“Please.” He waved his hand in front of his face. “I slept with mine dozens of times.”
“I know. Have you forgotten you’re also married?”
“So what.” He shrugged. “Do you honestly think your Aunt Lucy satisfies me? Do you actually think I want her to satisfy me? For god sakes, she’s sixty-two years old. Her parts aren’t as attractive as they used to be.”
“I think Aunt Lucy looks amazing for her age. Besides, I have plenty of woman to satisfy me. I don’t need to add my secretary in the mix and complicate things at work. Is there a reason you’re here?”
“I want to revisit the condo project in Hell’s Kitchen.”
“Uncle Roland, I told a dozen times we aren’t going through with it. It’s not financially lucrative for us. We’d lose our ass on that project and it could be years before we’d see any return on investment.”
“I know that’s what you think, but you’re wrong. I’ve done the research, I’ve presented the numbers to you and it all adds up. You’re making a mistake.”
“No, I’m not. I’m doing what’s in the best interest of my company. And taking on the Hell’s Kitchen project isn’t in our best interest.”
I could see the anger on his face as he rose from his chair.
“You’ll be sorry one day, kid. Trust me. You’re not seeing the big picture.”
He walked out of the office and I rolled my eyes. Uncle Roland had always been difficult. Not just with me, but also with my father. He was always kind of considered the black sheep of the family.
3
Everly
My eyes flew open as I quickly sat up. Shaking my head, I slipped on my robe and headed to the kitchen for a cup of coffee.
“Morning,” I said to Daniel and Diana as they sat at the table drinking coffee and eating a bagel.
“Morning.” Daniel smiled. “How did you sleep?”
“Oh. You know. The usual.”
I reached in the cabinet and pulled down a mug.
“Dreams again?” Diana asked. “By the way, there’s a bagel over there with your name on it. Asiago cheese. I know it’s your favorite.”
“Thanks. I’ll make it later.” I sighed as I poured some coffee in my mug. “To answer your question, yes. I keep having this recurring dream about this man.”
“Who is he?” Daniel asked.
“I have no idea. All I know is he’s incredibly hot.” I smiled as I sat down at the table.
“Oh-la-la. Those are the best kind of dreams.” Diana grinned and Daniel shot her a look of disapproval.
“What are you and this hot man doing?” Daniel asked with an arch in his brow.
“Standing in front of a tall glass building and watching it fall to the ground.”
“Sounds boring.” Daniel smirked.
“I’ve been having it for two weeks now. They started back in Rhode Island.”
“Do you know where this tall glass building is?” Diana asked.
“No. In my dream its dark and I can’t see anything except the building.”
“And the hot guy,” Daniel said.
“Oh shit. I have to go. I didn’t realize how late it was. I have a project meeting in twenty minutes,” Diana said as she flew out of her seat, slipped on her shoes and ran out the door.
“I love you too, honey,” Daniel shouted.
Suddenly, the door opened, and Diana popped her head inside.
“I love you too, baby,” she said as she blew him a kiss.
I couldn’t help but smile. The two of them were perfect together.
“I envy the two of you,” I said as I wrapped my hands around my warm mug.
Daniel looked at me with that sympathetic look. The same look he always gave me while growing up.
“You can have—”
“Daniel, don’t.” I interrupted him. “You know it’s not possible for me. It never has been, and it never will be. You’ve been there through all of my disastrous relationships.”
“You just haven’t found the right guy yet. The one who will understand and love you for who you are.”
“Yeah, okay,” I said as I got up from the table.
“Listen, Everly,” he said as he walked up behind me and gripped my shoulders. “It’ll happen when you least expect it. Until then, just do what you’ve been doing.”
“Sleep with guys and never see them again?” I raised my brow.
“Hey, whatever works.” He kissed my cheek. “I have to go.”
I was just ending a zoom call with one of my clients when my phone rang, and Diana was calling.
“Hello.”
“Everly, are you home?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“Can you go look on my dresser and see if my wallet is there? I just noticed it wasn’t in my purse and I’m freaking out.”
“It’s here. Do you want me to bring it to you?”
“Would you mind? If you’re busy, don’t worry about it.”
“I just ended a call with a client and I’m free for the rest of the day. Text me the address to the building and I’ll leave now. It’ll give me a good excuse to see where you work.”
“You are a godsend. Thank you. I’m sending the address as we speak.”
After slipping on my shoes, I headed down to the lobby and out the doors of the building. Thankfully, there was a cab waiting at the curb.
“Are you available?” I asked the driver.
“Sure. Climb in. Where to?”
“375 Park Avenue, please.”
When the driver pulled up to the building, I paid my fare, climbed out and stared up at the tall glass building. The same building that was always crashing down in my dreams.
“Shit,” I whispered.
When I stepped into the building, I pulled my phone from my purse to double check which floor Diana said she was on. The problem was, she only gave me the building address. Just as I was about to call her, the elevator dinged, and the doors opened. Placing my phone in my purse, I stepped inside and stared at the panel on the left-hand side.
“Well, I believe I already know which floor,” I quietly spoke to myself.
After I pushed the button to the twentieth floor and the doors began to close, a hand squeezed in between them. When they opened, I let out a gasp when I saw who the man was that stepped inside. His blue eyes stared into mine as the corners of his mouth curved upward.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t see you coming, or I would have held the doors.”
“No worries,” he spoke as he went to reach for the button to the twentieth floor. “I see we’re going to the same floor.”
I gave him a small smile as I nervously looked away.
“What business do you have there?”
“My friend works on that floor and she left her wallet at home. I’m bringing it to her.”
“You’re a good friend. May I ask who your friend is?”
“Diana Lafferty.”
“She’s one of my employees.” The corners of his mouth curved upward.
“Of course,” I spoke in a low voice.