Page 24 of My Dear Mr. Corporate

“It’s fine. Just wait to be acknowledged next time.”

“Um yeah, of course. I should get going.”

I nodded and turned back to Bryan who had his clothes straightened. He still looked like he had just thoroughly been kissed and on the edge of being fucked. If we didn’t get out of the office right now we would be right back at square one.

“Christ, Tate. Stop looking at me like that.” He swallowed hard and ran his fingers through his hair, trying to comb it back into some semblance of order. I didn’t bother to point out he was only making it worse. I liked his hair messed up like that especially when I was the cause of it.

“Then let’s go get lunch.”

We managed to leave the office, and I drove us to Seastruck restaurant on Fifth Avenue. It was just our luck I snagged a parking spot as a vehicle was pulling out, so we didn’t need to search for parking in the vicinity. The restaurant was designed in a rustic theme with white walls which sported abstract art and a ceiling where ropes hung. We ignored the tables on the patios to eat inside and were promptly shown to a two-seater table, next to a wall with a huge painting that I couldn’t figure out.

After going through the menu and discarding options, we ordered then made small talk until our meal appeared. I had initially called Bryan for this lunch date because I wanted to cheer him up. He tried not to show how bummed he was about not getting a job, but he wasn’t very good at hiding his emotions. I just let him think he was. Now that we were together though, I realized how much I had needed this quiet moment in a different place, not alone but still feeling like only the two of us existed in our world.

“I really needed this today,” I told him, taking a long drink from my Grey Goose vodka mix.

“Vodka?” he asked, puzzled. “Don’t you have enough at home?”

“I’m talking you. Spending some time with you.”

He pulled a face. “As if I’m not already a pain in the ass to have at home.”

“Not the kind of pain in the ass I want it to be.”

He snickered into his drink. “You sound stressed. What’s wrong?”

I thought of making a sexual joke again but pushed it aside to discuss more serious matters. “I didn’t expect it to be so stressful to check on our audit reports for the past year and catch up on the projects.”

“Do you need to? You said the company has been turning profits.”

“But at what expense?” I frowned into my drink. “So far I’ve seen all the numbers. It’s all Vaughn talks about so—”

“Vaughn?”

“The guy who walked in on us,” I answered, then grinned at his narrowed eyes. “Remember that time in the cabin when you accused me of me being jealous? How does it feel to be wearing the same shoes?”

“I’m not jealous,” he refuted, stabbing at the avocado on his plate. “I trust you.”

“Good. You’ve no reason not to.”

He pointed his fork at me. “You were saying about the company?”

“I couldn’t find any records pertaining to our community development projects nor the foundation.” This has been bothering me a little, although I chalked it down to an oversight on my uncle’s part. The file Vaughn had brought up to me had been requested to personally check out what has been happening to the charities we supported. After all the work my uncle had put in, if he had forgotten the foundation I could hardly be ungrateful. We would just need to catch up on some community development projects, ASAP. Rachel had been big on community development and had been the organizer behind the fundraising events.

I blinked as sudden inspiration hit me and I glanced at Bryan, wondering if he would be willing to take over that project.

“I’m not sure I like the way you’re looking at me,” he stated.

“It could be the answer to your problems.”

He groaned. “Don’t offer me a job, Tate. I already told you, I can’t work for your company. It just feels wrong.”

I put down my fork. “First of all, let me say that there are many businesses that are family-oriented with employees immediate family, from children to spouses. Should you come to work for me, we are not breaking any law. However, it’s not so much working for me as you would be taking over the company’s charity foundation, help us to pinpoint projects we could undertake, fundraising ideas and making these things happen.”

He paused as he chewed slowly, thinking about what I was offering. Rachel had run the foundation without payment, but she had the company’s credit card at her disposal. I could work out a form of appropriate payment for Bryan and even if he didn’t expect payment, I’d be happy to take care of him for the rest of our lives.

“I don’t think I can.”

I was disappointed in his response but not about to give up. “Don’t give me an absolute answer yet. It will probably take some time for me to figure out what’s been happening with our foundation. In the meantime, think about it. Just promise me you’ll consider it.”

“Fine. I’ll consider it but doesn’t mean I’ll accept.”

A movement to my right caught my eye and I glanced up. The half-smile on my lips froze when I saw who had just entered the restaurant and was walking toward us. At first, Keith didn’t see us. The instant he did a big grin formed on his lips and I knew trouble was coming.

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