Chapter 8—Bobby
I’m already in the car when she and Marco exit the building.
I scan her appreciatively as she walks unknowingly toward me.
Her stride is confident and steady, reminding me that I chose well for her gift.
It wasn’t a bonus, like I said. I bought them Saturday night after leaving her place as a thank-you for the meal.
But I knew she wouldn’t have accepted them so easily if I hadn’t said they were tied to the job.
The heels don’t create her exquisiteness—they accentuate it, making her legs look longer and slender, more than her tennis shoes ever did.
When I saw her in them earlier, I had a harder time than I expected covering up my laugh.
Not at her, but at the sheer joy of seeing she chooses comfort over discomfort.
The wind gusts around her, and for a second, I feel as if it’s a paid actor in the scene to make her look almost irresistible. Who am I kidding? She already is. She’s beautiful, and the more I spend time with her and learn about her, the more attractive I find her.
“Thank you, Marco.” She grins wide at him as she slides into the seat beside me. She sets her bag down and grabs her seat belt, only to jolt when she finally notices my presence. “Oh.”
Not the response I was expecting, but I’ll take it. Anything is better than “Dear God, not you.” Not that any woman has said that to me before, but even I’m man enough to admit I have some fears. Few, of course, but being rejected by this woman beside me is one of them.
“Mr. Leone—I mean Bobby. What are you doing here?” Her eyes dart to my hands that I have resting on my thighs.
My earlier threat wasn’t empty. I might not do it during office hours, but that doesn’t mean I won’t. I wasn’t even planning on saying that to her; it just spilled out of my mouth. But I wasn’t going to take it back. Not when the idea took root and played on my mind all day.
And apparently hers as well.
“This is my car, Ms. Frazzer.”
“Willow,” she corrects quickly, and from the stunned look on her face, she didn’t mean to. But I like that she did. That we’re both clearly on a first-name basis.
“Of course this is your car. I simply meant that I don’t need to take it if you need it.” She unbuckles as if to leave just as Marco gets into the driver’s seat and starts it up. He’s already pulling away from the curb before she can open the door. There’s a reason I pay him so well.
I reach across her and buckle her back in before she can move. She plasters herself to the back of the seat, and I ignore how carefully she avoids touching me.
“My plan is to escort you while you choose a program my company will pay for.”
“Oh, right. Of course.” It’s easier if she thinks this is all transactional and nothing personal. Easier from a human resources standpoint, at least.
“I also wanted to know if Lily has finished her dragon-slaying manual. She promised to work on it today.”
The growl from the front seat has us both smiling at each other.
“Well, I’ll be glad for the company. I also appreciate your supporting the after-school program for me.”
“I’ve been meaning to look into something like this for the company as it is.
” I ignore the snort from Marco up front, even if it pulls Willow’s attention for a moment.
Sure, last month, I might have fired someone because they had a sick kid—or was it a dog—who kept them home.
Last week, I was thinking about making a clause in the new hire contracts about committing to already having things in place if they accepted the position to prevent things like this.
But after one meal with her family, I’ve changed my tune.
Something my mama might be proud about too.
She never gave me advice in the business world, but she’s made it pretty obvious that she isn’t a fan of me putting work before family.
And that I keep those same expectations for those who work for me.
I’ve handled her concerns with the weekend rule, but it seems like I’m about to make a few more changes.
“We’ll see how it works with you and the girls first before I use a bigger testing group.”
“Makes sense. You wouldn’t want to dish out money without a return on investment.
Especially with how some people view work and what they feel is ‘owed’ to them.
If you just offered them free daycare without showing they could do the work to compensate for it, they might start demanding other free things, like housing and food. ”
“Exactly.” I smile softly, enjoying that we’re on the same page. I understand some people can’t do things on their own, but others can. And should. Handouts prove nothing.
“We’re here,” Marco says as he pulls up to the curb. We’re a few minutes early for when school lets out. We pull closer to the front of the building than I expected.
