THIRTY-TWO
Noah
It was strange to park my car on the street in front of the Warbler office, rather than in the lot in the back, but that was for employees, and I wasn’t one of those anymore, was I?
There were other cars parked here, and I could tell right away what they were. There weren’t enough photographers for it to be Ardy’s client Stella, but there were enough for me to know there was someone big inside of Warbler right now.
I ignored the few paparazzi milling about and smoking cigarettes and made my way up the sidewalk. I climbed the porch steps, walked through the front entrance, and when the door hinges squealed, the receptionist glanced up at me. A shy smile warmed Irene’s face. “Hi, Noah.”
Had Ardy not told them what had happened, or was she just being polite?
“Hi,” I said. “I’m a little early. I have an appointment with Ardy at ten.”
“Send him in.” Ardy’s voice boomed through his open office door. “We’re finishing up in here.”
Irene waved me forward, and my anxiety ratcheted up another level. After I’d texted Ardy last night and asked for a meeting, I’d rehearsed what I wanted to say at least a dozen times, but now my mind went blank.
I stepped through the doorway and found the two chairs in front of Ardy’s desk were occupied, but since the people had their backs to me, my gaze went straight to my former boss.
He didn’t look at me, though. Ardy was wrapping up things with Erika and her client Troy Osbourne—which explained the photographers outside. His new album had dropped a little less than two months ago, and he was having a bit of a moment right now.
I lingered in the doorway, feeling horribly out of place while they discussed his upcoming appearance as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live and his tour that kicked off right after.
When everything was settled, Erika and Troy rose from their seats.
“You’re going to be busy,” Ardy commented. “You two going to have any time to plan that wedding?”
Erika chuckled. “Maybe we’ll just elope.”
Troy lifted an eyebrow, like that would never fly with him, before turning and noticing me in the doorway. “Hey, man.”
We’d met twice before, and he seemed like a good guy. I liked how he was still humble, despite his recent fame. My gaze shifted over to Erika, who I hadn’t seen in the office, or even in our neighborhood, since the proposal—but that wasn’t surprising.
The bigger Troy got, the busier she, as his manager, became.
“Congrats on the engagement,” I said.
“Thanks,” they answered in unison.
Ardy waved them off and set his unreadable gaze on me. “Come on in, kid. Close the door and take a seat.”
The first time he’d called me ‘kid,’ I’d thought it was strange, but today I found it oddly comforting. It was a hell of a lot better than him calling me an asshole, so I’d take this as a win.
I’d barely lowered into the seat when he spoke. “If this is to ask for your job back, Noah, let me save you the trouble.”
“No, I’m not here for that. I wanted to meet with you because I have two things I need to do.”
He hesitated, caught off guard. “What?”
“The first is, I want to apologize for keeping my relationship with Charlotte a secret from you. I know it was unprofessional. I promise I tried really hard not to get involved, and when we did... well, then I tried again not to fall for her. But it was all futile. It’s probably as surprising to you as it is to me, but she’s my best friend,” I said it with my whole chest, “and I love her.”
It was like I’d just told him I was from Mars.
He blinked at me, neither accepting nor rejecting what I’d said, unable to process. The tension in the room was so taut, it felt like the air between us was compressed, making it difficult to pull into my lungs. My body was on alert, though, prepared for him to spring into action at any moment and come at me.
Would he climb over the desk? Take a swing at me like he’d threatened to do the last time we’d been together?
He didn’t move. Ardy sat in his chair, locking me under his intimidating gaze, and for half a second, I wondered if this was worse than getting punched in the face. His expression was cryptic, and his eyes were skeptical, evaluating me like he was searching for a lie.
But I was telling the goddamn truth, and I hoped he could see that.
“What’s the other thing?” His tone gave nothing away.
I’d expected him to be mad and was totally unprepared for this stoic version of him. Was this reaction... good? Did it mean he believed me? I chose to press on, like that matter was settled.
“Did Charlotte tell you she was paying me brokerage fees for the deals I negotiated for her?”
Again, he revealed nothing. “No.”
“I didn’t want them, but she insisted,” I explained. “So anything I made off these deals, I looked at as ‘play’ money. ‘Fun’ money. I put it in a separate account and used it for high-risk trades. If I made any profit off it, the plan was to give it to her.” The tension in my chest eased a degree, probably because I weirdly found comfort in playing the market. “Most of the investments lost money, but I had a hunch last week... and it paid off big.”
He gave me a direct look. Get to the point.
“After I sold and took back my investment, there’s still more than ten grand in that fund. I want to give it to her to invest in her business because as far as I’m concerned, it’s her money.”
He shook his head. “You earned that money.”
“Mostly by luck, and I wouldn’t have, without her hard work.” I leaned forward in my chair. “It’s amazing how fast she’s grown her business. You must be so proud.”
Finally, some emotion.
Was that embarrassment or guilt? It made me think he didn’t know how well she’d been doing. Was he too busy to notice, or had she been keeping it from him? Maybe it had exploded so quickly, she wasn’t sure it had staying power and didn’t want to tell anyone until she was sure it wasn’t a flash in the pan.
“I know this cash would be a big help,” I said. “The web design quote she got would eat a significant chunk of it, but she could use the rest for an advertising boost while she has all this momentum.”
Ardy’s expression shifted to one of suspicion. “You don’t need my blessing to give her that money. What’s the problem?”
“She won’t take my calls or answer my emails.” The flowers I’d sent hadn’t worked either. “I need your help getting in touch with her.”
His suspicion graduated to all-out distrust. “This is ploy.”
“It’s not.”
Everything I had told him was true, but... he wasn’t exactly wrong, either. I would have given her this money no matter what, regardless of my feelings, but if it also gave me a way in with her? A chance to apologize and plead my case?
Yeah, I wasn’t mad about that.
He didn’t buy what I was selling. “I don’t like the idea of you dating my daughter. She’s too young for you.”
My heart sank, but there was nothing I could do about that right now. In the event I was able to win Charlotte back, I’d be starting in a hole with her dad—but that was a distant obstacle.
I needed to focus on the bigger one first.
“Fair enough,” I said, “but that’s not up to you.”
“No, it isn’t,” he agreed.
His gaze drifted away, going to the keyboard on the desk in front of him, and he seemed deep in thought. When his focus finally returned to me, his demeanor had changed. He looked a hell of a lot more like the man he’d been back when he’d hired me.
“I said you didn’t need to ask for your job back,” he said, “because Charlotte already negotiated that for you.”
I straightened, and my pulse kicked. “What?”
“She still loves you, even after all you said, but don’t think that means getting her back is going to be easy. You broke my little girl’s heart, and she can be stubborn like me. It means she probably won’t forgive you.”
I struggled to catch my breath, and my mind raced trying to wrap itself around this new information. “I only need a chance. Just give me five minutes with her.”
There was movement, drawing his attention to his office window. Outside, the photographers rushed to throw their gear in their cars and follow the SUV that had just turned onto the street from the back parking lot. As it drove past, I got a flash of the newly engaged couple.
Erika was almost twenty years older than her fiancé, and Ardy had no issue supporting them. Was it wishful thinking maybe someday he could do the same for Charlotte and me?
He glanced at his phone screen, checking the time. “I believe she’s home right now. You want me to text my wife and let her know you’re coming over?”
The way he said it made it sound like a limited time offer, and I couldn’t get up out of my seat fast enough.