Charitable Giving

HARITABLE

IVING

…I pushed my way through the huge revolving door into the

marble-filled lobby. Cal’s company took up the whole four-story
office building, and no matter how many times I walked through the
atrium, it always impressed me. This was, no doubt, the point.

After I signed in at the reception desk, I sat in one of the leather

chairs by the huge wall of windows. I was caught up in thought, my
eyes focused on the beautiful day outside.

“Hey there, Mr. Harmon, sorry to keep you waiting.”
I looked up and saw him. He looked so amazing; it put his perfect

lobby to shame. Standing, I shook his hand and tried to be cool.

“Hey, Cal, nice to see you.”
“You, too. Feels like it’s been forever.”
“Well, that last check you gave us bought you a little time without

having to see me.”

“My mistake. Next time, I’ll have to add less zeros. Come on up

and we can talk.”

I followed him into the elevator and was disappointed when there

were  several  other  people  in  there.  Cal  glanced  at  me  as  we  leaned
against the back wall. While the conversations went on around us, he
snuck his hand over and brushed it against mine. The last time I’d had
my  back  against  this  wall;  Cal  had  put  me  there,  his  strong  thigh
pressed between my legs as we kissed. That was a few months before,
and  the  thought  of  it  made  my  cock  harden  a  bit.  I  took  him  in  as  I
walked  behind  him  toward  his  office.  Once  the  door  was  closed,  I
found myself in his arms.

“I’ve missed you, Mitch. You look so good. New suit?”
He kissed me before I could say a kind word to him and his tongue

swept into my mouth…

LSO

EIDI

HAMPA

All Expenses Paid

Dog Days Of Summer

Down Memory Lane

Left Of The Dial

Losing And Gaining

Number One Pick

One More Summer

Picking Up The Spare

The Right Wrong Turn

Roadside Assistance

White Out

CHARITABLE GIVING

HEIDI CHAMPA

MBER

UILL

RESS

LLC

http://www.AmberQuill.com

HARITABLE

IVING

MBER

UILL

RESS

OOK

This book is a work of fiction.

All names, characters, locations, and incidents are products of the

author’s imagination, or have been used fictitiously.

Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, locales,

or events is entirely coincidental.

Amber Quill Press, LLC

http://www.AmberQuill.com

No portion of this book may be transmitted or

reproduced in any form, or by any means, without permission in

writing from the publisher, with the exception of brief

excerpts used for the purposes of review.

ISBN 978-1-61124-400-7

PUBLISHED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

CHARITABLE GIVING

CHAPTER 1

“Well, thank you for your time, Mr. Griffith. I hope you keep

us in mind when you plan your charitable giving next year.”

I hung up the phone with a sigh and took off my glasses,

tossing them onto the spreadsheet in front of me, rubbing my eyes
with  a  bit  more  fury  than  necessary.  I  slid  my  specs  back  on  and
reluctantly put a note in my computer file that Mr. Griffith, while
generous with his alma mater in the past, would not be contributing
to  the  annual  fund  this  year.  Another  twenty  thousand  dollars  off
the  books  and  yet  another  prospect  on  my  meager  list  not  to
donate.  As  I  scanned  the  rest  of  the  names  I  was  to  call  that  day,
my hopes of snagging more than a few hundred dollars dwindled.

Kayla appeared in my doorway at that moment, her face about

as dour as I felt. I pushed my own feelings aside for a moment to

CHARITABLE GIVING

focus on her.

“What’s wrong, my dear?”
She slumped into the seat on the opposite side of my desk and

leaned back.

“Oh, nothing. Except I found out my event budget has been

slashed in half. All the ideas I had for the alumni mixer are now
out the window. You?”

“I got shot down for about the millionth time today. The money

on  this  list  is  disappearing  faster  than  the  M&M’S  in  the  break
room.  If  this  keeps  up,  I’m  going  to  be  spending  more  time  in
Darren’s office than Phil and Phyllis. But,  obviously, for  a  much
different and less pleasant reason.”

“Sorry, babe.”
“Nothing for you to be sorry for.”
“I know. It’s just what friends are supposed to say to each

other.”

“Right. Forgot about that. In that case, thanks.”
“Don’t let it get to you, Mitch. You’re gonna be fine. I’m sure

you’ll raise some money soon, and by then Darren will be on to his
next thing.”

“I hope so. Because Lord knows, I don’t want to have to look

for a job. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but the economy is really
bad right now.”

Kayla laughed before she stood up. “Is that the line everyone

gave you for not making a pledge?”

“Pretty much. Not that I blame them.”
“It still sucks, though. Keep your head up because things will

turn around soon. I can feel it.”

As the words left her mouth, Darren appeared at my threshold,

his arms full of papers.

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Hey, guys, I wanted to remind you about the staff meeting at

four o’clock. This one’s very important, so make sure you’re on
time. And what does that mean?”

Kayla and I looked at each other, and I followed her lead and

forced a smile, as she spoke.

“That means ten minutes early, right, Darren?”
“Very good, Kayla. And, Mitch, make sure you bring

something to take notes with this time. I don’t want to have to loan
you another pen. We’ve got to be prepared if we want to do the
best job, right?”

I knew it was my turn to parrot the talking points Darren had

issued to us a few months prior, but it always hurt doing it.

“That’s right. Being prepared is fifty percent of the job.”
He gave us both a thumbs-up and shuffled off down the hall.

After we were sure he was gone, Kayla looked at me with serious
eyes.

“I wonder what that’s about.”
“I have a feeling it’s not going to be good.”
“You always have that feeling.”
“I know, but, this time, I think I’m right.”
“God, how much do I hate those little witticisms of his?”
“I know. Has he given you the penny speech yet?”
“The what?”
I laughed at the recollection of Darren imparting his wisdom to

me, with his earnest delivery and motivational intent. It didn’t
work, but you had to admire the guy’s devotion.

“I don’t want to ruin it for you. If he doesn’t tell you soon,

though, I’ll share. Of course, I won’t do it nearly as well as he
does.”

“Can hardly wait. See you later.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Yup. Gotta get back to these calls. My rejection quota seems a

bit low.”

“Chin up. Remember, it can’t get much worse. And, besides,

aren’t you seeing Cal Marlow tomorrow?”

I felt my face grow hot at the thought. “Yup. I am.”
“That should brighten up your mood around here. And

Darren’s.”

“It should, indeed. So, what’re we going to do about your

mood?”

I ducked just in time, as she threw a wad of paper at me, but as

I sat up, a barrage of paperclips came my way.

“You’re lucky I like you, Mitch.”
“Yeah, lucky is exactly how I feel right now.”

* * *

“Don’t tell me you called to cancel on me, Mitch? I’ve already

cleared my afternoon for you.”

My stomach turned over at Cal’s words, as the prospect of

spending the whole afternoon with him made me smile.

“I’m not canceling. I needed to hear a friendly voice after all

the calls I had to make.”

“That bad?”
“Yup. I’m beginning to think I’m not cut out for this job.”
“You can’t quit. Who’d come see me and hit me up for big

donations?”

“I’m sure Darren would be happy to…Phil and Phyllis for

sure.”

His laughter came through the phone and relaxed me. It was

amazing how Cal managed to cheer me up with something so

CHARITABLE GIVING

simple.

“No way, man. I had my fill of those three after that

fundraising dinner. I thought Darren was hitting on me, until I saw
his wife.”

“Trust me. He’s like that with everyone. Well, everyone with

money at least.”

“Wow, I’m flattered.”
“You should be.”
Silence stretched between us and I was tempted to say

something I knew I shouldn’t, but Cal saved me from myself.

“You’re good at what you do, Mitch. You need to give yourself

more credit. You snagged me, didn’t you?”

“Please. I didn’t do anything. You did my job for me.”
“So, I guess that means I should get the credit.”
“Hey, if you ever want my job, it’s all yours.”
“No, thanks. I’ll stick with what I’ve got. It pays better.”
“That’s putting it mildly.”
“Seriously, though, if you’re half as charming with the others

as you are with me, you’ll do great.”

“You think I’m charming, Cal?”
“Not as good as me, but you’re okay.”
“Good to know.”
I could still hear him chuckling as I tried to think of a reason to

keep him on the line a bit longer. I hesitated, though, and Cal cut to
the chase.

“Well, I have a meeting to get to. Can’t be late. I’ll see you

tomorrow, right?”

“Right.”
“Looks like I’m going to have to try and cheer you up.”
“Good luck with that.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Oh, I think I have a way.”
My cheeks burned and I was glad he couldn’t see me.
“Take care, Mitch.”
“You too, Cal.”
The rest of the day was more of the same, and by late

afternoon,  I  was  looking  forward  to  Darren’s  meeting,  if  only  to
get  me  out  of  more  calls.  Like  good  little  soldiers,  Kayla  and  I
showed up ten minutes early and snagged two seats at the far end
of  the  conference  table.  We  left  the  seats  next  to  Darren  for  the
suck-ups  like  Phil  and  Phyllis.  They  were  two  peas  in  a  pod  and
desperate to be appointed Darren’s right hand man. Or woman. Or
both. I had no desire to be Associate Director of Development and
Advancement,  and  I’m  sure  it  showed.  I  knew  the  job  would  be
better served by someone who cared more than I did. It’s not that I
didn’t care about the college. Far from it. I just didn’t care enough
to spend my days kissing ass. It was a skill I’d never perfected and
my  two  fundraising  colleagues  had  mastered  long  ago.  Being
unimportant suited me fine.

Phil and Phyllis walked in right ahead of Darren, sitting on

either side of him at the table already populated by Kayla, me and
Darren’s secretary. I brandished my pen and notebook, ready to
hear the new pearls of wisdom Darren was about to hand out about
building relationships and added value of charitable giving. I shot
Kayla a look, as Darren stood up and took control.

“Thank you to everyone for being on time. As we all know,

times are tough and donations to the college are way down. Now,
we  know  there  are  ways  around  these  objections  and  we  have  to
find  them.  I  want  you  all  to  keep  working  hard  and  make  a
convincing  case  to  all  our  potential  donors.  Diggerson  College  is
going  to  have  to  think  outside  the  box  if  we  want  to  stay

CHARITABLE GIVING

competitive.”

A murmur went through the room, but Darren was not finished.
“While our corporate donations are important to us, we know

that involved and active alumni are key to increasing bonds and to
creating those lifelong donor relationships we’re after. So, we have
to  be  proactive  with  our  current  accounts.  I  think  we’ve  allowed
ourselves  to  be  swayed  by  the  idea  little  donations  aren’t  good
enough.  Well,  I  say,  those  small  donations  are  tiny  drops  that
collect  into  an  ever-expanding  pool  of  money  that  can  become
limitless.”

Kayla turned her eyes to me and rolled them to the sky. I let

myself smirk and tried to stop a laugh. Darren was rolling today.
He kept on the pool metaphor for a while, and I zoned out
completely. Until I heard my name.

“Mitch, are you set for your meeting with Cal Marlow

tomorrow?”

Kayla smirked, as I composed myself.
“Yes, I am. Everything is set with the new proposal. If all goes

well, he’ll be a member of our board of trustees by the time I leave
his office.”

“Great to hear it. Cal’s one of our most important donors, so we

need you to close this deal. If this relationship keeps going the way
it’s going, we’ll see his name on the side of one of our new
buildings in no time.”

