My heart sinks when I switch to the other call. “I’ll call you at midnight,” she says and we hang up. The other caller is Donny, but I don’t tell my mother that. But the board meeting is one of the most important events of the year for the company.” I pause. “Board meeting or no board meeting, it doesn’t give them permission to make you work like a dog each day of the week. Our quarterly board meeting is in three days and there’s a lot to do.” Fortunately, he had been tied up in a meeting. Last time she visited me, six months ago, she actually came to my office unannounced, demanding to speak to my boss, Donny Simmons, the managing director of the Steers Investment Firm. I should really give him a piece of my mind.”Ī smile curls my lips. “Is that boss of yours treating you like a slave again?” She inhales sharply. “I wish I could, but I have so much work to do here.” You should be home with your family instead of being there all alone.” “Do you ever take a break? It’s New Year’s Eve, for God’s sake. “You know I wouldn’t do that.” I massage my temples. “Ava Raine, I’ve been calling you all day. “Hi, Mom.” I close my eyes and sink onto the couch. My phone rings and I pick up without looking. I’ll stick with my few friends back home in Misty Cove, Florida. It’s fine by me because I’m a loner anyway.

I’ve been in New York for two years now, but thanks to the demanding nature of my job, I don’t have time to make friends. It’s New Year’s Eve and I intend to celebrate, even if it’s alone. I close my laptop and stretch my arms above my head, sighing as some of the tension melts from my body. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Resolution Take Off by Dori Lavelle