Chapter 10
Remy
I’ve worked with the Jacobs triplets for only two months now, and I certainly don’t think I belong at their family gatherings. But when Sadie Jacobs calls personally to request your presence for a Sunday meal—not ask, request—you don’t say no.
The triplets picked me up this morning, all three of them dressed casually in jeans and button-downs, looking more relaxed than I’ve ever seen them at the office.
Sadie’s estate sits on twenty acres. Joshua navigates the winding driveway while I try not to gawk at the manicured gardens.
“Relax.” Breck turns to look at me from the captain’s seat. “Gran doesn’t bite. Much.”
Ansel sits beside me and places his hand on my knee. “Breck’s right. You need to relax. Gran is the one who insisted that we hire you. She likes you. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have invited you.” His palm is warm through the fabric of my jeans, and his fingers tighten slightly.
Then, I watch his jaw clench as he realizes what he’s done. Ansel’s eyes meet mine for a charged moment before he pulls his hand away and clears his throat.
Great. Now I’m worked up for a completely different reason. Meeting the grandmother who raised three billionaires, while also trying to ignore the fact that a seemingly casual touch was anything but casual.
This is fine. I’m fine. Everything is fine.
Enzo smirks from the other captain’s seat, clearly missing what just transpired. “You’ve survived worse. You can handle a seventy-eight-year-old woman.”
My fingers fidget with my seatbelt strap. “But she’s not just any seventy-eight-year-old woman. She’s a woman who still terrifies three billionaires that she raised.”
“That’s true,” all three say in unison.
Great. So I’m right to be terrified.
Joshua pulls up to the front entrance. Sadie steps out before we’ve even parked, wearing tailored slacks and a cashmere sweater.
The triplets pile out, and I watch as each of them hugs her—these powerful men transforming into boys the moment they’re in her presence.
“There are my troublemakers.” She holds Ansel’s face between her hands, studying him. “You’re working too hard. I can see it.”
“I’m fine, Gran.”
She releases him and turns to me. “Remy, thank you for coming.” She pulls me into a hug that’s both gentle and fierce, and the moment makes me feel like I’ve known Sadie my whole life.
“Thank you for having me, Mrs. Jacobs.”
She links her arm through mine, already leading me toward the house. “Sadie, please. Mrs. Jacobs was my mother-in-law, and she was a terror. Come, I want to hear everything about how you’re managing these three.”
The interior is elegant but lived-in. Family photos cover every surface: the triplets at various ages, a couple I assume are their parents, and candid shots that speak of love and laughter.
Sadie leads us to a sunroom overlooking the gardens. A table is already set with tea and pastries that smell like heaven.
She gestures to the cushioned chairs. “Sit, sit, Remy. Tea or coffee?”
“Coffee, please. Black.”
She pours from a silver pot. “A woman after my own heart. The boys all take theirs with cream and sugar, like children.”
I smile at her quip. I already adore this woman.
“We were children when you taught us to drink coffee.” Breck waves a hand dismissively. “We were fourteen.”
“Old enough to know better.” She hands me a cup, then settles into her chair. “So, Remy. Tell me how you’re finding Jacobs Security.”
The guys walk away, giving Sadie and me some time to speak privately.
“Challenging. Rewarding.” I take a sip. The coffee is perfect. “Your grandsons run a tight ship.”
“They’d better. I didn’t raise them to be mediocre.” She studies me over her cup. “But that’s not what I asked. I want to know how you’re doing. Really.”
The question catches me off guard. “I’m good. Better than I’ve been in a long time, actually.”
Sadie’s smile is knowing. “Good. You’ve been through a difficult period. The boys told me about Damon’s behavior.”
My cheeks burn. “I’m sorry about that. I never meant to bring drama to the company.”
“Stop.” She’s gentle but firm. “Damon’s behavior is his responsibility, not yours. And my grandsons are more than capable of handling him.” She glances at the triplets, who are engaged in some private conversation by the window.
Enzo looks over at that moment, catching my eye. A flash of Montana passes between us, and I remember waking up in his arms, before I look away.
Sadie doesn’t miss it. Her eyes sharpen. “Tell me, Remy. What do you know about these three when they were young?”
“Not much. I know they started building the company their dad left behind before he died.”
“Hmm. So just the information that’s available publicly.” Sadie leans back in her chair, eyes distant with memory. “Did they tell you about the time they tried to hack into the school’s grading system?”
Ansel’s warning comes from across the room. “Gran—”
I smirk. So, they are not only focused on their private conversation.