I couldn’t keep the smile from my face as I spoke. “That would

be nice, Darren.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

CHAPTER 2

My GPS called out the next set of directions, but I didn’t need

them. I’d been to Cal’s office so many times, I didn’t even have to
think about it.  As one  of the  school’s  wealthiest donors, he  got a
lot  of  attention.  I  was  lucky  enough  to  be  the  one  assigned  to  the
account, back when he was still a struggling software designer and
not  donating  at  all  to  the  college.  I’d  never  so  much  as  talked  to
him—no  one  had—due  to  the  fact  he  was  deemed  an  unlikely
giver.

When Cal developed a must-have program and sold it for

millions of dollars to one of the biggest software companies in the
country, he went from the bottom of the ladder to the top with one
large donation to the school, which came completely unsolicited.
He called us out of the blue, and I just happened to answer the

CHARITABLE GIVING

phone.  We  spoke  for  almost  an  hour,  our  conversation  one  of  the
most  surreal  and  awesome  of  my  life.  Darren  tried  to  swoop  in
after  that,  as  he  did  with  all  big  donors,  but  Cal  wanted  to  stick
with  me.  Over  the  course  of  nearly  two  years,  Cal  had  become  a
true benefactor of his old school, and we saw each other quite a bit.

With the exception of some harmless flirting and over-sharing,

our  relationship  had  always  been  professional…until  one  night,
eight  months  ago,  after  a  fundraising  dinner  at  Diggerson,  where
Cal  was  named  Alumni of the Year. We’d talked  until the rest of
the guests were long gone, and when I’d walked him to his car, he
kissed me. I’d been ready to chalk it up to too much wine when he
said something I’ll never forget.

“I’ve wanted to do that since the first time we met.”
Ever since that night, our routine visits had become anything

but.  My  reservations  that  what  we  were  doing  was  wrong
disappeared  as  my  need  for  Cal  grew.  But  we’d  promised  each
other to keep it casual…no strings. At first, sticking to our pledge
was no problem. Lately, though, it wasn’t so easy to be in his arms
without my heart feeling the tug. The more I ignored the effect he
had  on  me,  the  bigger  it  got.  I  kept  telling  myself  I  could  walk
away anytime.

Which was a complete and utter lie, of course.
I waited for something to change, but knew it wouldn’t unless I

took a leap. I always pushed it off until the next visit. And here it
was, the next visit.

I pushed my way through the huge revolving door into the

marble-filled lobby. Cal’s company took up the whole four-story
office building, and no matter how many times I walked through
the atrium, it always impressed me. This was, no doubt, the point.

After I signed in at the reception desk, I sat in one of the leather

CHARITABLE GIVING

chairs by the huge wall of windows. I was caught up in thought,
my eyes focused on the beautiful day outside.

“Hey there, Mr. Harmon, sorry to keep you waiting.”
I looked up and saw him. He looked so amazing; it put his

perfect lobby to shame. Standing, I shook his hand and tried to be
cool.

“Hey, Cal, nice to see you.”
“You, too. Feels like it’s been forever.”
“Well, that last check you gave us bought you a little time

without having to see me.”

“My mistake. Next time, I’ll have to add less zeros. Come on

up and we can talk.”

I followed him into the elevator and was disappointed when

there  were several other people in there. Cal  glanced at  me as  we
leaned  against  the  back  wall.  While  the  conversations  went  on
around us, he snuck his hand over and brushed it against mine. The
last time I’d had my back against this wall; Cal had put me there,
his strong thigh pressed between my legs as we kissed. That was a
few  months  before,  and  the  thought  of  it  made  my  cock  harden  a
bit. I took him in as I walked behind him toward his office. Once
the door was closed, I found myself in his arms.

“I’ve missed you, Mitch. You look so good. New suit?”
He kissed me before I could say a kind word to him and his

tongue swept into my mouth. I managed to pull away for a second,
even though I didn’t want to.

“We really should talk about this whole board of trustee

position thing.”

“Didn’t we cover most of that on the phone? I told you I’m in.

Can’t wait for the first meeting in a few weeks.”

“Yeah, but that’s why I’m here. Darren wanted us to meet.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Here I thought it was you who wanted to see me.”
His mouth claimed mine again and it took all I had to get

myself free.

“You know, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say the only reason

you donate to the college is for the perks.”

He laughed into my neck, right before he kissed it. “That is

true. The tax breaks are fabulous.”

“So, that’s the only reason? Nothing else?”
“Despite how it seems, Mitch, I don’t consider you a perk of

donating to Diggerson.”

“Really? Then what would you call it? I mean, besides

inappropriate.”

“I’d call it fun. The inappropriate part is what makes it so damn

hot.”

“No argument here.”
“Speaking of which, you said something about a position you

wanted to discuss with me?”

Cal slid my jacket off my shoulders and tossed it aside. I didn’t

even care that it landed on the floor. That’s where my clothes
always ended up when I visited Cal. He slowly undid my tie and
was ready to drop it when I saw his eyes light up.

“I have an idea.”
“Really? What’s that?”
“Turn around.”
“Why?”
“Just do it.”
He slapped me on the ass, still covered by my wool pants. I

turned  around  and  faced  Cal’s  big  desk  and  his  gorgeous  view
right  beyond  the  windows.  The  full  length  of  his  body  pressed
against  me,  his  lips  against  the  back  of  my  neck  as  he  undid  my

CHARITABLE GIVING

shirt and pulled it from my torso.

“Give me your hands.”
My brain seemed stuck in mud, but I did as he asked. Once my

hands were behind my back, I felt the silk of my tie wrapping
around my wrists until they were bound together.

“Too tight?”
“A little.”
His teeth nipped at my earlobe before he responded, “Good.”
Cal turned me around, and I was helpless, which was exactly

how  he  wanted  me.  He  took  off  my  glasses  and  set  them  aside,
kissing the tip of my nose with a smile. I could only watch through
slightly  blurry  eyes  as  he  stepped  back  to  strip  off  his  own  shirt
and  tie.  When  his  hands  slipped  to  his  belt  buckle,  my  breathing
stopped.  My  cock  strained  against  the  zipper  of  my  pants,  the
anticipation  making  me  tremble.  When  his  pants  dropped,  I
couldn’t stop the gasp.

Cal crooked a finger and beckoned me to him. Without

hesitation, I complied. I came to stand right in front of him, but I
wasn’t standing for long. Cal pushed me to my knees, and I
happily bowed to the pressure he put on my shoulders.

From my new vantage point, I was nose to tip with his cock,

but his voice stole my attention back to his face.

“I’ve been thinking about this all day, Mitch. What about you?”
“All week.”
“Well, then I guess I shouldn’t make you wait any more.”
He wrapped his fist around the base of his cock and put his

other hand around the back of  my  neck. My  fingers  were  starting
to tingle, but I didn’t care. When the  head of Cal’s cock touched
my  lips,  I  closed  my  eyes,  letting  my  tongue  sweep  over  his  skin
and  tease  the  underside  of  his  dick.  Before  I  knew  it,  Cal  had

CHARITABLE GIVING

pushed himself into my mouth, easing deeper by the second, until I
couldn’t take any more. I longed to touch him, but with my hands
tied, there was nothing I could do but suck him. As he pulled back,
I looked up at him, his eyes the perfect picture of lust. His hand
tangled in my hair, giving it a slight tug as he slid in and out of my
mouth.

My cock shifted in my boxers as I sucked Cal, my erection

almost painful by this point. I was scarcely aware of the rest of the
world going on around us, my mind focused on Cal and his prick.
When he pulled away, I tried to catch my breath as he tugged me
to my feet. Running his thumb over my wet bottom lip, his smile
cut right through me.

“God, I’ve missed that.”
“Me, too.”
“But there’s one thing I missed more.”
He kissed me hard and almost knocked me off balance with the

intensity of it all. Cal stripped the rest of my clothes off and took
his time with my shoes and socks. By the time he was done, I was
squirming, unable to stand still or keep my mouth shut.

“I thought you weren’t going to keep me waiting.”
“Changed my mind. It’s fun for me.”
“I’m so glad.”
He wrapped a hand around my cock and gave the tip a kiss

before he stood.

“I promise it’ll be worth it. Now turn around.”
I spun around, once again facing the desk. There was a nudge

in the center of my back, and Cal’s strong hand pressed against me.

“Bend over, Mitch. Show me that perfect ass.”
“I don’t know how perfect it is.”
“Quit stalling and do it.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

I eased forward and lay across his desk, turning my head to

face Cal’s full bookshelves. I’d never felt so exposed in my life or
more turned on. The calendar underneath my chest rubbed against
my skin and I could feel it crinkle as I moved. Long seconds ticked
by and I waited for Cal to do something. There was no sound
behind me, except for his breathing. When I finally felt his touch,
it made me jump.

“Wow, I’ve never seen you so skittish before.”
“Maybe because you’ve never tied me up before.”
“You want me to set you free?”
His hand ran over my ass cheek before he gave me a light slap.
“No. I want you to fuck me, Cal.”
“We’re getting there. There’s one more thing I want to do

first.”

“What?”
This time, I didn’t have to wait long to find out what he meant.

His  strong  hands  spread  my  cheeks  apart  and  his  tongue  touched
my  hole  softly.  I  moaned  as  he  circled  my  hole,  my  eyes  pressed
shut from the overwhelming sensation of it all. No one ever made
me  react  as  strongly  as  Cal  did.  The  chemistry  between  us  was
downright  combustible,  and  each  time  we  hooked  up,  it  only
seemed to intensify. When his finger dragged over my wet hole, I
shuddered, which made Cal speak up.

“God, I love to watch you get excited.”
I opened my mouth to speak, but the only thing that came out

was a groan as the tip of his finger slid inside me. My cock was
desperate for attention, and Cal obliged by jerking me as he teased
my ass. My hands were starting to go numb and I was almost to the
point of desperation.

“Cal, please…I need you.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Don’t worry, baby. I’m getting to the good stuff.”
He withdrew his finger and gave my cock one last tug. I

whimpered  as  he  pulled  open  his  desk  drawer  and  retrieved  lube
and a condom. Cal walked around me silently, until the top of the
lube  opened  like  a  shot.  I  jumped  when  the  cool  liquid  dribbled
between  my  cheeks,  then  again  when  Cal  worked  his  finger  back
into my hole. It slipped in easier this time, and he slowly started to
move  it  from  shallow  to  deep.  I  started  push  back  against  him,
wanting  more.  He  soon  gave  it  to  me,  when  I  felt  the  tip  of  his
cock pressing against my butt. He held there for a moment, until I
couldn’t take  it anymore. As  I  was about to speak  up, he  nudged
forward until only the tip of his cock was inside me.

Cal held still for another moment before he kept pushing,

leaning over me once he was in to the hilt.

“God, you always feel so fucking good.”
I was breathing hard, but I managed to get a few words out.

“So do you.”

On my last syllable, he pulled back and plunged into me again,

his hands grasping my bound wrists for leverage. My toes dug into
the thick carpet, my body powerless to do anything but take him.
Cal took his sweet time fucking me, making me feel every inch of
him. I tried to be quiet, knowing his employees and colleagues
were just beyond his large oak door. I sometimes wondered if they
knew what went on behind closed doors between the two of us, if
any of them suspected what we really did at our meetings.

Cal reached around and grasped my cock in his fist, jerking me,

and I was soon very close to the edge. His desk was shaking
underneath me from the force of his thrusts, and I couldn’t take it
any more. I started coming all over his hand, my whole body
overwhelmed by the sensation. He was moaning behind me, louder

CHARITABLE GIVING

than I’d ever heard him before, and I could tell he was ready to
explode. Nothing sounded sweeter than Cal in the throes of
pleasure.

