17. Grant
17
GRANT
Grant
I exhaled a deep sigh as Vince put his phone away. His concerns weren’t anything to dismiss, but my explanations about the specific numbers he had his eye on appeased him.
Nothing to worry about.
The deal was still pending, and it looked like it’d be on.
“I just happened to be looking over that latest report Derek sent me earlier,” Vince said as he settled back on his chair in this shaded outdoor patio space. “It was on my mind and I wanted to discuss it with you. That’s all.”
“I understand.” I reclined as well, relieved that Vince still viewed Bowen Industries as an ally and the likeliest to sell to. “With as big of a move it is to sell your company, you want to cross every T and dot every I .”
He nodded, smiling as he gazed at the ocean. “And with someone like your free-loving brother causing some hesitation and doubt, you can’t fault me for being so careful.”
I schooled my face to remain pleasantly blank. Inside, I wanted to cringe. And deeper down, I wanted to scowl at him.
Sure, Derek had his moments. Yet, at the end of the day, he really wasn’t that bad . The media was scrupulous about twisting stories and oversharing rumors. Videos were doctored and could go viral too soon without any legitimate fact-checking happening.
Derek enjoyed his life. He was a fan of music and parties, of playing hard and seeking some thrills. While he could be foolish at times and rash with wanting to hook up with the wrong kind of gold-digging woman, he was merely living his life without hurting anyone else in the process. Besides all that, he was a damned good CFO. He knew his stuff, and I would always back him up.
“Derek has…” I paused to take a breath, cautious not to sound too protective of him. “Derek has a different approach to a work-and-life balance from what I do.”
Vince chuckled, nodding. “From what I do too. You remind me of myself in my younger days, when I thought a productive long day in the office equaled success. When nothing else mattered but that bottom line.”
“And I won’t fault Derek for wanting to live large. After he lost his wife, he dove into his job as a distraction, and lately, it seems that he misses how things might have once been.”
“Such a shame.” Vince shook his head sadly. “I wouldn’t know how to go on if I lost Ginny.” He raised his brows at me. “I’m sure you feel the same about Elise.”
“I’d be lost without her.” I knew that even before this weekend started. It was the reason she was the first—and only—woman who came to mind when I hatched this fake engagement idea.
“But I’d also be lost without my brother. He’s family, and I will always stand by my family.”
“Even if he could pose a risk to the company?”
I narrowed my eyes a bit, defensive. Sitting back further and tilting my head to the side, I set my ankle on the opposite knee. “When has he?”
Vince frowned and seemed pensive for a moment.
“When has Derek done something that directly impacts Bowen Industries?”
His frown deepened. “Well…”
“Never, Vince. I’m well aware that he can have a questionable reputation sometimes, but I implore you to look beneath the surface.”
With a heavy sigh, he looked aside. “Of course. Of course, there are always more perspectives and angles to consider.”
“Then perhaps you can keep it in mind to refrain from judging him too quickly.”
“You can’t deny that it doesn’t look good. For over a couple of years, he’s looked like nothing but a playboy, living a reckless life.”
“I’ll allow him his personal life,” I said, then shook my head. “No. He doesn’t need my permission for anything. I’ll respect his right to choose how he spends his personal time in whatever way he wants. On the clock, at the office, he has been an exemplary CFO.”
Vince closed his lips tight, and I worried that I was blowing it.
The whole point of this weekend was to show him that I could look like a mature businessman, settled and with a priority toward my family’s happiness. Using this almost scolding tone with him seemed like I was doing the opposite, that I was justifying what Derek did as okay.
The truth of the matter was that he wasn’t some villain.
However, I was also struck with this realization of how poorly I’d been balancing my life. I was dedicated to my job, an obsessive workaholic. It took spending time with Elise to loosen up and see that I could change for the better. She was still a facet of my job. She was my assistant. But as I welcomed the idea of her becoming so much more in my life, I felt like Derek was the one who really got it.
“I’m not pleased with Derek being in the news like he is. I’m not proud of him for ‘living large’. Until he directly impacts something with the company, as long as he keeps his personal life and professional life separate, it’s not my place to tell him how to live.”
Like I should fucking talk. I was mixing business with pleasure to the point it resembled a mess.