I like that Willow doesn’t even bat an eye that we know where her girls go to school or what time to arrive. Or I thought I did. The way she unbuckles and turns to me makes me think I’m about to get confronted.
“Before the girls come out, can you explain this?” She pulls out her phone and shows me a deposit from the company.
“I told you you’d get a bonus and back pay.”
She slides her phone into her bag and rolls her eyes at me. “Yes, you said that. But I only just submitted the hours to human resources. There’s no way payroll could have updated everything that fast.”
I shrug, which makes her eyes narrow. “Are you saying that you gave me a forty-grand bonus on top of the seventy-grand pay increase?”
I tilt my head, not sure if she’s angry. “Not enough?”
Her eyes widen at my genuine question. “Are you crazy? I was making sixty grand part-time. Over a hundred and thirty is more than enough, plus all the other benefits you’re giving me.
It’s almost too much, and I have to question if you really think it’s a wise decision.
I might be shooting myself in the foot, but I’m not sure you’re thinking about the long-term financial debt you’re giving yourself all because of me. ”
I shake my head. “That’s not how I see it.”
“How do you see it, then?”
I unbuckle my seat belt with ease and move just an inch closer so I can taste her honeysuckle scent on my tongue as I breathe her in.
“If you hadn’t caught what was going on, my company would have lost over a million dollars in revenue for this year alone.
I considered giving you the full amount you saved me, but I had a feeling that might freak you out.
I’m going to pay you fairly as someone I expect to lead the team, as well as make sure you get quarterly bonuses, comfortable shoes, and no worries about what your girls are doing while you’re continuing to save me money. ”
Her mouth has slowly dropped open with each sentence I say. She’s stunned into silence, and I resist the urge to pull her in for a kiss. Seeing movement behind her, I press my finger under her chin to close her mouth.
“School’s out.”
She just nods.
Marco, who got out a moment ago, opens her door and waits for her to exit.
She takes a moment to collect herself, or to process the full impact of what’s about to happen to her life financially now that she brought this to my attention.
But when she pulls herself together, she exits the car with grace and walks to the line to wait for her girls.
I slide across the back seat and exit as well, letting Marco shut the door as we watch from afar.
The moment I see the girls come out, I pull out my phone and check my messages.
I don’t want to spoil a moment between mother and child, nor do I want to feel as if I’m intruding on how close-knit they are.
Plus, I took off three hours early. The building won’t fall apart without me, but I prefer to still be on top of things.
“Sir.”
The way Marco speaks, his tone edged with a hint of malice, has me pocketing my phone mid-typing an email and looking up, already knowing instinctively where Willow and the girls are.
A man is talking to them, yelling at Willow based on his facial features.
He might not be loud enough to hear from here, but the body language is clear.
The fact that Lily’s hiding behind Ivy and her mother has both me and Marco moving to them quickly.
“If you can’t drop them off on time, then maybe they should stay with me during the week. I can at least guarantee that they’ll arrive when they’re supposed to.”
“I already told you, Trevor, the bus broke down. It was the first time. I’m sorry that you received a text that inconvenienced you this morning, alerting you that the girls were tardy, not absent, while you were picking out wallpaper with your wife.”
The venom in my girl’s voice has me pulling up tall. I allow the essence of what makes the Leone famiglia the ruler of the East Coast to surround me as I walk right next to her, pushing Ivy back slightly to stand behind us, along with her sister.
“Is there a problem here, Willow?”
“Who the fuck are you?” the asshole snaps.
“Trevor,” she scolds him. Not sure if it’s the cussing or his question that has her looking ready to hit him with her bag.
“I’ll ask that you not cuss with children present.”
“I can do whatever the fuck I want.” He pulls back, disgust on his face.
I nod. “True. But that also means I can as well. And so can Marco. Who is personally offended by foul language in front of impressionable kids.”
