As Lucy worked that morning, her gaze moved to the wall clock at intervals, and although, at first, she couldn't exactly tell what it was she was waiting for when she realized it was Tom's call she was waiting, she sighed and picked up her phone.
She didn't have to wait until he arrived at his destination before reaching out to him, did she? She could send a text to just check on him the same way he had left that note on her desk. She would just respond to his text.
Thinking about the note, she smiled again. Was it Harry? Who could have helped him leave the note on her desk? The most beautiful thing about the note was the fact that it was handwritten by him. She thought it was sweet that he had thought of writing such a note for her before leaving. He had managed to accomplish the exact reason for which he must have written the note, staying on her mind all day. Not that he had not been on her mind even without the note.
[Good morning, Ace. I'm waiting to hear from you. Call me the moment you arrive, alright? Try to get some rest, and don't overwork yourself. I got your note. I love it. I love you. Your beautiful girlfriend.]
The smile on Lucy's lips wobbled as she reread the text, and she realized her vision had become blurred by tears.
'Okay. I miss him. I do miss him very much already,' Lucy admitted to herself as she brushed her tears away and tapped on send.
Almost immediately, a knock sounded on her office door, and she was surprised to see Adolf standing by the glass door with a food pack.
"Come in," she told him as she rose to greet him.
"Good morning, Adolf," Lucy greeted with a confused smile.
"Good morning, Lucy. Tom instructed that we bring you breakfast because you often forget to eat, and you have an ulcer," Adolf explained as he placed the food pack on her desk and Lucy blinked in surprise, touched by the gesture.
"Thanks, but you shouldn't have bothered...."
"It's not a bother. Janet asked me to bring the keys to your apartment. I'm going to drop them off there later in the day," Adolf cut in politely, and Lucy nodded as she walked back to her desk to get the key from her handbag.
"Samantha says you should let her know if there is anything you prefer in particular. She says you can make a list," Adolf said, and Lucy smiled.
"Tell her I'm fine with whatever she makes for everyone else. Thank you, Adolf," Lucy said, and Adolf gave her a polite nod before walking away.
As Lucy returned to her seat, tears gathered in her eyes once again, and she covered her face with her hands as she took a deep breath.
Why was she feeling so emotional? It was almost like she had assumed in her mind that the relationship was over, and seeing everything Tom had arranged for her before leaving made her tearful.
Tom loved her. He still loved her. While he was busy fighting for their relationship to work, she was busy looking for a way to survive without him if the relationship didn't work.
Was this what Sonia had meant when she said Tom was going all the way to chase her, and she wasn't putting in any special effort?
Lucy picked up her phone and dialed the number of one of the therapists, and once her secretary received the call, Lucy booked an appointment for the next day.
She looked up when a knock sounded on her door again, and she smiled when Harry walked in, "You're not too busy to chat with your favorite cousin, are you?" Harry asked with a wide smile and approached her desk.
"I don't think I am. What are those?" she asked when she noticed he was holding a couple of books.
"They are called Books," Harry said dryly, and Lucy rolled her eyes.
"Oh! Really? I had no idea," Lucy said in an equally dry tone, and Harry chuckled.
"I told you I was going to lend you a couple of books on relationships, remember?" Harry asked, and Lucy raised a brow.
"Oh!"
"Yeah. Oh. I wasn't joking," Harry said as he placed the books in front of her.
"Did you read all these?" Lucy asked as she picked up the books. They were five in number.
Harry gave her a nod, "I have more where those came from. But these are some of my favorites," Harry said as he took his seat, and his gaze shifted to the food pack.
"You brought breakfast from home?" Harry asked curiously.
"No. Samantha made it, and Tom had Adolf deliver it," Lucy explained.
"Mind if I find something to munch on?" he asked, and Lucy spread her hands.
"Help yourself. Speaking of Tom. You are the one who left Tom's note on my desk this morning, aren't you?" Lucy asked, and Harry raised a brow as he opened the food pack.
"I didn't. Tom left a note?" Harry asked as he took out a muffin while Lucy fished it out from within the pages of her journal where she had tucked it and gave it to Harry.
Harry grinned as he read it, "Who knew the idiot had it in him to do something like this? I thought he was only good at doing creepy things like stalking you."
Lucy laughed, "Don't insult my boyfriend."
