Chapter 54
54
Theo
A week later, I wake to a pile of pennies on my bedside table. Eight pennies and a note.
Breakfast. Don’t be late.
I turn, knowing Cat will be gone from the bed but hoping I’ll find her anyway. She’s a delight in the morning, always grumpy when she’s woken up, but willing to be persuaded. Her soft sounds of annoyance quickly turn into sighs of pleasure and cries of yes, Theo, please.
Maybe I can find her and convince her to delay breakfast. The thought has me shoving the covers off and stalking through the halls of the mansion on Fifth Avenue. I find her in the kitchen, frowning at the stove and poking at a pan of what might have once been eggs.
“Breakfast, or a science experiment gone wrong?”
She whirls. “I tried.” She wrinkles her nose. “I think we might need to eat toast. I used the last of the eggs and—” She looks back at the stove. “Definitely not edible. Sorry.”
I turn off the stove and take the spatula out of her hand. My arms go around her waist, and my lips drop to the crease of her neck .
“Theo.” She pushes at my chest as I nibble under her ear. “You need fuel. Your presentation is in two hours.”
“I need to take the edge off. Come on, wife. Help me out.”
She laughs and relaxes against me. “I wanted to make you breakfast. For good luck.”
I pull back so I can grin down at her. “Are you sure you weren’t trying to poison me?”
“Yes.” She gives me a cheeky smile. “I’m over that phase of our relationship. Luckily for you.”
I laugh. “Come back to bed, baby. I don’t need breakfast.”
“I just want today to be perfect.” She tunnels her fingers through my hair. “Remember, you can always tell Jonah and Miles to fuck off and join me instead.”
“It’ll be fine.” I love her for being so supportive. “Remember. No threatening my business partners later.” Cat is very defensive about the mentorship program.
“Not even a little?” She frowns.
I kiss her. “Not even a little, princess,” I say against her lips.
Kai is nervous as hell during the presentation, but I’m not. The plan we’ve created is airtight. We’ll give away ten internships at first, to high school and college students with an interest in algorithmic trading and corporate finance who have demonstrated need or are part of an underrepresented group. Each will work with me to create code that can be used at Kings Lane, but they’ll get to keep a percentage of the profit. Another portion will be used to fund scholarships for other students in need.
Jonah and Miles pay rapt attention, nodding along as Kai and I present the returns from our test trades. We’re up 217 percent. Kai is grinning as he gets to the end with our results.
Everyone claps, and I pull Kai into a hug. “Great job,” I tell him.
“It was all you, Mr. A,” he says, his face red from presenting .
“Nah.” I clap him on the shoulder. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”
Or without Cat. She’s smiling from her seat, looking like she’s going to burst with pride.
“Can I speak with Kai?” Jonah asks.
Kai nods, suddenly shy, and I give him an encouraging smile. Jonah is scary, but I know he means well. I hear him asking Kai about how the code was created as Miles grins at me.
“Great fucking job, man.” He pulls me into a hug.
“You think? I know it’s not our usual thing, but I think it really matters.”
“It really fucking matters,” Miles says. “And that’s enough. I’d be proud to put the Kings Lane name on this.”
My chest swells, and I nod, not trusting my voice.
Cat and I celebrate with champagne in the pool later. The air is still crisp, but the pool is heated like a hot spring. I pull her out into the deep end so she’s forced to wrap her legs around mine and cling to me in the water.
“You just want me anchored to you,” she says. Her eyes are starry as she smiles at me.
“Always,” I whisper, cupping her jaw.
“Good,” she whispers back. “Because I want you to know I tore up that separation agreement and burned it.”
I laugh. “Tearing it up would have been enough.”
She shakes her head. “No way. I didn’t want you changing your mind.”
I press a kiss to her mouth. She’s so lovely like this. It makes my heart hurt. Mine. Finally mine.
“I’m not going to change my mind, princess.”
“So it’s decided,” she says.
“What is?” I pull back so I can look at her.
“This might have started as fake, but we’re staying married forever.”
“I don’t know,” I say slowly. “Give me some time— ”
“Theo,” she exclaims, pushing at my arms.
“Kidding.” I wink. I kiss her again, lingering this time. I let my lips drift to the freckle I fantasized about for so many years. “Forever,” I agree. “Definitely forever.”