“No, Mom,” Rohan stated, cutting her off, and she turned to look at him. “She’s grounded as well. So, she isn’t allowed to do anything dealing with electronics or general fun.” His mother furrowed her eyebrows, knowing that Landon must have done something severe if she wasn’t allowed to do hardly anything. However, Jalen hadn’t taken her drawing materials from her. “But you can take her to concepts so she can get some supplies to draw. If I have to hear her sigh again, I’m going to demand she take a nap,” Rohan tacked on with a teasing smirk, and Landon stuck her tongue out at him.
“Alright. Come on, kiddo,” his mother spoke before throwing over her shoulder. “We’ll be back in about fifteen minutes.”
Rohan knew they wouldn’t be. Concepts was on an entirely different floor. Not only that, but he knew it would take Landon a while to choose from all the materials they had there.
He’d just finished up his email when Laurelle buzzed into his office to inform him that his ten-thirty was there. Rohan cursed under his breath because he had completely forgotten about the last-minute appointment he’d set the day before.
“Give me two minutes, and you can show them in.”
He quickly searched through his files, pulling up the notes he’d made the previous day during the phone call. He was still skimming over them when Laurelle walked in with the client. As Rohan stood, he hid the surprise on his face. He’d set the appointment the day before with Allen Cole. He was going to assume this woman was not him.
“Please have a seat,” he stated, gesturing towards one of the two seats on the other side of his desk.
“Thank you. Sorry for the switch, but my brother got caught up with some things at the office since we’re still in the launchphase, and sent me in his place. I’m Ariel.” She held her hand out, and he shook it.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Rohan.” He retook his seat, and he went over the pieces of information he’d gotten from her brother the day before.
They’d been discussing what their company was looking for in terms of marketing and what Ariel wanted to incorporate into it. They’d been in the meeting for about thirty-five minutes when the door opened, and Landon walked in. She apologized for not knocking when she saw he was in a meeting, but Rohan assured her it was fine and that she could sit at the table in there and do her drawings. Ariel had asked if he had a helper for the day, and Rohan responded that she was shadowing him because the truth wasn’t her business.
It was going on eleven forty-five when they concluded the meeting. He told her he would get with his team and they would come up with a few different drafts of what she wanted and send them over within a couple of weeks. Ariel nodded before placing her arms on the desk and leaning forward.
“And what if I wanted you to call me for something other than business?” she whispered, he assumed, so that Landon wouldn’t hear her. “Like to arrange a lunch or dinner date?”
Her whispering had not been very good, because Landon spoke before he could.
“Dad,” she called, and Rohan bit his tongue to keep from laughing as Ariel’s eyes widened a bit. He looked over at the teenager.
“Hmm?” he hummed in acknowledgment because he knew that if he spoke, he would end up laughing.
“Are you almost done? We’re supposed to pick up Mom so we can all have lunch together, remember?” And it wasn’t a complete lie; they were going to meet Jalen for lunch at twelve-thirty at a little bistro about five minutes from the hospital. Rohan knew it was to make sure that Landon wasn’t acting out.
He nodded. “I remember. I’m wrapping up now.”
Ariel cleared her throat. “I’ll look for the drafts in a couple of weeks,” she stated, standing, and he did the same. “I look forward to doing business with you,” she told him before turning. She waved at Landon, who blinked at her slowly before going back to her drawing.
Once Ariel was out of the door, and Rohan was sure he was not in danger of her hearing him, he chuckled.
“Was that necessary?” he questioned, walking over to the table.
“Yes. I don’t need some chick trying to slither her way onto my sister’s boyfriend.”
“You don’t need to worry about that. And you’re referring to the same sister you’ve been giving problems?” Rohan questioned as he sat down across from her.
Landon sighed. “That doesn’t mean I don’t love her.”
“Of course, it doesn’t,” he told her, picking up one of the sketch pencils she’d brought back with her.
“I…didn’t even really mean all of those things I said to her,” Landon whispered, eyes still on the eleven-by-fourteen canvas in front of her.
“I’m sure you didn’t,” he replied, beginning to draw on a piece of paper. “Sometimes, when we’re kids, we say things we don’t mean because we’re angry or hurting, but that doesn’t make saying it okay. Especially if those things hurt someone you care about.”
“I know. It’s just…I was so angry. My dad found me so easily, and Jalen didn’t even want to find our fathers, and she doesn’t want us communicating with our mom, and I get that part. I do. I can’t remember anything good that ever happened with herwhen she was around. But…I wanted to know who my dad was, and she wouldn’t help me.”
“Are you saying she wouldn’t help you because you asked, or because you just think she wouldn’t?” Rohan asked, shading a part of his drawing.
“I just knew she wouldn’t.”
“Hm, you can’t actually say that because you didn’t give her that chance.”