"I will try to remember that. No, I didn't leave the note. Maybe his assistant did. I will ask him," Harry said as he returned the note to her and took a bite from the muffin.
"Right. I forgot about him. I guess Candace has left?" Lucy asked, and Harry nodded as he chewed.
"Yeah. We concluded with the orphanage home and with Crystal. Everything is going as planned," he said after swallowing.
"Do you still plan for them to be BFFs?" Lucy asked, and Harry shook his head.
"We changed our minds on that. If Candace stays by her side, Sara might want to dig into Candace, and then she will know Candace is somehow connected to Jade and us, and we can't have that," Harry said as he took another bite, and Lucy nodded.
"That's good to know. I was going to point that out. Hence I asked. By the way, how much longer before Tom arrives at his destination?" Lucy asked with concern, and Harry glanced at his wristwatch.
"About an hour or less," Harry said as he quickly ate the muffin as though just remembering he had to be somewhere.
"I have to run, LuLu. I'm sure you need to get back to work too. Make sure you read the books any chance you get, okay?" Harry said as he rose, and Lucy smiled as she gave him a nod.
"Yes, sir," Lucy said, and Harry walked away while wondering what Jade was up to and how the meeting was going.
Alone again in her office, Lucy glanced at the clock and decided to give Sonia a call to find out if she had told the family about her pregnancy yet, but before she could dial Sonia's line, her phone rang, and she received it when she saw it was her mother.
"Hi, Mom!"
"Are you busy?"
"Not at all. What's up?"
"Sony is pregnant!" Janet announced gleefully, and Lucy laughed.
"So I heard."
"It was so beautiful, darling. Evelyn wept. Desmond did too. I felt all emotional myself. I can't imagine how they must feel, welcoming their first grandchild," she said with a sigh, and Lucy sat upright, her sixth sense telling her what was coming next.
"With Lucas' break up with Rachel, I know settling down is the last thing on his mind, and I can't really blame him or pressure him. What about you, Lucy? How is your relationship with Tom coming? Evelyn mentioned that Tom announced during the family dinner that you both didn't have any marriage plans yet. What about kids? When do you both plan to start having kids?" Janet asked while Lucy tapped on her desk.
"Mom, I have to go now. I have to...."
"You said you weren't busy," Janet reminded her.
"Yes, I wasn't. But now I am," Lucy said with a frown.
"Why do I feel like you're avoiding the subject? We are going to have this conversation, Lu. Maybe not right now, but we will," Janet promised before hanging up.
Lucy sighed as she took off her glasses and relaxed against her seat. She rubbed her eyes, suddenly feeling drained because of the conversation with her mother.
Human needs were truly insatiable. A while ago, she was being pestered to get a boyfriend, and she did. Now it was marriage and kids? And after those, what?
She missed the days when all she had to worry about was meeting work targets.
'But you are happier now than you were in those days, ' a voice in her head said, and she sighed.
"Whatever," she muttered.
Instead of calling Sonia as she had planned, she pushed her phone away and placed the breakfast pack in front of her desk.
Samantha had neatly arranged muffins, sausages, scrambled eggs, and sandwiches in the bag. How was she supposed to eat all of that alone? She mused, then paused when she noticed a familiar piece of paper at the bottom of the bag.
She took it out and grinned when she noticed it was a handwritten note from Tom.
[Think of me when you eat. Will you send me a picture? I love you. I miss you. I love you again.]
"This is so silly," Lucy said with a giggle as she looked at the letter, and just then, her phone started ringing.
She picked up her phone and her heart skipped a beat when she saw it was Tom. She swallowed nervously as she received the call.
"Hey, baby!" Tom said in a tired voice, and her brows pulled together.
"Are you okay?" she asked with a concerned frown, her nervousness disappearing.
"Yeah. Just exhausted. I was busy going through all the details of the branch here. I just got off the plane. I'm on my way to the hotel now. How are you?" he asked, a smile in his voice, and she smiled.
"I got your notes," she said, and this time he grinned.
"Made your heart skip, right?" he asked, and Lucy giggled softly as she nodded.
"It did."
"Then I guess you've had breakfast, right?" he asked with concern.
"Not yet. I was about to before your call came in," she admitted.
"I should let you get to it then. We can talk later...."
