didn’t want or need her....With a thick swallow, she crossed the living room to retrieve her clutch from the floor where she had dropped it. She paused for a beat, toying with the idea of calling him to confront him, then dismissed it. The best way to tackle an intransigent Timothy was to let him cool off. But if nothing else, th
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Someone else signaled for Henry and he nodded at Timothy and Chloe. “I’ll be back later on to check on you, Miss Chloe.”She smiled and patted Henry on the arm and thanked him for the hot dogs. When she turned back in her seat, Timothy leaned over to take his hot dog from her lap.“Do you have everyone eating out of your hand, Miss Chloe?” he asked, mimicking Henry.She actually blushed and ducked her head.“Henry is a friend.”Timothy chuckled, delighted at the rosy bloom of her cheeks.“Do you have any other surprises in store for me today?”“Maybe,” she mumbled around a bite of hot dog. “We will see”The Tide took the field, and the very first batter walked. Chloe groaned in dismay along with the rest of the crowd.“Our pitching has been what’s let us down in the past,” she whispered to Timothy.He didn’t have the heart to tell her that not only did he know, but he could quote the stats for every one of the Tide’s pitching roster“This year should be better,” Timothy consoled.She
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Before he could get carried away with thoughts that would only enrage him, he made himself back down and quit speculating. He’d find out before the end of the day.One way or another. And then he’d decide what to do about Chloe. And his account. When the game ended after the visiting team failed to score the necessary runs to overtake the Tide in the ninth inning, Chloe stood, her cheeks flush with excitement.“We’re going to have an awesome season. I just know it!”He stood beside her unsure of what would happen now. Nothing had gone the way he’d anticipated. Sure enough, she grabbed his hand and began pulling him toward the exit. “Come on,” she said.But they didn’t leave the stadium. Instead they went down to a restricted area, where Chloe flashed a pass he hadn’t seen up to this point. He shouldn’t be surprised. But when they stopped outside the players’ locker room, he was. They waited a good while. Several members of the press came and went. Finally one of the players stuck his h
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“I’m afraid I am, sir. I wish I could say it was something I regret, but Chloe is one of the brightest minds I’ve encountered. She’s going to single handedly turn my advertising efforts around. I think in a year or two, Packard Enterprises won’t simply be one of the leaders in athletic apparel, but the undisputed leader when it comes to sportswear.The two brothers eyed Chloe with renewed interest while Chloe just stared at Timothy, her eyes wide with shock. He could almost swear she looked a little teary. He smiled at her and reached for her hand. He didn't even know why he did it, but to his surprise she didn't withdraw as he thought she would. Instead she accepted without complaint and curled her fingers tight around his.“If you’re meeting Bryce about business, we’ll just scoot on out,” Darell said. “Will you come over for Sunday dinner this time or will you be busy again?”“I’ll try,” she said as she leaned up on tiptoe to kiss his cheek. “Sorry about the last time. Something cam
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Her presentation went off without a hitch. Each part of her team executed their part flawlessly, and through it all, Evan Reese sat back with a very satisfied expression on his face. By the time she was done, she was as convinced as everyone else that Timothy would sign with Golden Gates promotions. He’d be a fool not to. The lights went back up after her last video clip.“This concludes our presentation,” she said to Timothy. “I hope we’ve convinced you of our commitment to you and your company.”He took his time responding. For a moment he studied her, his hands stretched out in front of him. Then he simply nodded.“I’m very impressed. My question is, how soon can we move on this?” he asked._______________The after party that evening was packed with the after-work crowd, but the entire back room was filled with Golden Gates Promotions employees, all celebrating their biggest coup to date—Packard Enterprises.Chloe was high on her achievement, but she couldn’t shake the anxiety ove
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Chloe's cab pulled up to her apartment, and she pulled out several bills to pay the driver. While she was far from toasted, she didn’tt wanted to chance driving home, so she’d left her car at the office and took a cab from the party.It was late, but not ungodly so, and she was still riding high from the celebration. The cab pulled away and across the street she saw Matthew Willis leaning against his car, watching her. He started forward, and she stood there like a statue, watching him approach.“Out celebrating?” Matthew asked with a slight smile.She nodded. “After-work thing. Took a cab back so I didn’t have to drive.”“You should have called me. I would have come to take you home.”“I don’t think that would have been necessary. It was perfectly okay to take a cab. And I got home safely, didn't i?”He regarded her with no expression. Then he shrugged and asked, “Going to invite me in?”Chloe wanted to say no. She was in no mood to talk to Matthew about anything, but she didn't want
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For the first time since he signed the contract with Packard Enterprises, he put the news out of his mind and headed towards the kitchen. He peered in and saw that he was right. Christina stood in the kitchen cutting up some veggies. His eyes drifted to the stove, which had a steaming pot on it. He wasn't crazy... His wife was making dinner....For the first time since they lost their baby. He was surprised, but also very happy. Finally, a little progress. This day was turning out to be one of the best days of his life. She had her back to him, so she didn't see him come in."Tina," Evan called.Her shoulders tensed and she turned quickly, dropping the knife she was holding in the process. "Oh my God, Evan. Don't scare me like that" she said as she placed her hand on her chest. "You almost gave me a fucking heart attack!" She bent to pick up the knife and rinsed it in the sink, then she turned back to cutting up the carrots. Evan stared at her tense shoulders for a while. He could
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Not that one twelve-ounce Diet Coke can was going to make much of a difference. No, if she really wanted to cool off, she might as well go downstairs to the bookstore and try to do some work on her laptop. At least the bookstore had air-conditioning. And there was even food in the break room and an honest-to-goodness coffee pot.She stood there for a while, battling with the decision of either staying at home and continuing with her book, or going to work. Finally she decided to do the former. So she took the day off to rest, it wasn't a big deal. She deserved to rest a bit after all she'd done. Besides, the work wasn't going anywhere. It would still be there when she finally went to the office.That decided, she hurriedly went to the bathroom to take a quick shower, then she headed downstairs to the bookstore.. By 1:00 pm, she went out to get some groceries and food stuff. She returned home an hour later, then hopped back on her bed to continue reading her book.Chloe read in bed for
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