“I’ve always wanted to go to Thailand,” I admitted shyly. I could picture us there on an island, with a cute little secluded bungalow just for the two of us. We could spend the days curled together, exploring each other’s bodies, all worries about work fading far away.
“Thailand,” Daniel said, and I could hear the interested note in his voice, like he was really considering it. I suddenly realized that I didn’t even know if he was a beach person or not. Maybe he hated the humidity, and here I was, suggesting that we go to one of the warmest, most humid places on the planet.
“Or Australia,” I added, figuring that would give him another option. “That’s another place I’ve always thought about going. I mean, to be honest, there are so many places I’d like to go.”
“But those are the top two,” Daniel said. He shrugged. “Well, why don’t we do both of them? Money’s not an object. And I want to show you the world.”
I giggled and curled my body closer to his. “Are you serious?” I asked him.
“One hundred percent,” Daniel said, nodding at me. He kissed my forehead. “I’ll start making the plans.” Then, softly: “I love you, you know.”
“I love you, too.” I sighed happily. I drifted off to a sleep filled with dreams of bungalows, elephants, and hill treks. All with Daniel by my side.
Chapter 21
Daniel
I ASKED ERIN TO COME into my office while Abby was at lunch. She gave me a curious look as she came in. “What’s going on?” she asked.
“I want to rearrange my schedule some,” I said.
“Okay,” Erin said, her brow furrowing. “What kind of rearranging are we talking about here? You’re not getting enough time to show Abby the ropes with that new CEO training that you’re working on?”
“Not exactly,” I said, shaking my head. “I promised Abby that when the whole trial thing was over, I would take her away somewhere with me. You know, as thanks for letting me throw her to the wolves as interim CEO and all.”
Erin rolled her eyes, smirking at me. “I’m sure that’s the only reason you want to whisk her away,” she teased.
I grinned at her and shrugged. “I have to admit, I’m excited to just take a little break and get to spend some quality time with her,” I said. “But the main thing is, if I’m gone and she’s gone, even if I bring in someone to oversee things in our absence, there’s not a lot of business meetings and things that can happen without either of us.”
Erin nodded slowly. “So basically we need to try to block off, what? A week? Two weeks?”
“As long as you can give me,” I told her. “I know it’s probably irresponsible to ask for that, but I’m just hoping to take her to as many beautiful places as I can. She suggested Thailand and Australia; the transit alone, plus the time changes, are already going to eat part of that time.”
“Of course,” Erin said. She scrolled through the calendar on her tablet, muttering to herself for a moment. “Yeah, we can do this,” she said finally. “Push back some of the important meetings. People will understand. And they’ll wait to do business with you. McGregor Enterprises has a reputation; everyone knows you’re the best.” She grinned at me, and I grinned right back.
“I’ll get on it this afternoon and let you know what I come up with,” she
told me finally.
“Sounds perfect,” I said. “And if there’s anyone pushing back against their meetings being rescheduled, feel free to transfer them over to me so that I can subtly remind them that I’ve chained myself to this desk for the better part of the last decade.”
Erin snorted with amusement. But then, she frowned across at me. “The only thing I want to ask is, have you thought about how the media might try to spin this one? You’ve just gotten out of the trial with Gerrard, and now it looks like you’re trying to lay low for a while or something.”
I shrugged. “To be honest, I don’t give a damn what the media has to say on the matter,” I told her, and for the first time in my life, it was true. It was the same thing I’d been thinking before: the people I actually cared about weren’t about to mistake the sensationalized tabloid stories for the truth about my life. And the people who did believe all the nonsense the media said about me I didn’t care to have in my life anymore. I wanted more Abbys and less Ivys.
Erin looked pleased by my response. “All right, then,” she said. “If you give me a list of places you’re trying to visit, I can look into booking the accommodations and flights and everything as well.”
I shook my head. “Actually, I think this time, Abby and I are going to do all of that ourselves. And I don’t think we’ll plan the whole trip ahead of time. I want things to be flexible when we hit the ground. I don’t want to miss out on anything we want to do.”
“You mean, you don’t want her to miss out on anything she wants to do,” Erin surmised with a knowing smile on her face.
“Exactly,” I said.
“Sounds good,” Erin said. She paused. “You really care about her, don’t you?” she asked softly.
I nodded. “I really do,” I admitted. It was strange admitting that to someone around the office, but I knew I could trust Erin. Besides, no one around the office really seemed to mind that Abby and I were a thing. In fact, I was pretty sure people were mostly relieved that I wasn’t alone anymore. I had always tried to maintain a more relaxed environment around the office, but now it was starting to feel even more relaxed, and efficient, than normal. I chalked that up to Abby’s presence in my life.
“And the overseer for while you’re gone?” Erin asked. “Any idea who that might be? Is that friend of yours still between projects?”