Chapter 5
CHAPTER FIVE
Honesty had been poring over the internet to find answers but she’d only found more questions.
It’d been two days since the photos of her and Dante had surfaced. In that time she had lost the “Cinderella” moniker. She was now being referred to as “Crane’s charity case.”
Which was so much worse.
Once word was out about Honesty’s identity, one of her clients had called her private line. The founder of an all-natural, vegan, animal-friendly makeup brand wanted a seat on Honesty’s charity board.
“What’s the name of your charity again?” she had asked.
Honesty had clumsily recited what Dante had said about not being able to share because of trademark issues. She hadn’t had the heart to tell Beatrice Banks that the board she wanted to be a part of didn’t exist yet.
Since then she had researched how to create a board and accept donations, and then that had taken her down a tax rabbit hole, which was far less interesting than the one that took Alice to Wonderland.
After reading for what felt like hours, her eyes had crossed. Her overwhelm had kicked into overdrive after reading articles on year-one operating budgets, seed funding versus multi-year commitments, and compliance and scalability.
Sob.
“I am freaking out. The luncheon with Beatrice is the day after tomorrow and I have nothing,” Honesty, her fingers nested in her hair, admitted to Gabby via videophone. Thank God Gabby was a night owl and had been willing to hop on a call when she’d received Honesty’s desperate text.
“Okay. Don’t panic.” Gabby was holding her cell phone way too close to her face as she paced her apartment. “Just because we don’t know what half of those things are doesn’t mean we can’t find out. I can ask ChatAI.”
“I think this is well beyond ChatAI’s skillset.”
“Maybe you don’t need answers. Dante cleaned house at that event and he knows almost nothing about what you do.”
“Dante is a professional.”
“A professional what? Does he charge by the hour?” Gabby waggled her eyebrows before laughing at her own joke. “You should ask him for help. Maybe he’d sit in with Beatrice and you. He could run interference.”
“I need to learn to do this myself. He isn’t going to stick around to bail me out in the future.” That hit a bit too close to home. He hadn’t stuck around when it would have mattered most.
“The internet already believes you’re working together—possibly more. Beatrice won’t think a thing of him sitting next to you. That handsome mug of his couldn’t hurt your chances at a monetary donation. If you two could throw in some hand-holding or a cheek-kiss here and there, you could—”
“Gabby, Dante and I used to date.”
Gabby was speechless. A first.
“In college. It was a long time ago.”
“I’m coming over. Do you want tacos or pasta?” Gabby had asked the same question when Honesty’s brother had been gone a month. It’d been Gabby who’d shown up, bags of food in hand, to help Honesty eat her feelings.
“Tacos.”
“Excellent choice.”
Forty minutes later, they had closed the lids on three foam takeout containers, only leaving the bag of chips and the bowl of white queso cheese open to snack on.
“Tell me everything,” Gabby said as she dragged a fat, salty chip through the cheese. “Where did you meet a billionaire?”
“A coffee shop.” Honesty brushed the excess salt off a chip. “I was talking to my friend about how expensive the lattes were, and I said, ‘you have to be a billionaire to afford one.’ Dante was in line behind me.”
“What did he say?”
Honesty lowered her voice to impersonate him. “‘In that case, your order’s on me.’”
“Stop! Did you believe him?” Gabby had hearts in her eyes.
“No, but it also wasn’t true then. Dante’s father had the net worth. Dante is probably worth at least a billion now.”
“Cranes, am I right?” Gabby quirked her lips. “How did it end?”
“He dropped out of college when his mom’s father died. Then he became a world-famous philanthropist.”
“He chose money over love.” The twinkle in Gabby’s eyes flickered out. “Men are jerks.”
“He invited me to go with him, but I knew California wasn’t the right move for me.”
“We never would have met.” Gabby put her hand on her chest, her expression pained.
“Which would have been a real tragedy.” Honesty crumbled the napkin in her hand and threw it onto the table. “Anyway, that was forever ago.”
“Well, since you two are reacquainted, and able to tolerate each other in public, I suggest you use the luncheon with Beatrice as an excuse to ask for his help.”
She opened her mouth to argue.
“I know. It took everything in you to hire me. But look what an asset I’ve been!” Gabby fluttered her eyelashes. “I was the one who suggested hiring contract employees. I’m a genius!”
