CHAPTER TEN
BELLA
The parking lot was almost empty when I arrived at Weston Enterprises on Thursday afternoon.
Surprised, I pulled into a spot labeled Visitor Parking and surveyed the area again.
I hadn’t paid much attention to the company since my dad’s funeral, but I knew it employed numerous local people. So where are they?
Baffled, I strode into the main reception area and approached the security desk. The sleepy guard showed me to the elevators and told me to take the express to the top floor. I followed his orders and rode to the executive level.
“Cade is waiting for you in the conference room,” a woman with a tight French twist and a drapery cardigan sweater said when I stepped off the elevator. She stood behind a wide glass desk that I guessed was outside Cade’s personal office. “I’ll show you there. Would you like something to drink?”
Surprised that she didn’t bother with introductions, I asked for water, and she retrieved a bottle of Perrier from a small refrigerator behind her desk. When I said I didn’t want a glass, she passed it over and motioned for me to follow her down a skinny hallway to the far end of the building.
“So... are you the one who set up the other meeting?” I asked as we traveled down the corridor.
“Yes, I’m Brooke, by the way.”
“Well... um... thanks? It’s nice to meet you.”
She laughed. “Nice to meet you too. And as much as Cade likes to work in his office, he prefers the view in the conference room.” She grinned. “You’ll see why.”
The woman rapped twice on the large double doors before opening the left door, twisting the ornate handle. “Cade, Bella Moretti is here.”
“Come right in,” Cade called from inside the room, and we stepped into the space.
I gasped as I took it in. Instantly, I saw why Cade enjoyed working there.
The room had to have one of the best views of the Intracoastal Waterway and the town of Palm Beach.
Floor-to-ceiling windows showed off the marinas, yachts, luxury homes, and unadulterated views of The Breakers Resort, all softened by the approach of an early winter evening.
The other walls had loud murals of contemporary art.
A huge glass table etched in gold served as the centerpiece, and a long arrangement of ferns in a square vase lay atop the center of it.
Cade stood from his seat at the head of the table.
“Thank you, Lois. I’ll take it from here.”
She nodded. “Do you need anything else before I leave for the day?”
He shook his head, walking toward us. “No, you’re free to go.”
Once she left, Cade gestured to the seat next to his at the conference table. “Lois keeps this place running like clockwork. I’d be lost in the chaos without her.”
“She knows where all the bodies are buried?”
“Something like that. You know, I’ve always liked that old saying.”
“Me too.”
We stared at each other for a beat, and I once again admired his fine suit, tailored to fit him superbly, highlighting his broad shoulders and the natural drape of his hips. Even the light blue threads in his tie accented his eyes perfectly.
God, why does Cade have to be so handsome?
“Please open the portfolio in front of you,” he instructed, his voice crisp and commanding.
One could call Cade Weston arrogant, and to some extent, he was.
But he’d also worked extremely hard to get to this position.
I suspected he had no idea how high-handed he sounded, nor that it sent shivers down my spine.
Was he trying to intimidate me? He’d asked me here to show me the blueprints as a courtesy, but now I wasn’t sure if I’d heard his relief in our phone call correctly. Two can play to their strengths.
I set the water down slowly and deliberately, letting my fingers linger on the glass before I leaned back and crossed my legs enough to hitch my skirt an inch higher.
If FanZone had taught me anything it was how to manipulate men, and I was daring him with every ounce of heat I could muster.
The stack of blueprints and Palm Beach Promenade marketing reports could wait.
His jaw tightened, a flicker of irritation cutting through his cool facade. “I said, open it, Bella.”
I let the silence hang, then finally flicked the folder open with a lazy swipe, revealing the documents like it was some big tease. I skimmed a few pages before dragging my gaze up to him. “Impressive.”
“You sound like you actually mean that,” he replied. I could tell he was annoyed by my tone, and how I’d made him ask twice.
Good, Cade. Stay annoyed.
“I’m not in real estate, but I know it takes a ton of effort to get a project like this through the various stages,” I admitted. “And I can tell that you did extensive research on what the area needed and the diverse clientele the Promenade would attract.”