“I will be worried, though, if this continues to the point that he might need help, if this behavior and partying is a sign that he’s still struggling with grief and finding his purpose.”
Vince nodded slowly, serious and sober. “I see how much you love him.”
“He’s my brother, my family. I’ll always love him, flaws and all.”
“And I respect that you can stand up for him, too.”
I acknowledged him with a curt nod.
“It’s been interesting, Grant.” He smiled slowly. “Seeing you outside of the office. Especially with you and Elise being engaged.” Patting my knee, he moved to get up. “She’s a delight. Sweet and easygoing, just like my Ginny. She’ll round you out.” He winked as he stood. “Sometimes, we workaholics need a woman like them to remind us to lighten up and enjoy every moment.”
“You got that right.” I watched as he stepped aside.
“Speaking of, I'd better go find my wife and make sure she’s not fussing about the rehearsal tonight.”
“I’m looking forward to it, Vince.”
“Thanks for this chat. I appreciate it.”
“Anytime,” I said before he left.
With my brother on my mind, I waited until Vince was out of earshot to get my phone out. I called him, nervous that we hadn’t been texting or calling each other. We usually saw each other every day at the office. We talked often. This weekend was an outlier.
He answered the video call right away.
My expression fell. “What the fuck?”
He cringed, emphasizing how swollen his eye was.
“Don’t try to tell me you walked into a door,” I warned. I stood then paced on the patio, too alarmed to sit down.
“No. Not a door.”
“You’ve got a black eye!” I stated the obvious, studying the details of the puffy, angry skin around his eye. Purples were already rising to the surface, really worsening his appearance.
“Yeah.” He sighed, like it was a mere disappointment to get over.
“Derek…” I hated the nagging tone I resorted to. I just got done telling Vince that it really wasn’t my job to be my brother’s keeper. But this didn’t look good. He looked like the reckless bad boy I didn’t want him to be.
“It’s not that bad.”
I shot him a stern look.
“I know. I know .”
I growled at his familiar catchphrase.
“I know it looks bad. But hear me out.”
One of these days, I worried my patience would run out. Regardless of how he told me the truth behind his black eye, it was not a look a respectable businessman should have.
“That woman who I was with. The one when you called and I was still at her place?”
I furrowed my brow. That was just yesterday, right? Everything was happening so fast between me and Elise here that time seemed to blur. I remembered what he was talking about, though. He’d answered and I heard a woman in the background. What surprised me was that he’d be at her place. Derek was a creature of comfort, always preferring to bring women back to his apartment, not the other way around.
“Well, her ex is a douche.” He scowled until the expression seemed to bother his wound near his eye.
“Oh, God. You’re fighting someone over a woman now? Tell me that’s not scandalous.”
He shrugged. “I don’t give a shit whether it’s scandalous or not. I stand by my actions.”
I raised my brows. “At the cost of pain?”
He nodded, more confident. “Yeah. He’s an asshole. And it sounds like he’s been bothering her quite a bit.”
I sighed, failing to fault him for wanting to help a woman who was being targeted by an ex. If Derek judged this ex-boyfriend to be an issue, I’d believe him. Neither of us cared for men who’d pick on women.
“I would defend her again. I will,” he stated boldly. “If he shows up and tries to bother her one more time…”
“But,” I scoffed, unable to follow, “you just met this woman!”
“No. Not really.” He rubbed the back of his head.
“She’s someone new in your life,” I argued. I hadn’t heard about him meeting someone or reuniting with anyone he’d be this moved to defend. “And you’re already this eager to impress her?”
“That’s not how it is.” He exhaled a long breath, seeming to search for the right words. “I didn’t get in a little fight with her ex to impress her. I did it because…”
“Because?”
He smiled, that stupid, easygoing grin. “Because I think I might love her.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. You just met her! ”
“I didn’t. She’s not someone I just met.”
I shook my head, pacing faster. Skepticism claimed my mind. “How the hell can you think it’s love?—”
“I know .” He nodded, changing what he just said, as though this argument confirmed his thoughts and feelings. “I know I love her.”
His falling in love in the span of a couple of days was just as crazy as my thinking it was a good idea to have Elise be my fake fiancée.
“How? How can you know it’s love if you just met this woman? Or just got reacquainted with her?”