“You are that.” Honesty had footed the bill for every expansion made, and each one had paid off. It had been from that hubris that the charity idea had sprouted.
“Do you have his number?”
“I have his business card, and there’s a number on it.
” Whether or not it was his private number remained to be seen.
Honesty moved a container on her tiny dining table and found the clutch she’d carried at the event.
She still hadn’t unpacked it. She handed over the card, “You might get his assistant.”
“Ohh, nice card stock.” Gabby tucked the card into her own purse. “What we need is a schmoozer. An elegant, knowledgeable smooth-talker. I mean, you’re a good talker, and God knows I’m an amazing talker…”
Honesty laughed at Gabby’s confidence—it was one of things she loved most about her, and why she’d hired her.
“…but neither of us know what the hell we’re talking about with this stuff. And Dante’s had years of experience.”
She wasn’t wrong.
“I have to know one thing…” Gabby dipped her chin, giving Honesty a meaningful look. “Was he as good as I am guessing he was at…you know? The other stuff?”
Maybe it was because she was full of tacos, or because Honesty knew Gabby was a safe space, but she answered with the truth. “Better.”
Dante was exiting the Crane Hotel the next morning with a cup of coffee in hand. He was bound for J’s apartment, though he’d have to lie and tell her he hadn’t had coffee yet. She’d invited him over for coffee and croissants, and she wouldn’t like that he’d “cheated.”
Surprisingly, and in spite of the interrogation at dinner the other night, he was enjoying being close to his siblings again.
He had pulled on a pair of joggers and sneakers, a moisture-wicking shirt, and a jacket since clouds hung low in the sky. He’d opted to walk the fifteen blocks between the Crane and J’s apartment. It gave him an excuse to clock some steps.
His assistant called as he was tossing his empty coffee cup into a city trashcan. “Hello, Jennifer.”
“I had an interesting request come in,” she said, bypassing a greeting as per her usual. “I promised to reach out but couldn’t guarantee that you’d be free. You are, by the way.”
“Okay…”
“Her name is Gabriela, and she manages Honest Nutrition for Honesty Benitez. The woman you were photographed with at the Refurbs event.”
As if he could have forgotten.
“Ms. Benitez would like to talk to you about her own nonprofit and wondered if you’d be available. I let her know that typically there was a consulting fee, but in this case you might make an exception.”
Jennifer’s voice was neutral and professional. Dante suspected that she knew there was more going on than shared interests in non-profit organizations between him and Honesty.
“No need for a consulting fee in this case. Did Ms. Benitez leave her direct number?”
“Yes. I can text it to you if you’d prefer to make the appointment yourself.”
“That would be best. Thanks.”
She ended the call without a goodbye.
He’d been considering reaching out to Honesty while he was in town, but she’d called him. Under the guise of asking for his help. Though it might not have been a guise.
There were a lot of confusing ins and outs when starting in the nonprofit sector. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t looking forward to seeing her again. Even though pursuing her was the worst idea ever, he was going to shoot his shot.
A text message pinged from Jennifer. Honesty’s number was now in his phone. Before he thought better of it, he pressed the digits and sent the call through. She picked up on the second ring.
“Honesty Benitez, may I help you?”
“Dante Crane. Your assistant called mine.”
“Oh. Oh, hi. Dante. Yes, she did. I have been so, so busy.”
He smiled to himself. “Where are you?”
“I’m at the office. Where are you?”
“State Street. How close am I to you right now?”
“A car ride, I’m afraid. I’m not downtown downtown. I can meet you for coffee or drinks depending on your schedule. It has to be today. I have a luncheon tomorrow with a woman who wants to ask me a lot of complicated questions.”
“Drinks at seven?”
“I’ll take it.”
“It’s a date.” His schedule was fairly open today, but he didn’t want to risk being interrupted when he sat down with her. “What questions does she have?”
“Oh, you know. She might want to sit on my board. Which I don’t have. And she asked about sponsoring events each year, which I also don’t have planned.”
“Don’t sweat it.”
“Seven o’clock.” She rattled off the name of the bar and thanked him.
“See you there.”
He wasn’t the kind of guy whose hopes were raised easily, but he did notice his steps were lighter as he finished his trek to Jaylyn’s.