She opened her eyes at last, and he was gazing right at her, his expression tender. It felt like the most natural thing in the world when he leaned in and kissed her. She closed her eyes again, offering an invitation for both of them. His lips touched hers, and she answered, finally letting everything she’d been feeling for him rise to the surface.
“Thank you,” she whispered against his mouth.
“Never thank me, Marion. Please.”
“You saved my life.”
“You saved mine, too,” he told her, his arms tightening around her. “Rough first day, huh? We can rest here a few more minutes, but then we gotta go.”
thirty-nineSASSY
Sassy was getting used to her father being gone, but the office still felt strange without him. His door was open all the time, not closed. His desk, which was normally a shining example of efficiency, cleared of paper at the end of every day, was piled high with boxes and files.
They both felt it, she knew. Tom was in there now, wearing a brown-checked, short-sleeved shirt and jeans, and she watched him from her desk, giving herself a little treat by admiring him from behind. When he turned, she was quick to look away and appear busy with something.
“At least he was organized,” Tom said, not appearing to have noticed. “You and I should be able to sort through these fairly smoothly. I want to spread everything out on his desk so we can pick through them. Can you come help me?”
Sassy was also dressed casually, in light blue flare pants and a loose white blouse, her hair pulled back in a ponytail. She stepped into her father’s office, and her gaze dropped to a box on the floor, mostly filled with crumpled paper and old files.
“I can take that out,” she offered, but he moved in front of her.
“No, no. I’ll get that later.”
She frowned. “It’s just garbage. It’s not too heavy for me. Look.”
Before he could argue, she lifted the box then recoiled when she discovered what he hadn’t wanted her to see. Two empty whisky bottles. She hated finding these ugly reminders of her father. She only wanted to remember the good man he’d been before all this.
She sighed. “I didn’t know he was drinking in here. I thought it was just at home, when he was alone.”
“I guess there was a lot we didn’t know. His door was closed a lot at the end,” he reminded her. “I’m sorry, Sassy. I was hoping you wouldn’t see that.”
“I know. You tried. I’m too stubborn for my own good, but you already knew that.”
Her father had left a lot of files behind, but it was simple enough to sort through them. One pile for open cases, the other for completed ones. They set the finished ones aside then began to read.
“You have a lot of work ahead of you. There are some here that he hadn’t touched for weeks,” she noted. “Maybe a follow-up?”
“Good idea,” he said, carrying another box to the table. “Make a list with dates and details so you can prioritize.”
She nodded. “I’ll make it easy for you to follow.”
She brought out a clean sheet of paper and began writing down what he’d need. When she finished, she glanced up and realized he was studying her, looking thoughtful.
“What if you make another list for you to look after?”
“I’m sorry?”
“I know you’re a sworn Marxist and all, but you’ve been doing a great job of faking it at capitalism lately. What would you think of having some of your own accounts? I’ll be with you the whole way for anything you need. And of course, you’d keep all your commissions.”
“Selling houses? Oh, I don’t know what I’m doing. I only do what you and Dad tell me to do.”
“Not true. You’ve been doing your own research behind the scenes just because it’s interesting to you. Your attention to detail is bad.”
She dropped her hands at her sides. “Bad?”
He wrinkled his nose and dug more files out of the latest box. “Isn’t that what kids say now? ‘Bad’ is good. That’s what I meant, anyway. I’m just saying, when I ask you about an account, you already have the details in your head. We have different strengths, and you’re only just starting to figure yours out, but you’re a natural. You’re way ahead of me in a lot of ways. Why not give it a shot?”
How could she say no to him? About anything? “You’ll help me?”
