Total pages in book: 64
Estimated words: 61248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 306(@200wpm)___ 245(@250wpm)___ 204(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 306(@200wpm)___ 245(@250wpm)___ 204(@300wpm)
“That’s good. That’s what we wanted. Tell him to join us for lunch.”
“Right. Yes. I’ll do that.”
I text my father: We’re at SOL. We haven’t ordered yet. You want to join us? We’d like it if you did.
He answers right away with no hesitation: I’ll be there in five.
I set my phone down. “He’s on his way. You were right. What did you say to him?”
“Pretty much the same things I’ve said to you about him and us.”
“What about us?”
“I told him I planned on staying around, so it was going to suck to watch him do business with someone else when I believe we can make magic and money together.”
“You told my father you plan to stick around?”
“Of course, I did. I also told him what turned me around, which was him, through you. And if he wants to talk business before we leave town, I’m all for it.”
“I can leave after lunch and let you two talk. Or you can use my place, and I’ll go to the store for a while.”
“He might want to go to his offices,” he suggests. “That’s where he feels in control. I’m willing to do whatever. Let’s play it by ear.”
“Okay. I need to go meet him out front.” I lean in and kiss his cheek. “Thank you, Ethan.”
He captures my waist. “Stop thanking me. This is a win for me, too. Keep reminding him of that, baby.”
“I will,” I say, and I slide out of the booth, snatch up my phone, and rush for the door.
I’ve been outside for about three or four minutes when he shows up, and he doesn’t hesitate to pull me into a bear hug. “Congratulations, honey. I’m so proud of you.” He eases back to look at me. “Ethan told me you’re a superstar.”
“I didn’t know he was going to show up at your door. He was supposed to be waiting on me at Starbucks, and after I told him how it went when we talked, he just took off. I couldn’t stop him. Did he freak you out?”
“It was unexpected, but I respect him for wanting to look me in the eyes and share his intentions toward you more than anything. I believe he cares about you.”
“What about him wanting to invest in you?”
He scrubs a hand over his jaw before he plants both on his waist. “It’s weird having an investor and partner that’s involved with my daughter, but there are reasons I approached him. He’s known to be smart and ethical, and when I met with him, he seemed genuinely interested in our business. It just took me a bit to get out of my own head. I’m sorry I reacted so badly to your visit last night.”
“Don’t be sorry. The Ethan and me thing is unexpected and kind of shocking, even to me but, Dad, he’s from a different world, and yet he seems to think Zoey is going to erase that feeling for me.”
“He really believes in you. He made that clear, and I believe him.”
“He lost his mom, too. She wrote him journals, almost as if she knew she was going to die, but he’s not close to his dad. He seems to really understand how important you are to me. Truly, he’s pretty amazing. I’m trying not to be too scared because of who he is, and every time I start feeling scared, he’s the one who makes me feel safe.”
My dad steps closer, and his hands settle on my shoulders. “If you don’t risk your heart, you don’t find your heart. Now, let’s go inside and let me get to know Ethan. Not as an investor, as the man in my daughter’s life.”
“But you’re going to let him invest, right? He’ll be fair, Dad. He’s honest.”
“Let me and Ethan work that out. Right now, I want to celebrate your success.” He drapes his arm over my shoulder and turns me toward the door. Nerves erupt in my stomach at the idea of him and Ethan coming together for lunch, both judging each other for various reasons. Or maybe they just want to like each other, I tell myself.
Nothing is going to go wrong.
Nothing at all.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Sofia
We reach the table, and Ethan stands, shaking my father’s hand, and I don’t feel tension between them at all. Ethan is quick to flag the waiter and offer my father a drink. “I better not,” he says, holding up his hands and sliding into the booth across from us. “I’m working this afternoon. I can’t preach how we stay away from the booze but then drink booze.” He orders an iced tea.
Ethan lifts his margarita glass. “Well, sometimes I need a shot of whiskey not to kill someone, and that’s in their best interest. More often than not, that would be my brother.”