“I did.”
It is impressive. I recalled Dad’s detail-oriented research.
He used to say there was no point drilling the first hole if you hadn’t looked at every angle many times, asking yourself question upon question of the most viable outcome in terms of consumer needs and of course, profit.
Unsurprisingly, Cade Weston seemed to share that quality.
Cade jerked his head in the direction of the side table I hadn’t noticed. On it was a large 3D model of what I could only guess was the final vision of the Promenade. “That’s how it will appear once it’s completed if you want to take a peek.”
I didn’t get up from my chair. “The final renderings?”
“I still have some final decisions to make on the site.” He gestured at the architectural model. “Not a lot, but a few. And I think it would be good to have your input on some of the final decor.”
I raised my left eyebrow. “Really?”
“It would be nice for the crowd to hear that you participated in the process too. Everyone would appreciate it.”
I let out a strong sigh. There it was—the truth. This wasn’t Cade being kind. It was him being political. “Right. Everyone.”
“Me too. I would appreciate it, Bella.”
“I don’t believe that.” I closed the folder and pushed it away.
A tight smile pulled at his mouth. “Despite what you might think, I didn’t hate your father.” He paused. “I respected him.”
I leaned forward. “What?”
“I thought he was a worthy adversary for my dad, and there’s a certain kind of satisfaction in that.”
“My father was a good man,” I insisted, feeling the familiar rise of defensiveness that reared its head whenever anyone talked about my dad too much. I wasn’t dumb; I wasn’t blind. I knew the truth about how my father really was, but he was also mine. And family loyalty counted for something.
Maybe everything.
“I only knew about him secondhand. Why don’t you tell me about him?”
I frowned. Does he genuinely want to know?
“Please,” Cade pressed. He really wants to know.
Dad had been gone for seven years, but it was rare for a day to pass when I didn’t think about him. Didn’t wish I could call him and listen to his deep, comforting voice, telling me about his day. He’d always been such a busy man, and yet, I’d never doubted his love for his family.
“He cared a lot about Lilly and me. And he might not have had a lot of time to spend with us, but he made it count.” I laughed once, recalling some of my better childhood memories.
“Like when I was in fourth grade, and I was elected to the student council as the classroom representative. He picked me up from school that day and said he was so proud of me. We went to The Gardens Mall and got Chick-fil-A, and he let me buy anything I wanted at Nordstrom.”
“A ten-year-old girl’s dream.”
“Yeah, it was.” Cade leaned back in his chair, sipping his sparkling water, his eyes steady on me. “I heard about your dad’s struggles, you know. The drinking, the drugs.”
Stunned, I sipped some water to steady myself. “You... you did?”
“I didn’t realize how much he kept hidden from you until after he was gone. He must’ve been one hell of an actor to shield you like that.”
I shook my head, caught off guard by his quiet admission, and glanced out at the overwhelming view of Palm Beach.
The sunset was almost upon us, casting a golden glow that glimmered off the boats, homes, and fancy hotels.
Even after knowing this place my whole life, it still took my breath away.
I choked back an unwelcome sob, the sting of regret surfacing.
“I would have helped him if I could,” I managed. “If I’d known, I would’ve tried to save him.”
“You’re helping him now. Being part of this is one way to honor his memory.”
“No pressure, right?” I looked back at him, taking in how the soft glow of the setting sun illuminated his strong jawline and the stubble on his cheeks.
Damn it, there it is again, Cade’s unexpected sexiness.
“Nobody knows how much my father fell short of his public image. They... they think he was something that he wasn’t. ”
“I know how that feels.” Cade’s fingers brushed the edges of his portfolio, sorting through a few pages with a soft rustle. His thumb lingered on a corner, bending it slightly as he glanced down. “My dad was that way too.”
“He was?” My voice came out sharper than I meant.
“The man I knew at home wasn’t the one people saw in the business world.” His shoulders shifted, as if he were brushing off a weight I couldn’t see.