“Oh, God, I’m gonna come.”
I felt his weight on top of me, his heavy breath ringing in my

ears  as  he  recovered.  He  kissed  my  cheek  before  easing  off  me,
and  I  felt  the  restraint  around  my  wrists  release.  I  stood  up  on
unsteady  legs  and  before  I  had  turned  around  all  the  way,  Cal
kissed me.

“Jesus, that was amazing, Mitch.”
He reached down and rubbed his hands over my wrists, where

the tie had left angry red marks on my skin. His touch soothed me,
but not nearly as much as his lips on mine did. I opened my mouth
to speak, but he beat me to it.

“You okay? I hope the tie didn’t hurt too much.”
“I’m fine. Honestly, I didn’t have much time to think about the

pain.”

“Next time, I’ll use something softer.”
“Who says there’s going to be a next time?”
“Call it wishful thinking.”
I reached down to pick up my pants, but Cal stopped me with

another kiss.

“You don’t have to get dressed yet, you know. Our meeting

isn’t over for another hour.”

“Jesus, you never stop, do you?”
He shoved me toward the couch against the far wall and tossed

my boxers to me after retrieving his own.

“I didn’t mean that. I thought we could talk. Catch up a bit.

You know…the usual.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

CHAPTER 3

“Jesus, you’re glowing.”
Kayla sat down across from me and crossed her arms.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Kayla. I’m simply

having a good day. They do crop up from time to time.”

“This doesn’t have anything to do with your little visit to Cal

Marlow’s office yesterday?”

“Not at all.”
It was impossible to keep the smile from my face and I knew I

was busted.

“Okay, fine. You win.”
“Please, I knew it. You always come back from your visits

looking like a love struck teenager.”

“I do not. I like spending time with him, that’s all.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Not as much as you like his dick, though, right?”
My eyes widened and I got up and closed my office door

harder than I needed to.

“Kayla, Jesus, say it a little louder. I don’t think Darren heard

you.”

“Sorry. I couldn’t resist. You did get some, didn’t you?”
I felt my face flush and I adjusted my collar for no reason at all.

Kayla apparently didn’t need me to respond, as my face did it for
me.

“You dirty little slut. I’m so jealous. I’ve never met single,

successful and hot alumni who wanted to bang me, no strings
attached.”

“Well, keep looking. I’m sure he’s out there.”
She scoffed, putting her feet up on the edge of my desk. “Are

you going to give me the juicy details or are you being stingy
again?”

“I don’t think you deserve the details. You’re kind of a bitch

right now.”

“Am not. Now, come on. Spill it. Give me the overview, at

least.”

“Fine. He tied me up with my own tie and fucked me senseless.

Oh, and it turns out he’s all for being on the board of trustees.”

Kayla’s mouth had fallen open, but she recovered quickly. “My

God, you are a slut.”

“It’s not slutty. It’s fun. You should try it sometime.”
“Seems like it might be a little bit more than that, Mitch.”
I shoved a file into my desk drawer and called up my donor

database on my computer. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m not stupid, you know.”
“I never said you were. Wait…I might have once, when you

CHARITABLE GIVING

pissed me off.”

“You can’t honestly tell me that all you’re doing with Cal is

screwing around. You like him.”

“Of course I like him. I don’t tend to sleep with people I don’t

like. At least, not anymore.”

“You know that’s not what I meant, Mitch. I mean, you like

him, like him.”

“God, I hate that expression.”
“Too bad.”
She studied my face, but I looked away, unable to meet her

eyes any longer.

“There’s nothing between Cal and me except mutual attraction.

Everything else is work.”

“So, the dinners, the phone calls, the extra visits…that doesn’t

mean anything ?”

“That stuff is normal. We have to get to know our donors.

Especially the ones with as much money as he has.”

“You are so full of shit.”
As the words were out of her mouth, there was a knock at the

door. Before I could call him in, Darren clicked the door open and
appeared, his smile a most unnerving sight.

“Hey, Mitch, I was on the phone with Cal Marlow a few

minutes ago. He is now a confirmed member of our board of
trustees. Good work.”

I cleared my throat as Kayla shot me a look.
“Thanks, but I really didn’t need to do much convincing. When

I approached him about the idea on the phone last week, he was
very interested.”

“Well, whatever you said in your visit yesterday must’ve

worked. Dr. Bennett is thrilled. It should make for a very good

CHARITABLE GIVING

meeting in a few weeks.”

“Great. So glad it all worked out.”
Darren seemed almost giddy, and I did my best to let him have

his moment.

“Keep this up, Mitch, and I see good things in your future.”
He disappeared back down the hall, and Kayla pushed the door

shut again.

“Wow, you must be better in bed than I ever gave you credit

for, Mitch.”

“Oh, please. You know that had nothing to do with his

decision. He’d said yes before I even walked in the door. Darren’s
the one who wanted me to go to his office and make the
presentation in person.”

“Lucky you.”
“Bite me.”
“Don’t be such a jerk. I’m just winding you up.”
“Look, I know what we’re doing isn’t a great idea.”
“That’s one way to put it. If that’s the way you feel, end it. I

mean, if it doesn’t mean anything to either of you, stop.”

“It’s not that simple.”
“Why not?”
I sighed, pushing my glasses back up my nose. “Because—and

it kills me to say this—you’re right. I do like him. A lot.”

“Duh. The next thing you’re going to tell me is you don’t care

for Darren that much.”

“Very funny.”
I sat back in my chair and looked up at the ceiling.
“If you like Cal, tell him the truth.”
“I can’t do that.”
“Why not?”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Because we have a deal…a deal he’s happy with.”
“Are you happy with it?”
“It’s fine. Besides, what can I do about it now?”
“Things change, so that means the deal can change. He can

meet with Darren or Phil and the two of you can skip merrily down
the lane.”

“Just because things have changed for me doesn’t mean he

feels the same way.”

Kayla leaned forward, her forearms on the edge of my desk.

Her face softened into a smile, and I had to return one.

“You’re really serious about this guy, aren’t you?”
“I don’t know if I’d say that.”
“Come on, don’t be so coy. I’ve never seen you like this about

anyone before.”

“That’s no surprise, considering I’ve dated two people since I

started working here, and they were both less than stellar choices.”

“From what you’ve told me, Cal sounds like a great guy. Do

you think he’s not even the least bit into you?”

“I honestly have no idea. We never talk about it.”
“But you do still talk, right? It’s not all knocking boots, is it?”
I had to laugh, which I think was Kayla’s intention.
“Knocking boots? I haven’t heard that in a long time.”
“Glad I could help.”
“But to answer your question, yes, we talk. We spent over an

hour talking yesterday. I know damn near everything about him
and I’ve bored him to tears telling him about my life.”

“That’s not like any booty call etiquette I’ve ever heard.”
“Seriously, did you stop watching TV in the nineties? Why are

all your slang terms so dated?”

“It’s the way I roll, dude.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Rad.”
“But, seriously, Mitch, tell him you like him.”
“I almost did. Twice.”
“What stopped you?”
“What do you think? The last thing I want is to turn everything

all awkward between us. It’s better to keep things as they are.”

“Better for whom?”
“For me. And obviously for Diggerson.”
“Wow, that’s more dedication to this place than I could ever

manage. For what it’s worth, I think you’re being a coward.”

“Duly noted, but, I think in this case, I’ll trust my gut.”
Kayla stood, but before she walked out, she stopped and looked

at me, her serious eyes cutting right through me. “Mitch, one more
question?”

“Let’s have it.”
“Are you more afraid that Cal doesn’t like you or that he

does?”

Before I could answer, she sauntered away, leaving me with

nothing but confusion.

* * *

I hadn’t talked to Cal in two weeks, but with the trustees’

meeting in a few days, I thought it best to check in. That and I
wanted to hear his voice. After we’d discussed business, he
surprised me with an offer.

“So, Mitch, I thought maybe you’d want to have lunch after

this board meeting. There’s something I want to talk to you about.”

“Sounds fine to me, if a bit ominous. Don’t tell me you’re

pulling your donations,” I said with a laugh.

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“Nothing like that, trust me. I’m just sure I’ll be in desperate

need of a laugh after the meeting.”

“No doubt. I’ll have to make sure Darren doesn’t try to tag

along. If you’re looking for laughs, he’s the last guy you’d want
around.”

“I don’t know, Mitch. You make him sound pretty funny.”
“Funny strange, if anything.”
“True enough.”
I tapped my fingers against the desk, trying to keep my nervous

energy from overwhelming me. It wasn’t working. “Any ideas
where you’d like to eat? Diggerson’s treat of course.”

“How about that new Japanese place near you. Ooka, I think

it’s called.”

“Yeah, I think that’ll be alright. For one of our trustees, I can

spend a bit more.”

“What can I say, Mitch? I’m an expensive date, but I’m worth

it. Don’t you think?”

“I’m pretty sure Darren would let me spend as much as I

wanted on lunch with you.”

“Way to dodge the question.”
“Yes, Cal, you’re worth it. I didn’t realize your ego needed

stroking. I’d have thought you were past all that now.”

“Please, I’m a man. I’ll never be past it. Plus it’s nice to hear.”
“I’m sure it is,” I said, smiling.
“Is that a hint?”
“Nope. It was an observation.”
“I can stroke your ego, if you need me to, Mitch.”
“I’m good, thanks.”
“Damn. Because I was going to tell you how hot you are.”
“There’s no need to lie to me.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Ah, and modest, too. How about that?” Cal smiled.
I pictured his face, his lips curled into a smile, and felt my body

go hot. My conversation with Kayla was stuck in my mind and I
got the words out before I could reconsider. “Actually, there’s
something I wanted to talk to you about as well, Cal.”

“Really? Want my name on a building already?”
“That would be great, but I wasn’t going to ask that for another

couple of months.”

Cal laughed, and I heard papers rustling in the background.
“So, are you going to give me a hint or do I have to wait for

lunch, Mitch?”

“No hints.”
“Oh well, I’ll have to wait and wonder. Right now, though, I

have to go. See you soon.”

“Yeah, I’m looking forward to it.”
“Me, too.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

CHAPTER 4

I sat across from Cal and watched him crack open his

chopsticks. I’d paced my office all morning as I waited for him to
finish at the board of trustees meeting. My nerves were fried by the
time  we  arrived  at  the  restaurant.  Keeping  calm  was  a  tall  order,
but I did my best. I’d decided to tell Cal how I felt about him and
ask if he’d like to go on a real date with me. Not one paid for by
the  college. Even though I’d painted Darren in a  negative  light,  I
was  sure  I  could  convince  Cal  he’d  be  okay  in  his  hands.  We’d
covered the small talk and, much to my disappointment, there were
no “accidental” brushes of hands or touching of feet. I kept waiting
for my chance to say what I was dying to say, but it never seemed
to be the right moment. When Cal shot me a smile during a break
in our boring conversation, I saw my opening. Too bad Cal had the

CHARITABLE GIVING

same idea.

“So, you’re probably wondering what I wanted to talk to you

about, Mitch.”

“I have been curious, yes.”
Cal wiped his hand over the back of his neck, and I noticed for

the first time that he seemed nervous. A thought jolted through me
and I was having trouble breathing. Could it be that Cal was about
to  ask  me  the  same  thing  I  wanted  to  ask  him?  The  possibility
hadn’t  even  crossed  my  mind.  Now  we  were  face  to  face  and  he
was  about  to  tell  me  what  was  so  important,  my  heart  was
pounding  at  the  prospect  of  getting  what  I  wanted.  I  barely  heard
Cal as he started talking, my brain already formulating my excited
response.

