Chapter 2
Gabe
Don’t get involved, stay focused, do the job, and get the experience.
That had been my motto since leaving home.
No distractions. Even in college, I’d rarely splurged on a fling with a girl.
They were distractions I didn’t need, and I had a mission.
The same one that had driven me since I’d left home.
But the woman now buckling herself into my car had blindsided me.
Tori was too amazing to ignore. I’d been drawn to her the moment I opened the door to that room, seeing her there with her ebony hair running down her back, her dress flattering her curves and stopping at long, toned legs.
She’d turned her navy eyes on me, and I’d stood no chance.
I had to talk to her, ignoring the desperate move from Allison, who clearly hadn’t gotten the hint that I wasn’t looking for that kind of experience.
I knew her type, and I knew she’d be a one-night stand at most. When I splurged, which was rare, she was the type I would have gravitated to, someone I knew I would have no attachment to and would only offer the necessary pleasure to get me through a few months before I gave in again.
But Tori. She was a distraction that meant more. This was the kind of woman who would draw my attention from my goal, divert me, and destroy me. And I wasn’t strong enough to stop myself from falling under her spell.
I started the car, letting it idle for a moment and debating whether I should say what I was thinking. It was risky, but seeing as she wouldn’t be working directly with me, it seemed harmless, even if it was presumptuous and bold. But that was who I was. I didn’t overthink, and I took chances.
Her blue eyes crinkled when I turned to her.
Good God, are you really doing this, Gabe?
It was insanity, but there was something about this woman that had me thinking it was worth it.
“I know we just met,” I said. Her eyes grew larger as I continued. “But I’d love to take you out for dinner after work.”
Smart and contemplative. I could see her thinking over my words, not making a rushed decision. That was what drew me to her, not just her beauty. There was something bold about her I wanted to discover.
“You’re asking me on a date?”
“I am. I really like you, Tori.”
Her cheeks flushed as she smiled. “You barely know me, Gabe.”
“Then let me get to know you better.”
She drew in a breath, her lips parting, and I wondered what it would be like to kiss them.
“Okay.”
“Really?” I asked, my throat going dry. I wasn’t sure what I had expected, but her yes made me dizzy with excitement.
She laughed, a smile filling her full lips. “Yes.”
I stared at her for another moment before I turned back to the steering wheel, containing the whoop that wanted to escape. Clearing my throat, I drove us out of the parking lot, glancing over at her.
Her smile hadn’t faded, and my stomach flipped. I didn’t know what it was about Tori, but she had my hands clammy, my words scattered, and my confidence obliterated. And those things made asking her out necessary.
“Do you like Italian?” I asked her, my focus back on the road. “There’s a place in the city that makes the best gnocchi.”
“Gnocchi alla Sorrentina?”
I snatched a glance at her, unable to hide my surprise. She couldn’t be this perfect.
“The best.”
“Sold.” She shifted in her seat, and I peeked over to meet her eyes. Blue like a summer day. “It’s my favorite.”
Definitely perfect.
Looking back at the road, I hit my brakes, my hand flying out to secure her as I avoided hitting the stopped car in front of me.
“Although we have to make it there first,” she teased.
My hand was still across her stomach, and I pulled it away quickly. “Sorry. I don’t know why I did that.” I scratched my head, trying to figure out where the protective instinct had come from.
“It’s okay. My ribs are only a little bruised.” My eyes jumped to hers, horror coiling in my chest, but her laugh obliterated it. “I’m just kidding. I’m fine. I don’t mind a protective man.”
Rubbing my cheek, I returned her smile, feeling once again like a kid who had just asked a girl out for the first time.
The remainder of the ride back held less excitement, but Tori’s voice filled the space, and I found it was space I hadn’t realized had been so empty.
I tugged my tie off, looking in my closet for something less stuffy but still decent for a date.
“So, your first day,” my sister, Olivia, said through the phone. “That’s one step closer, Gabe.”
“I know, Liv.” I pulled a polo shirt out and threw the tie to the side.
“We’re close. Two years left and then you come home.”
My hands froze on the buttons of my shirt. The expiration date that had been hitting me in the head the entire day. One of several that had ruled my life since I was sixteen. Each date marking another step to our end goal.
“Gabe?”
“Yeah, two years, then I’m stuck working for Dad until we pull this off.
Sounds fantastic.” I didn’t mean to sound so sarcastic.
This plan had been mine, and Liv had followed me on it for years.
But today had offered a diversion in Tori.
A step off the path that had been my motivation since the day my mother had died.
“I’ve been stuck here while you’ve been off playing in sunny Florida since you finished grad school,” Liv responded. “Dealing with his rants about how you’re avoiding your destiny and dicking around. So, yeah. Two years and you return so I don’t have to hear about it anymore.”
Sighing, I pulled my button-down off and worked the polo over my head.
School was just another lie I’d given Tori.
Telling her I’d moved here for grad school when I’d attended school up north, taking an accelerated course load to graduate early and finish my MBA when I was twenty-three.
Only then had I moved to Florida, after convincing my father to let me live in anonymity while gaining valuable experience.
An excuse to get away for as long as I could.
One that had left Liv to deal with the aftermath.
“I’ll be back to take my place just like I promised him. Don’t worry.” Although if things went well with Tori, I wasn’t certain how I could follow through.
“You’re not wavering, are you?”
I squeezed the bridge of my nose, unsure why I was thinking of Tori as something that could undo years of work when I had only met her. “No. Of course not.”
