Page 141 of Icebound Hearts
“Heartbreaker.” Sawyer’s voice is low and soft. “Get in the car.”
“What? Why?”
“Because I’m taking you back to the office so you can undo this.”
“Sawyer, I can’t ‘unquit’ an hour after I just gave my resignation.”
“Yes, you can. And I’m sure your boss will be thrilled to hear it.”
“Maybe she would, but?—”
“Come on. Let’s go.”
He takes my hand, pulling me toward my car. There’s a determined set to his jaw as he opens the driver’s side door for me and gives me a pointed look. Biting my lip, I slide inside, and he walks around the car and gets into the passenger seat.
“Sawyer, what are we doing?” I ask, my chest tight.
“We’re gonna get you your job back,” he says firmly.
When I don’t put the key in the ignition, he turns to me and takes my hands in both of his. His thumbs brush over my knuckles, and the love that shines through in his expression makes my breath catch.
“I meant it when I said we’re not done,” he tells me. “We’ll find a way to make it work, Violet. I won’t give up on us. But I can’t let you give up on your dreams either. I know how badly you wanted this job, and I can’t just let you walk away from that. Not for me. Not for anything.”
I swallow hard, drawing in a shaky breath. Then I nod. He lets out a breath too, giving my hands a squeeze and then letting them go so that I can start the car and pull away from the curb.
He keeps a hand on my knee the entire drive back to the Creative Reach office, and I let that small point of contact ground me—a reminder that no matter what happens, we’re in this together.
When we reach the office, my stomach gives a nervous little swoop.
Are we seriously going to do this? Is Sawyer just going to march in there and ask Michelle to give me my job back?
As it turns out, yes.
He leads me confidently through the Creative Reach offices, and I give a weak smile to a few of my new—ex?—coworkers as they glance over at us curiously. Michelle’s door is still open like it was earlier, and she looks up as we make a beeline toward her corner office.
“Violet,” she says as Sawyer and I enter, sounding surprised. “What brings you back here? Is everything alright?”
“Um…”
I flounder a bit, unsure how exactly to answer that, and Sawyer takes the opportunity to step forward, nodding to Michelle in greeting.
“Hi, I’m Sawyer Townsend,” he tells her. “Everything is fine. Or it will be, if you’re willing to take Violet back. I know she’s loved working with Creative Reach, and I don’t think you should let her go.”
Michelle’s eyebrows shoot up toward her hairline. Her mouth falls open slightly, and she glances from Sawyer to me and back.
“To be perfectly honest, I didn’t want to let her go,” she says after a brief pause. “She’s been a wonderful addition to our company so far, and I think she has a lot to offer. But she told me she needed to leave for personal reasons.” One corner of her mouth twitches upward into a small half-smile as she shifts her focus back to me. “I’m guessingthisis the personal reason?”
She gestures to Sawyer as she speaks, and my cheeks heat with a blush, but I nod. I already told her I was quitting because I’d fallen in love with someone, and now I’ve shown back up in the office with a man who’s determined to make sure I don’t give up on a job I adore—so I shouldn’t be surprised that she’s put two and two together so quickly.
“Yeah, he’s the one,” I say, and Sawyer shoots me a warm look.
“I see.” Michelle chuckles softly, looking both touched and amused as she takes in the two of us. “So, let me see if I’ve got this straight.” She points to me. “You wanted to quit so that you could move to Denver to be with him. And you”—she points to Sawyer—“don’t want her to give up her job. Is that right?”
“Yes.” Sawyer nods seriously. “And I’m sorry to just barge in here like this and interrupt your day, but it’s very important to me. Violet is…” He swallows. “She’s amazing. I couldn’t live with myself if I clipped her wings.”
Michelle’s expression softens, something warm flickering in her eyes. She rests her elbows on her desk, lacing her fingers together, then sighs, meeting my gaze. “I can see why you love him. You’ve got one of the good ones right there. And believe me, those are rare.”
“I know,” I whisper, my heart pounding.