“We have a lot of fun together, Mitch, and I’ve enjoyed getting

to know you over the last few years. Especially the last few
months.”

I could only nod as I rubbed my sweaty palms against my cloth

napkin. Cal took a sip of water before he continued. “This is kind
of strange and I can’t believe I’m about to say this. It’s certainly
not something I expected.”

“Well, this whole thing has been a bit out of the ordinary.”
“You can say that again.”
He smiled at me and my heartbeat kicked up to a pace I never

knew it had. I waited and held my breath, watching Cal’s lips as he
spoke.

“Anyway, the reason I wanted to talk to you was because

something’s happened.”

“What is it?”
Cal laid his hand on mine before he laughed. “Sorry, I don’t

know why I’m being so silly about this.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Part of that charm you were talking about.”
“Right.”
“And I know you like to keep me waiting.”
His laugh changed and he cleared his throat. Suddenly, things

turned serious and I felt the anticipation grow in me. He was about
to change everything between us, and I was never surer I was
ready for it. His fingers squeezed mine, and I saw his lips part.

“Mitch, I’ve met someone.”
In that sentence, he managed to deflate me so perfectly I felt as

if I  might  fall right onto the floor like a popped balloon. My  face
dropped, but I tried to recover, shaking  my  head and reaching  for
my  drink.  I  used  the  hand  he  was  touching  to  free  me  from  his
grasp and to get a little distance. I forced a smile and tried to keep
my voice steady. “When did this happen?”

“A few weeks ago. Actually, the day after I last saw you.

Bumped into him at the grocery store. Literally. How corny is
that?”

“Pretty corny. Why did you want to talk to me about it? I mean,

you must have other friends in your life to dish with.”

“Yeah, I do.”
“So, you wanted to brag over lunch?” I laughed, but it didn’t

sound right, even to my ears.

“Well, that and because…well, things between us have to stop,

Mitch. At least the physical stuff.”

If I thought I was deflated before, Cal’s last words had me

defeated. The fact he wanted to stop fooling around with me could
only mean one thing—he was serious about this guy.

“Oh. Oh, right, of course. I get it.”
“I mean, I know I barely know the guy, but there’s something

about him. I think this could be something good. I want to give it a

CHARITABLE GIVING

fair chance.”

“And you can’t do that if you’re messing around with me.”
“Well, yeah.”
There was apology in his eyes, and I hated it. Our food arrived

at that moment and I was thankful for the distraction. It gave me
time to think of a way out, a way to make Cal believe I didn’t care.
I chewed a piece of sashimi and could feel Cal’s eyes on me.

“Mitch, are you okay?”
“Yeah, totally. I mean, I get it.”
“Then you’re not upset?”
“Of course not. I’m happy for you. I hope it all works out for

you two.”

He stared at me, and I kept smiling and hoped I was selling it

as well as I sold my interested in Darren’s pithy stories.

“Me, too. It’s been a long time since I hit it off with someone

right away.”

The knife kept twisting, but I kept grinning like a fool. At that

moment, I was thankful he’d beaten me to the punch. I couldn’t
even contemplate how mortified I would be if I’d told him how I
felt. I’d never be able to talk to him ever again. As I shoved more
sushi in my mouth, Cal continued.

“I mean, except for you. I guess that doesn’t really count,

though, since we’re not, you know, dating or anything.”

“Right. And now we can go back to the way things were. Back

to our lovely and prosperous donor/fundraiser relationship.”

It sounded ridiculous, but it was too late to unsay it.
“Well, we’re a little more than that, aren’t we?”
“Sure. I’m only saying you don’t have to worry about me

interfering with your life. Besides, now you’re on the board, we’ll
be seeing a lot less of each other anyway. So, really it’s perfect

CHARITABLE GIVING

timing.”

“Right.”
I was spiraling out of control and I had no idea how to stop it.

Cal stared at his plate, and I took the opportunity to ease my cell
phone out of my pocket and send a covert text to Kayla with our
S.O.S signal.

When my phone rang a few seconds later, I gave Cal a shrug

and excused myself, happy to be away from the table. I answered
the call, and Kayla started talking a mile a minute.

“What’s going on? Why are you texting me during your big

lunch? How’s it going? Did you spill the beans yet?”

“I can’t talk about it now. I needed to get away for a few

minutes.”

“That doesn’t sound good.”
“I can’t get into it right now. Needless to say, I’ll find you

when I get back.”

“Okay. Well, whatever’s happening, take a deep breath and

relax. It can’t be that bad.”

“You have no idea.” I reluctantly hung up and trudged back to

the table.

Cal looked up as I approached, his face a muddle of emotions.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah, just a minor issue back at the office. Nothing to worry

about. Sorry to interrupt our meal. How was yours, by the way?”

“It was good.”
“Yeah, the sushi is really great. Good call on the restaurant

pick. I’ll have to tell Kayla…she loves Japanese food.”

“Well, I do what I can.”
Silence stretched out between us, and I kept my eyes anywhere

but his. As long as I didn’t speak, I couldn’t say or do anything

CHARITABLE GIVING

else stupid. Cal, however, seemed hell bent on talking.

“So, what about you, Mitch?”
“What about me?”
“Anyone special in your life?”
“No. I haven’t been on a real date in a while. I guess I should

spend more time at the market.”

Cal smiled, but it was through tight lips. The waiter showed up

to refill our drinks, and I wished he could make me disappear like
he did our empty plates.

“Don’t worry. You’ll find someone. I mean, you’re a great guy.

Anyone would be lucky to have you,” Cal said, trying to make me
feel better.

It didn’t work.
“Well, thanks. I guess I’ll have to keep my eyes open. Truth be

told, I haven’t exactly been looking that hard. I guess my ‘he’ll
come to me’ strategy isn’t working.”

“Hey, I can attest to the idea of finding someone when you

least expect it.”

“Right.”
Cal sipped his drink and his eyes lit up. “Hey, I just

remembered you said there was something you wanted to tell me.”

A moment of panic rose up in me, but I swallowed it down.
“Oh, it was nothing.”
“You sure?”
“Totally.”
“Okay.”
The check arrived and I pounced on it, so I could have

something else to focus on. I pretended to study the bill intently,
making sure all the charges were correct. I fished the college-
issued credit card out of my wallet and put it in the leather sleeve

CHARITABLE GIVING

with the check. For the first time since I met Cal, I wanted to be
anywhere but with him. I hated the feeling, but I also knew I would
have to get used to it.

“This was fun, Cal. Thanks for suggesting it.”
“My pleasure. I hope you know that I’ve enjoyed spending

time with you. I mean, I think that’s been pretty obvious.”

I felt my face flush and wished it would go away.
“I think we both know it’s better this way,” I said. “I mean, it

was hardly professional behavior on my part. I should’ve put a stop
to it a while ago.”

Cal’s face fell a bit at my words, but I tried to ignore the way it

made my stomach clench. I picked up my glass and held it across
the table.

“Here’s to Diggerson’s newest board member. And to you and

your new guy.”

Cal seemed reluctant, but he joined me in the toast, clinking his

water gently against mine before taking a sip.

“Well, I should let you get back to it. Besides, I’m sure Darren

will want to bore me with some more platitudes about loose
change.”

“What?”
“Nothing. It’s too long of an explanation. Anyway, I guess I’ll

talk to you in a few months…see how everything is going. Then
maybe we can talk about the new Marlow Library.”

It hurt like hell smiling at him, but it was the way it had to be.

All business. We both stood and headed for the parking lot, our
cars right next to each other.

“Have a safe drive back to the office, Cal.”
“Yeah, you, too.”
This would have been the moment where we would have stolen

CHARITABLE GIVING

a kiss and a hug. Instead, I extended my hand. Cal looked at it for a
moment and then gave me a firm handshake. I stood by my car and
watched him drive away, finally letting out a breath it seemed I’d
been holding the entire meal.

When I got back to the office, Kayla was already waiting for

me, her eyes widening when she saw me shuffling to my chair.

“Wow, what happened to you?”
“You’re not going to believe this, Kay.”

* * *

The next few weeks went by at a snail’s pace. I made sure to

send the welcome packet we send to all board of trustee members,
but  I  didn’t  bother  to  include  a  personal  note,  like  I  would  have
before. I sent Cal the form letter everyone else got and signed my
name at the bottom. I was tempted to call him so many times, but
there  was  no  reason  to.  Before,  I’d  never  needed  an  excuse.  We
could  just  talk,  shoot  the  breeze  and  I  never  thought  anything  of
calling  Cal  under  the  guise  of  school  business,  just  to  hear  his
voice.  Now?  Well,  distance  seemed  the  only  solution.  I  tried  to
focus  on  the  rest  of  my  work,  but  as  Cal  was  my  one  decent
prospect, it left a lot of time for thinking and that wasn’t good.

Kayla did her best to cheer me up around the office, but there

was only so much she could accomplish. Bless her for trying, but
my heart wasn’t in it. Cal still had it, even though he didn’t want it.

When she flounced into my office on Friday, I knew something

was up.

“Okay, Mitch, seriously, I’ve had enough of this. We need to

go out tonight. Shake things up. Get you out of this funk.”

“I don’t feel like it, Kay. I’m going to go home and hang out.”

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“No, you’re not. You’re going to go home, put on something

cute, and we’re going to that new bar in the city. I’ve heard it’s the
perfect place to forget your troubles.”

“I don’t have troubles.”
“Honey, no offense, but yes, you do. I know you like Cal, but

you have to start moving on. At the very least, get out of your
sweatpants for a night.”

“Fine. Pick me up at…well, whenever you want. I’ll be ready.”
“Perfect. I’ll pick you up at eight. We’ll grab some grub and hit

the town. You won’t regret this. It’ll be a great start to the
weekend…trust me.”

“Whatever you say.”
“That’s the spirit.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

CHAPTER 5

“See, I told you this place would be awesome. And there are so

many cute guys here.”

Sometimes, I forgot that Kayla was six years younger. At times

like this, I was reminded why I was too old for clubs. She was
screaming into my ear about some blond she saw at the bar, going
on and on about his smile.

“Go get him then. And get me another drink while you’re at it.

I think our waitress got lost.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to leave you alone.”
“I’ll be fine. Besides, you don’t want one of these other skanks

to snatch him up.”

“Are you calling me a skank?”
“If the mini-skirt fits…”

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“If these drinks weren’t so damned expensive, I’d throw mine

in your face.”

“Get outta here. Go forth and flirt.”
I watched her swish her way over to the bar, trying to

maximize  her  sexiness  as  she  approached  her  target.  After  she
made her move, I let my eyes wander around the bar, taking in the
scene around  me. I sipped the last dregs of  my ten-dollar martini,
saving the olives for last. As I chewed the first one, I noticed a guy
with dark hair making his way through the crowd with drinks in his
hands.  He  was  tall  and  completely  unreal  looking,  like  he’d
climbed  down  from  a  billboard  somewhere  and  walked  into  the
trendy  club.  I  followed  his  path  toward  a  booth  in  the  corner  and
choked on my second olive as I watched him sit down right next to
Cal and plant a kiss on his cheek. There were several other people
at the table, but I could only see Cal and his new guy.

