“What?” His eyes widened in disbelief. “Me? You want me to present it to the investor?”
“Yes, because you need to learn. The best way to do that is by actually doing something.”
Damon’s face paled, but he didn’t argue. He scanned the pages, muttering under his breath as we drove toward the meeting. I watched him from the corner of my eye, knowing the gears were turning in his head. He’d rise to the challenge—I had no doubt about that.
The meeting went smoother than expected. Damon, to his credit, delivered the marketing pitch with surprising confidence. Our father had been taken aback, almost ready to jump in and take over, but I signaled for him to hold off. Damon stumbled a little at first, but with a reassuring nod from me, he found his footing and finished strong.
As we left the meeting, I turned to Damon. “I’ll drop you off with your friends. Change back into your... other clothes if you want.”
Damon grinned. “Thanks, T.O. I owe you.”
After dropping him off, I received a text from Jake, inviting me to Molly’s Diner for a drink. I hadn’t seen him in a while, and a cold beer sounded good. I agreed and made my way over to the diner, where Jake was already seated at our usual booth. I slid into the seat opposite him, and the bartender, a friendly woman named Lily, greeted us with a warm smile.
"Hey there, guys! What can I get you tonight?"
"Just a beer, Lily. Whatever's on tap," I said, smiling back at her.
Jake nodded in agreement. "Same here, thanks."
Lily jotted down our order and said, "I'll get that right out to you. Another waitress will be there to deliver your drinks."
We chatted for a while about some new property that Jake was looking to acquire, and then moved to talking about what was happening in the world of sports.
Thankfully, Jake spared me the torture of trying to talk about Kendra. He’d brought it up, but I pushed it aside with swift replies. And when he realized no trick he tried could get me to talk about her, he had finally given up on it.
Just as we were getting into a heated discussion about our favorite sports teams, my phone buzzed with an incoming call.
"Excuse me, Jake," I said, reaching for my phone. "I need to take this."
Jake nodded, and I answered the call.
“Hey dad, did you forget something?”
His words were few, but the tone was enough to set me off. My face grew hot, and my fists clenched at my sides. I felt a wave of anger wash over me, and my vision narrowed.
The call got disconnected, and I just stared at the screen of my phone, furious.
“Hey, man, what is it?”
I turned to Jake. “It’s my mother… my birth mother.”
“She’s back?” Jake asked, his eyes widening. “Why?”
“Trouble.” I replied, getting to my feet. “I’ll catch you later, Jake. I’m needed at home.”
As I turned to leave, the waitress that was bringing our drinks bumped into me. I stood there, drenched and furious—only to look up and find Kendra, wide-eyed and mortified, holding the empty tray.
Chapter Five
Kendra
I couldn’t contain my excitement as I clocked in for my first shift at Molly’s Diner. The fresh mountain air from my earlier hike still lingered in my lungs, leaving me energized, and meeting Tina had only added to my good mood.
Even though the job opening at ABS was still uncertain, I already felt grateful to her. Hopes cautiously high, I tried not to dwell on what could go wrong. And my earlier encounter with Antonio? Practically forgotten, buried under the anticipation of new possibilities.
As I adjusted my apron and prepped for the shift, Lily, my boss, approached me with her usual warm smile. "Hey, Kendra! Table 12 just ordered two beers. Can you take care of that?"
I nodded. "Of course! What kind do they want?"
