Chapter 5 #2
She leaned forward and for a split second, I was distracted. Her hair caught the light just right, glossy and perfect, spilling over her shoulders. She was leaning in, all confidence and sharp angles, and I… missed whatever she had just said.
Probably wasn’t important, I told myself, though my gut knew otherwise. I cleared my throat. “So, what do I get out of this?”
She laughed, the sound light, tinkling, and knowing, and I felt it landing like a spark in my chest. “You get most of the acquisition. Your company can do what it wants with the portfolio as long as I get my cut. Consider me an investor.”
As she said it, I caught the briefest moment of hesitation, just a flicker of a shadow across her eyes. It made me wonder, just for a moment, how far she was sticking her neck out with this, but she waved me off before I could ask.
“Relax. I’ve got it,” she said, but that tiny hint of unease lingered in her eyes.
Even so, I mentally grabbed my balls and jumped, agreeing to the deal right there at the table. “Alright, van Alen. We’re in.”
A slow, triumphant smile spread across her face.
She picked up her coffee mug, the liquid inside no longer steaming, and held it up to mine for a toast. I hated cold coffee, but I drank to it anyway, trying to remain confident that I was making the right choice.
We hashed out a few of the details over another cup of coffee, and by the time I was parking outside Jameson’s house hours later, I was feeling a lot more confident.
I climbed out of my car, inhaling a deep breath of air scented with a home-cooked meal before he’d even opened the door.
It swung open before I’d even made it up the stairs.
“What’s up, baby brother? Good of you to come by.
I was wondering if you were getting too fancy for us now that you’re on the top floor. ”
I smirked. “Not yet, but maybe soon. Give me time to wear in that chair a little and you might have to drive into the city to see me. We’ll eat at a restaurant.”
Sadie, really starting to look heavily pregnant now, playfully shoved him away from the door and waved me in.
“Soon, that restaurant is going to need a playground and I can guarantee you’d rather come here than subject yourself to that level of insanity, but come on in, Mr. Fancy Pants.
Let me feed you something I cooked right here at home and we’ll see if you’re still talking about restaurants after. ”
I chuckled, hugging her on my way in. The poor woman really did look desperately uncomfortable as she closed the door behind me and waved Jamie off when he tried to help her. She shot him a look that could double as a death-ray.
“I’m pregnant, not disabled. I can walk just fine. It’s very kind of you to want to help, but do it by setting the table. Both of you.”
Neither of us needed to be told twice, laughing and shoving at each other a little bit as we raced to their dining room.
Jamie’s formerly spotless house was now a temporary animal shelter, with climbing toys for cats, balls on the floor for the kittens and puppies, and little, fur-covered beds in many of the rooms.
To my surprise, Trent, Sadie’s brother, was in the dining room when I walked in, wearing that lazy grin that said he’d already decided he was going to have a good time, whether we were ready for him or not.
I grinned when I saw him, my eyebrows climbing, and I extended my hand. “Hey, man. I didn’t know you were in town.”
He shook my hand, then lifted his arms out to his sides. “I’m like a bad rash. You just can’t get rid of me. I got in this afternoon.”
Jamie laughed. “He’s not wrong. Whenever I think he’s gone back to Texas for a bit, he shows back up, tracking dust all over my house and refusing to take off his boots.”
I had to cough to hide my laugh when Jameson’s jaw twitched like he was calculating the radius of dirt spreading across his hardwood. Trent snorted. “Man, are you really still like this? I thought marriage would chill you out.”
“It has,” Jameson said. “I only vacuum twice a day now.”
Trent barked a laugh, then eased back into his chair like a man who’d been raised in a barn, which, to be fair, he kind of was. “Are you hearing this, Harrison? Two vacuums a day? My sister married a Roomba with anxiety. It’s a good thing I’ve come to make sure Sadie’s got company while he cleans.”
I choked on my drink.
Sadie swatted him on the back of the head as she walked past with the salad bowl. “Be nice.”
“I am nice,” Trent said, rubbing the spot and grinning. “If I wasn’t nice, I’d tell him about the crumb I spotted in the foyer.” He leaned forward, stage-whispering to me, “Don’t blink. He’ll sense it.”
Jameson glared. “There are no crumbs in my foyer.”
“Oh, there’s a crumb,” Trent said. “I’m gonna leave it. Just to see what happens.”
The air actually tightened. I swore Jameson’s pupils dilated like he’d entered fight-or-flight mode. I laughed so hard I nearly dropped my fork, but it was always like this when Trent was around. I loved the guy.
Under the swagger and the teasing, there was something protective there. Solid. He was a guy who’d just rearranged his whole week just to show up for his sister, and I could respect that.
Hooch, their horse-sized dog, trotted into the dining room and I grinned, dropping to my haunches to greet him. “How are you holding up, big boy? Are you still getting enough love with all these babies around?”
Jameson shot me an unimpressed look. “Of course, he is. Hey, how’s work? Are they treating you well in acquisitions? I’m keeping your seat warm in finance and liquidations for now. Just in case you come to your senses and decide to join us permanently.”
“Thanks, but it’s actually going pretty well. I even found an investor for that acquisition you gave me to work on the other day.”
Sadie nearly choked on the water she was sipping from a glass bottle. “An investor? Why?”
“Our offer wasn’t tempting enough,” I said. “It was the most Sterling would’ve spent before going back to the drawing board, so I did what I thought he would do. Network, build connections, and find a way to get the job done.”
“Did he approve this?” Jameson asked carefully. “Sterling isn’t fond of making friends.”
Well, I guess it’s a good thing then that I don’t think Aurelia will ever be that. Besides, friends didn’t kiss friends, and I was dying to find out what that would be like.
Sadie’s eyes went wide. “Harrison, are you having a stroke? You’ve been staring off into space for at least two minutes.”
“Nope,” I said. “Sorry, I just zoned out for a second. I haven’t talked to him about it. He’s been taking a lot of time away from the office to spend with Laney before the baby comes, and when he is there, he’s always crazy busy. I’ll talk to him about it now that I’ve got someone lined up.”
Maybe.
I followed them to the kitchen to dish up, but while they were getting the food ready, I did my duty as a little brother and stocked up on their good snacks for the way home.
It was a ritual. A comfort, and one of the few things about being a baby brother that I could really get behind—the right to raid their fridges as if they were my own.
“What about you, Trent?” I asked to shift their attention away from me, and also because I was curious. “What’s happening at the ranch while you’re gone?”
“New foreman,” he said happily. “He’s the most dependable ranch worker I’ve ever encountered and he’s lightening my load like you cannot believe. It’s great.”
Sadie let out a contented sigh. “Now he’s got no more excuses for not visiting. With Colby around, you can totally come out here for your little sister.”
“You’re right.” Trent’s eyes widened as he pretended to be stricken. “I should fire him immediately. As soon as I get back.”
I laughed, loving the energy he brought with him everywhere he went. Life was always just a little bit more fun when he was around.