Mom. Have you landed?”
Trace heard the faint voice on the other end say, “I hope I’m not calling too early—I know there’s a three-hour time difference. Am I waking you up?”
“Not at all. I’ve been up for a while.” Meg shot a rueful look at Trace and thought, all night really .
“We’re in Charleston. We landed about a half hour ago and—miracle of miracles—all of our bags made it!”
Meg laughed, “That’s great, Mom. What’s next?”
“We’re going for our leisurely brunch and then we can start boarding the ship at noon—nine o’clock your time. I think we set sail around four.”
“I’m jealous!”
Sheila laughed, “No, you’re not. Okay, honey, Daddy has the taxi loaded up so I have to go. Don’t worry. We’ll be fine and I’ll stay in touch. Love you!”
“Love you too, Mom. Kiss Daddy for me and have a great time.” She disconnected and looked over at Trace where he had stopped by the door watching her.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
“Yeah, my parents are setting out on a cruise to the Bahamas today and were just checking in to let me know they made it to Charleston okay. Sorry ‘bout that.”
“No need to be sorry. I’m glad their trip is starting off well.” He opened the door for her. “I didn’t see Sean on the couch. Did he head out early this morning?”
“No,” she replied as she stepped into the house. “Never came home.”
“Really?”
“He spent all weekend except for a couple of hours yesterday at Steffy’s. She had a hissy fit over him coming over to practice with me. This is not a good situation, but he won’t hear it from me. He shuts me down if I try to talk some sense into him. I can only hope she won’t affect our job at the Institute. We’ll see.”
“Wow. Keep me posted.” Trace looked up at the clock. “Ooh . . . I gotta get a move on. Can I call you later?”
“You better! Have a good day, Trace.”
CHAPTER NINE
“Are you sure they won’t mind us crashing their party?” Tobi asked as they walked across the parking lot.
“I’m sure,” Meg answered.
Meg had walked into the faculty lounge that morning glowing and Tobi had rushed to her side to get all the details of Meg and Trace’s conversation earlier that morning.
Trace had called Meg on his lunch break and told her that several of the guys from his team—and their wives or girlfriends—were going to watch the Monday night football game at a local sports bar, Abernathy’s, that evening. He invited her to meet them there and she had agreed. She mentioned it to Tobi and suggested she might like to come along. “I’m not sure if any of the guys will be single, but it’s worth a try,” she had teased Tobi with a smile. So Tobi had accepted the challenge in hopes of meeting a cute computer geek. By the end of the day Kai and his friend, Scott, had decided to join them too.
Kai and Scott jogged up to them as they approached the door. As they walked through it, Meg looked around and saw a bunch of tables pushed together toward the back of the bar. “Back there,” she said as she gestured to the upper level that took up almost half of the room.
As they worked their way through the tables toward the back, Trace must have noticed them. She saw him stand up, wave and move toward them. “Hey!” he said as he brushed his lips across her cheek.
“Hi. I made it . . . and I brought friends. Hope that’s okay.”
He smiled at the others. “The more the merrier.”
Meg turned and pointed, “Kai, Tobi, Scott. All new friends from the Institute.”
Scott burst out laughing. “That sounds bad! We’re your new crazy institutionalized friends? Well, now that I think about it—seems that way some days.”
They all laughed along as they moved the rest of the way to the tables.
“Meg!” Charley and Sonny chorused when they spied her at the same time.
“Hey, guys. How’re you? Survived the weekend okay, I see,” she said over the noise.
Everyone
Trace heard the faint voice on the other end say, “I hope I’m not calling too early—I know there’s a three-hour time difference. Am I waking you up?”
“Not at all. I’ve been up for a while.” Meg shot a rueful look at Trace and thought, all night really .
“We’re in Charleston. We landed about a half hour ago and—miracle of miracles—all of our bags made it!”
Meg laughed, “That’s great, Mom. What’s next?”
“We’re going for our leisurely brunch and then we can start boarding the ship at noon—nine o’clock your time. I think we set sail around four.”
“I’m jealous!”
Sheila laughed, “No, you’re not. Okay, honey, Daddy has the taxi loaded up so I have to go. Don’t worry. We’ll be fine and I’ll stay in touch. Love you!”
“Love you too, Mom. Kiss Daddy for me and have a great time.” She disconnected and looked over at Trace where he had stopped by the door watching her.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
“Yeah, my parents are setting out on a cruise to the Bahamas today and were just checking in to let me know they made it to Charleston okay. Sorry ‘bout that.”
“No need to be sorry. I’m glad their trip is starting off well.” He opened the door for her. “I didn’t see Sean on the couch. Did he head out early this morning?”
“No,” she replied as she stepped into the house. “Never came home.”
“Really?”
“He spent all weekend except for a couple of hours yesterday at Steffy’s. She had a hissy fit over him coming over to practice with me. This is not a good situation, but he won’t hear it from me. He shuts me down if I try to talk some sense into him. I can only hope she won’t affect our job at the Institute. We’ll see.”
“Wow. Keep me posted.” Trace looked up at the clock. “Ooh . . . I gotta get a move on. Can I call you later?”
“You better! Have a good day, Trace.”
CHAPTER NINE
“Are you sure they won’t mind us crashing their party?” Tobi asked as they walked across the parking lot.
“I’m sure,” Meg answered.
Meg had walked into the faculty lounge that morning glowing and Tobi had rushed to her side to get all the details of Meg and Trace’s conversation earlier that morning.
Trace had called Meg on his lunch break and told her that several of the guys from his team—and their wives or girlfriends—were going to watch the Monday night football game at a local sports bar, Abernathy’s, that evening. He invited her to meet them there and she had agreed. She mentioned it to Tobi and suggested she might like to come along. “I’m not sure if any of the guys will be single, but it’s worth a try,” she had teased Tobi with a smile. So Tobi had accepted the challenge in hopes of meeting a cute computer geek. By the end of the day Kai and his friend, Scott, had decided to join them too.
Kai and Scott jogged up to them as they approached the door. As they walked through it, Meg looked around and saw a bunch of tables pushed together toward the back of the bar. “Back there,” she said as she gestured to the upper level that took up almost half of the room.
As they worked their way through the tables toward the back, Trace must have noticed them. She saw him stand up, wave and move toward them. “Hey!” he said as he brushed his lips across her cheek.
“Hi. I made it . . . and I brought friends. Hope that’s okay.”
He smiled at the others. “The more the merrier.”
Meg turned and pointed, “Kai, Tobi, Scott. All new friends from the Institute.”
Scott burst out laughing. “That sounds bad! We’re your new crazy institutionalized friends? Well, now that I think about it—seems that way some days.”
They all laughed along as they moved the rest of the way to the tables.
“Meg!” Charley and Sonny chorused when they spied her at the same time.
“Hey, guys. How’re you? Survived the weekend okay, I see,” she said over the noise.
Everyone
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