Free Because This Is Forever by Lena Hart Page A

gentle caress. She tightened her grip.
    “Hi
Nate,” she whispered.
    Silence
filled the line for a heartbeat before he replied. “Hi Mia.”
    More
awkward silence filled the line before she asked, “How’d you know it was me?”
    He
chuckled softly. “I don’t get many calls from Michigan, especially at this
hour.”
    Mia unconsciously
glanced at the bedside clock. It was a little after ten. Nine o’clock, his time.
“I’m sorry for calling this late,” she rushed out. “I hope I’m not—”
    “I
wasn’t complaining,” he interrupted gently. “It’s actually nice to hear your
voice again, baby,” he added softly.
    Mia’s
heart lurched and she closed her eyes as the warmth of his words coursed
through her. Excitement and longing sprang up in her, followed by guilt. She
knew it was dangerous territory, but she’d like to think maybe he missed her as
much as she did him.
    “Is
everything okay?”
    Mia smiled
softly. “Yeah, everything’s fine,” she assured him, touched by the concern she
heard his voice. “I just…uh, I’m coming to Chicago this weekend and was hoping
we could meet up,” she finally rushed out.
    Silence.
    Her
courage and anxiety began to war with each other when he didn’t immediately
respond. “I know this is sudden and I understand if you don’t have time to see
me. I just wanted—”
    “I
have time,” he cut in softly. “When will you get here?”
    “Tomorrow
night.” She gave him the name of the motel she would be checking into, relieved
he didn’t say anything about it. It was a low-budget motel in a questionable
neighborhood but it was the only thing she could afford on such short notice.
    “I
can’t wait to see you,” he said before they ended the call and something in her
stomach fluttered. Would he feel the same way after she introduced him to his
son?

 
 
 
    Chapter Six

 
    Nate forced
himself to concentrate on the spreadsheet in front of him. His eyes were on the
computer screen but his mind was miles away. Since Mia’s call last night, he
hadn’t been able to concentrate on anything else. She was the last person he’d
expected to hear from.
    Even
after five years, she managed to bring up feelings in him he had thought long
forgotten and buried. He didn’t know why she had finally sought him out and
didn’t care. The chance to be with her again—even for one night—had filled his mind
with all kinds of fantasies. During their brief conversation, she hadn’t
sounded bitter or angry. If anything, she sounded as if she…missed him.
    It
had taken some time but he had eventually come to accept that she was no longer
a part of his life. It hadn’t been easy but the ache of losing her had
eventually become bearable. He had spent a lot of time thinking of that night,
wondering what he could have done differently, but concluded his honesty had
been best for them both. He wasn’t going to string her along for his own
selfish needs.
    The
only problem with honesty, however, was that someone always ended up miserable.
The year it took for him to stop obsessing over her had proven as much. He had
tried his damnedest to stay away from her but had experienced a moment of
weakness. An overwhelming urge to call her one January had come over him but when
he’d tried, her number had been disconnected. He hadn’t tried again since.
    Now
she was back and wanted to see him.
    Anticipation
burned in his gut. He wanted to see her too. A lot of time had passed and he
had spent much of it thinking about what was important to him.
    Nate
glanced at the time at the lower corner of his computer screen. Time was really
dragging its heels today.
    He
couldn’t wait to leave the office but before he could, he had a thorn in his
side he needed to remove.
    Stephen
Rhodes, one of their longtime consultants, had gotten the company into a
serious mess and Nate was scrambling to fix it or risk losing a vital client.
McArthur, Murphy and Company was one of the leading management