No Strings

“You’re going to be great. But remember it’s your first day, so you’ll probably be a little overwhelmed, and if you’re not great today, it’s okay.”

His words relax me slightly. “Thank you.”

The moment I step off the elevator, I’m met by David, who greets me with a smile. We spend the first part of the morning going over my job in detail as well as the expectations, and the second half is spent in what he calls the Monday morning meeting. Apparently, once I get the hang of things, I’ll be running it for the accounting department. Everyone is warm and welcoming, and the morning flies by. Before I know it, it’s after noon, I’m in my office running numbers, and my stomach is rumbling.

I’m about to ask Florence, the accounting department’s secretary, if she knows of anywhere good to eat when there’s a knock on my open door.

I glance up and find Ben standing in the doorway with a brown bag dangling from his fingers. My stomach tightens, but I push the feeling away. “Figured you might be hungry,” he says with a small smile. “I brought Greek.”

“I was just about to attempt to find somewhere to eat,” I tell him, standing to greet him.

“Whenever I get busy with work, I forget to eat.” He walks over to the table and sets the food down. “How’s it going?”

“Really good.” I sit while he dishes out the food. It all smells delicious and has my belly growling in want. “I was a little worried because the company I used to work at was owned by my ex-father-in-law and ex-husband, and both of them were horrible, and then the other day when I ran into your meeting…”

He chuckles. “So, you were scared every company comes with an egotistical, cold-hearted asshole?”

I shrug. “If it’s worth anything, you’re different outside of your boardroom.”

He nods. “I’m not always like that. I was having a bad moment. I bought my team breakfast this morning to apologize.” He pops open a can of sweet tea and hands it to me. “So, you were married?”

“Yeah. Stupid decision on my part. We’re divorced now. It’s the reason I moved here. For a fresh start.”

“Savannah, I’m going to grab—” David pokes his head in, and when he sees Ben, he stops his train of thought and grins. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you had a lunch date.” He steps in, and Ben stands to shake David’s hand, but he’s pulled into a hug instead. “I heard you were back.”

“I am. It’s good to see you.”

“You, too. How’s your dad? I haven’t seen him at the club lately, and he’s missed the past few men’s nights.”

Benjamin frowns. “Really? He wasn’t with you this weekend?”

David’s brow furrows. “No… Did he say he was?”

“I must’ve misunderstood him,” Ben mutters, but his tone conveys something is wrong.

“I’m leaving on a business trip tomorrow, but when I get back, we’ll have to do dinner.”

“Sounds good,” Ben says. “I’m sure Brody will love to see you.”

David laughs. “That’s right. I heard from Lucas he’s living with you. How’s he doing?”

“He is.” Ben’s face lights up. “He’s doing better. Was going through a rough patch, but I think we’re getting through it.” His eyes land on mine, and the corners of his lips spread into a sexy smile, making my heart beat faster.

“Good, good. I’m sure he’s no worse than you and Lucas were at his age.” David chuckles and glances at me. “It was a full-time job just to keep those boys out of trouble and in school.” He clasps his hand on Ben’s shoulder. “I’ll let you two eat your lunch. I wanted to make sure Savannah was settling in okay and taking a break for lunch. But I can see she’s in good hands.” He turns his attention to me. “In case I don’t see you before you leave today, Lucas and Brianne will be back in tomorrow, as I’m sure you know, so if you need anything while I’m gone, let them know.”

“Thank you,” I tell him. “Have a good trip.”

Once he’s gone, Benjamin and I continue our lunch, but he feels off, sort of distant. He’s not rude, but his mind is clearly elsewhere. When his phone goes off with a text, he doesn’t even notice until I point it out to him.

“It’s Brody,” he says. “The football coach invited him to join the team for practice after school, so he wants to know if he can stay.”

“That’s good. He said he wanted to play, and if I recall, participation requires good grades.”

He nods absently, typing on his phone. “Yeah. I told him he could.” He collects the trash and shoves it into the bag.

“Thank you again for lunch,” I tell him as I walk him to the door.

“You’re welcome. Enjoy the rest of your day.”