No wonder it was an instant attraction. He was better looking

than anyone I’d ever seen. He and Cal were deep in conversation,
the two of them a perfect picture of the perfect couple. I’d always
known I was out of Cal’s league, but this guy fit the bill of what a
rich,  successful  businessman  would  want  on  his  arm.  No  matter
how  much  I  wanted  to,  I  couldn’t  look  away.  As  if  my  wounds
needed  any  more  salt,  Cal  kissed  him  and  ran  his  hand  along  his
cheek, the same way he’d done to me a few months before.

Finally, the spell was broken and I turned my attention back to

the bar, where Kayla seemed to be making headway with her own
hot guy. Our waitress appeared with drinks for both of us, but as
Kayla was indisposed, I took it upon myself to polish off her rum
concoction in two sips. I ordered another martini and another drink
for Kayla before the tiny blonde waitress could get away and sat
back with my martini.

CHARITABLE GIVING

My eyes went back to Cal and his new guy and thankfully the

public displays of affection had stopped. They  were now engaged
with  the  rest  of  their  group,  chatting  and  laughing.  Meanwhile,  I
sat alone in the new hotspot, my “date” at the bar with another guy
and  no  one  else  even  looking  at  me  twice.  Not  the  night  I  was
hoping for on many levels. I thought of leaving, but Kayla was my
ride. A bus back home seemed too sad for words. I was stuck.

After an hour, my thoughts on taking a bus home had changed

dramatically. I was also drunker than I’d been in a long time. The
waitress seemed much more attentive, and I ignored the bill I was
racking  up  on  my  credit  card.  The  martinis  I  was  drinking  were
barely  lasting  a  minute,  so  I  switched  to  the  beer  they  had  on
special.  Kayla  had  checked  in  to  let  me  know  how  “totally
awesome”  the  guy  at  the  bar  was.  I  nodded  and  sent  her  on  her
way. I kept tabs on Cal and Marco, which was the name I gave the
guy to keep things interesting. I gave Marco a whole backstory in
my  head,  including  an  affinity  for  sailing  and  the  skills  of  a
gourmet  cook.  At  one  point,  I’d  imagined  Cal  looking  across  the
bar and seeing me, realizing how much he missed me and parting
the crowds to kiss me.

I texted Kayla and informed her of my decision to leave. She

didn’t  respond,  so  I  took  that  as  a  sign.  I  settled  my  tab  and
pretended  the  total  was  less  than  it  was  and  drank  the  last  of  my
final  beer.  When  I  set  the  bottle  back  on  the  table,  I  spun  around
and came  face-to-face  with  Cal and Marco. The look of shock on
Cal’s face made me sad, but nothing much was getting through the
haze of the alcohol.

“Mitch, hey, what are you doing here?”
“Oh, hey, Cal. Having a drink with Kayla, but she found

someone better to talk to, so I was heading out.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

I stared at the guy next to him, willing him to disappear. No

such luck.

“This is Trevor. Trevor, this is Mitch. He does fundraising for

Diggerson College, where I got my degree.”

Trevor looked bored and acknowledged me with a nod. I

wasn’t surprised. It’s not like my life was as exciting as his. Or at
least the one I gave him.

“Did you need a ride?”
That made Trevor react…and not in a good way. I couldn’t

help but smile at the thought of me in the back of Cal’s sportscar,
intruding on their date.

“No. That’s fine. I’m good. You two have a good night. It was

nice to meet you, Trevor.”

“Yeah, whatever,” he said, turning away and talking to the rest

of their friends.

“Sorry about that. He’s a little drunk and some of his friends

are a little uptight.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m drunk, too.”
“So I gathered. You sure you don’t want a ride?”
I ignored him and said something I knew I shouldn’t. “He’s

incredibly hot. Good work, Cal.” I slapped his shoulder harder than
I needed to and surprised him.

“Thanks, I guess.”
“Anyway, don’t let me keep you. I’m sure you guys have

places to be.”

“You sure you’re okay, man?”
“Me? I’m great.”
“If you say so.”
“I don’t just say so. I am so.”
“Right. Okay, well, I guess I’ll see you later.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“No, you won’t. Remember? No reason to see me anymore. At

least not until the next fundraising dinner.”

Cal didn’t respond, he shook his head and shoved his hands in

his pockets. “Good night, Mitch.”

“Yeah, you, too. Say ’bye to Marco for me.”
“Who?”
“I’m sorry. I meant Trevor.”
I watched them walk away, with Trevor’s arm slung over Cal’s

shoulder.  That  image  was  the  thing  that  made  my  crappy  night
complete.  I  exited  the  bar  into  the  cool  night  air  and  wound  my
way through the city streets, looking for the bus stop we’d passed
on the way to the club. When I found it, I checked the schedule and
then  looked  at  my  watch.  My  bad  luck  stayed  true  to  form  and  I
realized  I  just  missed  the  bus  I  needed.  And  the  next  one  wasn’t
coming for a half an hour.

* * *

I woke up the next morning with a pounding head and the

sound of my cell phone chirping across the room. Figuring it was
Kayla, I ignored it and put my pillow over my ears until it stopped.
When it rang again a few seconds later, I was angry enough to get
up and give her a piece of my mind.

“Kayla, I’m not interested in your new friend right now. Tell

me tomorrow.”

“Mitch? It’s Cal.”
I froze in place, not knowing what to do. “Uh, hi.”
“I was calling to see if you’re alright.”
“I’m fine.”
“After last night, I wanted to make sure.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

I closed my eyes and tried to pretend his voice wasn’t driving

me crazy.

“I’m fine. A bit of a headache, but nothing a little coffee won’t

fix.” The forced animation in my voice made my head hurt more,
but I didn’t know what else to do.

“Okay. Well, I’m glad to hear it.”
“So, did you and Trevor have fun last night? That club is pretty

nice.”

I don’t know why I was making small talk, but I was clearly a

glutton for punishment. I wanted to hear him say that things with
Trevor were great. That he was everything he ever dreamed of.

“It was okay. Not my idea of a good time, but Trevor and his

friends wanted to go.”

“How are things with you two? Good? Looked like it.”
I heard Cal sigh into the phone and I winced, knowing I’d gone

too far.

“Sorry, that’s none of my business. Forget I asked.”
“No, it’s okay. We’re still friends, after all.”
“Are we?”
“I’d like to be.”
“Me, too.”
I was unsure of what to say next, but Cal filled the void.

“Things with Trevor are okay. We’re still getting to know each
other.”

“Well, that’s the fun part.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
There was a tone in his voice I’d heard before, but I wasn’t sure

he wanted me to pry. I did it anyway.

“What does that mean?”
“He’s a lot more superficial than I thought he’d be. I mean, I

CHARITABLE GIVING

know he’s hot, but he doesn’t have to walk around like he’s God’s
gift all the time.”

“Maybe once you get to know him a bit better…”
“Yeah, maybe.”
I sat on the edge of my bed and wanted so much to tell him the

truth, even though I knew it wouldn’t change a thing. Cal surprised
me by speaking up, his voice back to normal.

“I shouldn’t be bothering you with this. It’s not fair.”
“What does that mean?”
“Nothing. I have to go. ’Bye, Mitch.”
He hung up before I could respond, and I sat there trying to

figure out the conversation. When the phone rang again, I hoped it
was Cal, but this time it really was Kayla.

“Hey, bitch, how was your night?”
“Amazing. His name is Drew and he’s an unbelievable kisser.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

CHAPTER 6

I’d just hung up my phone after another rejection from a donor

when Darren appeared in my doorway.

“Hey, Mitch, I couldn’t help overhearing your phone call there.

Mind if I give you some advice?”

The last thing on earth I wanted was more tips from Darren, but

when he asked questions like that, I knew they were rhetorical.
“Sure. What do you recommend?”

“Well, I noticed you gave up on the sale a bit early.”
“I did?”
“You did. What was the prospect’s main objection?”
“That he didn’t have the money to give at this time.”
“Did they say why?”
“Why he didn’t have the money?”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Yeah.”
“No. He said no, he couldn’t give right now.”
Darren sat back in the chair across from me and smiled smugly.

“Mitch, have I ever told you what no from a prospect means?”

I shook my head, watching the joy spread over Darren’s face.

He loved nothing more than moments like this, and I hated nothing
more.

“When someone says no to you, it’s not a negative answer. It’s

a request for more information. Do you understand?”

“Sort of. But what more information could I have given him

that would’ve changed his mind.”

“It might not be what you told him, but how you told him.”
“Okay, although that doesn’t really answer my question.”
“Well, did you explain to him about the tax breaks and the

chance to give back to a school he loves?”

“Yup.”
“Did you tell him about all our new projects the money would

help fund?”

“Yup.”
Darren thought for a minute and then his eyes lit up. “Did you

try guilt?”

I tried to keep my face neutral, but it was getting difficult.

“What does that mean?”

“I find sometimes it helps to remind people, without their

money, progress doesn’t get made. And if progress stops,
Diggerson suffers. As alumni, they’re part of Diggerson’s legacy.
If that suffers, they suffer by default.”

My mouth fell open and I shook my head before I could stop

myself.

“Well, I didn’t try that.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“There you go! Work it in next time. It works more often than

you think.”

“Okay, thanks, Darren. I’ll work on it.”
“Do that and, remember, no doesn’t always mean no. A good

lesson for life, too.”

Kayla crossed paths with Darren as he was leaving and she

made sure he was out of earshot before she spoke.

“Was Darren just advocating rape, or did I misunderstand

him?”

“It’s a long story.”

* * *

Due to the fact I was striking out horribly with my prospect list,

Kayla managed to convince Darren I had time to help her plan the
next  alumni  mixer.  Darren  was  sold  when  Kayla  started  talking
nonsense  about  how  it  would  help  me  get  to  know  people  better
and  improve  my  relationships,  thus  increasing  donations.  He
bought  it  hook,  line  and  sinker.  For  all  the  bitching  we  did  about
Darren and his methods, it made it easy to bullshit  him when you
needed to.

My only function was to assist Kayla in picking the menu and

showing up on the night of the event, which was less than a month
away.  As  much  as  Kayla  wanted  to  have  it  some  place  cool,  our
budgetary concerns meant the restaurant had to be a little less hip
than she wanted. It was still a nice place, but not the kind of venue
that  would  normally  attract  the  young,  professional  alumni  crowd
Diggerson  was  after.  Determined  to  make  it  the  best  she  could,
Kayla threw herself into every detail, and I nodded a lot.

I sat at a small, round table in the corner of the restaurant and

CHARITABLE GIVING

watched Kayla command the room, pointing people in one
direction and then the other. After she checked a few things off her
to-do list, she slumped into a chair across from me and sighed.

“God, why does everything have to be so damn difficult around

here?”

“Uh, do I need to give you the party line again?”
“No, don’t you do it.”
“Kayla, this is the way it’s always been done.”
“I warned you.”
I waited for some form of punishment from her, but instead,

she sat there, looking tired.

“You know everything is going to be okay, right? Your events

are always good. Keep the booze flowing and you’ll be fine.”

“Well, that part is taken care of, obviously. First on the list. Oh,

and we have an ice sculpture.”

“Why in the world do we have that?”
“Phil knows a guy, and Darren thought it was brilliant. God,

how am I supposed to work like this?”

“Yeah, it’s a real tragedy.”
“Don’t you start with me. I know you’re still in a pissy mood

after the whole Cal thing, but there’s no need to take it out on me.”

