Page 11 of Saddles & Suits

Jack shrugs. “It made sense to me at the time.”

“Did you see the message from your brother?” Sarah interrupts. “He needs a response before you go to lunch.”

Rolling his eyes, Jack disappears back into his office, and Sarah leans forward and grabs my wrist. “Listen,” she hisses. “Be ready for him to give you a birthday present.” She holds up her hand, and her wrist sparkles. “This is what he gave me last year. He’s generous. Be prepared for that.”

Are those real diamonds? I don’t have a clue, but from the way she’s talking, they probably are.

A generous gift? Crap. Okay. What could it be? I hope not anything with diamonds.

“Thanks for the warning,” I say. “I… Do you know how generous? I mean, I thought the birthday lunch was unnecessary.”

She lifts her wrist again and shakes it.

Fuck.

Does that mean diamonds? What the hell am I going to do with diamonds?

Nah. Jack’s a smart guy. He’ll have figured out I’m not a diamond kind of person.

“Ready?” Jack comes out of the office smiling. He seems kind of excited and maybe nervous, but that smile speaks to me on many levels, and I grin back without thinking.

“Sure. But you know this isn’t necessary, right?”

“Of course it is.” Jack waves dismissively. “Birthdays are important. You can’t expect me to believe Uncle Warwick let your birthday just go uncelebrated.”

“Well…, no.” Warwick had a birthday cake policy, as in, all employee birthdays were commemorated with a cake. And after I took over the steward job and moved into the estate, there’d been a special birthday dinner and a gift too. Really, I shouldn’t be surprised Jack’s doing this. It’s been pretty clear all along that Warwick was a major influence in his life.

“So let’s go.”

ChapterEight

Jack

I handmy menu to the server with a murmured thanks and smile across the table at Seb.

I’m a little nervous. I really want Seb to like his birthday present. I also really want him to have a good time at lunch… with me. Even if it’s just an employer-employee thing.

Which means I have to get over being nervous and be good company, and the best way to stop being nervous is to eliminate the source of nerves… so I should give Seb his present now. Get it done. Then we can enjoy lunch.

And hopefully Seb will be pleased. Or thrilled. Excited. Happy.

Not appalled.

Swallowing hard, I keep my smile fixed in place and lift my glass in a toast. It’s only soda—as is Seb’s, even though I encouraged him to get whatever he wanted—but it serves the purpose. “Happy birthday,” I declare. Seb smiles, a lot more naturally than I feel like I am, and clinks his glass against mine.

“Thank you.”

We drink, then I put down my glass and reach into my jacket pocket. The envelope I pass across the table is fat, and Seb’s expression is an odd combination of curious, relieved, and apprehensive. The relief confuses me—what did he think I was going to give him?

Seb opens the envelope, slides out the papers, and glances at the first page. He blinks. Then blinks again, this time scrunching his eyes closed like he’s trying to clear his vision. He looks up at me, and his mouth is agape.

“Did you…?” He shakes his head. “Are you giving mea horse?”

I smile nervously. “Happy birthday.”

Seb shakes his head again. “I can’t… Jack, this is so generous of you. So nice. But I?—”

“Don’t say you can’t accept,” I cut in, suddenly on firmer ground. “You’ve worked tirelessly for me this past year. The estate is in great shape, and the business has never run better. I know a lot of the improvements over the past couple years have been your initiatives, and the increased profit reflects that. If you’re uncomfortable thinking of this as a birthday gift, then consider it a merit-based bonus. Although, gotta say, you need to get used to the idea of birthday gifts, because I like giving them.”

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