Marco doesn’t speak, but the growl coming off him is loud and clear.
I don’t see him, but I know he’s right behind the girls, ready to barrel through all of us and deal with Willow’s ex.
A man who tries hard to present himself as something of note, when in fact he’s nothing more than some country bumpkin from Tennessee.
He might have been the hotshot back there, and seems to have grabbed a young, gullible woman here who has a family name tied to the stock market, but that doesn’t excuse him still being a pissant.
Someone with very little integrity, based on the fact that he cheated on his wife after six years together just for the chance to be someone worth more than what he was born into.
He’s the type of man I absolutely detest. He clings to those who get him places. He’s a climber, of all things. Climbing corporate ladders, climbing over people, climbing to the top of whatever he thinks will make him look big and powerful.
I eat men like him for breakfast.
His eyes find Marco, and his lips pinch shut with a glare. He definitely doesn’t like being told what to do, and I find myself smiling that he can at least listen to reason.
“As for who I am, I’m Bobby Leone.” I hold my hand out and shake his.
“I’m sure you’ve heard of me.” I let the part of me I usually keep locked away—unless I need it in a corporate takedown or just while doing famiglia business—show in my eyes.
The glint of evil isn’t something I can hide, and he can see it.
I squeeze his hand harder than necessary, and my grin darkens when he flinches in pain and pulls away.
“I heard you were concerned about Willow and the girls getting to school on time?” I move my hand to Willow’s back and move a centimeter closer. The sight of us together could mean a dozen things. The only one that matters is that clearly she and the girls are under my care now.
“Yes, Trevor was deeply concerned for the girls’ education and worried they might have missed something vital by arriving fifteen minutes late today.”
Willow is either too focused on her anger to feel the undercurrent between me and Trevor, or she’s embracing it and wanting to push my own anger just a bit. Because what she just said is beyond ridiculous.
I let out a low laugh. “Seriously?” I look at her and then back to Trevor. “You’re worried about a kindergartener and a second grader missing, what? Play time?”
“It’s actually early-morning sharing.” Ivy’s voice has us all turning to look down at her.
She doesn’t look at her father but at me, and I hold her eyes with an encouraging smile as she continues.
“We just share what we did over the weekend. I wasn’t too late.
I was able to share about my project and the dinner we had. ”
I give her a quick nod before blocking her from her father once more and looking at him with a smug smile, knowing he understood we’ve seen each other over the weekend. Let his imagination fester over what that means.
“I’ve arranged transportation and after-school care for the girls going forward. You won’t need to trouble yourself in the least with them. I’ll handle it.”
His mouth drops, and I take it as my cue.
“Shall we?” I gesture for Willow and the girls to walk to the car. Willow grabs the girls hands, and I walk on the other side of Ivy to make sure he doesn’t even get a second to see her.
“Is my giant coming?” Lily looks back around but keeps walking forward as her mother leads.
“Of course,” I say as I continue to walk and not look back.
I’m not worried about what Marco might say or not.
He’ll make sure the message is clear that Trevor is not to pull this shit again.
Even if he never utters a word and just glares at the pathetic excuse of a man as he runs away.
“Did you by chance finish his instruction manual?”
“Yup. I’ll have to explain it to him because I can’t spell yet.”
“I’m sure he’ll love that.” I open the door and let the girls climb in.
They both thank me as they get in, and when it’s Willow’s turn, she turns and puts her hand on my arm. Nothing flirtatious in it, but when she squeezes my bicep, I feel her thanks. She gives me a smile that makes me feel like I just won something I didn’t know I was chasing.
Marco takes the door for me as I slide into the seat next to Willow. The girls have taken the one on the other side and are facing us.
“Your car is so cool,” Ivy says in wonder.
“Yeah, I’ve never ridden backward before.” Lily jumps up and down in her seat as Marco climbs in up front.
“Where to, sir?”
I look at Willow. “Your call.”