Kelly Jamieson - Love Me

Gavin felt that familiar burning in his gut as he drove to the office. It was there almost all the time lately and he was starting to think he was getting an ulcer. It used to just happen at work; now it happened at home too.

The muscles in his neck and shoulders were like boulders and he had a constant headache. Christ. He rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. This stress was killing him.

All he wanted at the end of the day was to go home, chill out, kick back, maybe eat some taco chips, drink a beer, and stare mindlessly at CSI on television while Melina gave him a nice back or shoulder rub.

Instead, he got tenser when he got home because she was so determined that he should pay attention to her. Talk about his feelings. He grimaced.

He loved Melina, honest to God he did, but he just needed a few minutes of down time, to separate from work and home. Things were insane right now.

He knew he put a lot of pressure on himself, but he was that kind of guy. He had high expectations of his entire project team, including himself, and nothing less than success was acceptable. His boss had taken a risk, letting him manage this project on his own. He’d been at Quantum for six years now, risen up through the ranks, proven himself. He wanted to take the lead on this so bad and Garth had come through for him, letting him run with it. If he crashed and burned, not only would his own head be on chopping block, but likely Garth’s too.

Two weeks ago, problems had come to light that had threatened the entire project and his gut cramped more remembering that. He had to fix things, even if it meant working all night, all by himself.

He couldn’t let Garth down. The man was his mentor and boss. He couldn’t let the team down, either, the ones who’d worked so long and hard for the last year and a half on this project.

But, he admitted, he couldn’t let himself down either. He was his hardest taskmaster, driving himself, pushing for perfection.

No wonder he was eating antacids and painkillers like they were Smarties, with shoulders of granite and a relationship that was starting to unravel.

Christ. Why couldn’t Melina understand how important this was to him? Why couldn’t she just support him? She was not a selfish person. He’d fallen in love with her because she was so caring and giving; he just couldn’t get what was going on right now. He needed another week—the project go-live date was next Monday—and things would be back to normal. She only had to hang on a little longer.

He threw himself into work once he was at the office, one meeting after another with subcommittees and stakeholders, getting updated on the status from one group, then updating the executive group at the next meeting. They had questions—they always had stupid questions—and he had to gather up every gigabyte of patience in him to not blow them off. This was the hardest part—the political stuff, keeping everyone happy.

He wanted to get out of the office on time, he really did, but the executive meeting made him want to check on a few things, just to make sure that what he was telling them was the reality, and before he knew it, it was six-thirty.

Shit. They were supposed to be at the party at seven. They’d never make it now. He grabbed his computer and briefcase out of habit, then stopped. He wouldn’t even look at them tonight, so why drag them home? He’d be back in the morning anyway. So he left them, feeling naked as he walked out of his office empty-handed.

On the way, he called Melina from his cell phone and sure as shit, she didn’t sound too happy.

“Sorry, sweet stuff,” he said. “I’m on my way. Are you ready to go?”

“Yes.”

“Can you find my jeans…my new ones? I’ll change and then we can go right away.”

When he got there she’d pulled his favorite jeans out of the closet. He dropped his suit onto the chair, stepped into jeans and T-shirt, started shifting wallet and keys and change from suit pocket to jeans while Melina waited in the living room.

She’d wrapped the housewarming present for Duncan and Kylie.

“What did we get them again?” he asked, reaching into the closet for his leather jacket.

“A set of pottery bowls,” she reminded him. “Those hand-painted ones that Kylie loves.”

“Oh yeah.” He’d been too busy to shop, but Melina had known exactly what to get. She’d wrapped it all so nice, too, with curly ribbons and pretty paper. He would have stuck it in a plastic shopping bag. He paused in front of her and kissed her softly. “Thanks for doing that.”

She gave him a small smile. “You’re busy,” she said. Yeah. She did get it. She held up a bottle of wine, also tied with a pretty silver bow. “I got this, too, for tonight.”

“Kylie said not to bring anything, beer and wine are on them.”

“I know, but I thought it would be nice.”

He smiled at her. She was always doing nice things like that. “Yeah, it is. Okay, let’s go.”

It was a big, noisy party and normally Melina liked that. She and Gavin were both party animals, something they had in common. They’d met at a party and rarely missed a chance to go out with friends, although since they’d moved in together they had slowed the pace a little. They loved being alone at home too, but they still liked hanging with friends.

Duncan and Kylie had just purchased their first home, a big old house in a neighborhood that was home to a lot of young couples, many of them with children. Melina supposed that would be next for them. They were the same age as Gavin, thirty, which was four years older than Melina. She wasn’t sure if she was ready for children, but Duncan and Kylie had been married for four years so she supposed it was time for them.

She would have loved a chance to speak to Kylie privately. Being a few years older, and a partner in an apparently successful marriage, she was pretty good at this relationship stuff and Melina respected her advice. But Kylie was busy playing hostess, showing people around the house, accepting housewarming gifts with gracious thanks and laughter.

Gavin had disappeared out onto the back deck to admire the monster grill Duncan had just bought. The two of them had just finished putting it together when guests started arriving, just in time to start cooking. Kylie had all kinds of things ready—burgers, hot dogs, chicken and ribs. Everyone had feasted on grilled meat and salads and dessert, and guests were now scattered throughout the house, talking over the blast of Maroon 5.

Melina poured herself a glass of wine and wandered into the living room. She spotted an empty spot on the couch beside Kylie’s cousin Abby and headed for it.

“Hey,” Abby said.

“Hi, Abby,” Melina said with a smile. “How are you?”

“I’m okay. You?”

Melina grimaced. She was still feeling down about how things were going with Gavin, wishing she could get him alone for a while so they could talk, but he was glued to Duncan’s side, in man heaven assembling the barbecue, then helping cook while drinking beer and laughing with his buddy. The depressing thought that Gavin would rather be with Duncan than with her flashed through her mind.

“That good, huh?” asked Abby with a little laugh. She sipped her wine. “Problems at work?”

“Nah, work is good,” Melina said.

Abby eyed her with a lifted brow.

Melina shrugged. “It’s nothing.” She’d met Abby a few times before, but they weren’t exactly friends. She seemed nice enough, but Melina didn’t need to go around crying on the shoulders of people who were practically strangers.

“Where’s Gav?” Abby asked, looking around. “You two are usually joined at the hip.”