Chapter Seven
Julian and Anastasiamust think falling in love has turned me blind, deaf, and dumb. But I can see past the way they’re currently glaring at one another, hear the words they’re not speaking, and despite the fact that they’re not actually engaged—even though they want me to believe they are—I can feel the chemistry coming off them in waves. I could call them out on their lies, but I won’t because for the first time since my late wife passed away, I have my daughter in the same zip code as me, and I can see what they can’t—they’re already falling in love.
I was afraid to let either of them take over as CEO, not because they aren’t capable, but because they’re both similar to me, and I love them too much to step down and watch either of them make the same mistakes I made. I’m not going to lie. I planned to give Julian the CEO position, but I was hoping by telling him that I didn’t want to hire someone single, who would get absorbed in the company the same way I did, he would think about finally settling down. Selene warned me that manipulating people was wrong, but I was hoping that by putting the bug in his ear, he’d give it some thought.
But what I wasn’t expecting was for my daughter to want to take over as CEO. And at first, that scared me because the last thing I want is for Anastasia to follow in my footsteps. It’s something her mother never wanted for her, and when she died, I felt I owed it to her to honor her wishes.
Anastasia was raised in a home where her father put business before everything, and I think she’s afraid to fall in love. Afraid to end up like her mother. She knows how the business world works. But love? That scares the shit out of her.
I wasn’t sure what I was going to do when she got here, and then I realized I would have to choose between my daughter and the man who had become like a son to me. But now, I have a feeling they’ll make the choice for me.
And if things go the way I hope, they’ll choose love.