NextMoves by Sabrina Garie

for me too.” He rubbed his cheek against hers. “Joci, does it
bother you that I can’t have kids?”
    “Not at all. I have Kylie. How do you feel about it?”
    “My life is full of kids. I’m mostly content with that.”
    “But not always.”
    His silence did more to shout the depth of his pain than any
words ever could.
    “Were you born that way?”
    “Outcome of a fight.” The neutrality of his voice was
practiced, too practiced. It shone a light on the regret buried near the
surface.
    “I’m sorry.” Her fingers ran through the soft patches of
hair on his forearms. She ached for him, a raw physical anguish that lanced through
her soul and had her turning in his arms to kiss him fiercely. His arms
tightened around her. His warmth and comfort wrapped around her like a down
quilt on a winter night. They held each other until sleep blanketed them both.
    * * * * *
    The phone blared, a screaming wake-up call she had no
interest in answering. “The machine will get that,” Joci said, snuggling in his
arms, groggy but content.
    He kissed the top of her head. “Any regrets?”
    “Not at all.”
    After showering and a whole lot more loving, Jocelyn threw
together a breakfast of freshly brewed coffee, scrambled eggs laced with
tomatoes and feta cheese, hot, home-baked blueberry muffins and sliced ripe
melon.
    The phone rang again.
    “Odd. That’s the second call. No one calls on Sunday
morning.”
    The answering machine kicked in. “Jocelyn, it’s Myron
Atwater.”
    “The mayor? I better get it. ”
    Her heart sank to her feet as she listened. Jared sidled up
behind her and put his arms around her, allowing her to lean against his
strength. She lapped it up.
    “Let me turn on the TV and assess the damage. I’ll get back
to you.” Her voice held steady, but her knees buckled. She was glad he was
there to catch her.
    “Talk to me,” he said.
    “I’m not sure yet. Something about Premier Health
collapsing, which means the closing of Health Corp. I need to turn on the
news.”
    She grabbed his arm, her fingers digging craters into his
biceps, and she led him to the living room to watch her life go directly to
hell, no passing go, no collecting two hundred dollars.

Chapter Nine
     
    One of Jocelyn’s hands bit into Jared’s wrist, the other
shredded the couch arm. Her gaze was glued to the news reporter on TV.
    “In response to the financial scandal come to light, the
Board of Directors of Premier Health has requested the resignation of the
senior leadership, including the president and CEO and three vice presidents.
Given the magnitude of the financial losses, Premier Health will close multiple
locations across the country.”
    Her head fell into open palms, shoulders drooped. “Damn.”
    “Talk to me.” Jared’s arm circled her shoulders and coaxed
her toward him, promising warmth, waiting out her resistance. It came quickly.
    “I should’ve seen this coming, all the signs were there.”
Joci was grateful beyond words to have arms around her during a crisis, his
presence offering a tonic to the anxiety churning through her chest. She kissed
his shoulder where her cheek had found haven. Her mother’s arms were the last
to give her comfort, weak as they’d been, after Nick left. Her dad and her
brothers had never dealt with emotional pain well, which had left the care of
her mother, now her father, to her.
    “Joci, I get this is bad but I’m new here. Tell me what this
means.” He laid his head against hers and stroked her shoulders, back, lending
his strength to hers.
    “About six months ago, Premier Health bought up Health Corp,
one of Madison’s largest companies. It employs over two hundred people and a
number of local businesses, including Don’s, depend heavily on its contracts.
After the acquisition, it looked as if Premier would close the Health Corp
site. They wanted several technologies Health Corp had invented, not the
company itself, so we put a team together, demonstrated the