“She’s the one?”
“Yes.” I didn’t want to tell her about Reid. My son. It left me in twisted knots of regret every time I thought about him.
“Why would you even think about hiring her? Are you mad?”
“No. She needs the position, and she’s the most qualified for it. You even said so yourself.”
“But to work with her after all this time. Why would she even consider it after seeing you yesterday?”
She sat in the chair, studying me intently.
“I think there’s something behind her leaving Bradman.”
Brow furrowing, she said, “Like what?”
“I don’t know, but she left in a hurry just when she had the company financials turned around. Why not stay and enjoy the calm?”
“She said she needed another challenge.”
“Maybe.” And it sounded like something Tori would do.
Sighing, she looked at her nails. “You’re making me late for my appointment.”
“I know. Call her in the morning and offer her the job. Full package with private shares, the suite at the hotel, and all the other perks that come with the position. She’ll accept if someone other than me makes the offer.”
“That should tell you something. If you’re doing this as some kind of self-punishment, don’t. You’ve punished yourself enough.”
But I hadn’t. Especially now that I knew we had a son. No amount of punishment could ever be enough for leaving herpregnant and alone to raise him. For leaving him without a father.
“I haven’t, and I’ll be fine. Just make the call. Tell her to start on Monday.”
She rose and smoothed her skirt out. “That’s the day we meet with the board.”
“Then it will be an excellent introduction to how I plan on operating this company now that it’s in my control.”
Chapter 21
Tori
The office was massive, the view incredible. I unpacked the few things I’d brought: the water bottle my parents had given me for Christmas with the UConn logo on it, the stress ball Cash and Brandi had sent with me saying I’d likely need a replacement within days of working with Gabe, and the framed picture of Reid. He was playing with his cars and had lifted his head to give me a magnificent smile before focusing back on them.
I’d spent the last week weeding through the boxes I’d had in storage after the company had paid to have them shipped to my new home. A luxury suite in the hotel that made the one we’d stayed in look like a small apartment. It wasn’t the townhouse with the fenced-in backyard I’d had in Virginia, but it came with the job, and with the cost of rent in New York, it made the most sense.
Gabe had given me my space, and I hadn’t seen him since his last visit when he’d convinced me to interview with his sister. The next day had been a series of internal debates where I’d finally relented and called to accept the position. And since that day, I had reconsidered my decision hundreds of times until my need for the job outweighed my emotional need to flee. NowI was standing in my new office, facing the reality that I had accepted a job that would have me working side by side with the man who had left his mark on my heart before he had left it in tatters.
“Coffee?”
I looked up to see Olivia standing in my doorway, two cups of coffee in her hand.
“You look like you could use it.”
Insult or observation, I couldn’t tell. Olivia Icinda was a difficult woman to read. She was gorgeous with long auburn hair, the same color as Gabe’s, and hazel eyes that, like his, were fascinating in how they reflected hues. There was an edge to her though, hard and prickly but wrapped in an arrogance that screamed ‘I’m rich’ in a way that Gabe didn’t have about him.
“Thanks. I guess I could.”
She placed the coffee on the desk but didn’t leave. After putting my purse in my closet, I looked back at her, trying to figure out what she was waiting for. Astute eyes studied me, perceptive and inquisitive.
“He told you, didn’t he?” I asked, understanding that look.
