Page 35 of A Daddy for Christmas 3: Nova
It took every ounce of self-control for me to walk out of there at a steady pace with my head held high, instead of skipping while howling at the top of my lungs about getting the job. As soon as I left the building, though, all bets were off. I took off, skipping, bouncing, and racing across the parking lot to where Robbie waited beside his truck. One look at me and he started racing to meet me, just like in one of those old-time movies where the characters haven’t seen one another in years. We’d been apart for less than two hours, and yet we crashed together like a homecoming two long years in the making, laughing as he lifted me up and spun me around.
“I got it, I got it, I got it, I got it,” I squealed. “I’m moving to Maui.”
“Hell yeah, you are!”
“I can’t believe it,” I said. “When I sat down, the first question they asked me was which position was most appealing to me, and when I told them that I wanted to focus more on the content creation side, instead of the marketing and promotional side, from that point on, we only discussed that job and what my duties would entail. Then they hit me with this made-up product scenario, just to see what I could create off the top of my head. At first, I tried to rein my thoughts in, but then I realized that it was my time to swing for the fences, so I told them everythingI envisioned, and by the end, they were smiling and nodding along with me. They said they could picture it just from my descriptions and knew I’d be able to clearly convey my visions.”
“Well, if your face lit up while you were describing it for them the way it’s lighting up for me right now, then I can see why they were pleased.”
“They didn’t set a firm start date,” I said. “We just targeted mid-February to give me time to provide my current employer with two weeks’ notice, plus pack and get myself set up here. They specifically made it a point to tell me that they didn’t want me to feel rushed and wanted me to have a few days to relax and settle in after getting unpacked.”
“Good, you’ll need it, and you know I will help out in any way you’d like me to,” he said. “Right now, it’s time to celebrate, and I think I have the perfect place to.”
“I am all in on the whole celebration idea,” I replied as he finally turned me loose, but only after he leaned in and pressed a kiss to my lips first.
While I was curious to see where he was taking me, I didn’t want to ruin the surprise by pestering him for answers so much that he actually gave them to me. Instead, I relaxed in the passenger’s seat, unable to keep the grin off my face. Megan would be sad but excited for me too. She’d already promised (aka threatened) to come visit me as often as possible, and I’d swore to do the same. I knew my folks would have questions, but only about whether the salaries were comparable (they were, in fact; I’d be making more working for Ethan and Koa while working fewer hours, and to top it off, I’d be creating) and how good the benefit package was. (Let’s just say that I was more than happy with everything they’d offered me).
“Here we are,” Robbie said, pulling into a space in the first row, which meant I had no opportunity to search for a sign to see where he’d brought me.
Eagerly, I scrambled out and gazed over at a building with a pocket watch wrapped around the handle of a magnifying glass.
“After you mentioned loving escape rooms, I started looking around to see if there were any nearby and came across this place. They have six adventures to choose from, well, depending on how busy they are.”
“This is perfect, thank you!” I said as we reached the rear of his pickup truck and I was able to hug him again.
“I hoped you’d like it.”
“You come up with the best surprises,” I said, grinning brighter when he pressed a kiss to my forehead.
For the second time today, I struggled to keep myself from skipping or even outright sprinting for the door. He must have sensed it too, because he rested his hand on the small of my back, and just that firm, consistent pressure was enough to remind me to relax; we’d get where we were meant to be. I loved his no-rush approach to just about everything. The longer I spent with him, the more I came to realize that it was a huge part of the surf culture, born of the patience it took to sit beneath the sun and wait for the perfect wave to form.
We chose the Fisherman’s Catch Adventure, and it immediately became apparent that this was Robbie’s first time in an escape room.
“Treat everything like it could have meaning and fiddle with everything,” I said, pleased to have the opportunity to teach him something after the way he’d spent the afternoon instructing me on how to stand up on the back of a surfboard. I might have only managed about seven seconds of vertical maneuvering, but it was a damn good start.
We’d been given a notebook and a pencil, which I laid in the captain’s seat while Robbie began to study the instrument panel. He wasn’t afraid to take my advice and turn every knob until heturned one that caused the outline of a compass to light up. I wrote down the coordinates, and then we were back at it again.
I’d been in escape rooms where the clues were almost too easy to find and others where if you didn’t check everything, including the things that seemed to just be props, you’d never solve the puzzles in time. Each one was so different, which was a huge part of the fun in doing them. I’d learned that sometimes you needed eyes in the back of your head, in the form of a good partner, so you didn’t miss something being triggered behind you when you manipulated something.
Robbie proved to be just that kind of partner.
“Do that again,” he said, after I’d moved a trio of switches into the pattern of off, off, on, then, disappointed at not seeing anything happen, immediately started changing them.
I put them back right away and turned to see that there were now latitude and longitude coordinates illuminated on the map. We wrote them down, then raced back to the compass, and after a few false starts, turned the ship’s wheel in the right directions, prompting a clicking sound that revealed a hidden compartment with a spyglass tucked inside. We used it to scan the room, locating a tiny message in the painting of a ship.
It was a wild forty-nine minutes, but we solved it and emerged to be presented with our treasure. Miniature pirate chests with replica gold doubloon necklaces inside. They were absolutely adorable and the perfect reminder of the wonderful events of the day.
“Did you have a good time?” he asked as he slid his arms over my shoulders and hugged me from behind.
“It was amazing,” I said, hugging his arms. “Thank you for this. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate.”
“I’m glad; you deserved something special after everything you were dealing with from your job,” he said. “When you giveyour two weeks’ notice, I hope they really take a moment and reflect on what an awesome employee they’re losing.”
“I am pretty awesome, aren’t I?” I said as we stood there with him still holding me, enjoying the moment before my stomach growled.
It must have been like yawning, since his growled a moment later and we both started laughing as he let go.
“Guess it’s time to find something for supper,” he said. “Is there anything in particular you’re in the mood for?”