Chapter 25
PHOEBE
“Darling, he sounds so wonderful,” Mom said.
“I know, right?”
“I don’t know many men who would decorate a room at their house for their nephew.”
I was such a genius. I knew telling Mom about that particular detail would sell her on Griffin right away. Hell, I was still melting just thinking about it.
Ever since we’d been at his house two weekends ago, I kept looking at the pics I’d taken of the two of them.
Unfortunately, Griffin had been crazy busy since then.
I was discovering that the man was quite a bit of a workaholic.
But even though he had a lot going on, he texted me a few times a day and even dropped by with dinner about three times a week.
The fact that he was carving out time for me made me feel important.
But things were starting to get busier and busier on my end as well as the tax season began.
I was keeping my fingers crossed that it would mean I’d get that full-time job offer soon, but I wasn’t holding my breath.
The way I saw it, I had to prove to my boss that I was an invaluable member of the team, and the rest would just work out.
“We can’t wait to meet him when we come visit,” Mom said.
“Yes, I’m so excited about that too.”
“Listen, I’ve got to go. I love you darling. Take care, okay?”
“Sure. You, too, Mom.”
After hanging up, I started wondering how I’d coordinate the visit if we did manage to sell the house before my parents arrived. Although, unfortunately, I hadn’t heard from the realtor yet.
Biting my lip, I decided to push a bit and messaged her.
Phoebe: Hey! Any news about the house? It’s been a while.
Beth: I have an email with the offer in drafts but was waiting for some details to finalize it. Never mind, I’ll just send it like it is.
I read the message three times before it sank in.
Oh my God.
We have an offer on the house.
I immediately opened my inbox. The email from Beth was there. They were offering $15,000 over the asking price, which she said was to be expected.
I felt my body loosen up. My muscles almost turned liquid with relief. This was yet another thing I’d started to believe wasn’t going to happen after all. I felt like I’d be stuck making payments for this house forever.
See, Phoebe? It pays off to keep moving forward and expect good things to happen.
The profit on the sale was slim, but at least I’d get rid of the mortgage payment. I wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. So I instantly replied to Beth and CCed Marshall, so he’d be in the loop.
The only caveat was that they wanted the house empty in three weeks. That didn’t give me much time to find something else, but beggars couldn’t be choosers.
Whatever. I want to accept.
I inhaled deeply, then immediately forwarded the offer to Veronica.
I was relieved, but at the same time, I couldn’t believe this stage of my life was ending.
I was so ready to leave this house behind and the memories of how I got here.
Only a few months ago, I wouldn’t have thought that was possible.
This house had embodied a lot of my dreams, but not anymore.
I knew it had a lot to do with meeting Griffin.
I’d started healing even before we were really dating.
I smiled at the thought. I was moving on, and it felt glorious.
My phone rang with a call from Veronica.
“Congratulations!” she said as soon as I answered.
“I’m so relieved.”
“Girl, you’re on fire.”
“That’s exactly how I feel.”
“Have you started to look at places to live?” she asked.
“No, I haven’t.”
“Oops, sorry. I didn’t want to rain on your parade. But the email did say that they need you to vacate quickly.”
I sighed. “I know.”
It was already causing me anxiety. My budget was modest, and San Diego wasn’t cheap.
“You can sleep on my pullout couch while you find something. You don’t have to hurry the process.”
I bit the inside of my cheek. “Do you mean that?”
“Sure. It’ll be like back in college.”
“I just don’t want to inconvenience you.”
“You wouldn’t. Look, it’s the least I can help you with. I wouldn’t offer it if I didn’t mean it.”
That was true. She’d offered that after the breakup, but I’d figured since I was paying the mortgage on this place anyway, I’d better stay here.
“I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you. I’ll only stay until I find something suitable.”
“Something nice.”
I laughed. “I won’t be moving into some luxurious condo.”
“Not yet,” she said.
I grinned. That was why Veronica and I were soulmates. We both liked to put a positive spin on things. I’d lost my way a bit after all the heartbreak, but I was getting back on track.
“I’m so happy for you. What did Griffin say?” Her tone changed a bit, though I couldn’t understand why.
“I haven’t told him yet. I just found out myself. And it’s not final anyway. Marshall still has to agree to it, but I think he will. He’s even more desperate than I am to sell the house.”
“I can’t believe he’s ready to move on with someone else.”
I shrugged even though she couldn’t see me. For some reason, the thought of it didn’t hurt anymore.
“I really don’t care what he does. I just want to sever all ties between us.”
“Good for you. I’m so happy you got over him. I can barely believe it, honestly.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. It hasn’t been that long.”
“That’s true,” I said, “but I think some wounds run so deep that you can’t help but stop caring for that person.”
“And it does help when someone new comes along, huh?”
