As I lay in his arms afterward, both of us falling asleep to the sound of rain mixed with sleet hitting the window, I had never felt so thankful for everything in my life. A very happy birthday indeed.
Chapter Sixteen
Daniel
“Mr. Crawford called a meeting for eight thirty,” Jennifer said first thing Wednesday morning.
“Oh.” I had just finished making out with Reed in the elevator on the way up and hoped like hell my lips didn’t look as swollen as they felt. “Thank you for letting me know.”
She looked around me at Reed. “I love your jacket. Denim looks amazing on you.”
“Thanks,” he said, walking past me, his hand brushing my thigh out of her sight. “Is everyone invited to the meeting or just the higher-ups?”
“Everyone,” she answered him. “Cinderella can go to the ball. Don’t worry.”
“I’m so honored.” Reed grinned before walking toward his desk.
I forced my eyes away from how delectable his ass looked in those tight pants and nodded to Jennifer. “Excuse me.”
Reed went to his desk and smiled at me from the corner of his eye. I continued to my office and shut the door. My phone buzzed with a text.
Reed: I can’t wait to climb you like a tree later.
My blood heated and my crotch got a little snug.
Me: You mean, climb me again? I lost sleep this morning because of you.
Reed: You loved it. No better way to start the day ;)
I smiled and set my phone aside before starting up the computer and checking my work email.
Reed and I had been officially dating for three weeks. Meeting his family the week before—because that’s exactly what Quinn and Brian were to him—had been a pivotal step in our relationship. It felt real now. He wasn’t just someone I was seeing in secret anymore. The people closest to us knew too.
My mom had invited us to her house that coming weekend so she and Regina could finally meet him. Well, as my boyfriend anyway. My mom had seen him from a distance before. To say I was nervous was an understatement. More like terrified. But I was excited too.
I never thought I’d meet someone who made my heart sing again.
Around eight twenty, I finished a phone conference with a client and left my office. Reed was typing away at his computer, completely absorbed in his work.
“Ready to go to the meeting?” I asked.
His head shot up, and a smile shortly followed. “Are you asking me to the ball, Prince Charming?”
I rolled my eyes and motioned toward the hall. “Your pumpkin carriage awaits.”
“Hey.” Reed stood from his desk and walked to my side. “I thought you didn’t know Cinderella.”
“I don’t,” I said, giving him a blank stare. It was hard, though. He looked too damn adorable.
Before I could do something stupid—like pull him to me and kiss him right there in front of god and everybody—I headed down the hallway. He fell into step behind me, whistling under his breath. Like a little bird. Once in the conference room, I took a seat at the end of the table, and Reed planted himself in a lonely chair by the wall out of the way of everyone.
I glanced at him over my shoulder, and he softly smiled before looking out the window. It was another cloudy day, but dry at least. No rain or snow in the forecast for the next week. An early spring was expected. Funny how the ice inside me had thawed like the ice outside, making way for something warm. Bright.
And I was fucking terrified that warmth would be taken from me.
“I wonder what this is about,” Jennifer said, sitting beside me. “Crawford acted like it was urgent.”
My gut coiled. Had someone caught on to me and Reed? Was this some kind of come-to-Jesus meeting where we’d be called out in front of the whole office?
No. Crawford wouldn’t do that. He’d handle it in private.
I hope so anyway.
Fuck.
“Whatever it is must be important,” I responded, doing my best to sound impassive. “It’s not in his character to call spontaneous meetings.”
Right as the clock struck eight thirty, Crawford ambled into the room with a coffee in one hand and took his place at the head of the conference table. Instead of sitting, though, he remained standing. His caterpillar eyebrows hadn’t been tamed since the last time I’d seen him. In fact, they looked even more feral.
“Good morning,” Crawford said, resting a hand on the back of the chair. He seemed more upbeat than usual. “This won’t take long. I’ll send out an official email later today, but I wanted to speak to you all personally before I announced it publicly.” He paused to take a drink of coffee. Knowing him, he’d done it intentionally to build more suspense. “Welp. Guess I better get to it. I’m retiring at the end of this month.”
The news was surprising. I’d had it in my head that Crawford would never leave. Judging from the faces of everyone else around the table, they had thought the same.
“It’s been a true honor to work for this company for as long as I have,” Crawford continued. “I was here when the office was in a one-story building with only one working toilet and seven employees. The ceiling leaked, and it was all we could do to keep the lights on. We worked day and night to get this business running. Building it from the ground up. Now look at it.” He smiled and his eyes misted over. “But the missus and I have decided we want to travel and enjoy our retirement. I’ve worked every day since the day I turned fifteen. I’m ready to see what else is out there. As much as I’m going to miss being here, I know you’ll all be in good hands.” He set his eyes on me. “Which is why I’m going to ask Daniel Sawyer to take my place as president.”
All eyes shifted to me, and the back of my neck prickled. I… didn’t see that one coming. For so long I’d thought he hated me.
“I’ll be having a retirement party on the twenty-seventh,” Crawford said. “It’s my hope that Mr. Sawyer will accept my offer by then.”
The meeting ended, and people shook Crawford’s hand and congratulated me before heading back to their offices and cubicles. I approached him once he was alone again.
“Sorry to spring that on you in front of everyone, Sawyer.” Crawford shook my hand and clapped me on the shoulder with his other. “But I meant every word. I know I’ve given you a hard time lately, but it’s because I’ve known for a few months now that I wanted you as my replacement. You’re young, but you’re resilient. You have great ideas. Ideas that I believe will push this company to be even greater.”
“Thank you, sir.” I wasn’t used to flattery, especially from him. I felt like I was in an episode of The Twilight Zone.
“No need to give me an answer today,” he said. “But I expect one soon. It’s a real opportunity I’m giving you here.”
“Indeed, it is.” I nodded and left the conference room in a sort of daze, my stomach twisting with anxiety.
How could Reed and I ever go public with our relationship now? If I accepted the president of marketing position, HR would definitely have one or two things to say about me dating an employee.
What the fuck am I going to do?
Reed was waiting for me in my office when I got back. I walked through the door, and he locked it behind me. I turned to him, narrowing my eyes suspiciously.