No Strings

He saunters out of the office with a confident swagger most couldn’t pull off, and I can’t help but notice all the women—and even some of the men—stare.

I spend the rest of the afternoon learning the ropes, and when five o’clock comes, I shoot Ben a message asking if he wants to share a cab home. We exchanged numbers the day I took Brody with me in case of an emergency, but I haven’t used it until now.

A few seconds later, a text comes through.

Ben: It’ll be late before Brody gets home, so I’ll probably stay and get some work in. Rain check?

Me: Sure. Have a good night.

When I get home, I rinse off and change into some comfy pajamas. I’m about to find a menu and order in when there’s a knock on the door. Peeking through the peephole, I see Brody and Ben on the other side, and I can’t help the butterflies that flutter in the pit of my belly as I swing open the door.

“What are you guys doing here?”

Brody steps in with Ben following. “Dad didn’t realize practice only goes until five.”

“We brought dinner,” Ben adds. “Hope you’re in the mood for tacos.”

“Um, always.”

“Perfect.” Brody grins. “I can’t wait to tell you about my day!”

We sit at the table, and Ben doles out tacos to each of us while Brody grabs us drinks.

“Did you see Sariah?” I ask, taking a bite of my delicious taco.

“I did.” He beams, chomping on his food. “I asked her out, and she said yes.”

Ben pats him on the shoulder. “That’s awesome.”

“Thanks.” Brody glances at Ben and then me. “How was your guys’ day?”

Ben goes first, telling us about his day, and my heart swells in my chest as it hits me that this is the first time I’ve experienced this—everyone coming together after a day of school and work to eat and talk and laugh. Neil and I never did this. He worked late, and I usually ate alone. My foster families had too many people, so we ate in shifts. My parents were too drugged up to even remember to feed me. But here with Ben and Brody, I imagine this is what a family does—

“Savannah, you okay?” Ben asks, shaking me from my thoughts. He and Brody are both looking at me with worry etched in their features, and it’s then I realize, without meaning to, I’ve teared up.

“Yeah, sorry.” I laugh softly, grabbing a napkin to dab at my eyes. “I’m just…” I’m thankful to have met you, I enjoy spending time with you, your company makes me feel warm inside, and for the first time in my life, I don’t feel alone. “I just had a really good day.”

Chapter Eight

Benjamin

Dad: Sorry. Headed out of town for a few days. Last-minute appointment.

I’m staring at the messenger app on my computer, confused about what emergency Dad has that would justify canceling our bi-weekly meeting for the third time. When I got a notification the meeting was canceled, I checked with his secretary. She told me it’s not on his calendar, which means it’s not related to Fields Enterprises. Something feels off, and it’s starting to grate on my nerves. My dad knows I don’t do secrets and have zero tolerance for lying. He lied about how bad off Mom was for years, and she ended up taking her own life. I won’t allow lies and secrets to worm their way into my business and destroy it from the inside out.

“Holy shit, I thought for sure when I returned, you’d be gone.”

I glance up from my dad’s cryptic message and lazily raise a hand to flip off Lucas. “I told you I’m back for good.” I click out of the messenger app. I’ll deal with my dad when he returns.

Lucas undoes the buttons of his suit jacket and drops into the seat on the other side of my desk, lacing his fingers together behind his head. “Yeah, but after almost fifteen years of you being gone, you can’t blame me for being skeptical.” He smirks, showing off his annoying two-dimpled grin that he swears is half the reason the ladies can’t deny him. The other reason, according to him, is his big dick. I can’t confirm whether it’s true, nor do I have any desire to.

“I fucked up, but I’m fixing it.”

“Good.” Lucas nods, sitting up. “It’s Tuesday… Poker night at my place, if you want to join.”

“Hell yeah, I’m in.” I always join whenever I’m in town. The weekly tradition started in high school. Our dads are good poker players and taught us how to play when we were younger. We were looking to make some extra cash—for me—and saw on a movie where some guys hosted a poker night and charged an entry fee. We took everyone for what they were worth, and so the tradition began. Every week, we would all play in Lucas’s pool house with a hundred-dollar minimum buy-in. During the years my dad was checked out, it was how I got the money to buy us food—that and Lucas would raid his pantry and fridge for anything his dad wouldn’t notice was missing. We continued to play during college until I dropped out, Paola got pregnant, and then I ran. But Lucas continued the tradition over the years. Only now, the stakes are higher since we’re all rich as fuck and have nothing better to blow our money on.