Nonetheless, she was happy to have breakfast with him this morning. Before she headed off into the unknown, it would be nice to share a cup of coffee with the brother she adored and saw far too rarely.
She texted back that she’d love to see him, and he let her know he’d be there shortly. She headed down the stairs as if there were wings on her feet. Amazingly, her brother was already there by the time she made it to the nearest café.
Brandon gave her a hug. “Welcome to Vienna, Ash.”
“Thanks.” She spun in a slow circle to take in the beautiful fountain and cobblestones and old stone buildings. “I love it here already.”
Her brother grinned at her excitement, then guided them to an open table. As he motioned for a waiter to bring over menus, he said, “I knew you would love Vienna. Honestly, I can’t believe it’s taken this many years to get you out of the US.”
“You try raising a kid by yourself, and then let me know how much free time you have left over to gallivant all over the world.”
“I can’t argue with that. Although you know I’m probably going to try, just because I like being contrary.”
She laughed. “You wouldn’t be Brandon Sullivan if you didn’t.” When the waiter tried to hand her the menu, she pointed two tables over. The apple strudel the man was eating looked gorgeous. “I’ll have what he’s having. And an espresso, please.”
“Ah,” the waiter said with a smile, “our Apfelstrudel is considered the best in Vienna.”
“I can’t wait to taste it.”
Though he’d already taken her order, the waiter stared into her eyes for a few seconds. She got the sense he was flirting with her, perhaps considering asking for her number when they’d finished their breakfast?
She glanced at Brandon to see if he had noticed this too, but after telling the waiter he’d have the same thing, he proceeded to scroll through messages on his phone.
Of course her brother wouldn’t notice someone flirting with her. How could he when in his mind, she would forever be the naïve little sister who had gotten knocked up in high school?
Despite the fact that she had an eleven-year-old son, she doubted Brandon—or any of her older brothers, for that matter—realized she was now a fully grown woman. They didn’t mean to be dismissive, so she didn’t take it personally. But she sometimes wondered if they would ever look at her as a peer, rather than as the baby sister they needed to constantly watch over.
“What are you planning to see first?” Brandon asked. “I’m assuming you’ve put together a spreadsheet for your weekend in Vienna?”
Brandon knew her well enough to have guessed right. She did have a spreadsheet in her bag, with opening times for the museums and gardens she planned to visit. But suddenly, she didn’t want to be the same predictable Ashley she’d always been.
Instead of pulling out her itinerary, she waved a hand in the air. “I’m not sure where I’ll go first. I’ll just see which way the wind blows me.”
Brandon looked at her like she had lost a screw. “You are just going to go wherever the wind takes you? The woman who practically sleeps with a spreadsheet under her pillow at night?”
“That’s right, Brandon. I’m going to be totally spontaneous today.” His disbelief that she could have a nice day without pre-planning every second of it rankled. “I’m here having breakfast with you, aren’t I? That certainly wasn’t in any plan.”
He held up his hands. “No need to get bent out of shape, Ash. I guess I’m just a little worried about you because you’ve never wandered around a foreign city by yourself. I wish I could hang out with you today, but inevitably, no matter how much work goes into one of these launches, something always ends up—”
The ringing of his phone cut him off in midsentence.
“Speak of the devil, that’s an SOS call from my assistant. Which means something must have already hit the fan.”
Giving Ashley an apologetic look, he took the call. “What’s up?” The color fell from his cheeks as he listened. “I’ll be there ASAP.” He jammed the phone into his pocket and stood up, putting twenty euros on the table.
“What happened?” Ashley asked as she also stood, a little sad that she wasn’t going to get to taste Apfelstrudel just yet, but knowing it was far more important to support her brother.
“Someone who works for me must have leaked the news of my VIP guest for tomorrow night’s launch party.” Brandon looked furious as they quickly headed down the street in the direction of his newest SLVN hotel.
“Who is it?”
“Nash Hardwin. Evidently, there’s a growing crowd on the street outside the hotel, blocking traffic and making a lot of noise. The police are demanding we take care of the problem immediately.”