"NO!" Lucy cut in, surprising Tom.
"I mean, let's just talk now. You're tired and will need to get some rest when you get to your hotel and...."
"You don't have to explain yourself, Jewel. I actually prefer the no," Tom said softly, and Lucy bit her lower lip.
"So, do you miss me? Did you miss me last night?" he asked, and she nodded.
"A lot more than I expected," she confessed, feeling emotional.
"Can I see your face?" he asked hopefully.
"You mean like a Facetime?" she asked, feeling self-conscious as she touched her hair to be sure it was still on her head.
"Yes. It's okay if you can't do that right now...."
"Let's do it. I want to see your face as well," Lucy assured him, and Tom switched to a video call, which Lucy promptly received.
"Hey, beautiful!" Tom greeted, and Lucy smiled as she looked at him.
"You look really exhausted," she noted.
"Yeah. I'm away from my energy booster," Tom said, and Lucy blinked coyly.
"You mean Harry?" she asked, and Tom chuckled.
"God, I miss you terribly, Lu! I can't believe it's not twenty-four hours yet since I last saw you. It feels like weeks," Tom said as he gazed into her eyes.
"I miss you too," Lucy whispered, unable to break away from his gaze.
"Should I just shut down the business over here and come back home?" Tom suggested with a grin, and Lucy giggled.
"Perhaps you should," she said, playing along.
"You said it! I'm going to do it. I won't care about the number of people that will be put out of their job or the families that will suffer...." Tom broke off when Lucy giggled.
"Do what you have to do. I will wait," Lucy assured him.
"What's going on over there? How is work going?" Tom asked, and Lucy remembered all that had happened in his short absence.
"So much has happened. Sonia told Bryan about the pregnancy. They are keeping the baby," she announced happily, and Tom smiled as he watched the excitement dance in her eyes.
"That's great! I will give Bryan a call when I can to congratulate him," Tom said, and Lucy nodded.
"Also, Anita's family is in a mess," Lucy said and explained the details to Tom.
"Harry wants Jade to represent them?" he asked, wondering what Harry was thinking but trusting him too much to express his concern over the decision.
"Yes. Maybe when you talk to him, he can explain better," Lucy said, and Tom nodded, barely managing to stifle a yawn.
"You need to get some rest," Lucy said with concern, and Tom nodded.
"Sure. I will soon as I get to the hotel," he assured her.
"Alright."
"Love?" Tom called softly.
"Yeah?"
"I thought about us. Our relationship, I mean. I realize that I'm a lot like you when it comes to being in control of things. We may not exactly express it in the same way, but I do have control issues and hate it when things don't go my way," Tom said as he watched her.
"Why are you telling me this?" Lucy asked in confusion, knowing it must not be easy for him to say that to her.
"Because I don't want to be controlling. At least not with you. I want you to be able to be yourself freely with me without tiptoeing around me like I made you do two days ago. I don't want to always be right. I just want us to be happy, okay? So if I start acting all-controlling, don't just accept it, alright?" Tom said, and Lucy nodded.
"I booked a therapy session for tomorrow," she said, and Tom smiled.
"That's good. I have to go now, Jewel. I just got to the hotel. I love you."
"I love you too. Take care of yourself. Don't skip meals, and don't overwork. And don't forget to call me," Lucy instructed, and Tom grinned, wondering if she knew she sounded like a wife and mom.
"Yes, Mom. Love you again. Bye!" once he hung up the call, he sighed.
He had been right. The distance was going to do them both much good. As much as he missed her, this was probably the best thing he could do for their relationship at the moment.
He could handle the Millers, Rebekah, and whoever else he needed to handle from the distance.
He couldn't handle things as his father had suggested. He loved her too much to be cold or distant, and he wasn't sure he could stay in his bedroom or lie on his bed without her by his side.
Of course he felt bad for deceiving Harry this way, but he was going to do what he had to do to get Lucy. Harry would probably have discouraged him from leaving if he had told him his plan.
The first time he had stalked her (howbeit with the best intentions) and had been all over her to get her to fall for him. Now he was going to give her space to make her see that she really didn't want to be alone and wanted him as much as he wanted her.
He wondered how she was going to react when he eventually told her he was going to be here for a while. That could wait until after the anniversary dinner party.
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