Chapter Twenty-Six
Zachary
The shipping crisis lasted longer than I’d anticipated, but it seemed to finally settle down a bit two weeks later when the final order was confirmed.
“Hell yes,” I exclaimed, jumping up from behind my desk.
I looked from the window down to the courtyard of LeBlanc & Broussard, feeling like a haze had lifted. I might be good with challenges and maintaining a cool head, but that didn’t mean they didn’t exhaust me. In fact, if it weren’t for Grace these past few weeks, I would’ve lost my cool more often than not. But being with her balanced me. She was exactly what I needed, and I couldn’t wait to see her later this evening.
I really needed to stretch my legs. As I was preparing to go downstairs for a coffee break, I heard the phone buzz on my desk. I had a cardinal rule: I never took it with me on breaks because it defeated the whole purpose. I’d gone against the grain the past two weeks because it was a difficult time, but now I’d fully intended to leave the thing behind.
“Fuck,” I said, going back to my desk. If anyone reported any other delays...
But the name on the screen made me relax. Gaston . I immediately put it to my ear.
“Hello,” I said.
“Hey, Zachary.”
“I haven’t heard from you in a while.”
“Listen, we’d be more than happy to work with you. Your offer is fantastic, and I’m sure we’ll be able to collaborate well.”
“That’s great,” I said. “I’ll get everything approved by our legal department and will send the money maybe as early as next week. Just one question. How about Grace?”
We hadn’t talked about this at all. Partly because we’d both been extremely busy at work, and partly because there hadn’t been much to talk about since I hadn’t heard from Gaston and Felicia much lately.
“She’s not in the running anymore.”
I frowned as I decided to head downstairs while talking on the phone even if it meant I’d keep it with me during my break.
I was very surprised and wondered what made her change her mind. I planned to ask her that tonight, because I would’ve been willing to walk away if it meant she got it. But maybe she decided that she had already her hands full with growing her company. After the grandmothers collaborated with her, it was like the whole city wanted to do business with Grace too.
“So, listen, Felicia and I were wondering if you could drop by the ranch with all the contracts and everything else that’s needed. It’s a difficult time for us to make a day trip to New Orleans.”
“Sure, don’t worry. I’ll go there. But first I need to draw up all the paperwork.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Gaston said distractedly.
“All right, then. I won’t keep you any longer.”
Admittedly, I was distracted as well, thinking about Grace. She’d seemed very adamant about investing in the beginning, so it was strange that she’d no longer be interested. I wondered what her reasoning was to pull back. Was she overwhelmed at work? Because I could help out there as well.
I needed to get to the bottom of this, and I’d do just that during our date tonight.
***
Grace
I sighed as I sniffed the new samples of creams. I loved them. A large segment of the market was looking for fragrance-free creams because they figured it meant they were more natural. But since we worked with all-natural products, I was proudly boasting how nice ours smelled. This particular one had lilac. Yeah, Isabeau and Celine inspired me. I loved the scent, but it didn’t add any benefits to the cream itself, like rejuvenating or calming properties. But it was divine.
I closed my eyes, and for some reason, it made me think of Zachary. The man had taken over my life, and I was enjoying it. I had never imagined this, just as I never imagined that his family was going to embrace me so openly, especially after the debacle with my brothers. I really couldn’t believe the way Kyle had treated Georgie. She was an amazing woman and certainly didn’t deserve that. My brother was a lot like my ex—an asshole through and through.
Opening my eyes, I put down the jar of cream and emailed my team to send this sample to Isabeau and Celine’s store too.
They’d sent me updated sales numbers last week. It wasn’t going to be a big stream of income, but it was a good start. I liked the idea of seeing my products in shops around the Quarter.
Just as I sent the email, my phone beeped, and I smiled when I saw the screen. It was Gaston. Finally! I’d been waiting for his call. It made me antsy that he hadn’t said a peep.
I immediately tapped the speakerphone, setting the phone on my couch because I still had cream on my hands and didn’t want to smear my screen.
“Hello, Grace.”
“Hi, Gaston. Haven’t heard from you in a while.”
“I know, I know. I promise I wasn’t stringing you along. So, listen, I don’t want to waste your time any longer.”
My throat closed up. “Oh?”