“That’s not what I’m doing. I’m saying that planning a party

isn’t the worst thing in the world. You need to start looking on the
bright side.”

“You’re one to talk.”
“There is no bright side in my life right now. I’m helping you

with this event because I’m so terrible at my job.”

“That’s not why.”
“Really?”
“Well, you’re not terrible.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Thanks for the reassurance.”
“Oh, come on. You know you should be doing something else,

Mitch. You’re heart’s not in this job.”

“How do you know that?”
“Because I know you.”
I rested my forehead on the edge of the table before looking up

at her again. “Fine. What should I do instead?”

“Don’t know. What do you want to do?”
“Go home and go to sleep.”
“Why don’t you just call him?”
“This has nothing to do with Cal.”
“The hell it doesn’t.”
“I told you I’m over it. He’s happy with his new guy and that’s

the end of it.”

“How do you know he’s happy?”
“Please, if you’d seen this Trevor, you’d understand.”
“Looks aren’t everything. Some guys like boyfriends they can

talk to.”

“Well, Cal doesn’t want me.”
“How do you know?”
“Are you being serious right now? He asked me to lunch so he

could pull the plug on us. What does that mean to you?”

“He might feel differently if he knew you had feelings for

him.”

“Oh well, looks like we’ll never know.”
“You’re impossible.”
“I know. Can we drop this once and for all, please?”
“On one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“That you come shopping with me tomorrow, so I can find

CHARITABLE GIVING

CHAPTER 7

“Kayla, you look fabulous tonight. You picked the right dress.”
“Thank you, darling. I appreciate the compliment. You don’t

look too bad yourself. Glad you went with the tie I chose.”

“As if I really had a choice.”
“That’s the spirit.”
Kayla linked her arm through mine and pulled open the door to

the restaurant, and everything looked great. Except for the fact
Darren and Phil were standing next to a giant ice sculpture of the
Diggerson logo. I pivoted quickly to the right to avoid them, lest I
be dragged into shoptalk all night.

“You didn’t tell me they were going to be here.”
“Don’t worry. They won’t stay long. At the last one of these,

they stuck around for about a half an hour before getting bored of

CHARITABLE GIVING

talking to people who don’t make six figures.”

“I hope you’re right. If they stay, I can’t have a few drinks.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be networking tonight, Mitch?”
“Yes, but who builds rapport without alcohol?”
“Very funny.”
While Kayla went to check on some last-minute details, I hid in

the corner while the guests arrived. Phil and Darren were in a deep
conversation,  which  meant  they  were  ignoring  me.  As  the  room
filled  up,  Kayla  made  the  rounds  and  started  mingling  with
everyone.  I  stayed  on  the  periphery  at  first,  until  she  dragged  me
into the fold. Darren and Phil chatted to the few older people in the
room,  but,  much  to  my  chagrin,  they  weren’t  going  anywhere.  I
snuck a shot with Kayla before going back to sipping my soda.

After an hour passed, the party was in full swing, and, despite

the presence of Darren, I was having a good time. Kayla was doing
her part as hostess, and I made a show of talking to people, so in
case Phil or Darren happened by, they’d see me putting in the
effort.

Suddenly, Kayla appeared and whisked me away from the

recent graduate bending my ear about electrical engineering. She
turned me so I was facing the bar, her smile bordering on
psychotic.

“So, are you having fun?” Kayla asked.
“Uh, I guess. Are you okay?”
“Yeah, totally, why?”
“Because you seem a little crazy right now.”
“I’m not crazy. I wanted to check in and make sure you’re

doing okay.”

“Well, I’m good, but I should get back to that guy. Darren was

hawking me pretty hard and I don’t want him to catch me loafing

CHARITABLE GIVING

around with you when I should be schmoozing.”

“Darren’s busy, so don’t worry. Let’s get a drink.”
“Maybe later.” I moved to turn around and walk away, but she

grabbed my arm to stop me. “What are you doing, Kay?”

“Nothing. I really want a drink and I want you to come with

me.”

“Okay, now it’s official. You are being weird.”
I wrenched my arm free and spun around in the hopes of

grabbing something to eat when I saw him—Cal. He stood
between Darren and Phil, laughing. I spun around and saw Kayla,
her eyes guilty as hell.

“Why didn’t you tell me Cal was going to be here?”
“Okay, I know you’re upset, but you have to know, I didn’t

mean to keep it from you.”

“Then why did you?”
“Because I didn’t want you to freak out.”
“I’m not freaking out.”
She raised her eyebrows at me and her look told me that she

didn’t believe a word I said.

“I’m not upset. Surprised maybe, but not upset. Okay?”
Of course, I was lying through my teeth. I was completely

freaking out. My heart was racing and I felt like I was about to
pass out. I glanced in his direction and quickly turned away so he
wouldn’t see me.

“Mitch, listen to me. I never thought he’d show up. When he

emailed he would, I was going to tell you. There never seemed to
be a good time, so I figured there would be enough people here
you’d never notice.”

“Well, you did a hell of a job. Next time you want to distract

me, don’t act so fucking bizarre and it might work.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Please, relax and have a drink. It’ll be fine, I promise.”
“I don’t see how.”
“You could talk to him, you know.”
“I swear, if you set this up to try and bring about some kind of

fairytale reunion, I will kill you.”

She chewed her lower lip and wouldn’t meet my eyes.
“Kay, look at me.”
She turned her head, and I could tell right away I was right.
“I didn’t plan the whole thing, per se. Except, when he said he

was coming, I figured it would be a perfect time to fix things.”

“Damn it, what were you thinking?”
I tried my best to keep my voice low, but was failing miserably.

We attracted a bit of attention from the people around us, so I took
a deep breath to calm myself.

“Don’t hate me. I thought if you were in the same room, you

two could work things out.”

“There’s nothing to work out. He’s taken. End of story.”
She looked over my shoulder before putting a hand on my arm.

“Look, I have to check on something, but promise me you’ll think
about it, okay?”

“Whatever. Go.”
I blended into the crowd and focused my gaze on Cal, still deep

in  conversation  with  Phil.  Keeping  my  distance  wasn’t  difficult,
but trying to remain unnoticed wasn’t easy. I was constantly on the
move,  using  small  groups  of  people  to  camouflage  myself,  and
when I saw him heading to the bar, I moved to the opposite side of
the room. It was exhausting, but the idea of talking to him face-to-
face  was  even  more  so.  When  Darren  cornered  me  while  my
attention was on Cal, I nearly jumped out of my skin.

“So, how’s it going Mitch?”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Great, so far. I think this event has been a real success.”
“Me, too. You and Kayla did a great job.” He sipped what

smelled like scotch and gave a deep sigh. “Well, I’m heading out.
Before I go, I wanted to make sure you get around to talking to Cal
Marlow. We can’t miss a golden opportunity to keep those lines of
communication open.”

“Right. I’ll do that.”
Darren scanned the room and slapped a hand on my shoulder.

“Looks like he’s alone right now.”

“Okay. Will do.”
I stayed right where I was, much to Darren’s chagrin.
“Now, Mitch.”
“Right.”
I swallowed hard as I made my way across the room, my suit

suddenly feeling a size too small. I knew Darren was watching, so
I pasted on a smile before I tapped him on the shoulder, then took a
step back to keep distance between us. He spun around and when
our eyes met, instead of seeing happiness like I used to, there was
tension.

“Hey, Mitch, I thought I saw you before, but you haven’t stood

still all night.”

“Well, you know how it is. Gotta press the flesh.” I hated my

choice of words, but it was too late to change them.

“Right. So, how have you been?”
“Good. How about you?”
“Great. Our new product launch is coming up so I’ve been

really busy.”

“I can imagine. Me, not so much. I managed to find the time to

help Kayla plan all this, so…”

“Well, you two did a good job. Except I got stuck with Darren

CHARITABLE GIVING

and Phil all night.”

“Sorry about that.”
“It’s fine. I’d much rather talk to you, though.”
I looked down at my shoes and tried not to let the comment get

to me. I had to change the subject. “How’s Trevor?”

“Fine.” Cal shoved his free hand in his pocket and drank the

rest of his beer in two gulps.

“Good. Glad to hear it.”
“Are you?”
I looked at the smirk on Cal’s face and bit back my response.

Darren was walking out the door, so I was moments from being
free. As the door swung closed, I tried to make my exit.

“Anyway, I should get back to mingling. It was good to see

you, Cal.”

“You too. I—”
Kayla appeared next to me at that moment, her arm around me,

but her attention focused on Cal.

“Hi, I’m Kayla. You must be Cal. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Cal shook her hand and smiled. “Yeah, that’s me. It’s nice to

finally meet you. Mitch talked about you all the time.”

“Did he? That’s sweet. At least I hope it was.”
She elbowed me in the ribs, not hard enough to hurt, but just

enough to irritate me. Cal laughed, the sound making my heart flip
over. It had been so long since I’d talked to him; I’d almost
forgotten what it sounded like.

“Oh, totally. Despite his cover of snarkiness, he’s really sweet

most of the time,” Cal said, making me blush.

They started commiserating about me, and I knew I had to put

a stop to it.

“I’m standing right here, you know.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

Kayla rubbed her hand over my back and looked into my eyes.
“Sorry, Mitch. Anyway, I should get back to work. It was nice

to meet you, Cal.”

“Likewise.”
Kayla disappeared and it was the two of us again. The

awkwardness  that  left  temporarily  when  Kayla  arrived  was  back.
Cal  looked  at  his  watch  and  then  the  door.  I  knew  it  was  now  or
never  and,  as  much  as  I  hated  to  admit  Kayla  was  right  again,  I
knew we should talk.

“Cal, I was thinking that—”
“You know what? I really should get going. I have an early day

tomorrow.”

“Oh, right. Okay. Well, have a good night.”
“Yeah, you, too.”
This time, it was Cal who held out his hand, and I shook it

quickly before retreating. Kayla reappeared just as Cal walked
away, her face slightly red from her clandestine drinks.

“Is he leaving?”
“Yup.”
“Did you talk to him?”
“No.”
“Well, what are you waiting for?”
“He’s leaving. What am I supposed to do, beg him to stay?”
She waved over my shoulder at someone, before turning her

pointed gaze on me. “Go after him.”

“No way.”
“If you don’t do it now, you never will. Besides, I can’t take

anymore of you wallowing. Tell him the truth.” Kayla sighed and
crossed her arms.

“Fuck, no.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Don’t you want to know for sure?”
“I do know.”
“No, you know he wanted to date that douche bag. You don’t

know how he feels about you.”

“It’s better this way.”
“No, it’s not. If you don’t find out, you’ll never be able to

move on.”

“If I do this, will you shut up?”
“Yes.”
“Fine. If it will get you off my back, fine, but then I’m going to

come back in here and say ‘I told you so.’”

“We’ll see. Now, go. Or he’ll be gone.”
I jogged out into the parking lot and saw Cal opening the door

of his fancy car. It took everything I had to find the strength to yell
out, “Cal!”

He turned when he heard my voice, and the panic I felt in the

restaurant was turning into real fear.

“Hey, what’s up?”
I closed the distance between us, but I still had no idea what to

say.

“There’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”
“Can’t this wait? Maybe you could call me.”
I was tempted to take the easy way out and do it over the

phone, but I knew I had to seize the opportunity, no matter what
happened.

“No, it can’t wait. I promise it won’t take long.”
“Okay.”
My brain was whirling a mile a minute, and the more I tried to

think of what to say, the surer I became this was huge mistake.
When Cal sighed, I knew I was in trouble.