“You’re fishing for information,” I said, going into the backyard and sitting down on the swing. I wasn’t going to miss the house, but I was definitely going to miss the small yard. I’d probably have to rent a studio or something. It would be a long while before I could afford a house.
“Well, you’re a bit tight-lipped about Griffin, and I wonder why.”
“I’m not doing it consciously,” I assured her. “I’m starting to fear that if I talk about how good things are, they’ll fall apart.”
She gasped. “Holy shit, friend.”
“Oh wow. I don’t even know where that came from.”
“Well, wherever it did, I hope things change soon. You deserve to be happy, Phoebe.”
“Thanks, Veronica.”
“Okay, I have to go. I’m being summoned by the boss from hell. What if I come to your place after work and help you pack?”
“That would be amazing, but I’d feel super guilty to hijack your free time.”
“Ha! No need. You can take me out for a drink on Friday as repayment.”
“Consider it done.”
“Then I’ll see you this evening.”
“Yes, ma’am. I love you.”
“You too.”
For the rest of the week, Veronica came to my place after work, and we filled box after box. I’d decided to move in with her next week already.
“Sooo, finally telling Griffin tonight?” Veronica asked Friday evening as we were preparing to leave the house.
“Yes. I’m so excited to see him.”
He’d called me this morning to make plans, and when I told him that Veronica and I were going out, he simply suggested catching up later. He was meeting with Jude’s team today, and he wasn’t sure how long it would take.
That was fine by me. I’d have fun with Veronica in the meantime. She couldn’t stay late anyway because she was working tomorrow too.
“That makes two of us. I’ve been hoping to see him again for quite some time.”
I frowned. “Why? You’ve already met him.”
“Yeah, but this is different. He’s actually dating my best friend now.”
“Right… Please don’t scare him away.”
She grinned mischievously. “I’m not making any promises.”
Griffin
I was passionate about my work—always had been. But meeting with a new team on Friday afternoon hadn’t been my best idea. I kept glancing at the clock, wanting this to be over so I could start my evening with Phoebe.
At least this meeting was going exactly the way I wanted it to.
I’d arrived at Jude’s office thirty minutes ago, and we’d gone straight to the main meeting room, along with his CEO, CFO, and a marketing manager.
I always made a point to meet the management team before I decided whether I really wanted to invest in a business or not.
Clicking with the founder was important, but I needed to click with the management team as well.
Although, in all fairness, the management team could always be changed.
But so far, Carlos, Moira, and Eve had made a good impression on me.
“We’d funnel a new investment into acquiring more users,” Carlos said.
“What age groups are you focusing on?” I asked.
Carlos and Moira exchanged a glance. “We’re focusing on twenty-five and up. People who are on their first, possibly second job already.”
Eve leaned forward. “We figured that’s when people start having a stable enough income to pay our yearly fee.”
Jude shook his head. “It’s not all about the money, Eve.”
“Well, I, for one, am happy the CFO is thinking about the money,” I said, and Eve laughed.
Moira, who was in charge of marketing, added, “Our focus groups also tell us that starting at that age, people are more inclined to pursue long-term relationships or look for something serious.”
I fundamentally disagreed with that. Twenty-five? The last thing I’d wanted back then was a long-term relationship. But not all people were the same.
“On which channels does the acquisition happen?” I inquired.
“We’re casting a wide net. But most of our users come from the ads we run on Facebook and Instagram. We’ve got someone covering TikTok, but ads don’t perform very well there. And we’re not making headway with organic content on the platform yet.”
“I say focus most efforts on the channels that are yielding a good return. Sometimes we have a tendency to run after the new shiny thing, even though we’re better off doubling our efforts on the places that already work for us,” I said.
Moira looked at Jude. “I like Griffin. Finally, an investor who isn’t obsessed with us trying out every social media platform known to mankind.”
“He’s got a good eye for business,” Jude agreed.
“Well, I think this has been productive.” It was one of the longest meetings I’d had with a potential new investment. “I’ll be in contact with Jude.”
I rose to my feet. So did Jude. I shook hands with Moira, Eve, and Carlos.
“I’ll walk you out,” Jude said. “Actually, I’m leaving too. My wife’s waiting for me with pot roast.” He rubbed his palms together. “It’s one of my favorites.”
We headed out from the meeting room and walked straight toward the exit.
“Send my regards to Phoebe.”
“I will.”
“You know, that girl is the reason I gave you a second chance,” he added as we stepped outside.
Guilt ate at me. I detested lying, even for a good cause. But I couldn’t imagine a scenario where I told Jude the truth and he wouldn’t be pissed off. Even though things were different now, they weren’t exactly as we’d portrayed to them. Regardless, some things were better left unsaid.
As we parted ways, I pushed the matter to the back of my mind. I was meeting my woman, and I intended to focus on her completely.