“Good, little brother, because we’re close. Two years until you return, then three more until we’re at the end, Gabe. That’s only five years. How many years have you dedicated to this?”
“Too many,” I said, thinking of all the planning.
Pissing my father off by moving to Florida after grad school.
Not returning home to work for him like he had demanded.
Convincing him I needed to work at the financial firms to get a fully rounded understanding of the finance world before I came on board at his company.
Years of Liv playing daddy’s girl and staying in New York, working for him until he finally rewarded her with the COO position.
It was as far as she would go. CEO was mine when he retired, whether or not I wanted it.
And all the while, we were conspiring. Building our own empire piece by piece with one goal in mind: watching him fall.
“Then whatever is going on with you, shut it down. We’ve put everything aside for this, Gabe. Don’t let our sacrifices be for nothing.”
“God, you’re too dramatic, Liv. I’m fine and still on track. Have a glass of wine and take that damn edge off.”
“One of us needs the edge because you’re lacking it today.” I held the phone against my shoulder while I tucked my shirt in as she continued. “Is there something I need to worry about?”
Only the black-haired beauty who stole my attention today. “No, it’s under control. I should be in the trenches in a few weeks at the most. That gives us two more years to build before I’m back in New York.”
“Then it’s the last mile, Gabe. Momma would be proud.”
I closed my eyes, hating how she jabbed me with moments of softness like that. Waiting to see if they would weaken me.
“Night, Liv. I’m serious. Go have a drink. Maybe get laid. It might loosen you up.”
“You’re nasty.” But I could hear the smile in her words. “Night, little brother.”
Disconnecting, I checked the time before tucking my phone into my pocket.
I ran a hand through my hair, questioning what I was doing.
Getting involved with Tori when I was so close to seeing the end of my efforts was risky.
I’d had one goal for eleven years: to end my father’s dynasty.
To watch him fall, just like my mother had fallen.
But the nervous butterflies in the pit of my stomach told me moving forward with Tori was something I couldn’t avoid.
Liv’s reminders played through my mind the entire ride to Tori’s.
She lived farther inland on the side of town where the firm was located.
It took about twenty minutes to get there, and in that time, I fortified myself to return to the reserved, emotionally stunted man my father had made me into.
The one Tori had unraveled within seconds. Another reason I knew she was the one.
I pulled into her apartment complex and parked in front of her building.
Gripping the steering wheel, I chastised myself for that last thought.
There could not be a “one.” The gamble we were taking was too big, and Liv and I had made a pact that romance wouldn’t interfere.
Until today, I had honored that pact. But then those big blue eyes had risen to meet mine.
My head dropped onto the steering wheel.
“What are you doing, Gabe? Pull away and let her think you stood her up. Avoid her until you no longer have to see her.” No amount of those demands had me moving because the thought of seeing her devastated in the morning was akin to the time Liv had jabbed a fork in my thigh to see if I would bleed.
Stepping from the car, I adjusted the jacket I’d thrown over my polo and made my way up to her apartment. Three flights. Of course she would live on the third floor. I shook my head, thinking of how alike we were even though I barely knew her.
The door swung open just after I knocked, and there she was, shoving all doubts away.
She looked stunning in a sundress that came to her mid-thighs and showed her glorious legs.
Charcoal gray dusted her eyelids, accentuating the darker hues of blue in them.
And her smile…I didn’t think I wanted to share that smile with anyone else. I wanted it for myself.
Words tumbled in my mind as I fought the need to kiss her lips that were stained with a deep blush. “Hi,” I sputtered.
“Hi,” she replied, beaming. “Come on in, but I’ll warn you, it looks like a storage unit.” She walked away, saying, “I just need to grab my shoes.”
The apartment was a small one-bedroom. Boxes filled the place, some open like she’d been searching for specific things.
“You weren’t kidding,” I said, closing the door behind me.
She came back around the corner of her room and leaned on the doorframe while she pulled on a short-heeled sandal. “I warned you.”
“Where do you sit?” I asked, peering over a pile of boxes.
“There’s a tiny corner on the couch that’s free,” she answered with a laugh. Switching feet, she continued, “I got my clothes unpacked at least.”
Sandals on, she grabbed her purse from atop a box and came to stand in front of me.
“I guess I know what you’ll be doing this weekend.”
She tossed her head back and laughed, exposing her graceful neck. In her heels, she stood closer to my six-three height, and it would have only taken a quick lean to have her lips against mine.
“I think that’s what I’ll be doing for the next few weekends.
” She looked over at the boxes in the kitchen, giving me the perfect view of her side profile.
I tucked my hands into my pockets to resist pushing her hair back from her cheek.
“I suppose if this date goes well, it might be nice to have help.”
My brow quirked as her eyes nervously flitted to me like she regretted the suggestion.
“If beer and pizza are involved, count me in.”
Her smile returned. “Pepperoni?”
“Of course. Is there any other way?”
“Only if you add in a marathon of Lord of the Rings in the background.”
Good God, she was too perfect. “Start with The Hobbit, and I’m yours for the weekend.”
Crystal blue orbs shimmered with happiness, and I thought I could dive into them and never resurface.
“Ready to stuff our faces with gnocchi?” I asked, putting my arm out for her to take.
“More than ready.”
I led her out of the apartment and to my car. After closing the car door for her, I made my way to the driver’s side. With each step, all thoughts of the years I’d devoted to my cause and spent hardening myself to everything that might stand in my way floated away like leaves in the wind.