Ears like hawks, this family.
“Oh, hush. Remy should know what she’s working with.” Sadie’s smile turns mischievous. “They were sixteen. Ansel convinced his brothers it was to ‘test the security,’ but really, they wanted to change Enzo’s chemistry grade.”
“The teacher gave me a completely unacceptable grade,” Enzo mutters from his spot by the window.
“You blew up half the lab,” Breck reminds him.
Blew up the lab? I have questions.
“It was a controlled explosion.”
I laugh, trying to picture these polished executives as teenage troublemakers. “What happened?”
Sadie shakes her head. “They got caught, of course. Ansel took full responsibility and said it was his idea. Enzo insisted he’d done it alone. And Breck tried to charm the principal into forgetting the whole thing.”
“Did it work?” I ask.
“Not even a little.” She looks at them with affection.
“Shocking!” I interject, and Sadie laughs before continuing.
“They spent the rest of the semester in detention, writing code for the school’s new security system.” She looks at them with obvious affection.
The stories continue—the time they built a robot that accidentally terrorized the neighbor’s cat, when they convinced their grandmother to invest in their company with her retirement savings, and how they turned their grandmother’s garage into a server farm at fifteen.
Sadie’s expression shifts, growing more serious. “Their parents would be so proud. Michael and Connie. They were brilliant, both of them. Michael was the dreamer, always two steps ahead of everyone else. Connie kept him grounded and made sure his dreams had solid foundations.”
I glance at the triplets. They’ve gone quiet, listening.
Sadie continues, her hands tightening on her cup. “They died when the boys were fourteen. A drunk driver hit them head-on on their way home from a conference.”
My lungs constrict. “I’m so sorry.”
“It was the worst day of our lives.” Sadie stares into her cup. “One moment, I was a grandmother who spoiled these three on weekends. The next, I was raising teenage boys who’d lost everything.”
Ansel moves closer, sitting in the chair beside his grandmother. His hand covers hers briefly.
“They saved me as much as I saved them.” Sadie’s response is quiet. “After I lost my son, having them here gave me purpose. And watching them build what their father started…” She looks at each of them in turn. “Michael would be beside himself with pride.”
The room falls silent. I watch the triplets, seeing them differently now. Ansel carries the weight of being responsible. Enzo’s intensity covers deeper pain, and Breck masks all of his true feelings with charisma. They learned early that the people you love can disappear in an instant.
Sadie clears her throat, breaking the moment. “But enough melancholy. I didn’t invite Remy here to make her sad.” She turns to me with a calculating gaze. “I wanted to get to know the woman who has my grandsons so thoroughly distracted.”
Breck straightens in his chair. “Gran.”
“Oh, please. I’ve known you three for your entire lives. Did you think I wouldn’t notice?” She looks between them and me, amused.
My face flames. “Sadie, it’s not like that. We just work really well together.”
She pats my hand. “Don’t be embarrassed. It’s rather sweet, actually. I haven’t seen them this invested in anything outside of work in years.”
I don’t know how to respond to that. Apparently, the triplets don’t, either, because not one of them says anything.
A few hours later, after a meal filled with more stories and laughter, Ansel stands and checks his watch. “We should probably head out. We have a long drive back to the city.”
Sadie walks us to the door, hugging each of her grandsons before turning to me.
She cups my face the same way she did with Ansel earlier, her eyes searching mine.
“You’re good for them, Remy. Don’t let anyone—including yourself—convince you otherwise.
” Before I can respond, she releases me and steps back.
“Now go. Enjoy the rest of your evening.”
We’re halfway down the front steps when she calls after us.
Sadie’s eyes twinkle. “Take her for ice cream on the way. There’s a place in town that serves the most incredible salted caramel.”
Fifteen minutes later, we’re standing in an ice cream shop that looks like it hasn’t changed since the nineties. I’m holding a cone of salted caramel that is, indeed, incredible, while the triplets crowd around a table with their own choices.
“I guess I didn’t have a reason to be nervous. Your grandmother isn’t terrifying at all.” I lick melted ice cream from my thumb. “She’s really wonderful.”
“She likes you,” says Enzo. “If she didn’t, you’d know.”
“How?”
“She’d be icily polite. Ask pointed questions about your intentions. Make you feel like you’re being interviewed for a position you didn’t apply for.” Breck grins. “The fact that she told embarrassing stories means you’re family now.”
Damon always made me feel like I had to earn my place. But these people? They just... made room for me. Like I was already supposed to be here.