Rose picked up some cookies to nibble on. She had no business getting involved in the conversation which was about to happen; it was best to let Wayne handle it.Anytime a comment or question was directed to her, she would simply nod under the pretense that her mouth was full.“Mom, I don’t understand. What do you mean by a month? You are supposed to be in Brazil in five days.” Wayne was trying to speak calmly even though he was feeling all hot and bothered inside.“Well, I have decided to miss out on the trip this year.” Maggie shrugged and casually sipped her tea.“Mom, it’s practically a tradition now and your friends are going to be disappointed. Are you really just going to let them down like that?” Wayne said gently but firmly. He just needed to convince her to go. “Well, I explained the situation to them and they completely understood. Brazil will still be there by this time next year.”“Mom, what exactly is the

The next morning, Wayne woke up before Rose and used the opportunity to take a good look at her. She looked at peace and was softly snoring in the cutest way. He gently crawled out of bed and went to the kitchen to get breakfast started.He met his mother there having a cup of tea.“Good morning mom,” he pecked her cheek.“Good morning sweetie. Where’s Rose?”“She’s still in bed; I want to make breakfast so we can get ready for the office.” Wayne walked to the fridge and brought out some eggs. “I was thinking of eggs and toast; nothing too complicated.”“Won’t you just call Chef Mario up here to make you something or eat in the main house?” Maggie was intrigued.“Nah, Rose would tease me for eternity that I couldn’t handle breakfast alone. Mario has not been up here to cook in a while, he only comes to restock the ingredients; but Rose and I have handled that a few times.” Wayne said like it was no big deal and started making bre

For years Rose had been held back through no fault of her own and she had always known she could do better if given the opportunity. But no one was ever willing to take a chance on her; until Wayne came along.As she listened to the announcement, it felt like she had finally been validated. She had set her mind to do this thing and had persevered in spite of all the obstacles and mockery. She would have never gotten this platform at Sage Poll Inc. because Jack always took all the glory for her effort.Wayne had trusted her and she was so glad that she had not let him down. It was so hard to believe that her picture was on TV because she had spearheaded a project which had broken a major record. It was hard for her to keep her cool and she turned to Wayne.As she met his green gaze she remembered all the times he had encouraged her, refused to allow her to give up, stayed up with her and listened to her fears about things not working out. She started crying

It felt like years since Rose had last been at Jerry’s office; it was so funny how it seemed like time could fly without restraint. She was driving the car Wayne had given her as a birthday present and she hadn’t decided on a name yet.One of the reasons she had named her previous car was because she had needed a name to murmur when she was begging it to start. There was no such need with the Mercedes-Maybach. It was a testament to how much her life had changed since the last time she had driven up here with Chelly.She took a deep breath and walked into the building. There was still that same sweet old secretary from the last time. There were people waiting and she hoped that she wouldn’t have to.“Good morning Miss.” The secretary greeted as Rose walked up to her.“Good morning, my name is Rose Cohen and I have an appointment with Mr. Jones.” Rose was able to keep a smile frozen on her face.The secretary did not bother consulting their

“Rose please,” Wayne groaned in agony.“I’m not doing this to get over Victor. I’m doing it because I want to and maybe the thought of Victor is what has been stopping me from making a move. Please don’t get me wrong, I don’t expect anything from you after.It’s not like I’m going to force you to really date me, there are no strings attached. We can just do it and move on; that’s if you are up for it. I’m making everything clear so you can decide if you want to do it. You can say no if you want and there will be no hard feelings, I promise. I don’t think it will ruin our friendship if we do it or if you say no. But that’s in my opinion, not yours.” Rose said sincerely as she watched him. He broke eye contact and lowered his gaze to the bed.She would have wanted things differently because she was more than sexually attracted to Wayne. But she was going to take him in any way she could. It would be nice if she could at least ta