Page 20 of My CEO Neighbor (Neighborhood Hotties #5)

M onica

Six Months Later

This morning, they were in Ted's place because he had an early investor meeting for their new venture, Mindful Productivity. The app was still in development, but early beta testing had been so positive that venture capital firms were calling daily.

Monica slipped out of bed quietly, not wanting to wake Ted before his alarm.

In the kitchen, she started the elaborate tea ritual that had become their morning routine—green tea with honey for her, coffee with a shot of her adaptogenic blend for him.

It was a compromise that somehow perfectly represented their relationship: honoring both their needs while creating something new together.

Outside the window, Monica could see her fire escape garden, which had expanded to include Ted's balcony space as well.

Herbs and flowers spilled from containers that Ted had insisted on buying, claiming that if she was going to teach him about plant care, they might as well do it properly.

Monica smiled at the memory of Ted researching optimal soil pH for lavender like it was a quarterly projection.

"Good morning, beautiful."

Monica turned to find Ted padding toward her, hair mussed from sleep, wearing only pajama pants that rode low on his hips. Six months of regular meals and adequate sleep had filled out his frame, softening the sharp edges of stress and exhaustion that had once defined him.

"Good morning yourself." Monica accepted his kiss, tasting mint and possibility. "Ready for the big meeting?"

"As ready as anyone can be to ask for money to revolutionize corporate wellness."

"You're going to be amazing."

Ted pulled Monica closer, his hands settling on her waist in a gesture that had become automatic. "We're going to be amazing. This is our thing, remember?"

Their thing. Monica still felt a flutter of disbelief when Ted talked about their shared future so matter-of-factly. Six months ago, she'd been convinced that men like Ted were incapable of real partnership, too consumed with their own success to make room for anyone else's dreams.

Now Ted sent her articles about meditation research, asked her opinion on business decisions, and had learned to make her grandmother's kombucha recipe because he wanted to understand every part of her world.

"Speaking of our thing," Monica said, "I have news about the training program."

"Good news?"

"Twenty-three applications for our first corporate wellness instructor certification. Including three from CloudSync employees."

Ted's smile was brilliant. "That's incredible."

"It's scary. What if I'm not ready to train other instructors? What if—"

Ted silenced her anxiety with a kiss, soft and reassuring. "What if you're exactly as ready as you need to be? What if trusting yourself is the whole point?"

She loved hearing her own words thrown back at her.

“You’re right.” She hugged him and they shared breakfast in comfortable silence, the kind that came from learning each other's rhythms and needs.

Ted reviewed his presentation notes while Monica planned sequences for her afternoon classes, both of them working but not separate, productive but not frantic.

"I should go," Ted said eventually, checking his watch. "Wish me luck."

"You don't need luck. You have preparation, passion, and the best business partner in Seattle."

"The most beautiful business partner in Seattle."

"I was talking about myself, but sure."

Ted's laughter followed him to the door, where he paused for one more kiss that tasted like promise and shared dreams.

Monica spent the morning teaching at the Fremont studio, guiding her students through flows that felt more intuitive and effective than ever.

Her practice had deepened since Ted came into her life, grounded by the stability of real partnership and energized by the challenge of building something meaningful together.

After class, she drove to CyberHub for the lunch-and-learn session she taught monthly for Ted's employees.

Corporate wellness had initially felt like a compromise, but Monica had discovered that teaching breathing techniques to overworked tech professionals was some of the most rewarding work she'd ever done.

"Remember," Monica told the group of fifteen CloudSync employees, "productivity isn't about doing more. It's about doing what matters with full presence and intention."

She caught sight of Ted through the conference room window, gesturing enthusiastically to three people in expensive suits. The investor meeting was clearly going well, and Monica felt a flutter of pride for this man who'd learned to channel his intensity into something sustainable and shared.

When one of the employees asked about balancing ambition with acceptance, Monica felt her face light up with understanding. She'd found her answer to that question over the past six months, had learned to honor both drive and peace in ways that made her stronger rather than conflicted.

"You remember that the best achievements come from partnership," Monica said. "With your team, with your values, with the people who remind you that you're worth loving regardless of what you accomplish."

After the session, Monica found Ted in his office, staring at his laptop screen with an expression of delighted disbelief.

"Good meeting?" Monica asked, settling into the chair across from his desk.

"They want to fund the full platform. User interface, content development, marketing launch, everything." Ted looked up at Monica, his eyes bright with excitement. "We're really doing this."

"We're really doing this."

Monica moved around the desk to kiss Ted properly, tasting success and shared dreams and the kind of partnership she'd never thought possible.

"There's one condition," Ted said against her lips.

"What?"

"They want us to present together at the wellness tech conference next month. Show that Mindful Productivity represents a genuine collaboration between business and wellness expertise."

Monica felt a flutter of excitement rather than the anxiety she might have expected six months ago. The thought of speaking at a major conference should have terrified her, but instead it felt like recognition—proof that her work had value beyond the walls of yoga studios.

"That sounds perfect," Monica said. "I've been wanting to reach a bigger audience with this message."

"What if you get nervous about the corporate setting?"

"Then you'll remind me that I belong there just as much as anyone else," Monica said, her voice steady with conviction.

Monica looked into Ted's eyes, seeing pride and excitement and the kind of unwavering support she'd never expected from a man who used to measure relationships in terms of quarterly returns.

"I love you," Ted said, the words still new enough to make Monica's heart skip.

"I love you too."