“We’ve decided to take Zachary’s offer.”
I swallowed hard, feeling as if he was pressing on my neck, obstructing the influx of air.
“Right, right.” I cleared my throat. “Is it a matter of money? Or do you think he’s a better collaboration partner? Because if it’s money, I can improve my offer.”
“Zachary told us that he can outbid whatever you offer.”
“I see.” I couldn’t help but feel betrayed.
“We’re really sorry. Felicia and I like you a lot, and you bonded with the horses beautifully, but this is a business decision after all.”
“Yes, of course. I understand.”
“And you did say you don’t want the two of you to invest together.”
I swallowed hard. That’s right, I’d told him that.
“But you’re welcome to come out here to the ranch and spend time with the horses whenever you want.”
I smiled. “Thank you, Gaston. That’s very considerate of you.” I was feeling very off-kilter.
“All right, then. Have a great rest of the week.”
“Sure. You too.”
I wanted to ask a bit more about Starlight, but I couldn’t bring myself to. I was so disappointed.
As I hung up, I rubbed my hands together until the cream set in. I needed to get out of my apartment. This place was chock-full of samples, and right now it felt claustrophobic. I took the phone carefully between two fingers, opened the door with an elbow, and then headed straight downstairs.
Zachary had told him that he could always outbid me. It was smart to let him know that from the get-go, but I couldn’t shake off that feeling of betrayal. I couldn’t help thinking about my ex, who always wanted to one-up me no matter what. But this wasn’t the same thing.
I was headed straight toward the bagels and donut shop.
Oh God, I didn’t want to lose out on the ranch. I’d already gotten attached to Starlight even though we’d only spent a few hours together. But I’d always been very quick to bond with animals. Once upon a time, I’d been quick to attach to people too. My ex-husband changed that. Zachary had helped me rediscover my old self. Now I was wondering if I’d made a mistake. My heart was growing heavier by the second.
Why didn’t he tell me he planned to outbid me? Of course Gaston and Felicia would go with whoever offered more. If I was faced with two investors and one would give me more money, I’d take it too. Unless they were an asshole, which Zachary wasn’t. He was a smart businessman and was going to be an asset to the ranch.
I didn’t understand why he hadn’t said a word, though. I’d been getting my hopes up for no reason. I would’ve preferred to know if I’d been out of the running all along.
There was quite a line in front of the bakery, so I had far too much time to fret over everything until my turn came.
“What can we get you today, Grace?”
“Something extra sweet.”
“That kind of day, huh? You do like chocolate and pistachio, so how about I give you one of these?” She pointed to two donuts that were beautifully glazed with both pistachio and chocolate.
“Perfect. You’re right, it is a double-glazed kind of day.”
“And double-treat kind of day,” she added on a wink, and I nodded.
That was certainly true. I was going to eat them right away, but I still let her pack them in a nice paper bag. I only resisted opening it until I stepped outside. Then I immediately dug my hand into the bag, retrieving the first donut and biting into it. Sugar usually improved my mood from the very first bite, but this time it didn’t quite work. I was still mulling over these past few weeks and all that had taken place.
Had Zachary mentioned the ranch and I missed it somehow? I did have a history of overlooking details to pretend that everything was okay. But I was certain this wasn’t the case. Things with Zachary had been different compared to my marriage. Utterly and completely different.
When my phone beeped with a message, I went straight to the nearest bench and sat down. I didn’t want to multitask and risk dropping my remaining donut. Checking the screen, I saw it was Zachary.
Zachary: What time do you want me to pick you up?
Oh, that’s right. We have a date tonight. My stomach somersaulted. I’d been looking forward to it this whole week, but now I truly wasn’t in the mood anymore.
I put a hand on my chest. Yep, that was betrayal I felt right there. No reason to pretend. I didn’t want to leave him hanging, so I typed back quickly.
Grace: I’m not in the mood for going out tonight. I heard from Gaston. Congrats.
Then I quickly sent another message.
Grace: I hope you understand.
He replied immediately.
Zachary: Sure, no worries. We’ll go out another time. I’ll go with Anthony and Beckett.
I put the phone down, biting into my second donut. After finishing it, I went back inside the bakery. I needed an additional treat, and I wasn’t even sorry about it.