Early this morning, Jude’s team had sent several options for a meeting for next week, hence why I had my entire team working on the pitch. I needed this done today because I was heading to Napa tomorrow morning.
As luck would have it, my brothers and I cut our usual brainstorming session short—Chase had to jump on a call with a huge client who was getting cold feet because the Dow Jones had opened abysmally. So I’d suggested everyone stop by my house in the evening for dinner.
In the meantime, I could focus all my efforts on Jude. I had agood feeling about this. My team and I spent the entire morning discussing strategic options. Then they started working on the presentation, sending me the PowerPoint slides to review in the afternoon.
I revised them and was so damn proud of how everything turned out. I’d handpicked everyone on my team, as I knew how to hire the best people, and they’d done a great job. I’d gotten us the foot in the door with Jude, but it was a team effort to pull it all together.
I worked on the slides until five o’clock. Then I sent the team my feedback and called it a day.
My family was arriving at my house in one hour. I’d buy takeout for everyone, thinking immediately about Phoebe’s bowl place.
As I got in the car, I quickly texted the family to ask if they were okay with it. No one protested, so I took that as a yes and placed an order right away.
I was feeling victorious even though I had a long way to go until I sealed the deal with Jude. But my company was in the running, and it felt damn good.
While I waited for the food to be ready, I couldn’t help but remember the last time I was here. I was very tempted to text Phoebe, but I didn’t. She wasn’t ready for anything; she was clear about that, and I had to respect it.
After picking up the bowls, I headed straight home. I didn’t have much time before my family arrived. The only ones who weren’t coming tonight were Mom and Dad. Mom offered yoga classes late on Mondays, and now Dad claimed that he also wanted to stick around to make sure Mom didn’t need anything. It was a clever excuse. Those two had become inseparable.
I was starting to be less reticent about them rekindling their relationship. My parents weren’t the same people they’d been years ago. They didn’t have as much pressure. This time around, they could make it work.
My brother Duncan called as I was approaching the house.
“Hey,” I answered. “I’m almost home.”
“Yeah, just one thing. Jeremy’s not going to be a fan of the bowls.”
“Shit. You’re right. I didn’t think about it.”
“Do you have time to pick something up for him? If not, I’ll do it.”
“No, that’s fine. I’m going to drive by his favorite pizza place, and I’ll get the one he likes with extra cheese.”
“Yes, Uncle Griffin!” I heard Jeremy exclaim in the background.
I laughed. “Consider it done.” His favorite pizza place wasn’t anywhere near the house, but it was worth a detour. He absolutely loved it.
I got home fifty minutes later. When I arrived, the gate to the house was open, which meant at least one of my brothers was already here. Chase was getting out of the car when I pulled up next to him.
“No Hannah?” I asked.
“Some clients just came to the inn. She’ll join us later.”
“All right.”
The whole reason why my brother and Hannah lived in Point Loma was because she’d inherited an inn from her grandmother. It was the property next to their home.
“She’s really burning the candle at both ends,” I said.
Chase took the pizza from me and two of the bags with food. I was carrying three more. “Don’t get me started on that. I’m trying to convince her to slow down, but the woman’s stubborn.”
“Takes one to know one. Maybe that’s why she likes you so much,” I teased. “But the reason she took the job at Sterling Investments in the first place was to have a nest egg that she could invest in the inn, right? Which she’s already done. It looks incredible.”
“Yes. But now she says that she likes the certainty of a steadypaycheck and isn’t ready to give it up again.”
Frowning, I pressed the unlock feature on my phone, and the front door sprang open. I loved technology. “She does know you’re loaded, right? We all are.”
“I think she just needs to have a security blanket.”
