Grumpy Boss

He stood for another moment staring at them hard, then left the podium.

The room erupted. Reporters shouted at him. Modesto stood and left, his face pale. Lady Fluke looked at me, not moving, her face pulled into a frown—and for her, she might as well have been weeping. I nodded at her and followed Rees, back into the small staging area where Flora congratulated him, and beyond, through the back door and into the hallway.

He leaned against the wall and looked at the ceiling. I stood next to him and took his hand, gripping it tight in both of mine. “How do you think that went?” I asked.

He closed his eyes and for a moment I was afraid we were finished—but he looked at me and grinned. “I think it’s going to be the biggest god damn public offering ever.”

I laughed and kissed him, and he hugged me. “You should’ve seen them,” I said. “After you left, they were freaking out.”

“Good. Let them go wild. They’ll write stories, and I guarantee we’ll double our investors overnight.” He kissed me and held it there, and I kissed him back, heart flipping in my chest, hands tingling with nerve and need and desire. He broke the kiss off and stared into my eyes and I grinned at him.

“That was a long, long road, you know,” I said. “And it’s only been, what, a month?”

“I love you,” he said.

And my jaw fell open. I blinked, stared at him, words jumbled in my throat like a choke, and I stood there for a moment, unable to think, completely shocked into nothingness—until I kissed him again, throwing myself into his arms.

“I love you too,” I said, grinning stupidly, and he laughed, hugging me close to his chest. I stayed there and thought about the world outside this room, and none of it mattered anymore—not the bar, not Rees’s enemies, not the company, nothing.

I’d take that test and I knew I’d pass it. And soon I’d have enough money to take care of Grandmom for as long as she lives, with so much more to spare.

And most important, I’d have my Rees, my man, the first person to give me a sense of myself, to make me feel confident instead of worn down, to make me glow.

He was my fire and my beacon.

24

Millie

Two Years Later

Grandmom looked at me over a newspaper and beamed. “You know how many men wake up early and cook breakfast for their wife?” she asked.

“I’m going to guess none,” I said.

“None,” Grandmom agrees, and tapped her finger on the table. “Rees is a keeper. I’ve been saying it since you brought him home.”

“I know,” I said, grinning at her.

“And I’ve known a lot of men in my day. He’s a keeper, all right. Mark my word.” She nodded and shook the paper, still smiling.

I leaned back in the small breakfast nook and glanced across the kitchen toward where Rees cleaned up from cooking. We did this most mornings, like clockwork: Grandmom was up by six, and we went over to her in-law suite, which was really most of the townhouse next door. Rees cooked her breakfast, and I did the crossword, while she read the news. And every morning, she’d gush about how good Rees was to her.

And I never got tired of it.

Rees came over and kissed my cheek. “You ladies done?” he asked.

“Yes, sir,” Grandmom said. “You’re a good boy, you know that?”

“I try,” Rees said, and cleared our plates. I got up and followed him to the sink where he rinsed them off and put them into the dishwasher.

“I appreciate you doing this, you know,” I said, leaning against the island. I spoke quietly, so Grandmom couldn’t hear—although I probably could’ve yelled. She only seemed to have ears for Rees these days.

“And I appreciate you,” he said. “Your grandmom’s had a tough go of it. If I can make her last years comfortable and pampered, then I’m going to.”

I kissed him, holding there for a little longer than I should’ve, but I couldn’t help myself. Two years together, and the fire hadn’t dimmed, not even a little bit.

After his SPAC went public, the price skyrocketed. It was the most successful launch in years, though not the best ever, but in the top ten. Alec ended up picking a biotech company that was working on special tools to help fix aneurysms, and it ended up going wild when they came out with a product that was cheap and twice as effective as anything else. Rees liked to brag that he got filthy rich—even though he already was—and saved lived in the process.

I passed my bar three months after the press conference, and went to work for a big firm. I lasted another three months there, before quitting, and opened up a private practice.