Page 26 of It's Always Been You
I scoff, mostly to keep myself from telling him the truth. Which is yes. “I mean, you were hard to avoid. The wiz kid who invented the phone that changed the world.”
“And yet, you don’t have one.”
I shrug. “I’m not much of a tech person,” I say breezily. “Besides, you never made one in pink.”
His look tells me he knows I’m full of shit, but he lets it go.
“So what are you going to do about asshole Brad and the uncle?”
I give Gabe a sly grin. “I’m going to do the thing that women in law have always done when faced with entitled, less qualified, asshole men. I’m going to kick his ass and keep my damn client. And I’m going to do it walking backward in heels.”
“Atta girl.”
I shrug. “It’s the world that RBG built, and we’re just living in it.”
“I’m proud of you, Rory. I swear I mean that in the least patronizing way possible. The life you’ve made…”
He trails off and his eyes get a little glassy. He’s silent for a second before he shakes his head.
“What you’ve built here, the family you’ve made? It’s just really special. That’s all. I wish I could have been here to watch you do it.”
The regret in his tone is a punch to the heart, and I just don’t have it in me to stay aloof. Maybe I never did. He came here for me with his heart in his hands and every instinct screams at me to offer him some reassurance.
“You’re here now.”
The gratitude in his gaze has my own eyes burning, and I change the subject before I end up in a puddle of tears on this couch. I’m not much of a crier, but this man has always been able to make me do things that are out of character.
“So, you said you needed a lawyer?”
He blows out a breath and nods.
“It’s about the sale of my new company.”
“Rory Industries,” I saw wryly.
He smiles. “Yeah. Montgomery Tech is paying me a lot for it. I don’t need the money, obviously.”
He gives me a sheepish look like he’s embarrassed by his billions. He looks so much like the eighteen-year-old boy I fell in love with that I can’t help but grin at him.
“Obviously.”
“So, I want to do something with the proceeds of the sale. I have more money than I could spend in three lifetimes. I’ve already set up trusts for my sisters, and we all have everything we could ever need.”
“So, what are you thinking?”
“I want to set up a foundation dedicated to funding initiatives for women in STEM. I don’t know what they would be or how it would work, but that’s what I want to do. My sister Amelia is one of those women in STEM. I’ve seen how much harder it’s been for her than it ever was for me, how many doors were closed to her at first just because she’s a woman. And I’ve heard the stories of some of the women who came to work for me after they had been treated terribly in other places. I want to change that, and I’m in a unique position to do it.”
I feel a swell of pride that the boy I knew grew up into such a good man. The residual sadness and grief I felt at seeing him again after all this time melts away, and what’s left in its wake is something else. I’m not sure I’m ready to explore exactly what it is yet, but it feels a lot like warmth and the exhumation of a well of feelings I’ve kept buried deep.
“I think that sounds like a great idea.”
“Yeah?” he asks, his voice tinged with relief like he’s been waiting for my opinion.
“Of course. I might not have been a coder, but I was a woman in STEM too. Or don’t you remember?”
His eyes get serious, even as he grins at me. “I remember everything about you.”
I clear my throat to push down the emotion that tries to rise at his words. “Well, it’s a great idea, but you don’t want me.You want Emma. She’s my best friend and a partner here. Her specialty is non-profits. She’s a whiz at setting up foundations and advising the people who run them.”