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Mitch, I really need to go.”
“Sorry. What I wanted to say was, well, it’s something I should

have said a long time ago, but I didn’t know how.”

“What?”
“I…oh, fuck it…I like you, Cal.”
Cal shook his head and flipped his keys in his hand. “I like you,

too, man.”

“No, that’s not what I mean. I mean, I have feelings for you.”
I expected to see surprise on his face, but instead I got a blank

stare.

“You have feelings for me?”
“Yeah. For a while now.”
“How come you never told me?”
“I wanted to—I did—but we had a deal and I thought it would

be better to keep things simple, however, the more we saw each
other, the more I wanted to be with you. The day we had lunch at
Ooka, I was going to tell you. But, well…”

“I didn’t give you the chance.”
“Well, yeah.”
He looked around at everything but me, and I had no idea what

to do next. So I kept talking.

“Look, I understand my timing sucks, but I thought if you

knew how I felt, it might change things. That you might want to, I
don’t know, go on a date with me. Give us a real chance. Outside
of all this stuff for the college.” I took a step closer to him and laid
my last card out on the table. “I miss you, Cal. So much.”

Cal slowly let out a breath and inched toward me, his face

unreadable.

“Sorry to lay this on you right now, but I didn’t know what else

to do.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“God, I’m just…it’s really… I mean, what do you want me to

say?”

“Say yes.”
His smile gave me a moment of hope, but the ring of his cell

phone quickly killed it. He pulled it from his suit pocket and
looked at the screen. I knew without him saying a word that it was
Trevor.

“Mitch, I have to take this.”
“Of course.”
“Maybe we can…I don’t know…finish this conversation later.”
I shook my head and backed away, my throat seizing up at the

reality of what I’d done. His phone was still ringing in his hand
and I couldn’t think straight.

“No need.”
“What?”
“Forget what I said. It was a mistake.”
“Mitch, wait.”
I didn’t wait. I hurried back inside and headed straight for the

bar.

CHARITABLE GIVING

CHAPTER 8

Monday dawned grey and damp, the perfect weather to sum up

my mood. I’d called in sick on the Friday after the mixer, unable to
face the idea of work after the night I had. I’d barely got out of
bed, except to field a call from Kayla, who was concerned when I
was absent from my post.

I’d expected her to be waiting for me when I arrived this

morning, but instead, Darren was in my office, his face buried in a
file. I hung up my coat and sat before he acknowledged me and I
braced myself for the worst.

“Mitch, did something happen between you and Cal?”
An icy terror clenched my heart and I tried to keep my face

from showing my panic. “Um, what do you mean?” I needed
clarity before I threw my career out the window.

CHARITABLE GIVING

“At the mixer. Did you do something to upset him?”
“Not that I know of. We spoke briefly before he left. He said he

had a big day at work. Why do you ask?”

My breathing was quick and shallow as I waited for Darren to

drop a bomb on me.

“Well, I got a call from him Friday and he made it pretty clear

that from here on out, he’d prefer to deal with me or Phil when it
comes to his charitable giving.”

I sat back in my chair, too stunned to reply at first. When I

recovered, it was an effort to keep the anxiety out of my voice. “He
didn’t say why?”

“No. That’s why I’m asking you. I have to say, I was worried

in the beginning about you working with such a big donor, but
things had been going so well. Now, this. I’d be lying if I said I
wasn’t concerned.”

“Well, Darren, I wish I had a reason to give you, but I’m truly

at a loss. I guess we’ll have to respect his wishes. I’m sure you’ll
take excellent care of him.”

Darren adjusted his tie at my flattery, which I knew would help

take the focus off me.

“I’ll do everything in my power to keep the relationship going.

But, Mitch, I think it might be time for us to sit down and have a
clarification session about your future here at Diggerson.”

I could read between the lines of his vague statement and knew

I was in trouble.

“Yes, let’s do that. Soon.”
“Right now, I have to get back to it and so do you.”
“Absolutely.”
Darren walked out and it only took Kayla a few seconds to

show up after that. She eyed me with concern, but didn’t say a

CHARITABLE GIVING

word.

“Cal dumped me.”
“What? I thought you said he never answered you Thursday

night.”

“He didn’t. I meant as his fundraising consultant.”
“I’m sorry?”
“He called Darren Friday and said he didn’t want to work with

me anymore.”

“That bastard. Why did he do that?”
“No idea. If I had to guess, I’d say I really fucked up and he

doesn’t want anything to do with me anymore.”

“It just doesn’t make sense. You should call him.”
“On what planet does that make sense?” I laughed, not

knowing what else to do.

“Don’t get mad at me, Mitch.”
“I’m not mad at you. I’m not mad at all. In fact, I’m relieved.”
“What?”
“You heard me. A clean break is the best thing.”
“Now I know you’ve lost it.”
“I have not. It’s exactly like you said at the mixer. I got my

answer and now I can move on.”

“But you didn’t.”
“I think Cal calling Darren is pretty fucking clear, don’t you?”
She opened her mouth, then hesitated, laying her hand on mine

before she went on. “Mitch, I’m sorry. I really am.”

“Don’t be. Things needed to change and now they can.”
I stood up from my desk with a head full of steam. The next

thought that popped into my head was crazy and foolish, but in the
moment, it made perfect sense. “In fact, I know one other way they
can change.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“What are you talking about? You don’t look so good.”
“I’m fine. Never better. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to talk

to Darren.”

Kayla jumped up and stood in front of me, but I sidestepped

around her.

“About what?”
“About quitting.”

* * *

I kicked the door of my apartment open, my arms full of the

personal effects from  my office. Kayla  had trailed me all the  way
to Darren’s office, but I was undeterred. Darren didn’t put up much
of  a  fight  when  I  told  him  I  was  leaving.  He  even  told  me  not  to
bother  with  my  two  weeks’  notice.  Which  was  fine  by  me.  I
handed  my  prospect  list  to  Phil  and  gave  Kayla  my  good  stapler
and coffee mug. She begged me to reconsider, but I walked out the
door smiling and didn’t look back as I drove home.

Kayla had called me twice on the drive home, but I’d turned

my  phone  off.  I  knew  I’d  have  to  talk  to  her  soon,  but  I  wasn’t
ready.  I  wanted  to  relish  my  freedom  for  a  little  bit  before  she
made  me  feel  guilty.  I  plunked  down  on  my  couch  and  had
absolutely no idea what to do with the rest of my day. The thought
of  not  having  to  spend  hours  on  the  phone  asking  people  for
something they didn’t want to give made me smile.

Realizing I could do anything I wanted on a weekday for the

first  time  in  years,  I  changed  my  clothes,  grabbed  my  keys  and
headed  out  into  the  city,  hoping  inspiration  would  strike  and  I’d
find  something  to  do.  After  walking  two  small  museums,  getting
some ice cream and buying myself a congratulatory unemployment

CHARITABLE GIVING

CHAPTER 9

Cal milled around my living room, while I tried not to

hyperventilate in my kitchen. My hands trembled as I retrieved
him a beer from the fridge. When I returned, he was standing in
front of my crowded bookshelf, his head cocked to the right to read
the spines.

“Here you go, man.”
I held out the beer to him and waited for him to take it. His

fingers brushed mine, but I ignored the jolt it gave me.

“Thanks. Nice place.”
I eyed my messy floor and shook my head. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t

expecting company.”

“I heard you quit Diggerson.” He smiled at me and made

himself at home on my couch.

CHARITABLE GIVING

“How did you hear that?”
“Well, I got a very interesting phone call from Kayla today.”
My heart sank when I imagined what she might have said to

him, knowing what she’d called him in my office.

“I can’t believe she did that. I’m so sorry.”
“Nothing for you to be sorry about. Although, she did have

some novel ideas about what I might do with my ‘big-time
computer money.’”

I groaned as I eased into the armchair farthest from where Cal

was. He sipped his beer and laughed, but I was mortified.

“Please believe me when I say I didn’t want her to do that.”
“She told me you didn’t know she was calling. That’s when she

filled me in about your new plan to quit. I mean, I’m not entirely
surprised. I know you weren’t a big fan of the place or the
management.”

“Yeah, I may have mentioned that a few times.”
He smiled as he stretched his arm along the back of my sofa

and crossed his feet on my table. “What did shock me was the
timing.”

Since I had nothing left to lose, I decided to tell the truth.

“After you called Darren and told him you’d rather see him, he
made it pretty clear my future was bleak to say the least. Seemed
as good a time as any to start over.”

Cal sat up, his eyes locked with mine.
“You do know why I wanted him to manage my giving, don’t

you?”

“You don’t have to say it, Cal. I get it.”
“No, I really don’t think you do.”
He set his beer down and walked to me, stopping right in front

of my chair. I looked up at him, and when he reached out his hand,

CHARITABLE GIVING

I took it. With one quick tug, I was in his arms, our lips locked in a
kiss. When he pulled back, I could barely breathe and was too
confused to speak.

“That’s why I called Darren.”
“Because you want to go back to the way things were?”
He laughed and kissed my forehead. “No. Because this time, I

wanted to do it right. No more sneaking around, no more
‘inappropriate activity.’ I just want you.”

I shook my head to clear my thoughts, but I still felt a step

behind.

“What about your boyfriend?”
He moved us both to the couch, his fingers laced with mine.
“I broke up with Trevor long before the mixer.”
“What?”
“It was doomed from the start. I’ve never been more wrong

about someone in my life. That’s what I get for ignoring what I
knew all along.”

“What’s that?”
He nudged closer to me and leaned his forehead against mine

for a second before he spoke.

“That my feelings for you were real, no matter how hard I tried

to push them away.”

My head was swimming with so many questions. I had to get

some of them out.

“I don’t get it. If you felt that way about me, why didn’t you

tell me?”

“I guess for the same reason you never told me. I thought you

were happy with the way things were and I was afraid of losing
you all together if I told you I wanted more. I figured I’d take what
I could get and hope that someday I’d find a way to tell you. I

CHARITABLE GIVING

wanted to tell you the last time you were at my office, but I
chickened out.”

“That sounds familiar. You don’t know how many times I

opened my mouth to tell you how I felt, but ended up saying
something stupid instead.”

“I’ll bet.”
“So, if you wanted me, why Trevor?”
“I wish I had a good answer. All I can say is, when I bumped

into Trevor that day and he made no secret about wanting me, I
saw him as some kind of test. The perfect way to get you out of my
head. All he did, though, was make me see how much I wanted to
be with you. And act like a total spoiled brat. God, that guy was an
asshole.”

“He was hot, though.”
“Yeah, and boy did he know it.” Cal smiled as he put his hand

around my shoulder before he continued. “I’m sorry I hurt you,
Mitch. And I’m sorry I didn’t have the balls to tell you the truth.”

“Hey, I can hardly blame you when I did the same thing.”
“That night, after that fundraising dinner, when we kissed, I

knew it was going to be something special. Complicated, but
special. And I was right. I just wish we could’ve figured this all out
months ago. Save us both a lot of time and bullshit.”

“Yeah, but, Cal, then you’d have been stuck talking to Darren

about your donations instead of me.”

“Good point. Plus I never would’ve gotten to have sex with you

in my office. I’ve always wanted to do that, ever since we got the
place. I mean, it’s perfect, isn’t it?”

“Totally. Glad I could help.”
Cal’s hand slid to the back of my neck, his thumb gently

moving up and down the sensitive skin below my hairline.

