Page 62 of Matchmaking the CEO

"Gabe was seventeen, so he moved in with my grandparents. Cade, Spencer, Colton, and I were all of age, adults. My grandparents tried to do as much damage control as possible after my father left."

"Where did he go?" I asked, confused.

"Appearances were very important to him." He sounded bitter. "As soon as this was news in his social circle, he headed off to Sydney. Nancy, the mother of my... half brothers... didn’t want anything to do with him either. She hadn’t known he was married to Mom.”

I blinked rapidly. My brain could honestly not comprehend the magnitude of this.

"Australia? That’s where he is now? And that's why you left Boston," I concluded.

He nodded. "Yes to all. I moved to New York. I didn't want anything to do with any branch of Whitley Industries."

"It's your legacy," I murmured.

"Not as far as I'm concerned. My legacy is what I’ve built myself, not anything my father touched."

“But your grandparents started the legacy, right?”

He nodded. “Yes, but that’s beside the point.”

Was it, though? He didn’t want anything to do with the Whitley name, and yet he'd come to his grandfather's aid. I wasn't sure if he cared about a legacy, but one thing was for certain: he would do anything for his family, and that made him incredibly attractive.

“At any rate, my schedule is insane while I’m here. I wake up every day at five.”

“Holy shit. I can barely wake up at seven. I need three alarm clocks.”

“I can call you in the morning if you want, make sure you’re up.”

“Hmmm... I’ll take you up on that. But back to your schedule. You know what you should do?" I said, wiggling my eyebrows.

"You'd better answer fast because otherwise my mind is coming up with all sorts of scenarios." He lowered his voice. "Sexy scenarios."

Heat pooled between my thighs. His flirty side was insanely delicious.

"You should go out to all your favorite places. Find things you like in Boston, rediscover them. Find your glimmers.”

“My what?”

“You know how people always talk about stuff that triggers them?"

"I've heard that term."

"I once read that the opposite of triggers are glimmers of hope. It can be anything that brings you joy, you know? A walk in nature, going for a run, hearing a bird sing. You should do that. I think it would help." I dropped my voice to a whisper because he was staring at my mouth intently. Oh God, if he kissed me, I’d kiss him right back. I only had so much self-restraint. But what was the point of this? Even if we would have fun together, he was probably going to go back to New York as soon as he flipped the company around. As for me, I’d go wherever the job took me.

"I'll do that, but with one condition."

"Oh, there are conditions with it?" I asked.

"Yeah." He flashed me that charming smile. "I want you to be my guide, Natalie."

I licked my lips. His blue eyes grew even darker. I shuddered. Oh my God. He wasn't even making a pass at me, and I was already melting in front of him. How could I possibly spend even more time with him?

"Hmm. I'm not sure," I murmured.

"Why not? We can even make it a work arrangement. Grandmother says you’re looking for clients. You could consider me one of them."

I took a step back. "Wait, what? You want to pay for my time? Why?"

"You need money. I’d love to have your company."

---