“Grams?” Something was up. “Someone is leaving you pennies?”
She huffed as if embarrassed. “Lloyd Peterson’s apartment is down the hall from mine. He’s got the silly idea that we should date. It’s sheer nonsense. He’s six years younger than me and I’ve already had the love of my life. I don’t need another man messing with my heart.”
“But why the pennies?”
Folding her arms as though to fend off Maisy’s questions, she said, “I guess it’s his way of reminding me he’d be interested in my thoughts. You know…a penny for my thoughts.”
“Is he bothering you?” If so, Maisy would tell the staff and let them deal with Lloyd Peterson’s unwanted attention.
“No, no,” Grams said, her face beet red now. “He’s only asked me out the one time, and when I said I wasn’t interested, he politely claimed he was a patient man. That was when he started leaving me the pennies. It’s ridiculous.” She blushed more. “And truthfully, I find it all a bit flattering.”
“You should go to dinner with him,” Maisy urged. “You might find you have a lot in common.”
Her Grams shook off the suggestion. “I’m too old for him.”
Maisy could see her grandmother wasn’t likely to give in anytime soon. To her way of thinking, Grams should have accepted Lloyd’s dinner invite, but her wonderful grandmother was too set in her ways to move forward. She hoped that given time, Grams would change her mind.
“Now, off with you,” Grams said, shooing her away with a flick of her hand.
“I’m going, I’m going,” Maisy responded, smiling.
“Love you, sweet girl,” Grams said, as she stood at the front door, watching Maisy walk to the elevator that would take her to the first floor of the complex and on her way home.
Chapter Four
After one of the longest days of his life, Chase was startled awake, his alarm dragging him from his dreams. He’d fallen asleep thinking about Maisy Gallagher. To his dismay, he’d thought of little else during his flight home. She’d insisted that his mother’s death had meant more to him than he realized, but she was way off base. Michelle had been out of his life for so long, he barely had any memories of her other than the ones of her being drunk. She meant nothing to him.
Chase didn’t understand someone like Maisy and wasn’t sure he wanted to, either. With a mug of coffee in his hand, he stood at the window of his penthouse overlooking the Chicago River, which flowed through the very heart of the city. The view alone was worth the four-million-dollar price tag for this exclusive piece of real estate. The thirty-floor Furst Bank building was walking distance from his condo. His day was full, but despitethe pressure put on him, he couldn’t get Maisy Gallagher out of his head. He could only imagine what someone like her would think of his opulent lifestyle. If she was ever to view his collection of artwork, or if she knew each one was worth literally hundreds of thousands of dollars, it would blow her mind.
That she would linger in his thoughts was nothing short of an irritation. He kept thinking about her request that he do a kindness for another. It would have been much easier to have simply paid her and been done with it. That would have been far too simple. Instead, she’d insisted on complicating his already complicated life.
What troubled him most, he suspected, was the fact that he couldn’t remember anyone else ever going out of their way for his benefit without looking for some sort of compensation. A favor. An introduction. A monetary reward. That was what Chase had expected from Maisy. But she’d basically challenged him to do something for someone else, claiming it would leave him with a good feeling.
Yeah. Right.
The woman had no clue who he was or anything about his life. She might have associated his name with Furst Bank, but no way could she have known he was the heir apparent. One day he would rule the future of the bank as chairman of the board. His decisions would affect the lives of thousands of people in Illinois and beyond.
His meeting with one of the bank’s largest investors was scheduled earlier than he would have liked. Sleeping for another hour or two held far more appeal. If it wasn’t for this meeting, he would’ve taken a day off to unwind. He needed it. Unfortunately, there was no way he could reschedule. Consequently, heplanned to show up as expected and do his best to keep his mind on the business at hand.
Chase left the building and walked to the office, the same way he did every morning. A homeless man had set up his tent in the alleyway beside the bank building. Chase shook his head in disgust. He’d ask that security get him to move along.
Clearing his mind, he headed into the building.
—
The meeting with the client went well, and afterward Chase sat at his massive desk. The wall-to-wall windows offered a stunning view of the river and the city. He’d barely gotten started reviewing his notes when his phone buzzed.
His father.
Chase had an interesting relationship with Simon Furst. His father was a powerful man with connections in every aspect of business life: He was friends with the mayor and the governor, and he was counted as one of the social elites. His expectations when it came to his son were well known. Chase was expected to marry well and fulfill his role in the succession plan for Furst Bank. All in due time, of course.
“I heard about your mother,” Simon said, before Chase had a chance to offer a greeting. “Were you able to make the arrangements?”
“I did. I flew to Seattle.”
“I had the plane this weekend. You flew commercially?”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