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Hey, who called you the night of the mixer? I assumed it was

Trevor.”

“I figured. It was my secretary. That meeting I told you about,

the early one, had been pushed back.”

“Oh.”
“Yeah, I tried to get you to stop, but you didn’t listen.”
“I wasn’t exactly in my right mind at that moment.”
The hand on my neck tightened its grip and pulled me closer

until we were mere inches apart.

“There are a few other things I should’ve said that night in the

parking lot, Mitch.”

“What’s that?”
“I’ve missed you, too, and I would love to go out with you.”
There were a million things I should have said, but all I did was

kiss  him.  Like that day in  his office, the last time  we touched, he
moved me onto my back, the full weight of him above me. When
he  pulled  back,  the  serious  look  in  his  eyes  made  my  heart  race.
Then he shot  me a  wicked smile and removed  my  glasses, setting
them aside on the coffee table.

“I guess it’s a bit too late to drive to my office, isn’t it?”
“Well, this may not have as nice a view, or any view at all for

that matter, but my bedroom is right down the hall.”

“Or maybe we should have that first date?”
“Right now?”
“Well, maybe in a few hours. There’s something I want to do

before I take you out.”

He lifted the hem of my shirt to my shoulders and began

kissing all over my chest.

“Tell you what. You can take me out for breakfast. That counts

as a date, doesn’t it?”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Absolutely. And great idea, by the way.”
“Thanks.”
He kissed me deep and swirled his tongue around mine.
“So, have we cleared everything up? Nothing else you need to

tell me?”

“Nope. Oh, except when you meet with Darren, don’t ever

mention egg salad.”

“Why?”
“I’ll tell you later.”
“Okay.”
Cal dragged me off the couch and down the hall. We made it

halfway before we stopped, Cal easing me against the wall and
kissing me until I lost my breath.

“Which room is it?”
“End of the hall.”
“Okay. Perfect.”
We didn’t stop kissing me, so our journey took longer than it

should have. Not that I minded. Cal and I stood right inside the
door and paused long enough for Cal to throw off his shirt.

“You sure you want to do that, Cal? You might not be able to

find it again when we’re done.”

“I’ll risk it. Now, what about you? Why don’t you let those

clothes join the rest of your wardrobe on this lovely carpet?”

“Okay.”
I reached for my belt buckle, but Cal stopped me with a hand

on mine.

“Here, let me help you.”
His lips nuzzled my neck as he opened my jeans, letting them

fall to my cluttered floor. My shirt soon followed, landing
somewhere near my dresser. Cal shoved me down on my unmade

CHARITABLE GIVING

bed and climbed on top of me. I squirmed underneath him and
wrapped my arms around his back.

“God, you’re so cute.”
“Stop it, Cal.”
“Nope, can’t do it. Besides, it’s the truth.”
“Well, thanks. You’re not so bad yourself.”
“That’s all I get?”
“Come on…you know how hot you are.”
“Yeah, but you also know my ego needs constant stroking.”
“Sorry, I forgot. You’re also very rich and successful. Come to

think of it, you’re probably a little too good for me.”

“No chance of that.”
He kissed me before moving his lips down my body, pausing to

give each of my nipples some attention. I brought his face back to
mine, kissing him hard, trying to make up for our weeks apart. Cal
went  back  to  his  own  agenda,  his  fingers  curling  around  the
waistband  of  my  boxers  and  slowly  edging  them  down.  My  hard
cock  sprang  free,  and  Cal  gave  the  head  a  kiss  before  enveloping
me all the  way to the base. I looked down at him, his eyes closed
tight, and couldn’t resist tangling my hand in his brown hair. His
moans  were  muffled,  but  I  could  tell  he  was  just  as  excited  as  I
was. Even though my eyes were blurry, I saw him drop one of his
hands  to  his  own  cock,  jerking  in  time  to  the  rhythm  he  used  on
me.

It had been so long since I’d felt him this way, I’d forgotten

how good he was at giving head. He had me moaning in no time,
his tongue teasing the sensitive underside of my cock exactly the
way I liked it. Cal spread my thighs wider, caressing my balls as he
sucked me.

“Jesus, that feels so good.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

I stared at the dimly lit ceiling and tried to keep myself from

getting too excited. It worked for a little while, until Cal ran his
nails up and down my thighs, hard enough to drive me nuts. I
thrust my hips up, trying to get my cock just a bit deeper into Cal’s
throat, my orgasm so very close.

“I’m gonna come. Oh, God.”
My toes curled against my sheets and my whole body tensed as

Cal  sucked  me  right  into  oblivion.  My  hand  gripped  his  hair
tighter,  my  hips  moving  of  their  own  accord,  until  I  finally  felt
myself  start  to  relax.  With  one  last  swipe  of  his  tongue,  Cal
released  me,  moving  next  to  me  on  the  bed.  My  forehead  had  a
sheen  of  sweat  and  my  whole  body  felt  heavy  and  tired.  He
managed  to  find  a  blanket  to  put  over  us  and  pulled  me  into  his
arms.

“That was unbelievable, Cal.”
“Thanks. And, for the record, that’s the kind of thing that does

wonders for my ego.”

“I’ll try and remember.”
“I can remind you any time you want.”
I sleepily reached for Cal’s dick, but he pushed my hand away.
“Don’t you want me to return the favor?”
“It’ll keep. You seem kind of tired right now.”
“Who’s fault is that?”
“I’ve waited this long. I can wait a little bit longer.”
My eyes fell closed and I snuggled closer to him.
“Okay. Just give me about an hour and I’ll be good as new.”

CHARITABLE GIVING

EPILOGUE

“You’re late.”
Cal was standing by the door of the transformed cafeteria,

looking very impatient.

“Sorry. I got caught up in a project at work and lost track of

time.”

He leaned down and kissed me, the frustration draining from

his eyes.

“Well, I guess that’s okay then. Kayla was beginning to think

you stood me up.”

“How could I do that?”
“Well, you have been very reluctant to join me for this dinner,

although I can’t imagine why.”

“I’m here, aren’t I?”

CHARITABLE GIVING

“Yes, and you look very handsome.”
“Thanks. Not as handsome as you though, Cal.”
“True.”
I opened my mouth to reply when Kayla appeared, looking

frazzled.

“About time you show up, Mitch. I was going to call Equality

Pennsylvania and tell them I wanted to donate, just to get a hold of
you.”

“It would’ve worked, but I would have expected you to

actually write a check.”

Kayla rolled her eyes and she and Cal started laughing.
“What’s so funny?”
“I already did donate, Mitch.”
“What? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Well, I spoke to a very nice young man on the phone and he

told me he’d let you know. I guess he didn’t.”

“You’re not serious.”
She reached into her purse and pulled out a folded up piece of

paper. When I opened it, I saw it was a check for my new
employer to help them further their cause.

“There, you big baby. I was just messing with you.”
“You’re unbelievable.”
“I know, but it was Cal’s idea. Oh, crap, I have to go. I’ll see

you guys inside. I pulled some strings so I could sit with you.”

She walked away quickly, and I turned to see Cal’s smiling

face.

“You think you’re so funny, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do. And you know who else thinks I’m a real hoot?”
“Darren.”
“That’s right. When he called me about the dinner, he remarked

CHARITABLE GIVING

twice about how droll I was.”

“He actually used that word?”
“Yup. I had to hit the mute button on my office phone so I

could laugh my ass off.”

We walked inside, and I saw Darren, Phil and Phyllis for the

first time since I’d left the college. Phil waved, and I felt forced to
return it.

“I’m so glad Kayla will be with us. I don’t think I could handle

it otherwise.”

“Me, too. Because then she could help me convince you to

move in with me.”

I stopped in my tracks and checked his face to see if he was

serious. “You want me to move in with you?”

“Yeah.”
“But I broke that plate last week. And I spilled the wine on the

coffee table.”

“So?”
“You have a lot of nice stuff. Having me around might not be

such a good idea.”

“Well, I think it’s a great idea.”
“You say that now, but—”
“Tell me you’ll consider it.”
We sat down at our table as far away from Darren as possible.

Cal pulled both Kayla and I in and began to whisper. “I forgot to
tell you. Darren told me a very impressive anecdote about pennies
the other day. He told me you were a big fan of it as well.”

Kayla clamped a hand down on Cal’s leg and smiled.
“Oh my God, I’ve been waiting to hear this for months. How

the hell did that come up?”

“You know I’m not sure, Kay. Somehow, we went from talking

CHARITABLE GIVING

about my next software project to how he sets up goals for the day
and represents them with pennies in his one pocket. Then, when he
accomplishes that goal, the penny moves to the other pocket. I
have to say, it’s brilliant. No wonder Mitch was so motivated at
Diggerson.”

“Yeah, I think you might’ve had more to do with that than

Darren’s stories.”

The two of them started whispering, and I was left listening to

Phyllis tell me about her grandkids. When they finally broke it up,
Kayla leaned over Cal and grabbed my arm.

“What are you—stupid or something?”
“What?”
“I don’t want to hear another word. I’ll be by with boxes and

bubble wrap this weekend.”

“What can I say? I had to pull out the big guns.” Cal shrugged

and took my hand.

“Well, you better hide your breakables then.”

EIDI

HAMPA

Heidi  Champa  is  a  typical  last-born  child.  Snarky,  attention-
seeking  and  rebellious,  she  started  to  create  dirty  stories  to  keep
herself  out  of  real  trouble.  Having  tried  her  hand  at  a  million
terrible jobs, she bought herself a laptop and finally started typing
up those handwritten tales. After much deliberation, she started to
let other people read her work.

In  addition  to  her  flare  with  the  written  word,  she  knows  every
sentence  of  the  movie  Clue  by  heart  and  bakes  a  mean  Funny
Cake. When she is not writing, she can be found reading, hiking or
filling her iPod with more music. Her life has taken her all over the
world,  but  a  piece  of  her  heart  will  always  be  in  Australia.  She
lives  in  Pennsylvania  with  her  husband.  Her  greatest  wish  is  that
her sarcasm would translate better in the written form.

Find her online at heidichampa.blogspot.com.

* * *

Don’t miss Losing And Gaining

by Heidi Champa,

available at AmberAllure.com!

At three-hundred-sixty-seven pounds, Douglas Everett Smith spent
his school years being teased and verbally abused almost every

day.  He  was  spared  by  no  one,  except  for  Jesse  Billson,  a
classmate who treated him like a normal person. Douglas’s crush
on Jesse kept him going when things got really tough, even though
deep  down  he  knew  Jesse  would  never  see  him  as  anything  other
than a charity case.

After  spending  years  hating  himself  and  feeling  miserable,
Douglas  finally  took  action.  Two  years  of  hard  work  and  the
support  of  a  trainer  helped  him  drop  one-hundred-fifty  pounds.
And, his first name. Now, as the new and improved Everett Smith,
he’s  thrilled  when  Jesse  Billson  comes  back  into  his  life.  Even
more  amazing,  his  schoolboy  crush  doesn’t  even  recognize  him,
but he does start  flirting with him. Everett knows he should come
clean,  but  as  romantic  feelings  quickly  develop  between  the  men,
the  fear  of  losing  Jesse  makes  it  harder  for  Everett  to  admit  the
truth about his identity.

But  nothing  stays  hidden  forever.  And  when  the  old  days  collide
head-on  with  the  new,  Everett  wonders  whether  his  improved  life
will fall flat before it gets fully started? Or can he somehow make
his past disappear?

MBER

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ORMATS

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