I froze, my jaw dropping a little, my breath catching in my chest. I’d never even thought about that.
All this time, Gary Weston loomed in my mind like some cartoonish supervillain.
I thought of him as a cold, ruthless towering shadow whose sole purpose was to grind my dad under his heel.
My fingers tightened around the edge of my blazer sleeve, tugging at the fabric.
It hadn’t crossed my mind that the Gary I’d built up in my head might not have been the real one at all. What else had I gotten wrong? “How?”
Cade’s gaze softened, drifting somewhere past me.
“Kinder. Not as rough.” He shifted in his seat, his hand flexing open and closed.
“He loved deep-sea fishing. When I was old enough to go with him, he’d take me out on the boat.
I can still feel the spray hitting my face, the way the deck rocked under my feet.
” He stretched his arms wide, mimicking the size of something massive.
“We caught a swordfish once, and it was bigger than me. I thought it’d pull me right over the side. ”
I blinked, my hands unclenching as I tried to picture Cade smaller, skinny and young, the wind whipping through his hair as he wrestled with a fish that size. “I’ve never been deep-sea fishing.”
“It’s fun. Just you, the boat, and the water.
Great place to think.” Cade’s voice softened, a faraway look in his eyes as he shared the memory.
He stopped short, catching himself with a small laugh.
“God, sorry to get off topic. I haven’t told anyone that story in a long time. Guess I got carried away.”
I nodded as I pictured him out there, alone with the waves and his thoughts.
His openness stirred something in me, a quiet trust that made my own nerves feel safer to share.
“No, I get it. It sounds peaceful. Honestly, I could use some of that right now. I’m feeling kind of nervous about this ceremony. It’s so... public.”
Cade closed his portfolio with a gentle thud, his full attention on me. His eyes were steady, inviting. “Tell me why.”
“Well, apart from the fundraiser, I haven’t been at any high-profile events in years,” I admitted. “After we settled Dad’s estate, I left that whole life behind. I became anonymous. It was easier that way.” And cheaper.
“That’s one reason why I think this is an inspired idea,” he replied. “Nobody is expecting you.”
“Exactly.” I placed my hands on the armrests of my chair. “Doesn’t that mean—”
“What?”
“What if things go wrong? What if people are disappointed? What if people find out that I’m running a pseudonymous account on FanZone?”
He shook his head. “It will be too tightly controlled for that. My team will have it all planned to the letter. Nothing to chance. That’s how I operate.”
“I’m not embarrassed about how I’ve been making money,” I said, aiming for defiance, though my voice wavered slightly. I’d brought it up, not him, and now I felt the need to justify it. “I’ve done well. I did what I had to do.”
Cade’s eyes held mine for a moment before they drifted, slowly traveling the length of my body.
A warm flush crept up my neck as his gaze lingered, taking in every curve, every detail, like he was seeing me for the first time.
It sent a shiver through me, a quiet thrill that made my pulse quicken.
“I’m sure you did,” he said, his voice low, almost reluctant.
“I wish you hadn’t resorted to it, but it wasn’t my decision to make. ”
I straightened, clinging to my resolve. “I made over a hundred thousand dollars in the first three months.”
His eyebrow lifted, a flicker of surprise in his expression. “That’s a good amount of money.”
“It paid for Lilly’s tuition. That’s the most important thing.
She’s able to stay at school, and I even put some money away for college.
” I raised my chest some, feeling proud and a little triumphant about the obvious surprise in Cade’s voice.
Nobody could ever say I didn’t know how to hustle.
Not now, not after this. “And I did it. Only me.”
“That’s admirable too.”
“But I still don’t want to deal with it, you know? It’s not something I want to confront publicly.”
He leaned across the table, his gaze boring into me. “That won’t happen, Bella. I promise.”
I stared back at him, my breath catching in my throat. Something in his voice, the quiet certainty of it, chipped away at my guarded edges, making me want to believe him. For the first time, I felt a flicker of trust, like I could lean into his words and not fall.
I just hope to God that he’s right.