His goofy, happy smile didn’t fade. He had it bad. “What does time have to do with it?”
I didn’t have a reply.
“Tell me.” He arched one brow. “Tell me how time is a valid and pertinent factor in determining the depth of love.”
“For one, you sort of need to get to know someone to realize who they are.”
He shook his head. “Maybe. But what about when things just click, man?” You can know someone for your whole life. You can be aware of every detail about someone. And still, you might not realize what’s right in front of you.”
I swallowed, trying to get over the worry about his behavior and his justification for what he was up to this weekend that I was away.
“Think about this,” he urged.
I did. I weighed his words with the image of Elise in my mind. I knew her. I was aware of her pros and cons. I had a list of her strengths and flaws. I knew what kind of ice cream she liked, which fruit she hated, and what sort of scents she associated with all the holidays. I bet she could claim the same for me, never forgetting that I despised cilantro, how I preferred to keep things tidy and alphabetized, and that I had a secret desire to travel to Iceland one day.
We’d worked together for years, and only now were we giving in to this slowly simmering pull that drew us to each other. Beneath the responsibilities at work and the ties that kept us close in the office, we were only now diving headfirst into how else we fit with each other.
“I knew Julie my whole life, Grant. I grew up with her. We went to school together. We knew all there was to know about each other,” he said. His lighthearted smile was gone. Now he spoke with reverence and wisdom. “But when I think back to the short marriage we had, I’m not so confident that it would’ve lasted. Two people can be familiar with each other but lack this spark.” He held up his hand to emphasize a snap of his fingers.
I swallowed hard. What about two people who are familiar with each other but can’t deny that spark any longer?
“And I’ve learned that the opposite can happen. That two people can look forward to learning about the other while knowing that spark burns true.” He tapped his chest, above where his heart beat. “I feel it here. And I think it’s enough.”
I gave his words a lot of thought after we disconnected the call. He had to run out to pick something up, and I was running out of time to spend with Elise before the rehearsal dinner.
Derek’s message rang through my head over and over as I rode the elevator up to my room. With every step that brought me closer to Elise, I felt an increase of energy. Excited to see her, I let my heart rule. Not my mind.
“You might not realize what’s right in front of you.”
I couldn’t stop thinking about that line. Elise had been right in front of me all these years, working, helping, and doing her best to keep our jobs running smoothly.
After I let myself into the room and saw her, literally, right in front of me again, lust spiked hard.
She paused in lowering a beach towel from her body. Water dripped from her messy blonde curls, soaked from a swim. She startled at my sudden entrance, but her blue eyes didn’t stay widened with surprise for long.
“Oh!”
I reached back to flip the deadbolt on the door, raking my gaze over her. I didn’t know if it was the ideas that my brother put in my mind or the sight of this delectable, gorgeous woman with so few clothes.
I wanted her, more than ever, and I let her see how desperate I was as I stalked toward her.
“I—” Her breath hitched as she backed up to the bed. “Grant?” Her gaze turned soft as I leaned in to gather her in my arms. Kissing her hard, I waited for her to curl her arms around me and hug me tightly.
“Miss me?” she guessed weakly.
I grinned, lowering my hands to ease her bikini bottoms down.
“Oh.” She trembled as I dragged my mouth down her body. From her plump lips, along her jaw, then toward her breasts. With one hand, I teased between her legs. With the other, I untied her top.
“I think… I think that’s a yes,” she mumbled aloud as I sucked on her nipples. Her fingers threaded into my hair as I loved on her sweet, soft flesh. She must have showered after the pool because I didn’t taste the chemicals in the water. Just her, sweet and addictive.
I picked her up to lower her on the bed. Even though I followed her down, I didn’t rise up to kiss her. Not on her lips. Crawling back to the edge of the mattress, I committed myself to the task of savoring every inch of her. All the way down to her dripping-wet pussy.
“Did you miss me?” I taunted before I focused on letting her come.
She nodded, finding my hand and grabbing it. The ring I chose for her glinted in the sunlight streaking through the curtains.
As I eyed it, I wondered what it’d be like if it were there for real. If we could banish the worry of ever missing each other because we’d know that we’d always come back together.
Like this, in gritty, sensual detail as I concentrated on making her come before we had to get ready for the rehearsal.