“Thanks.” She tips her head upward. “It’s big.” When she doesn’t make any move to walk in, Brody and I stay standing by her. He gives me an odd look, and I shrug.
“You okay?” I ask.
Her eyes dart over to me. “Yeah, just nervous, I guess.” Her Southern accent comes out heavy. “It’s intimidating. New city, new job. I guess it’s all just hitting me.” She glances around. “I was hoping to get breakfast, maybe coffee, before my meeting.” She looks at her watch. “I have some time. I wasn’t sure how long it would take to get here. Do you know of anywhere? Maybe a bit of food and caffeine will help.”
Her azure eyes meet mine, and it feels as though my breath has been knocked out of me. With her hair down in waves and a bit of makeup on her face, she’s gorgeous. But it’s the way she looks at me, with vulnerability in her eyes, that has my attention. It feels as though she’s cracked open the vault to her soul and is giving me a glimpse. She’s so open, like what you see is what you get, and I’m not used to that. In my world, people put up a wall and hide behind it, only showing what they want others to see. But with one look, it’s as if Savannah’s bared herself to the world.
“You can come with us,” Brody says first. “Dad’s house has no food, so he has to feed me anyway.”
Savannah looks at him and laughs. It’s carefree and melodic, and I know I’m fucked.
“I know of a place,” I tell her, extending my hand. She takes it, and I lead her and Brody to a deli that serves breakfast and coffee.
After we order our drinks and food, we find a small table near the window to sit at while we wait. When our number is called, Brody surprisingly offers to grab it all. He passes out everyone’s food and drinks when he gets back.
“Thank you,” Savannah says to him, handing him a napkin. “This smells delicious.”
“So, how did you two meet?” I ask them, taking a sip of my coffee.
Brody averts his gaze while Savannah shrugs. “He told me I’m hot.”
“What?” I glance at my son, who has the decency to look sheepishly at me.
“And I explained women are beautiful, not hot.” She laughs softly. “I also told him women prefer men who are educated, so he should stop skipping school.”
Brody smirks and looks at me. “And I told her my dad dropped out of college and still gets plenty of women.”
I internally groan. “I graduated high school, and I did attend college. It’s where I met your mom.”
“Yeah, but then you dropped out and bought a strip club,” he argues, making me choke on my coffee. Shit, I never realized how much kids pay attention.
“Brody,” I warn, ready to strangle him. It’s not that I’m embarrassed. I don’t own them anymore, but at the time, it was a damn good investment. After I renovated and sold them, my return on investment was fifty percent. I used that money to open Lush after paying Lucas back in full with interest.
“What?” he asks, oblivious to the problem with his word vomit. “I don’t see why it’s a big deal. My friends think it’s awesome.”
“You don’t go around telling people your dad owns strip clubs. Besides, I don’t even own them anymore.” I look at Savannah, who’s hiding her grin behind her cup of coffee, obviously amused at the direction the conversation has taken. “I own several nightclubs called Lush.”
“Oh! I’ve heard of that place. Bri mentioned it when we would talk. I’ve never been to a nightclub before, but the pictures she showed me were gorgeous.”
Before I can think about what I’m doing, I say, “We should go some time.”
Savannah’s eyes lock with mine. “That would be fun. Bri and Lucas will be back next week. We can all go.”
My phone rings, reminding me of my morning meeting that I’m late for. “We need to get going. I’ll walk you to where you need to go.”
“Is your school over here?” she asks Brody.
“Um, no.” He shakes his head, actually looking ashamed. “I got into a fight and got suspended.”
She frowns at him in concern. “You’re on quite a roll, huh?”
“I guess,” he mutters with a shrug.
“Hopefully, he’s not going to make this a habit,” I add in, glaring at my son, who makes it a point to avoid my gaze.
After we leave Savannah in the reception area of Sharp, Brody and I take the elevator upstairs to where my company’s offices are housed. I set him up at my desk to do the schoolwork he needs to have finished before returning next week and then head into my meeting.
Chapter Four
Savannah
“This will be your office,” David says, stepping into the spacious room. To the left is a large window that overlooks the city, and in the center is a beautiful mahogany desk. There’s a comfy yet elegant-looking couch in the corner with a coffee table and several rows of bookshelves lining the walls. Near the window is a small round table with four chairs, and behind it is a little nook with a Keurig machine and a mini fridge.
“This is mine?” I splutter in shock, taking it all in. When I finished filling out my paperwork, I ran into David Sharp, Brianne’s dad. He said since I was here and he wasn’t busy, he would show me around himself. After only two minutes into the tour, I quickly realized how different Sharp is from the company Neil and his dad run. For starters, Sharp is warm and inviting. The people actually seem happy to be here, and instead of shitty cubicles, everyone has their own little—or in my case, big—space.
“Of course,” David says with a genuine smile. The entire time he’s been giving me a tour, I keep looking for a hint of calculation or fakeness, but I’ve yet to see any. “You’re a vital part of this company and will be treated as such. This floor houses the finance and accounting department. We’ll hold a meeting on Monday so you can meet everyone and get brought up to speed.”
“Thank you. I can’t wait.” I step farther inside and run my fingers along the smooth top of the desk, excited to make the space my own. While I was in college, I dreamed of having my own office one day, but when I went to work for Neil, he stuck me in a small cubicle. Not only did he claim he didn’t want to play favorites, but it was also pointless because I wouldn’t be there long. Once I got pregnant, I was expected to quit and stay home with the baby. It turns out, he was right. I wasn’t there long… but it wasn’t to stay home with a baby.
After letting me know he’ll be around if I need anything, David excuses himself. I walk around the desk and slide into the comfy plush leather chair. This is mine, all mine. All those years of my parents, and then later my foster parents, telling me I’d never amount to anything only made me want to succeed and work that much harder, and it paid off. I did it. I really freaking did it. I’m a CFO.
I can’t help the squeal that escapes my lips as I spin in my chair, fist-pumping the air. When the chair swivels back to the front, I find Brody standing in the doorway with a grin splayed across his face.
“I could hear you screaming from the lobby.” He steps into my office and plops into a guest chair on the other side of my desk